Trimble appeals to rebel trio

David Trimble urged his three rebel Ulster Unionist MPs to “draw back from the brink” today as an internal row threatened to tear the party apart.

Hardliners Jeffrey Donaldson, David Burnside and Rev Martin Smyth may now launch legal action after being suspended over their open defiance to Mr Trimble’s leadership.

As the biggest crisis to hit Northern Ireland’s largest political party in 30 years intensified, the UUP chief called on the trio not to provoke a full split.

He said: “They need now to draw back from the brink and to think again.

“I want to repeat that again and again. There is no need for this lemming-like rush to the edge.”

Tough disciplinary action was taken against Mr Smyth, the party president, Mr Donaldson and Mr Burnside.

Days after they had resigned the UUP whip at Westminster in protest at Mr Trimble’s tactics in the peace process, a special internal committee was set up and decided on suspension, effectively stripping them of all party membership rights and privileges.

The rebels broke ranks following a failed bid to force the party to reject the British and Irish government’s blueprint for rescuing the Good Friday Agreement.

An appeal to the suspension cannot be heard until July 17, although senior Belfast Ulster Unionist Jim Rodgers has called for an emergency meeting on the issue.

Mr Donaldson, the Lagan Valley MP, claimed he had been the victim of a kangaroo court.

He will be seeking legal advice along with Mr Smyth and Mr Burnside, the MPs for South Belfast and South Antrim, he said.

Even though a full split of the UUP now seems certain, Mr Trimble insisted he had no intention of walking away.

Two of his Westminster colleagues asked him to stand down as the row deepened, he disclosed.

But he signalled his intention to stay in office and insisted he did not want to stifle internal dissent.

The UUP leader told BBC Radio Ulster’s Inside Politics: “I don’t want to see anybody leave. That’s been my approach over the last five years.

“I have tried to keep the party together, in fact I have been criticised in many quarters for being too tolerant of dissent within the party.

“I don’t mind people having different views so long as they are expressing that within the party and in a civilised manner.

“But we have had a qualitative change in this.”