The Ulster Unionist Party elected Mike Nesbitt, MLA for Strangford, as their new Party Leader at a packed Annual General Meeting in the Ramada Hotel, Shaws Bridge on Saturday.
Commenting on his election, the new Leader said:
“I am honoured to accept this high office of service to the Party and the people of Northern Ireland. But I am also conscious of the responsibility and trust that accompanies this role.
"This is a great party, with a long tradition of service, and its revival will be based on our fundamentals; our values and ethos; our belief in the cultural, social and economic benefits of the Union; our membership who offer the skills, experience and expertise that can give us the capacity to do the business of government better than anyone else; and our ability to reach out to those currently not engaged in the political process.
“Over the coming weeks I will be working on making our party more cohesive and more coherent, and I am determined that we will deliver a shared future for all the people of Northern Ireland, not the Shared Out future being planned by the DUP and Sinn Féin.
"I want everyone in this country to get out of bed with a sense of purpose and go to bed with a sense of achievement. I want the same for this Party. I want us to reach out to become the party of choice for every pro-union voter in Northern Ireland, including those who say until today they had no-one and no Party to represent them or for them to support.
“I want to place on record my thanks to all the party faithful who attended the AGM and made it the success it was. It was the perfect springboard for me to start my leadership of the Party. Together we have changed the narrative, the dynamic and the focus of the Ulster Unionist Party, for the betterment of unionism and Northern Ireland.
"Most importantly for us, Saturday the 31st of March brought to an end 14 years of pain. The price we paid for opening the path to peace in 1998 is paid, in full. We accept the challenge of taking Northern Ireland to the next phase."