Steven King met with the DUP at close quarters recently, and believes he sees some important changes in that party’s approache. Not least it’s flexiblity in meeting issues of the future:
What is remarkable about the DUP’s principles is how un-DUP they are. What happened to bold, categorical, unequivocal assurances? Notice that the DUP’s principles do not include, for instance, total decommissioning by the IRA before Sinn Fein could hold Ministries. Or only the same kind of relationship between Northern Ireland and the Republic as exists between Austria and the German-speaking South Tyrol region of Italy. Or withdrawal from the Policing Board if Sinn Fein joins. Or opposition to power-sharing. Or anything a bit of clever language and choreography would not cover up.
It begins to look as if Steven is speaking less to the public at large than to some of the anti-Agreement hardliners in his own UUP.
Mick is founding editor of Slugger. He has written papers on the impacts of the Internet on politics and the wider media and is a regular guest and speaking events across Ireland, the UK and Europe. Twitter: @MickFealty
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