Mr Robinson says that politicians must take the blame for the low turnout.

"I know estates in the greater Belfast area where only 26, 27, 28 per cent were coming out to vote.

"These are strong unionist areas and I don't blame the people in an area for not coming out.

"My view is that it's the responsibility of the politicians to motivate people to come out so we do need to get into those areas to talk to people and to encourage them to be part of the political process in terms of them coming out and voting."

And, he adds: "It is too early to say that there is a pattern but the Fermanagh by-election and the European election both show that the nationalist and republican vote was decreasing.

"If that were to continue – and that remember was in circumstances where we have very clear evidence that a section of our vote stayed at home in the European election – there is a problem that republicans have in terms of getting out their vote."