Northern Ireland

DUP MLAs bound to be 'aggrieved' by criticism from Fiona Paisley

Fiona Paisley said husband Ian did more work than any MLAs
Fiona Paisley said husband Ian did more work than any MLAs Fiona Paisley said husband Ian did more work than any MLAs

DUP MLAs "couldn't help but be aggrieved" by criticism aimed at them by Ian Paisley's wife, according to one of their SDLP counterparts.

Fiona Paisley, who works as her husband's part-time administrative assistant, claimed there is a "witch hunt" against the North Antrim MP after he was forced to defend billing a charity almost £6,000 for a first-class return flight to New York.

Mr Paisley claims travelled "at the last minute" to last February's conference to mark 20 years since the Good Friday Agreement because he was only asked to attend "just a couple of days before".

His wife, who in recent years has accompanied the DUP MP on controversial luxury trips to Sri Lanka and the Maldives, defended her husband on Facebook this week, claiming he worked harder than MLAs who are continuing to claim their salary during the lengthy impasse at Stormont.

"For goodness sake will you ever lay off the witch hunt and let him get on with his job," she wrote.

"He was asked to attend the conference a few weeks before but he couldn't confirm because of work commitments, they obviously went ahead with advertising him as a speaker.

"He didn't confirm until a few days before.

"Believe me he is doing so much more than any MLA 'not sitting' up at Stormont but continuing to claim their salary!!"

Stormont's 90 MLAs continue to receive a salary two years after the assembly was suspended following Martin McGuinness's resignation as deputy first minister.

Their pay was cut by 15 per cent in November and a second reduction will be imposed at the end of this month.

SDLP MLA John Dallat, who has been critical of Mr Paisley's decision to fly first class to New York, said the North Antrim MP's wife's comments would get her husband "into trouble with his mates".

"It's not the image the 28 DUP assembly members want to create at a time when the tide of anger over the continuing absence of an assembly is reaching crescendo pitch," he said.

"Certainly it is not what people badly affected by the crisis in the health service or education want to have confirmed by Fiona, who must be in a very powerful position of influence to knock sense into her DUP friends?"

The East Derry MLA said Mr Paisley's Stormont colleagues "couldn't help but be aggrieved" by the remarks.

"I suppose the cynics would say: ‘Well at least if they are sitting up at Stormont they are not jet-setting first-class to some of the most exotic parts of the world and tabling questions which could favour dictators'."