:00:00. > :00:27.Tonight, as another loyalist protest is planned for Belfast this
:00:28. > :00:33.Saturday, how big an impact will it have on the city's economy and on
:00:34. > :00:35.Northern Ireland's image abroad? I'm joined live by the Minister
:00:36. > :00:41.responsible for attracting both trade and tourists to Northern
:00:42. > :00:44.Ireland, Arlene Foster. Later in the programme we'll hear from the PUP's
:00:45. > :00:51.Johnny Harvey who's supporting the protest. What next for
:00:52. > :00:55.Johnny Harvey who's supporting the will have details of a confidential
:00:56. > :01:01.report which says, unless the party changes, their prospects look bleak.
:01:02. > :01:04.I'll have reaction from the Foyle MLA Colum Eastwood to that exclusive
:01:05. > :01:07.report from Stephen Walker. And joining us this week in
:01:08. > :01:10.Commentators' Corner are the political journalist Liam Clarke and
:01:11. > :01:12.the author Susan McKay. And you can, of course, follow the programme on
:01:13. > :01:22.Twitter. That's @BBCtheview. It's traditionally the busiest
:01:23. > :01:25.shopping weekend in Belfast. But will a loyalist protest planned for
:01:26. > :01:28.Saturday put people off coming into the city centre? New figures
:01:29. > :01:32.released today reveal visitor numbers from the Republic for the
:01:33. > :01:38.first six months of the year are down 44% on last year. How concerned
:01:39. > :01:41.should we be, then, that further protests might cause damage to
:01:42. > :01:43.Belfast traders and to the brand image of Northern Ireland? Arlene
:01:44. > :01:45.Foster is the Executive image of Northern Ireland? Arlene
:01:46. > :01:53.with responsibility for trade and tourism and she's with me now.
:01:54. > :01:55.Thanks very much indeed for joining us on the programme tonight. Should
:01:56. > :02:03.Saturday's planned protest go ahead as planned? We have always been very
:02:04. > :02:08.clear about any protests which take place that those who protest have a
:02:09. > :02:10.right to protest but they also have responsibilities and the first
:02:11. > :02:13.Minister Peter Robinson was very clear this week when he said that
:02:14. > :02:20.those who are organising the protest should make a clear statement and
:02:21. > :02:24.say to those who view it as a time to involve themselves in violence,
:02:25. > :02:29.to stay away and make it a peaceful protest. It that's the case, it
:02:30. > :02:33.shouldn't cause disruption to sell fast and those people who want to
:02:34. > :02:36.come in and shop on Saturday. He said they should minimise disruption
:02:37. > :02:39.to business in the city centre. He also said if people didn't follow
:02:40. > :02:43.the parades commission determination on Saturday, they would be
:02:44. > :02:50.disruption. And economic disruption would follow. Do you agree with him?
:02:51. > :02:53.Yes, it's a danger. Nothing inevitable about that happening. We
:02:54. > :02:56.don't assume that's going to happen and indeed, we shouldn't be
:02:57. > :03:02.fatalistic about it. A lot of people have been talking up the prospect of
:03:03. > :03:05.there being violence and disruption in the city but that is not
:03:06. > :03:11.inevitable. What I'm saying very clearly tonight is we must ensure
:03:12. > :03:16.that we take all the correct procedures to make sure that if
:03:17. > :03:22.there is to be processed -- to be a protest on Saturday, it's peaceful.
