Not worth the Reform paper it was written on

Have a smidgen of sympathy for the TUV’s Jim Allister, not a sentiment you’ll usually find on here, but still. Who couldn’t sympathise with him. For there he was having put together an alliance with Richard Tice’s Reform only to discover that a party of the same name, under new management this last week took a distinctly different view of matters:

Reform UK leader Nigel Farage has said he will be personally endorsing two DUP candidates in the General Election – despite his party’s alliance with the rival Traditional Unionist Voice (TUV).

Mr Farage distanced himself from a recent electoral alliance with the TUV which had been agreed by his predecessor Richard Tice.

Speaking to the PA news agency, Nigel Farage gave his backing to two DUP candidates. “As far as the Northern Ireland thing is concerned, I want to make it clear that whilst there have been negotiations going on in previous times, I will personally be endorsing Ian Paisley and Sammy Wilson,” he said.

In previous times? Announced in March of this year. 

Responding to the remarks, TUV leader Jim Allister said: ““TUV entered an electoral arrangement with Reform UK in good faith. We have kept faith with that agreement.

“The comments by Mr Farage today are, of course, disappointing and not compatible with the content of a conversation I had with him last week.

“The endorsement that TUV seeks in this election is that of ordinary voters who know who has from the start told them the truth about the Union-dismantling Protocol, while the DUP tried to hoodwink them with false claims that they had got rid of the Irish Sea border.”

The DUP are gleeful, at least two of their MPs are. 

In a joint statement, Sammy Wilson and Ian Paisley welcomed the endorsement and called on the TUV to drop the Reform UK branding from their campaign.

“Nigel Farage is a household name and we welcome his endorsement as the best pro-union candidate in our constituencies. Nigel knows us and knows our record of delivering for the people,” they said.

“This is very embarrassing for Jim Allister as the Reform UK Leader has endorsed us rather than him because the Reform UK Leader recognised that on the big issues, we could be relied upon. Some people know how to build relationships and deliver results, others just talk about the problems.

“The Electoral Commission has ruled that the “TUV-Reform UK” description is misleading. With the Reform UK Leader now backing me, it’s clear the TUV-Reform UK relationship is non-existent.

How people think anything any of these outfits might say is going to weather even the slightest bit of self-interest or expedience on the part of those involved escapes me.