The Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) has said it will appoint an independent, external organisation to establish a process for people to confidentially share information about Jeffrey Donaldson during his time in the party.

Donaldson was convicted of 18 counts of sex abuse last month, including one count of rape, committed against two women when they were children.

The former Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) leader was a member of the UUP from 1985 until 2003, before joining the DUP.

The UUP has also said it will review its safeguarding arrangements.

UUP leader Jon Burrows said Donaldson "lived his life as a political fraud and he raised himself up to the highest echelons of political life".

"I want to make sure for that time he was in our party that if anyone has any information or concerns that they want to raise, they can do so," he said.

While no-one has been selected to lead the process, Burrows told BBC News NI's Good Morning Ulster programme that he wanted to reassure the public there would be a mechanism.

"It's important to send that signal to the public, we are taking action," he added.

"This is a seminal moment in our politics and we need to all show a level of standards and transparency, and make the Donaldson case a watershed for politics in Northern Ireland."

Last week, Donaldson's legal team said they planned to appeal against his sex offence convictions.

In a statement, a spokesperson for the UUP said the party's thoughts "remain, first and foremost, with his victims".

The statement said the party had "commissioned a rapid review as a preliminary step to establish the facts regarding Donaldson during his membership of the party".

It said it found that "no complaint or concern about Donaldson... was ever raised with the party during that period".

The statement continued: "As a party, however, we recognise that the absence of a record does not mean there is nothing further to be established, particularly over a period of almost two decades. The rapid review was a first step, not the end of the matter."

It said that was why it was establishing an "independent, confidential process" regarding the former Lagan Valley MP.

The statement added that the party believes that "only a fully independent inquiry, with the necessary powers, can establish what, if anything, was known about Donaldson across his entire public career by political parties".

"Public trust is built through openness and accountability. Where there are lessons to be learned, including for our own party, we are committed to learning them."

Separately, the DUP has also commissioned an independent review into Donaldson's time in that party.

Donaldson and the UUP

Donaldson's time in politics began in 1985 when he was elected for the UUP to represent the South Down constituency in the 1980s iteration of the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Before his election, he had worked for South Down MP Enoch Powell who had joined the Ulster Unionists from the Conservatives in the 1970s.

In 1997, when his boss James Molyneaux retired as the Lagan Valley MP, Donaldson retained the seat comfortably for the UUP.

But his unhappiness with the party became obvious as political negotiations at Stormont moved towards the signing of the 1998 Good Friday Agreement.

He became one of the UUP's biggest critics of the deal over issues like the IRA's decommissioning of weapons, warning his then leader David Trimble against supporting it.

Even after the agreement, and the first power-sharing government was formed in its wake, he continued to pose problems for the party and supported failed bids by others to oust Trimble from office.

In 2003, he quit and defected to the DUP.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c62x4ddn13yo

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/czx5vq0zvn1o

Three people have been found dead in a house, police have said.

They were related and were found inside the family home in the Old Cullybackey Road in Ballymena, County Antrim, on Monday morning.

A police spokesperson said an investigation had been launched but there was no ongoing risk to the public.

They said police would issue a further update later.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c0qyvwlp13xo

The deputy first minister has strongly denied claims she told a woman some years ago that former Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) leader Jeffrey Donaldson was "dangerous".

Emma Little-Pengelly said she was "personally devastated and shocked" by the allegation and that she has campaigned against sexual abuse "throughout my life".

The DUP has come under pressure over a series of misconduct allegations against Donaldson which have emerged separately from his conviction last month for child sex offences.

First Minister Michelle O'Neill accused the party of turning a "blind eye" to Donaldson's behaviour, but the DUP said the Sinn Féin vice-president was "playing politics with selective outrage".

A DUP spokesperson said O'Neill should await the outcome of an independent review "rather than prejudging that process".

Referring to claims made in Monday's Belfast Telegraph,, external dating back to 2020, Little Pengelly said "As I outlined to the Belfast Telegraph, I am clear that I would not have told anyone that Jeffrey Donaldson was dangerous, including the person who is referred to in the article," she said, after stating Donaldson's offending had "disgusted, shocked and revolted" her.

