Ulster Unionist Peer, Lord Empey, has stated that Gerry Adams can`t have his cake and eat it with his latest comments regarding the involvement of the British and Irish Governments in the Haass process.
Lord Empey said:
“Gerry Adams attacks both the British and Irish Governments for their 'failure' as he sees it to be more involved in the Haass process.
“Yet the same Gerry Adams is the first to complain of what he calls 'British interference' when London passes a comment on the performance or direction of Stormont. He was a regular critic of former Northern Ireland Secretary Owen Paterson when he made comments about poor delivery at the Assembly.
“So how can anyone take seriously Mr Adams's current complaints? He can`t have his cake and eat it.
“In the first place, the Irish Government has no role to play in the flag dispute or the parading dispute. They do have a role in issues relating to the past including considering the establishment, financing and arming of the Provisional IRA and the ease with which the Provisional IRA operated from the Republic of Ireland.
“With regard to the flag dispute, this was deliberately engineered by Mr Adams and his party when they forced through a controversial decision at the City Hall to take down our national flag, sadly with Alliance support, knowing full well how controversial it was going to be.
“Gerry Adams will be taken more seriously by unionists when he stops the charade of his so called non-involvement in the IRA and accepts the constitutional consequences of the Belfast Agreement, namely that Northern Ireland is an integral part of the UK.”