Sinn Féin and the Rev Ian Paisley's Democratic Unionists have both abandoned their principles since the Belfast Agreement, the Ulster Unionist Party claimed today.
In a pre-General Election strike at both parties, the UUP today published an eight-page newsletter outlining how the two parties have moved under the Agreement.
The UUP said in the newsletter, inserted into a daily newspaper, Rev Ian Paisley's party had taken part in more than 1,000 Assembly committee meetings with Sinn Féin MLAs and have joined them in delegations to Brussels, Germany and the United States.
They also claimed the DUP is more interested in attacking fellow unionists than republicans, criticising the UUP in three times more press releases than they do Sinn Féin.
The DUP was also accused of threatening to hand marginal seats in the Westminster election to Sinn Féin by splitting the unionist vote.
The newsletter claimed Sinn Féin has moved away from its slogan of "No Return to Stormont Rule" by participating in a power-sharing executive, have accepted a "permanent unionist veto over the future of Northern Ireland" and have conceded an end to the Republic of Ireland's constitutional claim over the six counties.
The party also claimed successes against republicans with the inspections of IRA arms dumps, the flying of the Union flag above Stormont's Parliament Buildings while Sinn Féin MLAs work inside and the ban on Sinn Féin ministers from meetings of the North South Ministerial Council until decommissioning is resolved.
PA