:03:23. > :03:25.People are concerned about it and plan to stay away. It is anecdotal
:03:26. > :03:29.evidence. I know people from my plan to stay away. It is anecdotal
:03:30. > :03:33.county who have said they planned to come up on Saturday and are
:03:34. > :03:36.continuing to plan to come up on Saturday, so it's not putting people
:03:37. > :03:41.off in the numbers others would have us believe. Would be better to have
:03:42. > :03:47.a demonstration outside normal trading hours? That's what is with
:03:48. > :03:51.people say, do it a day of the week when we're not trying to make money
:03:52. > :03:57.and when it's not one of the busiest shopping days. In the last two times
:03:58. > :04:01.I have appeared in the assembly, during question time, I have been
:04:02. > :04:05.asked about the possibility of this protest. I said on that occasion,
:04:06. > :04:09.and I repeated tonight, I would have preferred it those who are
:04:10. > :04:13.organising protests, adding gauged with traders and tried to listen to
:04:14. > :04:18.their concerns and understand where they're coming from so when they
:04:19. > :04:26.were planning their protest, it is taken into account. Are you saying
:04:27. > :04:31.politics trumps economics? Not at all. The economics will continue. We
:04:32. > :04:34.shouldn't talk up this protest. I was out and about in Belfast the
:04:35. > :04:40.night before I came onto this programme and I saw people going
:04:41. > :04:42.about their shopping and in restaurants enjoying themselves and
:04:43. > :04:47.Belfast is a big enough city to cope with the protest, peaceful protest,
:04:48. > :04:50.and that has to be the way. A peaceful protest for the those who
:04:51. > :04:56.want to come along and enjoy the city as they intend to do. There is
:04:57. > :05:00.no protest tonight. There's no reason why that shouldn't be the
:05:01. > :05:04.case on Saturday as well. You said it should be a peaceful protest.
:05:05. > :05:17.Does it also have to be lawful protest because the Parades'
:05:18. > :05:20.Commission is the legal authority on this matter. Should police arrest
:05:21. > :05:22.protestors if they break the terms of the legal determination? People
:05:23. > :05:27.should respect the law. It is the lawful body that makes the Parades'
:05:28. > :05:31.Commission determinations and they should respect that. As well as
:05:32. > :05:35.respecting the Parades' Commission, they should respect people who want
:05:36. > :05:39.to be in the city centre during that time, the busiest Saturday before
:05:40. > :05:44.Christmas, when a lot of traders make a lot of money, sometimes
:05:45. > :05:48.people are said to me they made a third of their money in the run-up
:05:49. > :05:52.to Christmas and therefore it is a critical time for traders and I do
:05:53. > :05:54.make the plea of they do listen to the traders and understand where
:05:55. > :05:58.they're coming from. You are a lawyer. Is it right that these
:05:59. > :06:04.should arrest people if they break the terms of the Parades' Commission
:06:05. > :06:09.ruling? Often in these cases, there won't be arrests on the day but
:06:10. > :06:14.video footage will be reviewed afterwards and followed up. It's a
:06:15. > :06:18.big risk to those individuals, isn't it? Anybody who breaks the law
:06:19. > :06:23.realises they would get a criminal record and that some they will carry
:06:24. > :06:27.around with them for the rest of their lives. It will have an impact
:06:28. > :06:31.in respect of their ability to get a job, and to work in Northern Ireland
:06:32. > :06:34.and they should recognise that. This isn't just about what happened on
:06:35. > :06:38.Saturday. We are turning the corner in Northern Ireland. We are coming
:06:39. > :06:43.out of recession and women look at the number of jobs created here,
:06:44. > :06:48.over the past year, 5000 jobs up to June this year have been created --
:06:49. > :06:53.when we look at. I was pleased to make the announcement of 165 new
:06:54. > :06:56.jobs in Belfast on Monday. We are turning the corner. Although some
:06:57. > :07:01.people may want to focus on this Saturday, and I can understand why,
:07:02. > :07:06.Northern Ireland is open for business and we are creating jobs
:07:07. > :07:09.and ringing in investment. It is right you want to get that message
:07:10. > :07:16.out. We have the US consulate warning Americans to be extra
:07:17. > :07:19.vigilant when travelling to Northern Ireland and to stay clear of
:07:20. > :07:23.demonstrations and exercise caution around parades and protests. That's
:07:24. > :07:25.not what you want to hear, is it? But doesn't help me but when I
:07:26. > :07:28.checked, it's the lowest possible advice of the US consul general it
:07:29. > :07:33.gives out. It is not some think we should get excited about. It wasn't
:07:34. > :07:36.there last week but when I contacted the Consulate general they were
:07:37. > :07:41.embarrassed about the whole situation because when I go to the
:07:42. > :07:46.USA, and I recognise that some of those cities are quite dangerous, I
:07:47. > :07:51.look at Chicago, there's Billy 400 murders which has taken place there
:07:52. > :07:58.this year, -- and there is nearly 400 murders. Belfast is one of the
:07:59. > :08:01.safest places in the UK. They didn't realise it would cause a media storm
:08:02. > :08:04.in Northern Ireland for the that's what they are embarrassed about. The
:08:05. > :08:10.point is, it's a warning to Americans. It has been blown out of
:08:11. > :08:18.all proportion in Northern Ireland and that sometimes helps -- happens.
