Ulster Unionist Peer, Lord Empey said:

“I note a comment from Sir Jeffrey Donaldson regarding a recent opinion poll, and his plea to voters to allow his party to ‘finish the job.’ This is a reference to the DUP’s boycott of Stormont over the NI Protocol and its successor the Windsor Framework.

“But the elephant in the room as far as the poll goes, is that those voting for Unionist parties are now a minority in Northern Ireland. The DUP took over the leadership of Unionism 20 years ago from David Trimble and the UUP. At that point Unionism was a majority in the electorate and in the Assembly. During the DUP’s time at the top, Unionism has lost one fifth of its support.

“Sir Jeffrey seems to have no self-awareness when he uses the phrase ‘finish the job.’ The main purpose of Unionism is to promote and maintain support for the Union in Northern Ireland. In this key objective, the figures tell us that the DUP is failing and the mess over the Protocol tells us that it continues to lead unionists in the wrong direction.

“Their flirtation with Boris Johnson and their support for an ill thought through Brexit is but the latest example of serious misjudgements. Unionism is being led into one ambush after another, and the way the DUP is responding to the Protocol/Windsor Framework is but the latest example. They are leaving the door wide open for Sinn Fein by making Northern Ireland unworkable. Unionism can only succeed if this country is seen to be delivering for its citizens, and copying Sinn Fein tactics is not a place where unionists should go.”