The People want Stormont to Work says Empey as election draws to a close
Ulster Unionist Party Leader Sir Reg Empey. speaking as the last few days of the election campaign were drawing to a close, spoke of his hope for a devolved government on March 26th.
In a statement Sir Reg said,
“This entire election campaign - every manifesto, every policy statement, every article in newspapers by any party - means nothing, absolutely nothing, without devolution. This is the clear and unambiguous message that I and others in my party have been getting at the doorsteps up and down the country.
This election is about taking responsibility. It’s about ensuring that the people of Northern Ireland are no longer spectators in their own country.
That’s our core message - we want normal politics here to work. That means an end to Direct Rule politics. That means forcing change, and creating and supporting policies which are good for all of us.
But it’s no good talking about progress if you won’t say how you’re going to deliver it.
The DUP cannot tell the people about their way forward. On the one hand we hear grand words about the need for a strong Stormont and what Ministries they would take. But when it comes to delivering on those words, what do we hear? The silence is deafening. They cannot say with absolute clarity that they will go into government or else they will split. At the outset I said that it was the DUPs intention to slither through this election without committing to anything.
The people of Northern Ireland deserve better than such confusion and dithering. The people want local politicians to work together in opposing water charges, in fighting their corner for a better health service, in giving them the right to choose how their children are educated, in how their taxes are spent. They want accountable politicians.
With the Ulster Unionist Party there are no excuses, ambiguity or confusion. The people of Northern Ireland know where we stand - we intend to take those seats in the Executive to which we are entitled on March 26th.
A Paisley-McGuinness ticket is no solution. How on earth can two parties that refuse to speak to each other be expected to work together for the people of Northern Ireland? It would lead to endless stalemate. It would also be the perfect excuse that hardline Republicans have spent decades trying to prove: that politics in Northern Ireland can never work and joint authority is the only way forward. This is a very real prospect and the Union itself could be under threat if we don’t grasp the opportunity to make Stormont work – and we’re committed to grasping it before the opportunity is lost. For all of Us.”