:08:19. > :08:21.How concerned are you that today's tourism figures indicate that RoI
:08:22. > :08:25.overnight holiday visits to NI are down by 44% for the first six months
:08:26. > :08:28.of this year on the year before? That is a fact. It has been issued
:08:29. > :08:32.today. You must concerned? I welcome the tourism figures overall because,
:08:33. > :08:35.of course, we have seen a 6% rise in terms of visitors overall coming
:08:36. > :08:39.into Northern Ireland. A huge increase in the number of visitors
:08:40. > :08:42.coming from Great Britain. And we have seen the amount which is been
:08:43. > :08:51.spent in Northern Ireland over the past six months, going up by 16%, so
:08:52. > :08:57.I welcome the figures overall. There is an issue in relation to the
:08:58. > :09:00.Republic of Ireland. We had a huge push for 2012 last, and we're
:09:01. > :09:04.looking at the Republic of Ireland market and will make sure the
:09:05. > :09:09.tourist board, who was in Dublin last week, pushing again in relation
:09:10. > :09:15.to those perceptions of safety. It's all about perception. The NITB
:09:16. > :09:18.confirmed today consumer research shows protests and disturbances is
:09:19. > :09:21.the number one barrier to visiting Northern Ireland. It's the
:09:22. > :09:25.perceptions of safety and security and that's why we have to be careful
:09:26. > :09:29.not to talk up something as if it is inevitable because I don't accept it
:09:30. > :09:33.is inevitable. I don't accept we should be fatalistic about what's
:09:34. > :09:35.going to happen on Saturday. We should look at the past aspects of
:09:36. > :09:40.Northern Ireland and I'm pleased to see we're turning a corner for sub
:09:41. > :09:47.thanks very much for joining is on the programme tonight. How likely is
:09:48. > :09:49.it that the prospect of a major protest will put people off
:09:50. > :09:55.travelling into Belfast city centre this weekend? We went to Ballymena
:09:56. > :09:58.to get the view on the street there. If you let everything put you off,
:09:59. > :10:06.you would go nowhere. I don't think it would. Why would it put you off?
:10:07. > :10:12.You don't want the hassle when doing your shopping. It has put me off
:10:13. > :10:16.with a fly protest. It is kind of hard to get up there and travel.
:10:17. > :10:22.With young children. Why would it put you off? I would just be scared.
:10:23. > :10:27.People rushing about. I'm going up on Saturday. Did you know that a big
:10:28. > :10:35.protest on Saturday? Would it put you off? No, it is I love shopping.
:10:36. > :10:38.I don't care. Possibly it might do. It depends if it's going to get
:10:39. > :10:44.rough or anything like that. It might do. Hopefully, is it right in
:10:45. > :10:51.the centre? Like the one on Saturday, but I will stay away.
:10:52. > :10:57.Linzi Lima asking the questions there in Ballymena. With me now is
:10:58. > :11:02.Johnny Harvey from the Progressive Unionist Party. Why is your party so
:11:03. > :11:05.enthusiastically supporting a protest which is only the building
:11:06. > :11:09.will only damage Belfast on the best years shopping days before
:11:10. > :11:13.Christmas? I think it's wrong to assume this is going to damage
:11:14. > :11:17.Belfast. I think the words of adaptive first Minister earlier on
:11:18. > :11:21.in the week is what has ramped up the tensions around this protest.
