Jim Allister said:
“Few will be sorry to see the end of 2020. Many will trust and pray that 2021 will bring respite from the pandemic. Please God it will be so.
“2021 is a momentous year. It marks 100 years from the birth of Northern Ireland. It starts though with the devastating reality of a border down the Irish Sea – a border whose infrastructure, amazingly, is being built by the Agriculture minister. Who would have thought it – an Irish Sea border delivered by the betrayal of Brexit, built by the DUP.
“A Brexit that left Northern Ireland behind, annexed into the EU and separated from the rest of our nation, was not the Brexit any of us voted for. Yet, it was the Brexit that was foisted on us once the DUP foolishly opened the door to a regulatory border in the Irish Sea.
“Make no mistake Unionism is not in a good place. 2021 needs to be a year of rebirth. Will it, or instead, will it be the year when the DUP delivers Sinn Fein’s next demand, an Irish Language Act in the insatiable drive to deBriticise Northern Ireland? One thing I can promise is that TUV will provide relentless opposition.
“2021 is a year when Unionists in particular should hold our heads high to celebrate the achievements of 100 years. Every citizen has benefitted from the economic prosperity of being part of the United Kingdom, with the scale of the Treasury support over COVID, along with our cherished NHS, reminders of the worth of being part of the 5th biggest economy in the world.
“How Stormont itself marks the centenary will be an indicator if there is even any residual benefit for unionists in those institutions. Respect tends to be in short supply when it relies on the pernicious Sinn Fein veto.
“Across the U.K. we can see that far from strengthening the Union devolution has tended to weaken it by “feeding the crocodile” of separation. When you factor in the destructive requirement that at Stormont you can only have devolution with a party at its top and heart which does not even want Northern Ireland to work, then, its negative impact is clear.
“It is in this challenging environment that TUV seeks to stand for integrity and honesty in politics. Opposing Sinn Fein at every turn. Throughout 2021 we hope to build up TUV into the electoral fighting machine it needs to be. Why not join us – make that your New Year resolution!”