Burrows Rejects Beattie's Allegations
The Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) leader, Jon Burrows, has firmly rejected accusations that the party engaged in "dirty tricks" against former UUP MLA Doug Beattie. Burrows stated that he does not recognise Beattie's claims of an attempt to remove him from the party.
Burrows spoke publicly for the first time since Beattie resigned from the party and issued a harsh critique of Burrows, expressing regret over having persuaded him to join the UUP.
Responding to suggestions that the party acted vindictively, Burrows said:
"I completely reject that. I ordinarily would not be going into a tit-for-tat with any member of this party... but I need to clear the record on this."
He expressed regret over Beattie's remarks and conveyed respect for the former soldier’s service and his twelve years of party membership, which ended on Sunday.
Burrows commented:
"Difficult things have been said, I don't think they've been helpful."
"I think it's disappointing Doug made those comments, I don't agree with the way he has handled his resignation."
Beattie's Criticism and Burrows' Response
During an interview on the Nolan Show on Monday, Beattie urged voters in North Antrim not to support Burrows in the upcoming assembly election scheduled for next year.
When asked if these remarks affected him, Burrows declined to engage in public disputes over personal criticisms, noting that others face far greater difficulties than those he and Beattie are experiencing.
Disciplinary Action and Social Media Posts
Burrows clarified the circumstances surrounding the party's initiation of disciplinary proceedings against Beattie shortly before his resignation. The issue concerned historical misogynistic posts on social media.
He explained that a "third party" had submitted a report to the party highlighting material remaining on Beattie's timeline, which Burrows described as "objectifying" women.
In 2022, Beattie had issued an apology, stating he was "deeply ashamed and embarrassed" by several historical tweets he had published.
Burrows emphasized his commitment to high standards and the necessity of addressing such reports seriously.
Regarding the timing of the complaint and whether it might appear vindictive, Burrows stated:
"I don't know where the complainant comes from and I'm not going to discuss that, what I am going to say is this was a senior MLA who had an inappropriate tweet and I asked him to remove it."
Concerns Over Conduct and Misleading the Electorate
Burrows also cited other conduct that raised serious concerns, including a video in which Beattie claimed to be canvassing with councillors Ian Burns and Glenn Barr in Banbridge, County Down.
On Monday, Beattie admitted he was not with the councillors and acknowledged that he had been "economical with the truth." When pressed, he said:
"I lied, I was dishonest."
Burrows stated that politicians must not mislead the electorate but added:
"I don't want to have a character assassination of Doug Beattie, all we were going to do was use the proper processes to deal with the serious issues."
Party Processes and Election Candidacy
Burrows denied suggestions that the party had orchestrated efforts to suspend Beattie to prevent him from standing as a candidate in next year's election, calling such claims "not accurate."
He said:
"I was presented with information, I had other concerns about conduct... those are not acceptable standards, I don't want to demonise Doug Beattie. That was going to be properly adjudicated and investigated but Doug decided to leave - I deeply regret that."
Relations Within the Party
Addressing reports of divisions within the UUP assembly team at Stormont, Burrows affirmed his appreciation for all MLAs, stating:
"There's a job of work to do within any teams. I'm in up for listening, I'll be speaking to my MLAs and continuing to have a relationship with them."
He added that he enjoys "deep support" from across the UUP membership, councillors, and the party management board.