:11:22. > :11:22.The protest had been taking place in the city centre every Saturday
:11:23. > :11:27.The protest had been taking place in the past year. One of which has had
:11:28. > :11:32.trouble. You don't think it's damaging at all? It's damaging it's
:11:33. > :11:35.been hyped up the way it is. The Deputy First Minister needs to look
:11:36. > :11:40.at his word early on in the week. He needs to make an apology to the
:11:41. > :11:43.people who are going to turn out in protest. They will do peacefully and
:11:44. > :11:48.lawfully and he needs to make an apology for what he accused them of.
:11:49. > :11:55.All he said was that, in his view, the EDF was organising the parade.
:11:56. > :11:59.That's absolutely incorrect. It's absolutely wrong to say that. The
:12:00. > :12:03.people have been protest in order, ordinary, decent people who have
:12:04. > :12:06.genuine grievances and what we end up doing is speaking about this
:12:07. > :12:10.Doomsday Prophecy that is all going to go wrong, and lead to trouble,
:12:11. > :12:18.and we never deal with the issues. Who is organising it? It's strangely
:12:19. > :12:28.mysterious. Not at all. There will be a name given to the police. Who
:12:29. > :12:33.is the name? I don't know. You never asked. Not curious? Not really, I
:12:34. > :12:39.know a group of people who have been proud testing for the last year have
:12:40. > :12:45.been doing it around issues that we all care about. They want to do a
:12:46. > :12:48.parade. And what about the business owners in the centre of Belfast who
:12:49. > :12:53.are very concerned about the impact it will have on their trading on
:12:54. > :12:57.Saturday throughout the day? Do you have any concern for them at all? I
:12:58. > :13:01.don't dig about any impact on trade from the point of view from the
:13:02. > :13:04.protest is. I think there would conduct themselves impeccably as I
:13:05. > :13:08.have done for the past year for them they will continue to do that on
:13:09. > :13:12.Saturday. What we are worried about is the hype would has been built up
:13:13. > :13:20.around this and that falls squarely at the Deputy First Minister. It
:13:21. > :13:27.will be a peaceful parade, you said. Absolutely. Will you be there
:13:28. > :13:33.on Saturday? I will be there. Will you be clear of the city centre by
:13:34. > :13:37.1230? I will be there supporting the protest and I will be there on the
:13:38. > :13:41.ground to try and advise people that you need to stay within the law. The
:13:42. > :13:47.last thing I want to see as more people ending up in jail. Just to be
:13:48. > :13:54.clear, you will be encouraging people to move out of the centre of
:13:55. > :13:57.Belfast by 12:30pm? I will be encouraging people to stay within
:13:58. > :14:00.the law. Will you be making clear that if they do not do that they
:14:01. > :14:03.will stand the possibility of being that if they do not do that they
:14:04. > :14:09.arrested as Mac we have just heard from Arlene Foster about that. We
:14:10. > :14:13.have not done anything else for the last year. We will continue to do
:14:14. > :14:17.what we have done for the last year. We will encourage people to be
:14:18. > :14:22.peaceful and lawful and that is how we will get our message across. Do
:14:23. > :14:28.you accept it will have no impact on City Hall. That was a democratic
:14:29. > :14:33.decision taken by councillors and if it is going to change, it is not
:14:34. > :14:38.going to change because of protests? The first thing we need to think
:14:39. > :14:44.about is not just the flag issue. This is endemic of a wider problem
:14:45. > :14:47.within working class communities. We have had this problem within the
:14:48. > :14:51.past year. None of the issues have been dealt with. They do not want to
:14:52. > :14:58.deal with them. They just want to talk it up in their doomsday the sea
:14:59. > :15:02.and discredit it. Your edition is it will happen, it will be peaceful and
:15:03. > :15:06.lawful and you do not think there will be any trouble on Saturday as
:15:07. > :15:10.back I do not think so and I think I'll fast is brave enough and big
:15:11. > :15:18.enough to cope with peaceful protest. Will businessmen be able to
:15:19. > :15:22.have their businesses? There will be a protest every Saturday but not on
:15:23. > :15:27.this scale. Thank you for joining us.
