UUP Leader welcomes new political era but points out hypocrisy of Paisley
Ulster Unionist Party Leader Sir Reg Empey, responding to Dr Paisley’s radio interview and meeting with Irish Premier Bertie Ahern in Dublin, said in a statement today,
“The changes made to the Irish Constitution negotiated in 1998 by the Ulster Unionist Party have enabled Dr Paisley to meet with Bertie Ahern. Sadly, and at the time, we got no credit for it and were abused for our efforts by the DUP.
The realities of the situation have now dawned on the DUP although for Dr Paisley to admit on the radio that he was ultimately blackmailed and succumbed to that blackmail is an admission that will shock many people. Some might say that this sounds like pushover unionism.
We welcome some of the comments made by Dr Paisley, but perhaps wrongly, we assumed they represented what was in the best interests of the people of Northern Ireland rather than comments given under duress.
Our collective task now is to ensure that we deliver the return of devolution for all of us in the community. The UUP will do all in its power to make devolution a success. However, while we welcome the ushering in of a new political era in Northern Ireland, we feel more than entitled to point out the considerable level of hypocrisy coming from the DUP over recent days.”