Donaldson turned down offer to rejoin UUP following leadership defeat last year

The DUP leader Jeffrey Donaldson has said he turned down an offer to rejoin the Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) after he was defeated in the DUP leadership election last year.

Mr Donaldson said he never had any plans to return to his former party and had “respectfully declined” an offer to join the UUP.

Mr Donaldson was narrowly defeated by the North's Minister for Agriculture, Edwin Poots, in a leadership election in May 2021.

However, Mr Poots was forced to stand down as leader within weeks following an internal party revolt, and Mr Donaldson subsequently became leader.

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The BBC's Nolan Live reported on Wednesday night that Mr Donaldson had held discussions with the Ulster Unionist leader Doug Beattie before he became leader.

“This evening the BBC asked me if I had discussions about leaving the DUP and re-joining the UUP after the DUP leadership election in May 2021,” Mr Donaldson said in a statement released on social media.

“This portrayal is nonsense. I never had any such intentions or plans,” he said.

“At that time, I was approached, and it was made clear I would be welcome in the UUP but I respectfully declined.

“Any discussions I have had with the UUP focused on the future of unionism and need for closer unionist co-operation,” he said.

The UUP said the DUP was "mourning the loss of their much beloved colleague Christopher Stalford. We will not be making any comment."

Mr Donaldson left the UUP in 2003 over his opposition to the Belfast Agreement and joined the DUP.

The Traditional Unionist Voice (TUV) leader Jim Allister told the BBC there were "many unanswered questions, including was there a face-to-face meeting, what was discussed and who initiated these matters.

“If it was to turn out that Sir Jeffrey contemplated rejoining the Ulster Unionist Party then that would be a very big shock to many rank and file DUP members.”