This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It will not be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/northern_ireland/7277886.stm
The article has changed 13 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| Paisley to quit as first minister | Paisley to quit as first minister |
| (10 minutes later) | |
| Northern Ireland First Minister Ian Paisley is to stand down from the post in May, he has announced. | |
| He also said he would be resigning as leader of the DUP, a party he has led for almost 40 years. | |
| Mr Paisley, who will be 82 in April, took the post of first minister in May 2007 following the suspension of direct rule after a period of five years. | Mr Paisley, who will be 82 in April, took the post of first minister in May 2007 following the suspension of direct rule after a period of five years. |
| He said he would continue to serve as an MP and an MLA for his North Antrim constituency. | He said he would continue to serve as an MP and an MLA for his North Antrim constituency. |
| "I came to this decision a few weeks ago when I was thinking very much about the conference and what was going to come after the conference," he said. | "I came to this decision a few weeks ago when I was thinking very much about the conference and what was going to come after the conference," he said. |
| "I thought that it is a marker, a very big marker and it would be a very appropriate time for me to bow out." | "I thought that it is a marker, a very big marker and it would be a very appropriate time for me to bow out." |
| New leader | New leader |
| While it is expected that his current deputy Peter Robinson will succeed him as party leader, Mr Paisley said it was up to the DUP to make the decision. | While it is expected that his current deputy Peter Robinson will succeed him as party leader, Mr Paisley said it was up to the DUP to make the decision. |
| "This is not the Church of Rome," he said. | "This is not the Church of Rome," he said. |
| "This is not Apostolic succession and I have no right to say who will succeed me. | "This is not Apostolic succession and I have no right to say who will succeed me. |
| "The person will succeed me when the mark is on the paper and the ballot is cast. | "The person will succeed me when the mark is on the paper and the ballot is cast. |
| "Whoever that will be will have my support and encouragement and if he wants to take my advice, he will get that advice if he asks for it, but I will not be sitting like Putin in Russia saying to the president 'This is the way you have to go'. | "Whoever that will be will have my support and encouragement and if he wants to take my advice, he will get that advice if he asks for it, but I will not be sitting like Putin in Russia saying to the president 'This is the way you have to go'. |
| "When I make a break, it is a break." | "When I make a break, it is a break." |
| The deputy first minister, Martin McGuinness, paid tribute to Mr Paisley for his role in bringing power-sharing to Northern Ireland. | |
| "This historic decision he took to go into government with Sinn Fein has changed the course of Irish history for ever," he said. | "This historic decision he took to go into government with Sinn Fein has changed the course of Irish history for ever," he said. |
| Mr Paisley's announcement followed speculation that senior party members were unhappy about the appointment of his son, Ian Paisley Jnr, to the Policing Board. | |
| Last month, Mr Paisley Jnr resigned as a junior minister in the Northern Ireland Executive. | |
| His resignation followed criticism over his links to developer Seymour Sweeney and controversy over lobbying activity. |