Eyewitness claims that the Ulster Volunteer Force was involved in extortion and other criminal activities were today cited by Ulster Unionist MP Lady Sylvia Hermon as a reason for her unease over her party’s decision to link up with the Progressive Unionists in the Stormont Assembly.

THE Ulster Unionist Party’s last remaining MP, Lady Sylvia Hermon, yesterday said she is considering contesting the party leadership.

The wife of a former RUC chief constable is considering running for the leadership of the Ulster Unionist party.

British Prime Minister Tony Blair will decide on Friday whether to get directly re-involved with efforts to restore devolution to Northern Ireland, it was revealed today.

The UK government faced fresh unionist demands today to scrap a police recruitment quota in Northern Ireland which requires an equal number of Catholic and Protestant trainees.

Ulster Unionist MP Sylvia Hermon will address a meeting of Fianna Fail’s south Dublin branch next Monday.

On a hot sunny morning the next MP for North Down was meeting supporters among the shoppers in Bangor’s weekly market.

A decision by Northern Ireland’s Alliance Party to pull out of the North Down constituency in favour of David Trimble’s Ulster Unionist Party was one of the toughest decisions it has had to make, leader Sean Neeson said tonight.