UUP in turmoil as internal conflicts boil over - with the old guard at Stormont increasingly at odds with members
The Ulster Unionist Party is still reeling from the fallout of Doug Beattie’s resignation – with the former leader taking to the airwaves to attack Jon Burrows’s leadership.
It comes as years of tension between the Stormont team and the party’s membership threatens to erupt into a full blown crisis – with new questions emerging about whether all the MLA team are paying into the party.
In today’s News Letter it is reported that Mr Burrows’s insistence on all elected representatives contributing had caused tensions – however one MLA has claimed that the payments are “voluntary”.
Mr Beattie quit at the weekend, but it is understood Mr Burrows was set to remove the whip from him and suspend him from the party over misogynistic social media posts which were still visible on his profile. He has said he was not aware that the posts were still visible, and that the leader was “vindictive” for “re-opening” the case – which he said was dealt with four years ago.
Mr Beattie was also accused of speaking to the leader in an abusive manner - a claim he has denied. He also admitted to lying in a social media video in which he claimed that he was canvassing with two UUP councillors, who were not with him.
For much of the day on Monday, the UUP benches in the Assembly were only occupied by Mr Burrows and his deputy Diana Armstrong. While other MLAs oppose their leadership, none have spoken publicly.
It was recently reported that Mr Beattie was facing deselection by his local UUP association as the party’s candidate in next year’s Assembly election.
He told the BBC’s Nolan Show that there will always be some in that grouping opposed to his brand of unionism – but claimed others were being influenced by those who he blamed for pushing him out as leader in 2024.
“The vast majority I know within the association, and they are loyal good hard working volunteers, because they do this as volunteers, but there are other people who are from outside the association who are influencing them.
“And that is something that I have noticed from the moment I was forced out as being the party leader, that those same people who forced me out are influencing the Upper Bann Association.
“That is something I've had to deal with, but that has been released time and time again to the media about selections, and that was done to damage me. And stuff has been released to the media about finances, and stuff has been released to the media about employment issues in regards to me.
“All of these have been done to damage me, and it came to a head on Thursday night”, he said.
In his resignation letter, Mr Beattie described relationships in the party as “toxic”.
“The atmosphere within the MLA group and the leadership is so toxic that it's having an effect on people's mental wellbeing, that's that's a reality of what we're talking about here”, the former UUP leader said.
Pushed for specific examples, he said: “Well as one MLA put it, he has never felt so bad about working for the party than he has ever in his life, and that's having an effect on people.
“It's having an effect where they don't want to come into work. It's having an effect on their energy levels. It's having an effect on family relationships”.
Pushed for specific examples, Mr Beattie blamed party figures for “attacking MLAs” in WhatsApp groups and calling for MLAs to sign a letter of loyalty to the party leader.
The UUP had not responded to the claims at the time of going to print.