THE door remains open on a unionist electoral pact even though the DUP yesterday unveiled 11 of the candidates that it plans to run in the June 8 Westminster poll.
Despite little progress on agreed candidates, neither the DUP and Ulster Unionists has yet to call time on the pact negotiations, which are thought to have centred on South Belfast and East Belfast.
Former UUP leader Mike Nesbitt last night ruled himself out of the running for South Belfast, despite being asked by his party.
Mr Nesbitt told The Belfast Telegraph that he had decided to stand in Strangford, where is a sitting MLA. He said he would never have agreed to be a unionist unity candidate.
The Ulster Unionists have already unilaterally withdrawn candidates in Foyle, West Belfast and North Belfast, while the DUP has said it will not run against sitting UUP MP Tom Elliot in Fermanagh-South Tyrone.
Eight of the 11 candidates unveiled yesterday by the DUP are sitting MPs. The other three are Gary Middleton (Foyle), Frank McCoubrey (West Belfast) and Paul Girvan, who will run in South Antrim where the UUP defeated veteran William McCrea in 2015.
Absent from the list were its candidates for South Down, Mid Ulster, South Belfast, Newry and Armagh, North Down and Mid Ulster.
The party said further candidates would be ratified in the coming days.
DUP leader Arlene Foster said the Westminster election provided an opportunity to vote for candidates who would "work for Northern Ireland".
"Voters will be able to show their support for the Union and elect our candidates who will stand up for Northern Ireland's interests in Westminster," she said.
"DUP members have a track record of working and speaking up for Northern Ireland – as a party we will be working to get the best deal for Northern Ireland as the United Kingdom leaves the EU."
The former first minister said that during the course of the campaign she would be outlining "the benefits of our United Kingdom".
"We support getting the assembly and the executive back functioning and local ministers working on health, education and the issues that matter to people's lives here," Mrs Foster said.
"This election can provide the basis for strengthening the union and ensuring Northern Ireland sends people to Westminster who will deliver for them."
It is unclear whether any discussions have taken place between the two parties since senior representatives met at the beginning of last week. When contacted by The Irish News yesterday, the respective party press offices said they were unaware of any meetings in recent days but they would not rule out further talks.
There was an initial setback in the pact negotiations last month when Mrs Foster said her party wanted a clear run in South Belfast in exchange for standing aside in Fermanagh and South Tyrone.
Her Ulster Unionist counterpart Robin Swann accused the DUP leader of arrogance and said her remarks made agreement more difficult.
Nominations for the June 8 election close on Thursday May 11.
Proposals for a anti-Brexit pact that would have potentially included Sinn Féin, the SDLP and the Greens foundered last month.