Former UUP communications chief says finding a leaker is not a priority for ‘spooked’ party

Mr Kane said: "Don't waste time trying to track down a leaker. There'll be another one along in five minutes, anyway. Instead, try and establish the motives of the leaker: is it about your leadership; party policy; or just a mischief maker who will never be happy. Crucially, is it fear? The 8% support base in the latest LucidTalk poll has spooked MLAs, councillors and candidates; the people who bear the brunt of falling support when an election is called (and there could well be an assembly election and general election in 2024”

“Put bluntly, ask yourself why the party's support is crumbling, what sort of impact that is likely to have on members, representatives and voters; and, most important, what is required to reverse the decline in support and confidence.”

When he took over the party leadership in May 2021, Doug Beattie acknowledged that his liberal views on social issues may unsettle some of the party’s more traditional members. He said “I want to grow and sometimes they say you have to shrink in order to grow and if I have to shrink to grow”. Despite his liberal approach on issues such as gay rights – there have been no high-profile defections or resignations from the party on these issues.

However the party has suffered at the ballot box. In this year’s council elections the party sat on 10.9% of the vote share – down just over three percent from 2019. In the 2022 Assembly election the party slipped behind the Alliance Party for the first time at Stormont – taking just over 11% of the vote.

The Upper Bann MLA’s most serious crisis came early on in his leadership. In January 2022 historic tweets emerged including derogatory comments about women and minorities. Mr Beattie apologised saying he was “deeply ashamed” of his comments.