Focus now on future of Ian Senior

Politics

Tuesday, February 19, 2008

By Noel McAdam

Speculation over the future of First Minister Ian Paisley intensified today in the wake of the dramatic resignation of his Junior Minister son.

Senior party figures are insisting the party leader will have to make presentational and image changes, particularly over the "Chuckle Brothers" tag with Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness.

"The problem is that Doc (Mr Paisley Snr) doesn't do stern faced, but there is no doubt this has caused disgruntlement which was reflected in the by-election in Dromore," a senior source said.

But, amid conjecture that the DUP leader may stand down later this year, the party sources also insisted he will make his own final decision.

A growing consensus appeared to be emerging, however, that Mr Paisley will stay as First Minister to preside over the major United States economic conference in May but could then consider his position in the autumn.

The effective forced resignation of Ian Paisley Jnr is undoubtely a blow to his father. They worked closely together in the Executive, Assembly and at Westminster.

Father and son were also due later today to head off on their final Ministerial trip together, to Scotland, for talks with the First Minister's Edinburgh counterpart, Alex Salmond.

DUP sources said Ian Jnr had been involved in the detail of organising the meeting which takes place tomorrow and will include talks on a number of issues including energy, the environment and suicides.

Ian Junior is expected to make a statement to the Assembly next week, by which time it is thought the party will have named his replacement.

But the names of a number of contenders - including party chairman Lord Morrow, Lagan Valley MP Jeffrey Donaldson, Arts Minister Edwin Poots and MLAs Peter Weir and Simon Hamilton - were dismissed today as "media invention.

"It had got to the stage where Ian jnr was getting all the headlines rather than the party, making it difficult to get our message across. That is why he resigned," a source added.

Sinn Fein, SDLP and Ulster Unionist MLAs continued to argue, however, that Mr Paisley jnr still has questions over his recent activities to answer.