:15:28. > :15:31.The SDLP has been told it is resting on its laurels, it is too complacent
:15:32. > :15:40.and too stuck in the past. The comments are contained in a
:15:41. > :15:43.confidential report. It also states many of the nationalist voters they
:15:44. > :15:49.have spoken to do not CBS DLP as a party of change or different is.
:15:50. > :15:54.Instead, they see it as self-interested and conservative.
:15:55. > :15:58.Once, the SDLP were the leading voice of northern nationalism. They
:15:59. > :16:04.had faces who shaped the political landscape. When John Hume and Seamus
:16:05. > :16:12.Mallon spoke, the establishment took notice. 1992 marked a high point for
:16:13. > :16:18.the SDLP when at his third attempt, Joe Hendron took the West Belfast
:16:19. > :16:21.seat from Gerry Adams. This marked a political triumph for the SDLP. But
:16:22. > :16:25.the success in West Al fast was short lived and that the next
:16:26. > :16:33.election Gerry Adams recaptured the seat. From that point on, things
:16:34. > :16:37.started to change. In the 1997 general election, the SDLP out
:16:38. > :16:43.polled Sinn Fein by around 60,000 votes. But at the last general
:16:44. > :16:50.election in 2010, the tables were turned, with Sinn Fein out polled in
:16:51. > :16:54.the SDLP by around the same number. In an attempt to improve their
:16:55. > :17:00.fortunes, the SDLP has commissioned research among voters who do not
:17:01. > :17:05.vote SDLP but are open to vote for the party. 50 people in five focus
:17:06. > :17:12.groups were questioned in Derry, Antrim, Homer, Belfast and other
:17:13. > :17:20.towns. The report was mainly negative. -- Omagh. Although the
:17:21. > :17:24.party had good things to say on John Hume and the party's stance on
:17:25. > :17:29.Syria, the report says positive comments were few and far between.
:17:30. > :17:30.Some voters see the SDLP as middle-class time wasters
:17:31. > :17:34.Some voters see the SDLP as doing enough around the flag
:17:35. > :17:41.protests. The research also showed older voters thought the past hangs
:17:42. > :17:46.heavy with Sinn Fein. Many voters saw Sinn Fein as strong and fighting
:17:47. > :17:52.for them. It is the comparison with Sinn Fein that will give the SDLP
:17:53. > :17:57.their biggest concerns. Those questioned said they thought the
:17:58. > :18:03.SDLP was a party of the past, while Sinn Fein was viewed as a party of
:18:04. > :18:07.the future. The SDLP were perceived as middle-class, Sinn Fein, working
:18:08. > :18:13.class. Some said the SDLP had no big figures any more. In turn, Sinn Fein
:18:14. > :18:19.were viewed as having strong leaders fighting for us. The SDLP were seen
:18:20. > :18:26.as not sure if they are Irish or British while Sinn Fein were viewed
:18:27. > :18:30.as strongly Irish. And on policy differences between Sinn Fein and
:18:31. > :18:36.the SDLP, the report states no group could identify any policy
:18:37. > :18:43.differences. It seemed to be a party which is stuck in the past, that has
:18:44. > :18:48.no clear sense of vision or a clearly articulated project with a
:18:49. > :18:56.leadership that seems the rest -- arrest of dynamism and real policy
:18:57. > :19:01.direction. The report contains other stark conclusions on the state of
:19:02. > :19:06.the SDLP. It states many nationalist voters do not know who you are and
:19:07. > :19:12.what you stand for any more. Another conclusions states many nationalist
:19:13. > :19:14.voters do not CBS DLP as a party of change, but as a self interested
:19:15. > :19:20.conservative force -- they do change, but as a self interested
:19:21. > :19:28.see the SDLP as a party for change. Many voters see the party as resting
:19:29. > :19:33.on its laurels and stuck in the past. The report says nationalist
:19:34. > :19:39.voters want a reason to vote for the SDLP again. What does the party need
:19:40. > :19:43.to do? This confidential report was completed last month. It makes a
:19:44. > :19:48.series of recommendations. It says the party should build its profile
:19:49. > :19:51.by supporting the leader Alasdair McDonnell. It said the party should
:19:52. > :19:58.campaign on health issues and should deliver lunch messages on the areas
