New leader Jon Burrows wants UUP to ‘become biggest unionist party’

The new leader of the Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) Jon Burrows has said he is aiming to grow the party until it becomes the “biggest in unionism again”.

Speaking for the first time since becoming leader, Mr Burrows said he expected to deliver “more seats in councils, more seats in the Assembly and more seats in Westminster”.

A former senior police officer, Mr Burrows was ratified as the party leader at a meeting in Belfast on Saturday.

Fermanagh and South Tyrone MLA Diana Armstrong has become the party’s deputy leader.

All of the party’s MLAs and its only MP, Robin Swann, attended the meeting at the Stormont Hotel in Belfast.

During the meeting, Mr Burrows set out his intention to turn the party into a “winning machine”.

Mr Burrows has been a member of the party for less than a year and was co-opted into his Assembly seat in north Antrim last summer.

He has become UUP leader without a contest after no other party members stood against him when Mike Nesbitt announced he was to stand down.

The Ulster Unionists had been the largest unionist party in Northern Ireland until it was usurped by the DUP in 2003.

But speaking to the media alongside Ms Armstrong, Mr Burrows said the party would now return to the “front foot”.

He said: “Politics has stalled in this place, Stormont is not delivering and keeping up with the advances that have been made elsewhere in Northern Ireland in our vibrant economy and we need to look at why that is.”

He added: “This is a new chapter for the Ulster Unionist Party, we are going to confidently go out engage our communities, provide the leadership that unionism needs, be sure-footed, not make the strategic big mistakes and deliver for the people of Northern Ireland.

“Lead change in what needs to be done at Stormont and project Northern Ireland and its part in the United Kingdom to the global stage.”

Mr Burrows added: “We are here to do business, to get things done, to find solutions and that is what you are going to have as we start preparing to lead unionism in Northern Ireland again.”

Mr Burrows pointed to the success of Reform UK which had “come from nowhere” to lead in the opinion polls.

He said: “That is an example of where you can go from a base to something very lofty.

“I have confidence because this party has a reservoir of trust and a deep legacy of service to the people of Northern Ireland.

“We now need to make that match for the next 10 years, next 20 and 30 years to start giving the people of Northern Ireland the politics and the public service and the solutions they need.”

The new leader pledged to build on the nine seats the UUP currently has at Stormont.

He said: “I think the first thing is to get new momentum. We want to start seeing that swing back to the Ulster Unionist Party again.

“Just in the last number of months, and they are only polls, but we were fifth and we are now third, from 11% to 13%.

“I want to keep building that and keep focused on delivering for the people of Northern Ireland, offering the best policies and I believe, in time, if we do that and communicate well, the votes will go up.

“I expect more seats, I have pledged that we will move forward and I want to see us with more seats in councils, more seats in the Assembly and more seats in Westminster.

“We are aiming to grow and grow continually until we are the biggest party in unionism again.”

Mr Burrows had earlier arrived at the Stormont Hotel accompanied by Ms Armstrong and said he was looking forward to the day.

Mr Nesbitt, who announced he was standing down as leader earlier this year, said he believed this was a “line in the sand moment” for the party.

He said: “We can now switch into an outward-looking election mode and go fishing for votes.”

Mr Nesbitt said he was not aware of reports that Mr Burrows does not have the support of his whole team of Stormont MLAs.

He said: “I have seen nothing but a cohesive team.

“There is no tension, there is no dissension that I have spotted.”

Former party leader Steve Aiken said Mr Burrows and Ms Armstrong would make a “great leadership” team.

He said: “This is a very bright day for the Ulster Unionist Party.”