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Nesbitt is first unionist leader to speak at Leinster House | Nesbitt is first unionist leader to speak at Leinster House |
(about 2 hours later) | |
Ulster Unionist Mike Nesbitt has become the first leader of a unionist party to speak at Leinster House, the home of the Irish parliament. | |
Mr Nesbitt was addressing the cross-party Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement. | |
He said much has been achieved, but there was still more to do "and we should also question why it is taking so long". | |
In a wide-ranging speech, he called for Northern Ireland to have a single education system and said politicians needed to do more to create a shared society. | |
"The challenge of creating a shared future is to convince people it is a good idea," he said. | |
"A friend of mine who is a businessman in Belfast puts it this way: our housing is segregated, our schools are segregated, many of our sports are segregated; we go to our separate churches. | |
"In fact, the only arena where people have to mix is the workplace, and businessmen and women have a legal obligation to ensure they do. | |
'Example' | |
"That's not good enough. We, the politicians, need to take the lead, we need to set the example, we need to take more responsibility than business people, not less." | |
Arguing for a single educational system in Northern Ireland, he said: "We must merge four into one. And that is a huge challenge to the churches, to the vested interests in education, and to us, the politicians." | |
He also discussed the Queen's first state visit to the Republic of Ireland last year. | |
Mr Nesbitt said it was "one of the greatest acts of leadership I have ever seen - and an example to us all that you can do these things without compromise to your own identity, your heritage and your belief systems". | |
Mr Nesbitt, a former UTV presenter and victims commissioner, was first selected as a UUP election candidate in 2010. | Mr Nesbitt, a former UTV presenter and victims commissioner, was first selected as a UUP election candidate in 2010. |
He was elected leader of the party in March. | He was elected leader of the party in March. |
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