Mr John Hume said yesterday there was "a real possibility" the SDLP will emerge from Thursday's Assembly elections as the biggest party in Northern Ireland. He also said he would like to hold direct talks with Orange leaders to try to avert a crisis over the forthcoming Drumcree parade.
The SDLP leader said his experience on the canvass had been "by far the most positive" during elections of the past 30 years, and this was being backed up by the party's showing in opinion polls.
An Irish Times/MRBI opinion poll published last Thursday found support for the SDLP of 26 per cent, just one percentage point behind the UUP.
Mr Hume sent a letter yesterday to more than 16,000 young people from both sides of the community asking them to vote for the SDLP. He also raised the possibility of becoming involved personally in negotiations over the Drumcree Orange parade. He hoped there will be "a common-sense approach" to the marching season. He said he wanted to see a society where there was total respect for the legitimate rights of all sections of the population, and that included "the legitimate rights of the Orange Order". However, for every right there was a corresponding duty to exercise that right responsibly.
A survey of Northern companies has found Mr Hume to be the first choice for economy minister in the new administration. Of 100 companies interviewed by the accountancy firm Grant Thornton, 43 per cent said Mr Hume would be the best economy minister.