Tensions between DUP and TUV increase as Poots urges Allister not to 'spout off' about fellow unionists

DUP MLA Mr Poots also accused the TUV leader of having no answers of his own on how to deal with the current political crisis.

Mr Poots was commenting after Mr Allister produced a number of points to highlight the “realities of this threadbare” deal to restore the power-sharing executive at Stormont.

Mr Allister said Northern Ireland “continues to be treated as EU territory,” that “customs posts continue to be built at our ports to check goods coming from GB,” and that “not one word of the protocol has changed nor has any EU law been disapplied”.

In a statement released ahead of a meeting in Moygashel on Thursday evening – where Mr Allister and Jamie Bryson will spell out their opposition to the DUP deal – the TUV leader posed a number of questions to his DUP counterpart.

"Sir Jeffrey Donaldson proclaims a great Deal, but won’t debate it with me. Why? If it’s so good, why doesn’t he take the opportunity to wipe the floor with me?” Mr Allister said.

In response, South Belfast MLA Mr Poots said: "Jim is running away from telling us what legal change he has delivered or what his alternative achievable strategy is. The answers of course are zero and he has none. He loves to spout off and criticise fellow unionists but… he fails to see the bigger picture.”

Mr Poots added: “The DUP ensured there is a new UK Internal Market system. It will remove checks for goods moving within the UK Internal Market system, save for those conducted by UK authorities as part of an intelligence-based approach to tackle criminality, and smuggling. This package will also end Northern Ireland automatically following future EU laws.

“Of course, we want to achieve more and we will keep working at that but our objective, in withdrawing our First Minister, was to bring people back to the negotiating table, which we have achieved.”

He added: “The TUV preference has always been an imperfect direct rule rather than an imperfect devolution. They should just be honest about that”.