DUP councillor refuses to criticise Paisley's meeting with Irish President

A NEWTOWNABBEY DUP councillor who publicly hit out at the visit of the Irish President Mary McAleese to the borough in April has refused to criticise his former party leader, Ian Paisley, after he met her in Dublin this week.
By The Newsroom
Published 17th Jun 2010, 11:55 BST
Updated 17th Jun 2010, 11:55 BST

Councillor Robert Hill, who lambasted the council's decision to invite President McAleese to its Mossley Mill headquarters, said he "did not have a problem with anybody meeting anybody".

DUP founder Paisley, together with his wife Baroness Paisley of St George's, had tea with Irish President Mary McAleese as part of a two-day visit to Dublin.

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"From what I can gather the Paisleys visited her, it wasn't a matter of her travelling anywhere," said councillor Hill. Asked whether he agreed with his former party leader meeting the President he said: "I have no problem with anybody meeting anybody. But when she came here I didn't think it was appropriate for me to have met her."

That visit, which all twelve local DUP councillors failed to attend, came in the run up to the General Election but councillor Hill insisted there was no directive from senior members of his party to stay away from the McAleese engagement.

Read the full story in this week's Times...

Related topics:Ian Paisley