Sinn Fein/Ira Must Deliver - Billy Armstrong
Monday, April 10, 2000
Release: Immediate
"We heard comments this morning from Sinn Fein/IRA who refuse to work with the RUC to further investigations into the Omagh bombing. They say that they have historical reasons for not co-operating with the authorities.
This leads me to ask Sinn Fein/IRA, do they really want a Government in Northern Ireland?
It seems to me, and to the majority of the Unionist people that Sinn Fein/IRA would prefer to hold on to their guns, bombs and explosives, and to continue to threaten to use violence when they don’t get their own way.
How can Sinn Fein/IRA expect to be welcomed into the Government of Northern Ireland when we can only perceive them as a selfish, single-minded organisation that refuses to accept true democracy. They have ruled Northern Ireland for the past thirty years through violence, terrorism and intimidation. Now they think that they should be included in the Government of Northern Ireland and continue to hold the upper hand when it comes to power in Northern Ireland despite the fact that this is through undemocratic means and the threat of violence. The Belfast Agreement demands the commitment of total disarmament and the achievement of total decommissioning - Sinn Fein/IRA must deliver on this issue.
ENDS
Thursday 21st, December, 2000
Release: Immediate
Our Future In 2001 - Armstrong
"We all look forward with hope and expectation to a further ‘rolling out’ of the democratic process in the year ahead. However I am acutely aware of the difficulties being created by the pan-nationalist front. These problems must not be ignored or bypassed by Government, but rather resolved in a fair and equitable manner.
I will continue to play my part as Ulster Unionist Assembly Member for Mid-Ulster and will not shirk my responsibilities to the Constituency as we all seek to provide a better future for ourselves and our children.
"Democratic structures of Government can only flourish when the shadow of the gun and the bomb has been consigned to history forever, and all parties agree to resolve their differences by constitutional politics.
"I look forward to a Northern Ireland at peace with itself, providing a multi-cultural heritage, rich in pageantry and individual cultural identities. From an economic point of view these attributes should be harnessed more actively and used as a major building block within Northern Ireland’s tourist industry.
"The first year of the new millennium has not been a happy one for the farming community. All aspects of the industry: cereals; potatoes; poultry; sheep; pigs; milk; fishing and beef have all continued to come under economic pressure. The fact that average earnings for a farmer is now estimated to be £22 per week tells the whole story. The massive reduction in farming/fishing income has a knock-on effect on the economy as a whole within Northern Ireland.
All Ministers within the Assembly Executive must be continually made aware of this fact and urged to introduce any measures possible to assist in stabilising the overall financial position.
"As a member of the Agriculture and Rural Development Committee within the Northern Ireland Assembly I will be pressing the Minister at all times to draw on all available EU funding and also our full entitlement from the UK Exchequer. DARD must be innovative in seeking means to support the various sectors within farming at the present time. All too often any financial help that comes through to the Agricultural Industry are only ‘pain relievers’ – but what is needed is real treatment to improve the position of the Northern Ireland farmer, Financial support must stretch beyond short-term ‘fix-it’ schemes to more long-term solutions.
I would urge you all, where possible, to buy Northern Ireland produce and so support the beleaguered farming industry.
"Whilst regrettably one of our major industries, shipbuilding has continued to decline there has been some success stories on the economic front, especially software technology during the past year. It would be my sincere wish that this inward investment continues, and grows. We must all in our own way encourage these hi-tech industries as employers for our young people in the future.
"2001 will be a year for resolution of the final but crucial parts of the Belfast Agreement. We must at the same time build on the successes of 2000 and ensure that everyone has a share in that progress.
"It is my earnest hope that everyone, man, women and child will have a happy and festive time as the Christian festival of Christmas surrounds us with the news of Christ’s birth 2001 years ago, and in the New Year a generous measure of peace and prosperity."
ENDS
Kilde:
http://www.billyarmstrong.co.uk/future_in_2001.htm
