Carla Lockhart doesn't rule out Assembly election bid after possible hint in DUP resignation letter
Former DUP MP Carla Lockhart has left open the possibility of running in a future Assembly election after quitting the party over its handling of the fallout from the Drumcree stand off.
The independent unionist declined to answer questions on such a move when contacted by the News Letter – after hinting at a Stormont challenge in her resignation letter to Gavin Robinson on Monday.
Ms Lockhart had said she would “continue in this mandate, and in future mandates to seek election to serve as their representative in whichever capacity I believe I can best serve this great constituency”.
A unionist source supportive of Ms Lockhart said that if the DUP “behave and don’t seek to undermine her, she would likely not interfere with their election plans” – but said in certain circumstances “she could back an alternative candidate” for Stormont.
The unionist field is already crowded in the Upper Bann constituency in next May’s Assembly election, with two DUP, one UUP, one TUV and independent unionist Doug Beattie already expected to stand.
Carla Lockhart quit the party she served for twenty years on Monday, following weeks of public disagreement with the DUP leadership over how it should respond to the First Minister’s actions on the Garvaghy Road.
Gavin Robinson made clear he did not support pulling down the executive office by resigning Emma Little-Pengelly as deputy First Minister – and by extension Michelle O’Neill.
That position is broadly shared with the Ulster Unionist Party, who do not support any collapse of the institutions. However, its leader Jon Burrows has criticised the DUP for pulling out of various events the first ministers had been due to attend, such as Remembrance Day and a UK economic summit in Glasgow last week.
TUV leader Jim Allister congratulated Ms Lockhart on her resignation, saying the DUP had chosen Michelle O’Neill over her, adding “little wonder their electoral base is deserting them”.
Sinn Féin’s Ms O’Neill claimed the DUP is in chaos and “in complete meltdown mode”.
“All their internal wranglings are being laid out publicly for us all to see”, the first minister said this week.
In her letter to leader Gavin Robinson on Monday, Carla Lockhart MP said: “It is with deep regret that I resign from the DUP Parliamentary group and my membership of the party with immediate effect. I will continue to serve Upper Bann as an independent unionist MP and will copy this letter to the Speaker accordingly.
“The DUP has been my political home for more than two decades. This is a painful decision, reached after much reflection.
“My letter of 29 October set out my position and the steps I believed necessary. The party's response has fallen far short of the profound consequences promised. Alongside my concerns over the implementation of the Irish Sea border, this has left me unable, in all conscience, to continue within the party.
“I must remain true to my principles and the trust those who elected me have placed in me.
“I appreciate the cordial manner in which you have approached our disagreements. None of this is personal, and I bear no animosity towards you or the party.
“There is much upon which we can continue to work together for Northern Ireland and our place within the Union. I stand ready to do so in friendship and cooperation.
“My first responsibility remains to Upper Bann, and I will continue in this mandate, and in future mandates to seek election to serve as their representative in whichever capacity I believe I can best serve this great constituency.
“I hope we can preserve our friendship and, forge a force for good within all strains of Unionism in the days ahead”.
In a document published alongside her resignation, Ms Lockhart said she is not setting up a new political party after her exit from the DUP – but has set out a blueprint for building a grassroots unionism “rooted in our communities and bringing people together”.
She said in an open letter to unionists that supporting women “to become leaders within our community will be central to this work”.
First Minister Michelle O’Neill and other Sinn Féin politicians have attended interviews with police over their attendance at the Garvaghy Rd protest – something they have insisted was the right thing to do – branding the march sectarian and supremacist.