Paisley's enemies, old and new, give their verdict

Politics

Wednesday, March 05, 2008

Ian Paisley's former enemies in Sinn Fein last night spoke warmly of his " positive contribution" while his erstwhile colleague Jim Allister branded his departure a "panic move".

Politician of all shades were quick to react to the news that the man who has dominated politics in Northern Ireland for the best part of half a century was stepping aside as First Minister of the government he helped create and as leader of the DUP, the party he founded.

Deputy First Minster Martin McGuinness said Mr Paisley's "historic decision to go into government with Sinn Fein has changed the face of Irish politics forever ".

His party leader, Gerry Adams, was equally warm in his comments.

"I want to commend the positive contribution Mr Paisley has made in recent times.

"The agreement that he and I made last March cleared the way for the restoration of the political institutions," he said.

Mr Adams said he found Mr Paisley to be "cordial" and "straightforward" while working with him for nearly a year.

He said: "Whatever people might say, his political career has ended with a good and positive legacy for the people who live on this island."

These remarks were in stark contrast to those of former DUP stalwart Jim Allister who claimed Mr Paisley was forced into the decision.

"I have no doubt that Ian Paisley jumped before he was pushed. It was very significant that when Dublin and Sinn Fein raised the campaign 'Paisley Must Stay', not a single DUP figure, apart from Baroness Paisley, publicly agreed," said the man who took over from Mr Paisley as the DUP's representative in Europe before resigning over the deal with Sinn Fein.

"Ian Paisley was hung out to dry by the so called pragmatists in the DUP because, frankly, he'd served his purpose, in that he delivered what no other DUP leader could deliver, a DUP/Sinn Fein coalition.

"Since the Dromore by-election the DUP has been in something of a blind panic and changing the guard was their answer. "

"No democrat or unionist could take pride in a legacy which bequeathed to Northern Ireland unrepentant terrorists at the heart of its government. Sadly, this is Ian Paisley's political legacy to Ulster."

Mr Paisley's likely successor Peter Robinson commended his boss's "consistent and principled leadership".

"No politician faced more vitriol, but he never allowed the bitterness he encountered to deflect him from serving the interests of the unionist people," he said.

"It has been said that the greatest test of a politician's success is the degree to which he forces his opponents to change.

"By that standard, Ian Paisley's career has been a remarkable and outstanding success. His contribution has indeed been enormous.

"The DUP and indeed Northern Ireland will forever be indebted for his contribution. He is truly a unionist colossus and he can be justifiably proud that today unionist politics and Northern Ireland's position within the union are stronger than any point during his extraordinary career," he said.

Alliance leader David Ford, however, warned that the Executive now faced tough times ahead.

"The achievements of the Executive since last May have been modest in the extreme. By continuing as a lame duck for three months Ian Paisley will damage the Executive. The Executive is now the throes of a leadership crisis; Tony Blair tried the same 'long goodbye' tactic and it did enormous damage to his successor."

His remarks were echoed by SDLP leader Mark Durkan who described Mr Paisley as a "larger than life figure".

"While this is very significant political news, there is responsibility on all of us as politicians to make the most of the political processes here no matter who comes or goes. In particular we have to make a success of the investment conference in May and not allow this story to distort or distract from this focus," he said.

Danny Kennedy of the UUP said Mr Paisley's departure was inevitable following the resignation of his son.

"The attacks on Ian Paisley jnr were used as proxy attacks on Ian Paisley snr and were aimed deliberately at weakening his overall political position. I think the DUP had come to the conclusion that the Chuckle Brothers issue was hurting them," he said.

And the Orange Order said: "Ian Paisley has strode across the British and Irish political scene like a giant for many years. No-one could ignore his forthright views and while not everyone agreed with him, his personal commitment was never in doubt."