Ulster Unionist negotiators got absolutely nothing from the IRA in recent talks to revive the peace process, it was claimed today.
Democratic Unionist leader the Rev Ian Paisley claimed the Belfast had "totally failed".
The North Antrim MP said in the first of his party's election press conferences that the unravelling of yesterday's deal between Ulster Unionists, Sinn Fein and the British and Irish governments had shown David Trimble to be "totally incompetent".
"So long denied the opportunity to cast their vote, the time has come for unionists to step forward and have their say," he declared.
"This election offers the people of Northern Ireland a simple choice - do they want four more years of Trimble-delivered concessions, Sinn Fein/IRA - or the opportunity to negotiate a new and fair deal that unionists as well as nationalists can support?
DUP deputy leader Peter Robinson described yesterday's dramatic unravelling of the deal as a "shambles".
He argued: "The events of yesterday highlight the total shambles and incompetence at the heart of the Ulster Unionist Party.
"Through its actions, it has once again demonstrated that it is not fit to negotiate for unionism.
"Their new slogan should not be 'Simply British'. I think it should be replaced by 'Simply Stupid"'.
Mr Robinson said there had been no acts of completion nor any declaration that the IRA's war was over.
PA