DUP's Poots 'believed agreement made over South Down Assembly seat.'

Edwin Poots believed he had an agreement in place to stand for the DUP in South Down sources close to the MLA have told UTV.

The agriculture minister is not expected to stand in his constituency of Lagan Valley to allow party leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson to stand for election to the Assembly and step down from his role as MP.

On Friday night party officials selected Diane Forsythe as their candidate for South Down. That move has to be endorsed by the party executive.

“If there was any suggestion that the wounds that were caused during last year’s leadership contest had healed, I think what happened last week proved they have not,” said UTV Political Editor Tracey Magee.

“In fact the whole controversy around the South Down selection has ripped them open again.

“Sources close to Edwin Poots say he believed he had an agreement with the leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson to step aside from Lagan Valley to allow Sir Jeffrey to step in coming back from Westminster and that in turn he would then stand in South Down.

“So when the selection process was run last week and party officers voted against Edwin Poots, he believes that has broken an agreement.

“Party sources very strongly deny that that is the case. However, people around Edwin Poots insist he will take this to the party executive, this is the 130 strong body that will ratify the selection process, and they believe he has the numbers to overturn this decision.

"Again the party says this is not the case and this won’t be what happens.

“What we are looking at is another very ugly fight within the party being played out publically.”