On behalf of my party, I join Members in condemning the murder of the two soldiers on Saturday night. Our thoughts and prayers are with the families of those killed and injured, and I pray that the injured men make a speedy recovery
Our priority must be to ensure that the police are given the necessary resources to enable them to bring the perpetrators of the atrocity to justice. However, we must remember that the aim of those who carried out the atrocity is to bring down the Assembly and take us backwards into a spiral of violence. Therefore, it is important that we, as the elected representatives of the people of Northern Ireland, stand together at this time and present a united front. We must not give any comfort to the murderers. I welcome the fact that all the party leaders have united in condemning those appalling murders.
Therefore, it is important that we unite and show no divisions. It is also important that we use considered language, because disputes can give only succour to those who carried out the attack, and those people have no support or mandate to commit such atrocities. The Assembly must stand firm and provide leadership to ensure that we succeed in building a united community and are not dragged back to the violence of the past.