David Trimble
David Trimble
William David Trimble, Baron Trimble, PC, is a British politician who was the first First Minister of Northern Ireland from 1998 to 2002, and the leader of the Ulster Unionist Partyfrom 1995 to 2005. He was also the Member of Parliament for Upper Bann from 1990 to 2005 and the Member of the Legislative Assemblyfor Upper Bann from 1998 to 2007. In 2006, he was made a life peer in the House of Lords and a year later left the...
NationalityIrish
ProfessionPolitician
Date of Birth15 October 1944
CityBangor, Northern Ireland
CountryIreland
The debate revealed that the differences between us were tactical. They made clear that they are committed to an assembly on a cross community basis.
In the future there cannot be room for ambiguity. They have to make their position absolutely clear before they can expect anyone to respond to it.
This clears the way for the transfer of power from London to the Assembly.
This clears the stalemate we have had in terms of process,
I must make it clear that the calling of the meeting does not mean that we have committed ourselves to endorsing any set of proposals.
The fog is clearing, and as it clears we see that the Ulster Party will be the largest party in the assembly, that the determined assault made upon us by the DUP and its allies has failed.
It was made clear to Sinn Fein again and again and again that this experiment, this risk that we were taking, would be time-limited and would not run beyond the end of January.
It is not just a question of a symbolic action with regard to handing in some weapons,
We have stretched ourselves remarkably in the circumstances, ... It is also obvious there is a limit to how far we can stretch ourselves without an adequate response being made in the circumstances.
We have still not secured any commitment (on IRA disarmament) that would be recognized by unionists. We consider that the guarantees are weak.
We have started and we will go on. and we will go on all the better if we walk rather than run. Sometimes we will stumble but this will not matter.
Our proposal to him, expressed very strongly indeed, is that that is the course he should follow,
Our principal objective is ... to see the administration re-formed but re-formed on a sound basis.
Our view is that the review should be tightly focused on something -- that is, focused on the key issues that have caused the difficulties, primarily on decommissioning and also on the question of devolution,