:19:59. > :20:02.of flags and parades. It says more women and more younger people should
:20:03. > :20:06.begin in positions of real authority in the party. There is also this
:20:07. > :20:13.morning. No matter what the historical significance of the SDLP,
:20:14. > :20:19.without doing anything different, future prospects look bleak. What
:20:20. > :20:25.does something different mean? For a start, should the Esk DLP leave the
:20:26. > :20:29.Executive and go into opposition? I think everything in this document
:20:30. > :20:33.speaks very loudly and clearly to the idea that the SDLP should more
:20:34. > :20:40.seriously consider going into opposition in Stormont. That would
:20:41. > :20:42.speak volumes to a community and the potential electorate who is not
:20:43. > :20:49.quite sure what the party stands for. It stands in opposition holding
:20:50. > :20:54.the government of the data account scrutinising the work of government
:20:55. > :20:58.on a day-to-day basis and offering an alternative government in
:20:59. > :21:01.forthcoming elections. Next the apostle at European
:21:02. > :21:02.forthcoming elections. Next the elections will be Alasdair
:21:03. > :21:09.McDonnell's first test as party leader. Some people say he
:21:10. > :21:13.desperately needs good results. Fire macro I am not sure that the current
:21:14. > :21:24.leader is a man who is imaginative enough to plot a new direction and a
:21:25. > :21:28.new agenda for the SDLP. If they do not make gains in May then I think
:21:29. > :21:38.Alasdair McDonnell's time as leader of the party is probably over. As
:21:39. > :21:42.bad as that? Yes, I do. In 2011 when Alasdair McDonnell campaigned for
:21:43. > :21:46.the SDLP leadership, he said he was not going to watch the decline and
:21:47. > :21:51.eventual disappearance of his party. This report makes it clear that
:21:52. > :22:06.unless radical action is taken, the Esk DLP's future is booming -- the
:22:07. > :22:13.SDLP's future is unclear. I said the report makes pretty serious
:22:14. > :22:22.reading. This report was done among 50
:22:23. > :22:26.people. It is about the SDLP asking questions and listening to people
:22:27. > :22:30.who do not support us. We are prepared to take criticism and do
:22:31. > :22:35.something about it. It is not easy reading but it is not something to
:22:36. > :22:39.be getting depressed about. I think the SDLP is willing to listen to
:22:40. > :22:47.people who do not support us. That is a good thing. It was research
:22:48. > :22:50.commissioned by the SDLP for the SDLP will studies are voters who you
:22:51. > :22:56.need to be attracting and it is pretty ears at the moment you are
:22:57. > :23:03.not doing that -- it is pretty obvious. We know we have a huge
:23:04. > :23:07.challenge to increase the SDLP vote. If there are perceptions that there
:23:08. > :23:12.which I think are wrong then we have to challenge them. The talk about us
:23:13. > :23:21.being a middle-class party is nonsense. Our activist base, our
:23:22. > :23:25.supporters base and elected representatives come from all social
:23:26. > :23:31.classes. You have to come to my constituency office and see the work
:23:32. > :23:33.we do for people in most need. The SDLP is about representing
:23:34. > :23:36.everybody. It is a broad-based party. The difficulty is that you
:23:37. > :23:40.may believe that within the party. The difficulty is that you
:23:41. > :23:45.and your core supporters may believe that but the people you need to be
:23:46. > :23:48.attracting do not see it that way. They see you as a middle-class party
:23:49. > :23:54.sitting on your laurels looking at the past. Even if what you say is
:23:55. > :24:00.right, your problem is you are not communicating it. That is the case,
:24:01. > :24:05.we have to address that. That is why we did this piece of research. It is
:24:06. > :24:13.not the case we are conservative for sitting on our laurels. We are very
:24:14. > :24:16.proud of our past. People of my generation were able to become fully
:24:17. > :24:20.involved in the democratic life of Northern Ireland. We should be proud
:24:21. > :24:25.of that. I am 30 years old. There are young activist coming through.
