The Ulster Unionist Party has selected the following candidates for the forthcoming General Election:

East Antrim                                         John Stewart

East Londonderry                               Richard Holmes

Fermanagh & South Tyrone               Tom Elliott                                                      

Lagan Valley                                       Robbie Butler

Mid Ulster                                            Mark Glasgow

North Antrim                                       Jackson Minford

North Down                                         Alan Chambers

South Antrim                                       Danny Kinahan

South Down                                        Harold McKee

Strangford                                           Mike Nesbitt

Upper Bann                                         Doug Beattie                                      

West Tyrone                                       Alicia Clarke

Ulster Unionist Party Leader, Robin Swann MLA, said:

“I am delighted to be in a position to announce a range of candidates from different backgrounds and experiences. They demonstrate the depth and talent of the membership of the Ulster Unionist Party across Northern Ireland. People immersed in their local communities who have a commitment to making Northern Ireland a place we can all be proud to call home and are unashamed advocates for the Union.

“This election is not a re-run of last year`s referendum on membership of the EU - that boat has sailed. Instead we should be concentrating on coming together to get the best deal possible for Northern Ireland as part of the Brexit negotiations and resist those who are attempting to use this election as an attempt to destabilise the Union. That means electing Ulster Unionist politicians who will speak up for all the people of Northern Ireland and give them a voice in Westminster. You only have to look at the impact which Tom Elliott and Danny Kinahan have made in their short time since their election in 2015 as a demonstration of this. There is no point in electing people who won`t turn up but are quite happy to keep claiming the expenses.

“I will be asking the electorate to vote for Ulster Unionist candidates who will promote a positive, confident, embracing unionism. The United Kingdom is a nation for everyone. As I said in my inaugural speech as Ulster Unionist Party Leader, no-one has anything to fear from being part of the United Kingdom but a lot to lose from leaving it. That’s why at this election people should go out and vote for it. Vote Ulster Unionist on 8th June.”