DEIRDRE HARGEY
Deirdre Hargey of Sinn Féin, who won her seat as South Belfast MLA, has praised South Belfast as a “great and diverse constituency” and also congratulated her four newly elected colleagues.
Ms Hargey promised to work on the issues for which she campaigned, such as healthcare, education, jobs, housing and tackling inequality and sectarianism.
“I will work for all the constituents of South Belfast to build a prosperous constituency that the next generation of young people will want to stay here, work here, be educated here and raise their families here," she said.
Most importantly, in the wake of Sinn Féin’s historic victory as the largest party Ms Hargey reiterated the party’s commitment to getting back into the Executive and getting Stormont back up and running.
She said: “I promise a commitment to get back round the Executive table, to deliver for everyone in society on the issues that we’ve been hearing on the doors and to have a functioning Executive so we can work in partnership to build a truly inclusive society, and to build on the Good Friday Agreement that we all signed up to 24 years ago. There is still much to be done to build on a Bill of Rights and to create a truly inclusive and diverse community where equality is a foundation.”
The Sinn Féin MLA continued: “Monday morning is the time to get back into work, to get back into the institutions and deliver on the commitments we have all made. I will be there with Sinn Féin and Michelle O’Neill to get back into work.”
Ms Hargey also paid tribute to the late Christopher Stalford and extended her best wishes his family.
Elected: Edwin Poots at the Victory Podium
EDWIN POOTS
Edwin Poots began his speech with a tribute to his late colleague and former South Belfast MLA Christopher Stalford.
“I shouldn’t be here today, that should be our colleague Christopher Stalford, and today my election is a tribute to the work, the life and the testimony and faithfulness of our friend and colleague Christopher Stalford.”
Mr Poots continued: “I want to ensure that I carry on that tradition and work with all of my colleagues, across the community and council teams to ensure we get the best possible deal for South Belfast.”
He added: “Northern Ireland is in a difficult place, and we need to resolve some big issues. I do not believe the Good Friday Agreement and the Northern Ireland Protocol are compatible. Therefore we need to ensure we carry on with the peace process and ensure it is protected, and that will not be protected under the current circumstances.”
Reflective: Matthew O'Toole at the Victory Podium
MATTHEW O'TOOLE
Matthew O’Toole acknowledged his party’s lacklustre performance at the polls, but the SDLP man paid tribute to what he said was the “proudly and wonderfully diverse, pluralist South Belfast.”
Mr O’Toole also praised his running mate Elsie Trainor, who was not elected.
Reflecting on his party’s performance, Mr O’Toole said: “We ran what we thought was an energetic and people-focused campaign, but that has not translated into as many votes as we wanted. There will be many opportunities afterwards for post-match analysis, indeed it has already started.”
Mr O’Toole promised to work with his colleagues to build a shared society and to work to unite the people of the island.
“This is still is a profoundly divided society and we are still a divided island. This election, Sinn Féin and Alliance resonated with voters, and I want to congratulate them for that. I share with the Alliance Party a commitment to building a shared society in this place; I share with Sinn Féin an aspiration to unite all the people of this island. I intend to work with both of them to those ends, but also to hold them to account on their delivery on those ends.”
Mr O’Toole also paid tribute to Clare Bailey and her work as an MLA on the Climate Change Bill, and he also remembered the late MLA Christopher Stalford.
Bouyant: Paula Bradshaw celebrates her election victory
PAULA BRADSHAW
Paula Bradshaw pledged to turn Alliance’s surge in the polls into real benefits for the people of South Belfast.
Mrs Bradshaw, Alliance’s Health Spokesperson, praised all those on the frontline who worked and sacrificed during the Covid-19 pandemic.
“We are delighted to have returned two MLAs for South Belfast," she said.
“We had a very energetic campaign. It was easy on the doors because we have a very strong, positive message. We want to deliver on our manifesto which is brim-full of positive policy changes to reform our Health Service, address the climate emergency and address the cost of living crisis.
“We have now doubled our representation and we have so much work ahead of us, but we are up for the challenge.”
Optimistic: Kate Nicholl becomes South Belfast's Newest MLA
KATE NICHOLL
Outgoing Lord Mayor of Belfast Kate Nicholl celebrated her victory, but also offered praise as well as condolences to Green Party leader Clare Bailey, who lost her seat.
Ms Nicholl stated: “I’m 37 weeks pregnant and about to pop! I was Lord Mayor until today, and it’s been difficult, but I want to thank my husband and our amazing team of volunteers.
“I’m conscious that I’m here and Clare Bailey isn’t, Clare is someone I deeply respect and share a lot of politics with. Politics is cruel, when people lose their seat it’s not just the seat, but the people who work for them who also lose their livelihoods, so I want to pay tribute to everything Clare and her team have done to progress South Belfast. I want every disappointed Green voter to know that we’re going to continue their work on the environment and on progressive issues. We’re going to serve the kind, inclusive, forward-thinking South Belfast the five of us are privileged to represent.
“People want politicians who can work together, and that’s why Paula and I were elected. We need to work together now more than ever.”
