Democratic Unionist leader the Rev Ian Paisley will give a valedictory speech before DUP members tonight before handing over the leadership of his party to Peter Robinson tomorrow morning.
Dr Paisley, who said he hoped to take up a role as a trade ambassador after he leaves office, revealed he will leave office without shaking the hand of his partner in government Martin McGuinness.
Despite a clamour for the symbolic gesture as the DUP leader prepares to leave the political front line, he said his relationship with the Sinn Fén deputy leader and former IRA man would remain strictly professional to the last.
Nonetheless, Dr Paisley has hailed the achievements he and his one-time enemy have managed in their one year together as First and Deputy First Ministers of Northern Ireland.
“We’ve never shook hands, I’ve said to him I don’t believe in handshaking, it’s whether you have a proper practice [between you]. And he [Mr McGuinness] agreed that we would do our best and we would fight our corner and we’ll do our best to try and get decisions made that we can all live with, if not love.
“And that’s what we did and I think it’s been very successful and I think also the success of it rests on the attitude of the people," the DUP leader said.
“The Roman Catholic population here and the Protestant population never were as close together as they are today, they are all saying no more bad days, no more killings, we are going this way.
“And that is the greatest thing, there is a great unity."
Some critics, particularly unionist hardliners, have claimed Dr Paisley became too friendly with McGuinness in government, dubbing the pair the “chuckle brothers”.
Dr Paisley said he just laughed at such critics.