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Basil McCrea, one of the hapless ones who wishes to “lead” the rudderless UUP, has made clear that he wants to distance the UUP from the Conservatives. According to Henry McDonald, writing in the Guardian on Monday, McCrea has vowed to break the “disastrous” link with the Conservatives if elected leader.
It’s rather unlikely that the rag-bag membership of the UUP will elect Mr McCrea leader - if indeed the Party can actually muster the organisational skills to hold an election.
But, ignoring that point for the minute, Mr McCrea’s position is markedly different from the position he held re. the Conservative merger prior to the disastrous general election outcome for “UCUNF.” He has performed a remarkable U-turn.
The fact is that McCrea once considered a partnership with the  Conservatives to be an absolute necessity for the UUP. McCrea made clear to me – and Owen Paterson, Conservative spokesman on Northern Ireland at the time – that he may even defect to the Conservatives if the UUP was not prepared to do the deal.
Indeed, prior to a crucial vote on the matter by the UUP Council, on September 18, 2008, Mr McCrea requested a meeting with Owen Paterson to brief the Shadow Secretary of State on how to handle the Council meeting. The two met to agree the correct form of words to appeal to the old die-hards like David McNarry and other Tory-sceptics.
At that meeting, that I attended, McCrea made it clear that acceptance of the deal with the Conservatives was essential. The meeting took place at The Plough pub/restaurant in Hillsborough.
Now hindsight is a wonderful thing. And I’d agree with McCrea that the deal between the two parties was utterly hopeless and useless – but I saw the writing on the wall a year before the general election was called. UCUNF failed spectacularly because of the UUP’s fossilised membership and sectarian intransigence – coupled with dithering and incoherent ‘leadership’ (and general Conservative Party capitulation on every point of political principle).
McCrea’s insistence that the UUP distances itself from a “London party” is to be applauded – as it will put the UUP’s little Ulster mentality into sharp relief and will seal its final demise.
But, then again, he’s unlikely to be elected. Never mind, I’m sure Mr Elliott will succeed in making the party equally irrelevant.
Related Articles
- If Basil wins will the last one to leave the UUP please turn out the lights (sluggerotoole.com)
- Thoughts on the UUP leadership: Part 2 (sluggerotoole.com)
- Ulster Unionist leadership candidate vows to break ‘disastrous’ link with Tories (guardian.co.uk)
- UUP establishment worried about Basil McCrea? (sluggerotoole.com)
- McCrea enters UUP leadership fray (bbc.co.uk)
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