The swish chrome and plate glass of Belfast's Waterfront Hall was the venue symbolically chosen by the Ulster Unionist Party for the launch of its manifesto for the Assembly elections yesterday.
For a party that used to be known for its attachment to the past and to answers in the negative, this was a refreshing exercise in positive thinking.
With a broad flourish of his arms, David Trimble gestured to the view of a booming city through the window and declared: "All this, it epitomises the growth of Belfast, the future that we hope we'll all be constructing".
Surrounded by his party's pinstriped candidates as in a school reunion photo, a smiling Mr Trimble repeatedly urged voters to "move forward" with his party. Responding to media questions, Mr Trimble was anxious to assert that there was "plenty of time" to sort out the niceties of a shadow executive once the Assembly elections were concluded.
An executive could not be formed until "quite some way into the transitional period", he added.
Reminded that the Belfast Agreement stipulated a deadline of October 31st for the establishment of cross-Border bodies, he responded that this was unlikely to happen before next year. Northern Ireland would still be "there" before Scotland or Wales, he promised, even though the other regions had started their devolution processes earlier. Mr Trimble criticised the Northern Secretary, Dr Mo Mowlam, for her contacts with the Sinn Fein press secretary, Ms Rita O'Hare, as revealed in a leaked Northern Ireland Office briefing document published in yesterday's Irish Times.
He said it was "inappropriate" that Dr Mowlam should be "in a hurry to mollify" Ms O'Hare, who is wanted for questioning by the RUC. Mr Trimble said his anti-agreement colleague, Mr Jeffrey Donaldson, was right to be critical of these contacts. The UUP manifesto restates the party's interpretation of the agreement. The Republic's "illegal" claim to the North is to be abandoned, and Northern Ireland's constitutional position within the UK is "universally recognised".
In the new Assembly the party will not sit with "unreconstructed terrorists". It will insist on criteria for judging whether former paramilitaries are allowed to hold ministerial office. A "clear and unequivocal" commitment must be given that the "war" is over and violence ended.
Training, targeting, weapons procurement and punishment beatings must end. Disarmament must be completed within two years.
Mr Trimble said the election was about the restoration of accountable government. "For the sake of our children and the economic benefits of stability, we must take the opportunity to move into a new era. So it is absolutely crucial that we elect members dedicated to progress, not those who will sit on the sidelines complaining about every thing."
The manifesto backs the right of Orange marches to proceed on public roads, and it suggests the appointment of a minister for victims' affairs. Co-operation with the Republic is envisaged only when it has a "sound economic and commercial basis" and works to the benefit of people in the North.
Other policies include a light railway for Belfast, extra benefits for pensioners and action to cut waiting lists for medical treatment. Mr Trimble said the UUP would work to alleviate the problems facing agriculture, and to restore beef export markets lost over the past two years.
The Assembly would give the North better representation in Europe, he maintained. "When our interests are involved, we will be included in the UK delegation to the Council of Ministers, being enabled to participate directly when appropriate."
It was time, Mr Trimble concluded, for Northern Ireland to "move forward".
