Unionists in Northern Ireland want to see their political parties co-operate, not bicker, DUP leader Gavin Robinson has said.
Mr Robinson warned that division costs and said he wants to see more unionists elected to the Stormont Assembly at the next election, which is due to take place in 2027.
He was commenting after TUV leader Jim Allister claimed that the DUP “talk unionist unity while attacking unionists who dare to challenge them”.
Mr Robinson said his party conference at the weekend focused on positive messages for Northern Ireland.
“It is true that division within unionism costs, that’s not the same as saying there can’t be distinct differences, but there is a long and proud history of voters, people who believe in the union, people who believe in Northern Ireland being part of the United Kingdom, asking for their political representatives to co-operate,” he told BBC Northern Ireland’s Sunday Politics programme.
“That doesn’t rule out competition between us, but it does encourage co-operation.”
The last Assembly election resulted in Sinn Fein overtaking the DUP as the largest party with 27 seats to the DUP’s 25.
Mr Robinson said unionist seats were lost in North Antrim and in Strangford “as a consequence of unionist division”.
He insisted he believes unionists want to see co-operation, a challenge for the leaders of all the unionist parties, but added that he doesn’t believe that Mr Allister “is interested in unionist co-operation at this stage”.
“But I think Jim will hear over the coming years, and in the run up to 2027, that that’s where our people are at,” he said.
“They don’t want to see bickering among those who believe in the most important thing for us, which is Northern Ireland’s place within the United Kingdom, and the benefits that brings to even those who don’t share our constitutional view.”
Mr Robinson also challenged the TUV to criticise the Labour Government, “who have manifestly failed to honour the commitments” in the Safeguarding The Union command paper, designed to strengthen the UK’s internal market following Brexit.
