John Hunter's column: Alliance on hunt for missing Catholic vote

THE bland leading the bland was how one former Alliance supporter described his party to me recently.

It followed the shock refusal of East Antrim members to nominate leader Sean Neeson as its Westminster candidate.

Fact is, Alliance has been finding its vote squeezed for some time.

Always basically a small-u unionist party, Alliance originally thrived on the correct assumption that there were plenty of Catholic unionists who didn't find a 'cead mile failte' on the UUP's traditional Orange mat.

And there was potential among middle-class Protestants embarrassed by besashed, bowler-hatted bigots.

How times change.

Alliance founder Sir Oliver Napier recently declared his dis- appointment that the party was not attracting Catholics as in the past.

The reality is that the pro-Agreement UUP faction is slightly less objectionable to some Catholics, while others tend towards the SDLP, now obliged to support NI's UK-union as part of the deal.

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