"I am personally devastated and shocked that my name has been referred to in this way, and that there is any implied interpretation that I was of that view or I had some reason to believe it to be true."

In a statement she said that in 2020 "I would not have indicated he was a danger to anyone, including this person as I didn't believe that to be the case and had no reason to believe that was the case. To be absolutely clear, these are their words, not mine."

In a separate statement, the DUP accused Sinn Féin of "playing politics with selective outrage" and said O'Neill should await the outcome of an independent review "rather than prejudging that process".

In June, Donaldson was convicted of 18 counts of sex abuse, including one count of rape, committed against two women when they were children.

He is in custody waiting to be sentenced.

Since his conviction a number of separate allegations have emerged about Donaldson's past behaviour.

They include a BBC Spotlight programme revealing that two senior DUP figures were made aware in 2021 of claims from a woman who said she had been "exploited" by Donaldson.

On Tuesday, the Belfast Telegraph reported, external that a woman had alleged Donaldson had sexually assaulted her in 2016, and that she had made a senior member of the party aware of what happened.

The woman said the alleged assault happened in the DUP's Westminster offices after Donaldson had given her a tour of the building.

A DUP spokesperson said the party "never received any report or complaint regarding these allegations".

They added: "We encourage anyone with information or a complaint regarding Jeffrey Donaldson to report it to the police."

Emma-Little Pengelly said her thoughts were "with the victims" and that she was "disgusted and revolted" by revelations about Jeffrey Donaldson's sexual offending and inappropriate sexual behaviour.

The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) said it had received a report about an allegation of a non-recent offence and was "assessing the information".

'Antics and behaviour'

Speaking to reporters in Dublin on Tuesday, O'Neill said that "increasingly we have lots of questions for the DUP to answer".

The first minister claimed "lots of" people in the DUP were aware of Donaldson's "antics and behaviour".

"It's very clear for us all to see that there was a culture in the DUP to turn a blind eye to actually what was happening," she added.

"That their leader was engaged in this type of behaviour and nobody knew about it? I don't think anybody believes that."

O'Neill said she has spoken to her Stormont executive counterpart Little-Pengelly but added it was "for her to answer for what she knew".

Speaking before Little-Pengelly's statement, O'Neill said: "I find it astonishing her silence. I find it astonishing that the media aren't asking her these questions," she added.

The first minister also rejected suggestions of hypocrisy, as questions were posed over Sinn Féin's handling of past controversies involving its own party.

"This isn't about Sinn Féin," O'Neill responded before adding: "No, Sinn Féin are not hypocrites."

'Deeply concerning'

Earlier on Tuesday, Alliance Party deputy leader Eóin Tennyson said the Belfast Telegraph's report was "deeply concerning".

"Taken alongside other recent reports, including separate claims about a 'warning' allegedly given to another young woman about Donaldson's behaviour, each new revelation raises further questions about whether opportunities were missed to protect people and what action was taken," the Upper Bann MLA said.

"The public is entitled to expect openness and transparency about who knew what and when.

"These serious questions cannot simply be brushed aside."

'Selective outrage'

In a statement a DUP spokesperson said: "Sinn Féin is now playing politics with selective outrage.

"Before casting stones at others, Sinn Féin should reflect on its own handling of cases involving Máiría Cahill, Michael McMonagle, Sandy Lynch and Jonathan Dowdall.

"The DUP never received any complaint regarding Jeffrey Donaldson's behaviour.

"We are commissioning an independent review into safeguarding arrangements."

Saw this on the back of a truck and managed to get a quick snap before it drove off. Had to zoom in a bit to get the letters a decent size, plus it was dirty which doesn't help! Apologies.

Have tried the usual websites with no matches. The E and T look distinctive enough with the slanted ends and thought that might have helped narrow it down but apparently not.

Hopefully someone is able to pinpoint what this one is. Thanks in advance.

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