A slide used by Owen Paterson MP to convince the UUP that the DUP was an Ulster Nationalist party. Click to enlarge.
If news reports are to be believed that the Conservative Party held talks with the DUP and UUP about an electoral ‘pact’ this will also spell the end of this author’s relationship with the Conservative Party. It will also spell the end of hope for non-sectarian, secular politics in Northern Ireland.
Conservatives met senior DUP and Ulster Unionist leaders at a secret venue in England at week-end. Issues: Unionist unity/hung parliament – How Eamonn Mallie broke the story on Twitter yesterday
Ian Paisley Junior, this morning on Radio Ulster, suggested the talks were about Unionist unity for the Unionist (AKA Protestant) people. He may be right – but they will also clearly demonstrate that the Conservative Party is willing to behave cynically for short term electoral advantage. Doing a deal with the UUP is bad enough. However, a pact with the DUP – a discredited, Protestant fundamentalist and highly sectarian party – will dismay a significant cohort of voters that are sickened by what passes for politics here.
The fact that such talks were held reeks of the involvement of Jonathan Caine – Owen Paterson’s new “Chief of Staff”. Jonathan’s “expert” perspectives on Northern Ireland politics map very neatly onto the DUP’s concept of a “Unionist people”. However I’m disappointed that Owen Paterson agreed to this sordid little meeting.
At a national level the meeting also implies that the Conservatives are getting jittery and have assumed that a hung parliament might be a real possibility. The current Tory poll lead is unlikely to provide the majority needed to form a government. It’s highly ironic that a deal with the DUP is considered the political expedient required to secure the required majority.
The irony is all the greater for me. I recall preparing a presentation with Owen Paterson, here in my home, prior to a presentation to the Ulster Unionist Council – one of many meetings organised to convince the UUP of the merits of a link with the Conservatives. Owen was adamant that we include a slide clearly demonstrating his view that the DUP was little more than the Ulster equivalent of the Scots Nats. The slide we used is included here in this post.
Politics is a dirty game.
So Ian Paisley Jnr is an authoritative source?
Owen, Danny Kennedy’s “pro-Union community” pronouncements corroborate IPJ’s points on Radio Ulster this morning:
http://sluggerotoole.com/index.php/weblog/comments/the-pro-union-community-can-be-assured-of-the-level-of-contact-and-co-opera/
Deep down many leading members of the UUP want some type of electoral pact with the DUP – because they share the same puny-mindedness. The depressing thing is that Jonathan Caine might have persuaded Owen Paterson to countenance a deal with the DUP as well. The Party membership here and many senior Tories in GB will go ape-shit about this. Just watch.
They corroborate the thesis that the talks were about policing and justice, which has been linked to this whole community confidence nonsense.
Interesting that Danny did not mention policing and justice once:
“There was a range of topics discussed that looked at the present, and the future and the long term prospects for the pro union people of Northern Ireland…It remains to be seen if these discussions will be carried forward but I think most people from the pro union community can be assured and can welcome the level of contact and co-operation that exists.”
The Conservatives – I’ve said it so many times it’s infuriating – should not be organising talks between competing parties. The Conservatives should be seeking a mandate to govern and kicking these puny parties to touch. It lacks the resolve to do anything decent and honest in Northern Ireland politics. And what we’re left with is political expediency of the worst kind.
Of course he didn’t mention P & J. He doesn’t want to give the impression that the Tories are sitting on the UUP as regards P & J.
You are clutching at straws Owen. You know the entire initiative was a bloody disaster and it looks very, very bad. You, of all people, know that. I know that Neil Johnston is trying to spin his way out of this – but it’s an unholy mess.
Jeff – I’m not sure why I “of all people” should know anything. I’m just trying to cut through DUP spin. it seems to me that you’re changing your position somewhat. In the post above I gather that you’re insinuating Paterson and Caine knew about a unionist unity agenda for this meeting, now you’re alleging it was sprung on them. My contention is that the meeting was largely intended to be about P & J. Which is not, of course, to argue that it was a good idea. Still, the net result remains the same – no CU commitment to so-called “unionist unity”.
Owen I have no inside knowledge on this. I’m merely speculating like everybody else. But it’s a mess.
I would suspect Owen Paterson is not flavour of the month in London after this debacle – it was naive in the extreme to have a secret meeting in England with the DUP/UUP together, on whatever subject, and imagine that the DUP would not leak and spin it to be about unionist unity to spook SF into not wanting an election. Paterson appears to have been used by the DUP and senior elements in the UUP to further an agenda, how will he react?
As a result of this error how many Catholic Unionists now see the CU’s as a non sectarian party, which was in part the aim of the whole process?
I would also suspect that Campbell (UUP Chair) who has also made a complete hames of the process on our side, particularly with North Down (where Lady H has run rings around him for many months) and Strangford, now has many disgruntled members across NI, will he remain as Chairman after the next AGM?
Emanonon – you’re absolutely on the nail. An utter PR disaster. Heads should roll for this.
Not surprised at all this in the least. Although not talking about hung parliament, it must be a scenario being kept under review and ten seats better than two!? PR attending should not be surprise as this is no doubt a follow on from Owen Patterson’s quiet visit to PR’s home after Christmas… Seems like they are developing a very positive relationship.