:24:26. > :24:30.I'm very proud of all those people who are working very hard to change
:24:31. > :24:35.the image of the SDLP. You say you have young activist who want to get
:24:36. > :24:44.involved in front line politics, let's look at the departure of Carla
:24:45. > :24:50.McDevitt. There was a perfect opportunity to replace him with a
:24:51. > :24:56.young woman, Claire Hanna, 31 years old. What did you do? You'd chose a
:24:57. > :25:03.51-year-old man of Fergal McKinney. We are a democratic party. Fergal is
:25:04. > :25:07.a tremendous asset to the SDLP, as is Claire. I would be very hopeful
:25:08. > :25:12.that she will be in the Assembly team before long. The point is you
:25:13. > :25:17.say you're not middle-class all the party sitting on your laurels. When
:25:18. > :25:19.you get the opportunity to do demonstrate that, you do not take
:25:20. > :25:23.the opportunity. We do not demonstrate that, you do not take
:25:24. > :25:29.these young people and people from working-class backgrounds, we need
:25:30. > :25:31.good people. Claire is a very talented councillor and Fergal is
:25:32. > :25:39.equally good. It is abrupt brain all those people into the party. Do not
:25:40. > :25:44.think the appointment of a young woman would be very good for the
:25:45. > :25:51.SDLP? This only tells you what you already know, to be honest. The
:25:52. > :25:53.media keep telling people that we are middle-class party and an old
:25:54. > :25:58.party. The reality is very different. You will see we have a
:25:59. > :26:06.number of candidates under 30. If you look at Alex Attwood, a
:26:07. > :26:11.relatively young candidate, I put a bet on with you now, he will win
:26:12. > :26:13.that election. It is time we had someone who is fighting for the
:26:14. > :26:18.people of someone who is fighting for the
:26:19. > :26:23.if you would put a bet on Alasdair McDonnell being the party leader
:26:24. > :26:27.after the elections next year. Rick Wilson said he does not think the
:26:28. > :26:33.current leadership team have the drive and leadership to take the
:26:34. > :26:38.party were needs to go. He thinks Alasdair McDonnell will be gone.
:26:39. > :26:43.Would you put money on that? I would but money on us winning the seat,
:26:44. > :26:49.increasing our number of councillors and Alistair leading us into the
:26:50. > :26:55.next election after that. You have no concerns about the leadership
:26:56. > :27:01.team? None whatsoever. Is that widely held? He has been elected as
:27:02. > :27:06.the SDLP leader, he has been re-elected, he has our full
:27:07. > :27:10.confidence. We will back him to the hilt. The SDLP as a party which
:27:11. > :27:16.stays together in good times and we support the leadership. What about
:27:17. > :27:21.you marking yourselves out as a party by moving into opposition?
:27:22. > :27:25.Margaret Ritchie said if it was up to me, we would be in opposition by
:27:26. > :27:31.Christmas. Did you hear her say that? I was in the hall. I do not
:27:32. > :27:37.agree with that. We are a democratic party. We allow people to go up onto
:27:38. > :27:42.platforms and say what they think. There is no place called opposition.
:27:43. > :27:49.Yes DLP has been let it in a strange system to do a job -- the SDLP.
:27:50. > :27:53.There is nothing in that report which criticises our ministers. I
:27:54. > :27:57.think the public know very well that when the SDLP is in government we
:27:58. > :28:01.deliver. I think we are going to continue to do that job.
:28:02. > :28:07.deliver. I think we are going to McDevitt talking to me earlier --
:28:08. > :28:16.Colum Eastwood talking to me earlier. Now we have a chat with our
:28:17. > :28:28.commentators. What you think about this? Colum Eastwood did make a good
:28:29. > :28:31.point that focus groups are about asking people what you are doing
:28:32. > :28:43.wrong. They are going to appear negative. But the SDLP has hit a
:28:44. > :28:48.fairly low point and stuck there. Steady as she goes is not an option
:28:49. > :28:49.for them at the moment and there is a strong argument to do something
:28:50. > :28:54.radical like going into opposition. radical like going into opposition.
