A tale of two MLAs
Martin McGuinness, Sir Reg Empey and Nigel Dodds were all on their feet this afternoon answering questions. But the focus was on two politicians with Ulster Unionist and Antrim connections, although for very different reasons.
First we heard about the death of the former junior minister James Leslie, who was killed in a diving accident whilst on holiday in Costa Rica. Just 50, Mr Leslie was a courteous man, well liked around Stormont, and politicians from across the spectrum expressed their sympathies to his family.
Mr Leslie left the Ulster Unionists for the Conservatives and was involved in the two parties' recent courtship. Away from politics, he had started growing willow trees on his land for use as renewable energy.
Later it emerged that the South Antrim MLA David Burnside has decided to step down from the Assembly. A sceptical unionist and a thorn in the side of David Trimble, Mr Burnside stuck with his party rather than following Jeffrey Donaldson's example and moving to the DUP. He lost his Westminster seat to William McCrea, but hung on in the Assembly.
Mr Burnside frequently asked acerbic questions of the First and Deputy First Minister. Just this afternoon he wanted to know whether Martin McGuinness thought there was any chance to the parties moving towards a voluntary coalition in the future (the answer was no). However he found the demands of attending committees difficult to balance with his other business committments. Last month the DUP attacked his attendance record.
So who will the new MLA be? Well that's up to the UUP leader Sir Reg Empey but ywo names in the frame are local councillors Adrian Watson and Danny Kinahan.
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