Before the last Stormont election in 2022, I interviewed Ron McDowell, deputy leader of the Traditional Unionist Voice (TUV). Polls were predicting a breakthrough for his party, up from one seat to five or six, as unionist voters turned against the DUP over the Brexit protocol. Naturally, McDowell told me he was optimistic, but he added size was not essential for influence. “Look at all the smaller parties: People Before Profit, the Greens, the TUV. We all hold really strong core beliefs that we won’t bend or break from. The DUP will bend to pick up votes, so they’re bending to our position.”
This is the mindset the UUP needs to adopt as Mike Nesbitt returns to the helm. Nesbitt led the party for five years up to 2017 and will run unopposed next month to replace outgoing leader Doug Beattie, mainly due to a dearth of anyone willing to take on the task. Nesbitt described his strategy a decade ago as “shrink to grow”. Beattie sometimes used the same phrase. Both meant the party should shrink from a broad church to a liberal platform, from which it could rebuild. A statement this week from deputy leader Robbie Butler indicates this approach will continue, assisted by reform of the party’s........