Unionists 'can live with Labour'

A prominent Ulster Unionist activist will today hint that his party might bring down the Government this summer and declare that "we'd be no worse off with Labour", writes Donald Macintyre.

David Burnside says on BBC Radio's Week in Westminster that we "can certainly live under a Labour Party in power. Roy Mason was the best Secretary [of State for Northern Ireland] pro the Union in the last 25 years. Most secretaries of state have not supported the Union and have been involved in the dealing with Dublin that has undermined the Union, so we can live with Labour quite easily."

He says that if things "go wrong in the summer" after the planned all- party talks are scheduled to begin on 10 June, "I see no reason why the Ulster Unionists should not vote in the interests of their fundamental cause, the Union, and if they have to vote against the Government and bring it down we'd be no worse off."