They're going to get you too? Another one of the UUP's young stars bites the dust.
Prominent among this group is Paula Bradshaw, widely acknowledged as a ‘rising star’, who performed creditably for UCUNF (given the circumstances) in South Belfast. She is considering her political future after being denied the opportunity to run for the Assembly elections.
One selection meeting doesn’t constitute a ‘night of the long knives’, but it will be interesting to see whether this pattern is repeated elsewhere. Harry Hamilton, one of the more exciting prospects unearthed by UCUNF, has already ‘bitten the dust’ in Upper Bann.
It’s early days, but after its choice of a ’grey man’ as leader, will the UUP throw away the chance to brighten up its candidate list for the Assembly elections?
Comments
Apparently Mark Finlay was the 2nd name nominated. Is this Mark Finlay of the President's Club??
"Are the Conservatives actively trying to poach these people? They should be"
They are not ready to poach anybody at the moment. That is because they cant make up their mind what to do with the Northern Ireland Conservatives. The reason for that, I suspect, is that they have not yet decided that the UUP is unfit for any alliance with the Conservatives in the future.
The UUP has sent delegates to the Conservative Party conference. They will be trying to persuade Conservatives that they still have a role to play in a future parliamentary alliance. Their task is very difficult because they are without an elected MP and without any reasonable prospect of having one elected.
CCHQ is now overdue to make a judgment on which route to normal, non-sectarian, politics they want to support. That may happen during the conference.
Paula if you're reading this you are a star - this decision was disappointing to many so don't be too gutted.