:28:55. > :28:59.Alasdair McDonnell had a target of 70 councillors next year. That will
:29:00. > :29:08.be hard to reach and people will be disappointed if he doesn't do it. I
:29:09. > :29:11.agree it's a focus group report so inevitably there will be a
:29:12. > :29:15.predominance of negativity but it's very damaging and I think coming
:29:16. > :29:19.hard on the heels of a very weak performance by the party leader at
:29:20. > :29:29.the annual conference. It is particularly damaging. On the
:29:30. > :29:36.question of Carmel, I felt for Colum Eastwood because the party don't
:29:37. > :29:39.have a leg to stand on. That's the daughter. Sorry, Claire. Even though
:29:40. > :29:46.it is Alistair MacDonald saw him daughter. Sorry, Claire. Even though
:29:47. > :29:50.with no tears shed and then put in his favoured person in his place, it
:29:51. > :29:56.just doesn't look like a party which is aware of the difficulties in the
:29:57. > :30:07.way its perceived. He did say he was very sorry Colum Eastwood left.
:30:08. > :30:14.Otherwise, what about the leadership now? Do you think he is safe? If he
:30:15. > :30:18.doesn't do well next May, is the real trouble? In the Belfast
:30:19. > :30:24.Telegraph, they did a survey of 50 delegates and he came out with 28
:30:25. > :30:30.approval rating. Mike Nesbitt got 94 and Peter Robinson got 92. He is not
:30:31. > :30:34.somebody who walks on water with the party. We can't afford to make
:30:35. > :30:43.mistakes. One thing he does have going for him, there's no obvious
:30:44. > :30:48.successor. Who wouldn't be? We need to talk to the other subject
:30:49. > :30:55.tonight. The thoughts of Arlene Foster. What did you make of the
:30:56. > :31:02.views they put forward? I think it's a very awkward position for Arlene
:31:03. > :31:08.Foster but very striking the way the DUP was so vehement this time last
:31:09. > :31:12.in the enunciation of the Parades' Commission. It's so mild-mannered
:31:13. > :31:17.this weekend. Johnny Harvey's attitude seems to be don't worry
:31:18. > :31:20.about it. What is the point in calling thousands of people onto the
:31:21. > :31:25.streets if your not going to be noticed? Clearly, it's going to be
:31:26. > :31:28.disruptive and put people off. Clearly, it's very bad coming hot on
:31:29. > :31:32.the heels of the USA advice. Clearly, it's very bad coming hot on
:31:33. > :31:40.been hyped up beyond where it should be. Do you accept that? It has been
:31:41. > :31:47.hyped up because of what happened in September when they caused awful
:31:48. > :31:55.trouble. It was the same organisers. This time they are saying, it's
:31:56. > :32:01.brutality. That being said, Johnny Harvey seemed to want to give
:32:02. > :32:07.himself an each way bet if things went wrong. We need to leave it
:32:08. > :32:13.there. Thank you very much for talking to me. Those are the views
:32:14. > :32:16.of our commentators. Before we go, let's hear the thoughts of the man
:32:17. > :32:28.with the inside track on the Hill. What can ordinary people do about
:32:29. > :32:34.the dissidents? We could try reasoning with them. But that's like
:32:35. > :32:39.trying to get a pint at a DUP conference. I have a plan. If I
:32:40. > :32:44.don't go and drink in every single part in Belfast between now and
:32:45. > :32:48.Christmas, then the terrorist win. I don't want to, but every separate
:32:49. > :32:54.defies the dissidents. But I'm going to go shopping on Saturday to defy
:32:55. > :32:58.the flag wavers. The shops will be empty and I have braced myself.
:32:59. > :33:04.Peter Robinson says people will be dignified and of course they will.
:33:05. > :33:06.They will get hammered in a dignified fashion for the meanwhile,
:33:07. > :33:09.the US consulate has warned Americans to stay away from
:33:10. > :33:16.situations where there could be ugly confrontations. You look like an
:33:17. > :33:23.idiot! Don't go up near the assembly. They are debating flags
:33:24. > :33:31.today. That's it from The View for this week. Join us on twitter. Join
:33:32. > :33:32.me for Sunday Politics at 11.35 here on BBC One. For now, though, bye
:33:33. > :33:36.bye.