DUP European campaign launch: The DUP candidate in the European Parliament election, Mr Jim Allister, has launched a blistering attack on Sinn Féin and its candidate, Ms Bairbre de Brún, and insisted that the central issue of this contest is whether he or Sinn Féin tops the poll.
Mr Allister, in launching his party's manifesto yesterday, "unashamedly" acknowledged that he opposed the European Union and would happily see Britain and Northern Ireland withdraw from the EU were that feasible.
He was also highly critical of the Ulster Unionist candidate, Mr Jim Nicholson, and while he wanted to see two unionists in Brussels he refused to definitively urge DUP supporters to give their number two transfers to him.
It was clear by implication, however, that he grudgingly wanted Mr Nicholson to take a second seat for unionism.
Most of his ire though was directed at Sinn Féin and Ms de Brún, thus making the issue of who garners most number one votes on June 10th the main issue for the DUP in this election.
"We identify the rising tide of terrorism as a challenge to be faced across Europe, and abhor the backward prospect of an apologist for terror misrepresenting the people of Northern Ireland," he said.
"Unlike the UUP candidate, whose party is so at ease with their three-time governmental partners Sinn Féin, we would not regard Sinn Féin topping the poll as a mere five-day wonder but as a serious setback for peace and democracy in this province. We seek to rally unionist opinion to ensure the IRA is denied the worldwide propaganda coup which topping the poll would bestow upon them," said Mr Allister.
He said that Northern Ireland for the first time was facing its strongest challenge from Sinn Féin. "They must not succeed. Europe must be shown that terrorist apologists do not speak for Ulster. As the representative of the largest unionist party and the biggest political party in Northern Ireland, I am the only candidate who can defeat Sinn Féin in this election."
He said the UUP was hopelessly divided and that Mr Nicholson had never come close to defeating the nationalist challenge. It was the prerogative of voters to decide where they should place their transfers but he conceded he would prefer "to sit in Brussels with two unionists rather than two nationalists".
He said there was a "theoretical possibility" that Sinn Féin and the SDLP could each take a seat in the three-seat Northern Ireland constituency while Mr Nicholson warned that unionist apathy could also lead to such a result.
It was clear from yesterday's press conference that, rather reluctantly, he felt unionists should cast their numbers twos for Mr Nicholson but he declined opportunities to say that directly.
"I do have to say that Mr Nicholson is not making it easy for us to get him elected on our transfers. Foolish statements to the effect that it is reckless to want to top the poll and beat Sinn Féin, foolish statements that he embraces the opportunity to work with Sinn Féin is making our task of securing his election on our transfers very difficult. Jim Nicholson needs to understand that second preference votes are not in our gift, they need to be earned. It is time he started to earn them."
Mr Allister said he opposed the euro, and would campaign against the proposed European constitution. He would happily see the North and the UK withdraw from the EU, but acknowledged that was not viable at the moment, although he felt it could happen in the future. "We owe no allegiance to the structures or ethos of the EU," he said.
