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Mike Nesbitt Speech, Ramada Hotel 31.03.2012

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Mike Nesbitt Speech, Ramada Hotel 31.03.2012 MIKE NESBITT SPEECH, RAMADA HOTEL 31.03.2012 CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY Good morning! I hope we are going to get along over the next hour or so, because you arE about to makE an incrEdibly important dEcision about the future. And it is not just about whErE thE 15 membErs callEd MLAs go on Monday morning. This is about all of all, and whErE thE Party is going to bE in fivE and tEn yEars time. I havE a Vision for our futurE, but first lEt me say a fEw words about two pEoplE whosE time in officE is coming to an End. I want to acknowlEdgE EvErything David CampbEll has donE during his time as Chairman. WE spokE facE-to-face on Friday, so it is no surprise to David that, if ElEctEd, I shall bE appointing a nEw Chairman. And to Tom Elliott – thank you, not just for being LEadEr, but being a friEnd, and support and mentor to me. If I am sElEctEd to succEEd you, Tom, your placE at my tablE is assurEd. WALK TO UUP BACKDROP This is what it is all about. On my watch, no candidate will use this as a flag of convenience. This is not a meal tickEt, or a passport to Employment. This is a symbol of thE valuEs that dirEct my lifE. I look at this and I rEmembEr my mothEr thE first time shE took me to thE last screening at the cinema ... holding me firm as othErs dashEd for thE Exit to avoid standing for thE National AnthEm. ShE taught me thE valuEs wE all sharE – respect for others, self-discipline, public service. I rEmembEr my fathEr, worriEd sick about having to lay off workErs at his linen factory – men and women, ProtEstants and Catholics – becausE linen was swampEd by chEap forEign, synthEtic imports. HE nEEdn’t havE worriEd. ThE IRA blEw up thE in 1973. It was thE last day hE got out of bEd with a rEal sEnsE of purpose in his life. I want everyone in this country to get out of bed with a sense of purpose. I want this Party to wake up with a sense of purpose. I want us to rEach out to bEcome thE Party of choicE for EvEry pro-union voter in Northern Ireland, including those who still say they want a United Ireland, but privately accEpt thErE is no longer a single rEason not to enjoy thEir continuEd membErship of thE UnitEd Kingdom. As wE EntEr a dEcadE of cEntEnariEs, thErE has nEvEr bEEn a bEttEr time to promotE thE Economic, social and cultural bEnEfits of thE Union. I want us to have the respect of the electorate. But I want us to sErvE thEm too, and to that wE nEEd to bE in govErnment. There is no point having the best policies, if you don’t have the power to put thEm into practicE. WorsE, if you don’t havE powEr, othErs will stEal your policies, and your clothes. So I would like to lead this Party back to power, through at least two electoral cyclEs, with four kEy outcomes: • We broadEn our foundation with morE councillors on thE ground in local govErnment; • We enhancE our vote in Europe; • We get Ulster Unionists back on thE grEEn benchEs of thE HousE of Commons; • We rE-take thE OfficE of thE First Minister of thE NI ExecutivE. Be clear. ThErE is no Quick Fix. ThErE is no Big IdEa beyond hard work. Since before I joined this Party, we have looked to others for Quick Fixes and Big IdEas. To David Ervine and thE PUP. To thE SDLP ... thE ConsErvatives .. thE DUP. By thE way, thErE is no such thing as Unionist Unity. And I am glad thErE isn’t. I don’t want to be a super-Prod. I want to be a super Unionist. I want to persuade the people of NI, and of England, Scotland and Wales, that this Party havE thE bEst and most articulatE advocates for the benefits of the UnitEd Kingdom of GrEat Britain and NorthErn IrEland. ThE only Big IdEa is oursElvEs, committing to a long haul of hard work. We neEd to do two things. WE nEEd to bE morE cohEsivE as a party, and wE nEEd to bE morE cohErEnt in how we present ourselves to others. That means hard work in two arEas – one political, one structural. WE nEEd bEttEr policiEs, bEttEr communicatEd. And a bEttEr organisation, better rEsourcEd. In thE last two wEEks, many pEoplE havE approachEd me, pEoplE who represent that huge body of pro-union votErs who arE looking for someonE and something to support at ElEction time. ThEy’rE not just saying if it’s me, thEy’ll votE UlstEr Unionist. They’re not even just saying they’ll join the Party. Some of thE businEss pEoplE arE saying thEy’ll back us, bEcausE thEy undErstand wE’vE lost thE public monEy that comes with gEtting MPs ElEctEd. Hey understand we need a better organisation, better resourced. They want to help us build a better organisation, better resourced. I want to brEak down thE silos of MLAs, Councillors, HQ staff, ConstituEncy staff, membErs, Young Unionists, thE Women’s Council. WE havE to work togethEr. WE arE a hugE membErship organisation, and our grEatEst strEngth isn’t me. It’s you. You, who come hErE at your own ExpEnsE, in your frEE time, bEcausE you carE – about thE Party and about NI. And about thE Union. Yet we do not play your strEngths. As Economy spokEsman I wantEd to consult on thE draft Economic StratEgy. I offErEd to hold thrEE meEtings, two outsidE BElfast. Such was thE dEmand, I held four. As Education spokEspErson, I put a call out in thE Friday nEwslEttEr for voluntEErs. By TuEsday wE had fiftEEn names. Not any old names – but tEachErs and former tEachErs, with an intErEst in primary and post-primary and Special Educational NEEds and thE rEst. This Party is full of business people, doctors and nurses, teachers, and others with skills ExpEriEncE and ExpErtisE across all arEas of govErnment. I want you to join me in crEating bEttEr policEs. If it’s me, I will form a sEriEs of Policy Advisory Groups. If it’s me, I’ll makE it part of every Spokesperson’s duties to travel the country, listening to you, as you idEntify thE local solutions that will bEst makE policy rEal. This LEadErship contEst came out of thE bluE. It sEEms to me it has libEratEd us, and rEvEalEd something surprising, EvEn shocking. OvEr thE last couple of wEEks, this Party has found common purposE and a sEttlEd will. That will is for change. That will is to say the past is over. The 14 years of pain. The kickings on the doorstep. The price we had to pay for thE BElfast AgrEEment. It is over. We bank what we havE achiEvEd – and I am proud this Party brought pEacE – and I sEE hErE many of thE facEs of who did it – and I ask you to support me into the next phase. ThE ElEctoratE doEs not want to hEar about thE hEavy lifting anymorE. They want to know about what hEavy lifting we’rE going to undErtake tomorrow. TogEthEr wE can do it. What I want to do is lEad us back, on merit, to thE hEart of GovErnment, in our councils, in EuropE, WEstminstEr and Stormont. On that basis, I ask for your vote this morning. .
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