Poor old fantasists in the Maiden city: Vance

The recent Traditional Unionist Voice (TUV) recruit pounced on leader of the Sinn Fin's council grouping Maeve McLaughlin's declaration that she had problems with the overwhelming Britishness of the bid.

Mr Vance posted a comment on the right wing political site A Tangled Web entitled "STUPID IS AS STUPID DOES."

The TUV man blogged yesterday, Tuesday, March 2: "Best laugh of the day was hearing the leader of Sinn Fein on 'Derry' City Council state that her party does not support Londonderry's bid for UK city of culture because, as she put it, Londonderry is not British.

"If ever you wanted an example of the staggering delusionalism that pervades Irish Repuiblicans (sic], here it is.

"Londonderry is British but the poor old fantasists in the Maiden city cannot bring themselves to accept this and so they refuse to support this bid.

"What a shower! Of course there is a deeper point to be made. How on earth can a party that refuses to accept constitutional reality be fit to govern that country?

"Sinn Fein/IRA have been pandered to when they should have been confronted with reality. Londonderry is and shall be a British city and poor Maeve McLaughlin needs to check out which currency she gets paid in. I think she will find it has our Queen's head on it."

DUP East Londonderry MP Gregory Campbell had earlier said: "If I wanted to be facetious I would say that at the very outset of this bid, the clue was in the name, 'UK City of Culture'.

"Why on earth would they plump for a city whose elected representatives are divided on whether we should take the accolade if they're awarded it?"

But Sinn Fin said Mrs McLaughlin's assertion "I have yet to be convinced this bid as it currently stands reflects the views of Irish nationalists and republicans" was consistent with Derry City Council's stance on the bid.