NI Conservatives’ spokeswoman, Lesley Macaulay, has responded to the Reverend Mervyn Gibson’s comments on the self-styled ‘Unionist Forum’ by describing it as a ‘sideshow’ which was ‘always likely to fail’. The Grand Chaplin of the Orange Order recently said that the body, set up by the leaders of the DUP and the UUP, was ‘not working’.
“It’s no surprise to hear the Reverend Gibson say that the Forum is not working”, Lesley remarked. “From its inception, the NI Conservatives have pointed out that it was badly thought out and that Peter Robinson and Mike Nesbitt were leading some very disillusioned people down a dead end, where their concerns could not possibly be addressed.”
“The forum was based on narrow ideas about culture and identity, at a time when more and more people from right across the community in Northern Ireland support our continued membership of the United Kingdom. It was also fairly blatantly intended to advance the so-called ‘unionist unity’ project currently favoured by the leaders of the DUP and the UUP, which will actually prevent pro-Union parties from reaching out to the widest possible number of voters.”
“Any forum which tackles issues around symbols, identity and voter engagement should reach across the whole community. In order to provide lasting solutions it must also look at how we can build a meaningful shared future, create jobs, rebalance the economy and tackle deprivation across Northern Ireland.”
“None of these problems were likely to be resolved by a hastily convened, single identity body. It is time for all the executive parties to make a start tackling seriously the divisions which exist in our society and getting to grips with creating jobs, rather than becoming distracted by a failing, backward looking sideshow like the Unionist Forum.”