DUP Member of Parliament for East Londonderry Gregory Campbell has described comments attributed to Martin McGuinness by the BBC as “the ultimate irony”. On the BBC website the Deputy First Minister is quoted as saying ‘the money required to resolve the welfare budget row was a “drop in the ocean” compared to the resources that British governments had spent “pacifying” Northern Ireland during the Troubles.’
Gregory Campbell MP said: “Northern Ireland wasn’t “pacified” during the Troubles, the money that was spent then on security and policing was an investment in ensuring the IRA and other terrorists couldn’t win. Furthermore, not one additional brass penny would have been required on additional expenditure for security and policing had it not been for the actions of terrorists and criminals who were involved in violent insurrection against the state, including the IRA, which Mr. McGuinness was a leader of.
With each day that passes Sinn Fein is resorting to increasingly outlandish and offensive actions. This is designed to cover their culpability for inflicting greater cuts upon the people of Northern Ireland because of their failure to live up to the terms of the Stormont House Agreement.
Now the Deputy First Minister contrasts the financial consequences of Welfare Reform (which he and his Party helped to cause) to the cost of the troubles (which he and his party also helped to cause). If this wasn’t as serious as it obviously is, it would be a parody.
Martin McGuinness needs to realise that this isn’t the mid-90s any more. The days of threatening people and getting what you want are gone. Swanning off to America and using language such as
this will not help a single vulnerable person in Northern Ireland. Our essential public services are losing £9million per month because of the Sinn Fein failure to show leadership over welfare reform. It’s time Martin McGuinness stopped the hysterics and started doing his job”, said the DUP MP.
