'Sinn Fein likes to claim credit for 1998 Agreement - so it can stick to its terms on a border poll' says Doug Beattie
The Dublin government and Sinn Fein must heed the terms of the 1998 deal which both of them signed up to, Doug Beattie has said.
UUP MLA Mr Beattie was reacting to Sinn Fein leader Mary Lou McDonald's calls for Dublin to put pressure on the UK government to bring about a referendum on Northern Ireland leaving the UK.
She made the comments in an interview with the PA news agency.
Mr Beattie called her remarks "pure noise", and noted that since Sinn Fein in recent years has sought to "take credit" for the agreement, it should stand by the text of what it says.
"It's quite clear," he said.
"The Irish government, along with the UK government, signed up to the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement and everything within it.
"In that, it stipulated when a border poll will be called.
"The Secretary of State has already said there's no border poll going to be on the horizon.
"He's not seen any evidence that the criteria will have been met, and the criteria is laid out in the Belfast Agreement.
"So Mary Lou McDonald can complain all she wants. She can call for it all she wants in terms of a border poll - she does it every three months, regardless.
"But the Irish government need to adhere to what the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement says.
"It's really that simple. The reality is it's pure noise."
Ms McDonald had also described the wording in the 1998 deal around when a border poll could be called as having been "workaround" language.
"Her party signed up to it, she signed up to it, her party is adminstering it now being part of the Executive, so she can complain all she wants about the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement: they agreed to it," said Mr Beattie.
"They stand on many a podium and try to take credit for the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement, now she's complaining about what it contains. It's hypocritical.
"She needs to adhere to what her party agreed, what the Irish government agreed, and the British government agreed, and what the Secretary of State is applying."