Sunningdale must not be repeated

A “realignment” in unionism, as demanded

Last Monday they failed to get a majority of the governing Ulster Unionist Council to demand that the Ulster Unionist Party adopt a complete rejection of the joint declaration from the two governments.

Mr Donaldson, party president Martin Smyth and David Burnside have now removed themselves from the party’s parliamentary whip, but not resigned from the party. They are engaging in internecine warfare and will begin talks with Ian Paisley’s DUP and former MP Bob McCartney’s UK Unionist Party, both anti-Agreement fellow-travellers, to try to bring down the Good Friday Agreement.

The objective set by the hardliners is to remove David Trimble as leader and try to force a renegotiation of the joint declaration, something which both Taoiseach Bertie Ahern and British Prime Minister Tony Blair have ruled out. Their putative coalition of anti-Agreement factions is historically mindful of another such strategy in 1974 when a like-minded unionist coalition, the United Ulster Unionist Council, brought down the Sunningdale power-sharing executive.

Former party leader James Molyneaux is supporting the move to derail the joint declaration drawn up by the British and Irish Governments as a means of trying to restore devolution to Northern Ireland.

David Burnside warned that, unless there was an about face by the leadership of the Ulster Unionist Party, “the position of David Trimble is untenable.” He conveniently forgets that he would not be in the House of Commons but for the support he received from pro-Agreement unionists.

While the desertions from his parliamentary party leave the UUP with just three MPs, David Trimble still has the support of 89% of the Assembly grouping, which is a key factor in future developments, as well as that of a majority of elected councillors in unionism.

When the Taoiseach met with Tony Blair on Friday last during an EU summit in Greece, he repeated his belief that the Assembly elections should not have been postponed in May and reiterated his call for them to be reinstated in the autumn. In pressing for the elections, he planned to meet with David Trimble and Sinn Féin president Gerry Adams this week, but yesterday’s one with Mr Trimble was called off.

Yesterday’s developments throw the situation in Northern Ireland into further turmoil and the widening split in unionism is inimical to the restoration of the peace process.

The political vacuum that exists in the North since the devolved institutions were suspended last October will be compounded by the marching season, which has already seen sectarian trouble erupt since they began.

Both Mr Ahern and Mr Blair are committed to the implementation of the Good Friday Agreement and consider that the joint declaration is a route map to doing so. It is the shared agenda of both governments.

Mr Ahern will have to remain steadfast in his endorsement of the Agreement as negotiated originally and withstand any concerted attack on it by another unionist coalition. There are chastening lessons to be gleaned from history.