Jim Allister: DUP and UUP have divided unionism - and have no mandate for their Irish Sea border stance

Jim Allister also says that it is very important that every unionist in Northern Ireland should be able to vote for a candidate who rejects the Irish Sea border.

Speaking to the News Letter during the party conference, Mr Allister said: “The aspiration is to give every unionist, wherever they live in Northern Ireland, the opportunity to continue to stand against the union-dismantling Protocol. To continue to reject the Irish Sea border – and to continue to reject being ruled by laws we don’t make and can’t change.

“I’m delighted that with Reform UK that enhances our opportunity to do that and therefore in some constituencies there doubtless will be a TUV candidate, in others probably a Reform UK candidate. And we don’t rule out the possibility that in some other seats if there are some independent who is wholly reliable on these issues, that they might attract the endorsement of both. So that’s the way we see things going forward.”

Asked if Ben Habib’s description of the DUP as ‘no longer a unionist party’ was fair – Mr Allister said: “Where Ben is coming from on that is that when you have a party like the DUP, that told us on many platforms that I shared with Sir Jeffrey, that the Protocol was dismantling the union, that Article Six was a key pillar of the Union which had been put into suspension, that it had to be restored for our place to be restored.

"And then they summersault to become implementers of that very thing – the Protocol. And seem content with an Irish Sea border which one day they tell us doesn’t exist and another day tell us ‘oh we will eventually get rid of it’ etc – or whatever it takes for that particular moment.

“And who are now implementing foreign law in Stormont and who are seeing the building of an all-Ireland economy courtesy of the Protocol and courtesy of their surrender of the key economic posts to Sinn Fein.

"So when you have a DUP who is doing that, I can understand why Ben would say ‘where is their unionism?’

Asked if he agreed with Mr Habib, the TUV leader said “I agree that they have very significantly diminished the Union and therefore their unionism by embracing something which is in the business of dismantling the very union that makes us unionists”.

Asked how he could overcome unionist concerns about divisions in unionism – Mr Allister said: “Lets be very clear. Who are the dividers in unionism? Unionism stood united when all leaders signed the Joint Unionist Declaration back on 20th September 2021 – rejecting the Protocol and insisting that our place be fully restored. It was the Ulster Unionists first, followed by the DUP that shredded that joint declaration to become Protocol implementers.

“So it is they who are now the dividers of unionism – without a mandate. Those who have decided that they have given up that stand on the Protocol to implement the very thing they were denouncing. So it's not TUV who have changed. It’s not Ben Habib or Reform UK that has changed.

"Let’s get it right as to who are the dividers of unionism. We stand where we have always stood on these issues and are affording the electorate the opportunity to ask them where they stand”.