He denies the DUP's insistence on all judicial powers being removed from OFMDFM is of recent origin, pretending this has always been their stance. Well, if it was always DUP policy to remove these powers from OFMDFM, why did they not raise the issue during the Assembly and Executive Review Committee's inquiry into the devolution of policing and justice? Mr McCausland is in an ideal position to provide an answer to this perplexing question, because he sat on the said committee.

Strangely, in all of the contributions from Mr McCausland and his party colleagues (Jeffrey Donaldson, George Robinson and Ian McCrea) the issue of OFMDFM's role in judicial appointments was never raised once. Why?

Indeed, far from seeking to remove these powers from Martin McGuinness, there was agreement by all committee members (including Mr McCausland) that "preparations for the appointment of an Attorney General for Northern Ireland should be taken forward by the First and Deputy First Minister before the devolution of policing and justice matters" (Recommendation 21) and that "a protocol should be put in place between the Judicial Appointments Commission and the Office of the First Minister and Deputy First Minister regarding judicial appointments" (Recommendation 37).

I welcome Mr McCausland's belated recognition that Mr McGuinness is unfit to have a role in the appointment of our judiciary. However, he should be honest and admit that this only became a matter of concern to him and his party after it was repeatedly highlighted by the TUV. Till then he and his colleagues sleep-walked their way through the committee where they should have been raising the subject, without so much as a squeak of protest.

Having finally woken up on this issue, I look forward to Nelson coming to grips with other political realities. Could I suggest that he starts by facing up to the reality that the Belfast Agreement is a mandatory coalition which, sadly, he continues to prop up, is utterly unworkable and deserving only of collapse. Then he would be involved in a real fight of confronting Sinn Fein instead of the no risk sham fight about which, for the optics, some wax macho.

Jim Allister
Traditional Unionist MEP