UUP's only MP 'weighs options'

THE Ulster Unionist Party's sole MP, Lady Sylvia Hermon, has said she will "weigh up her options" after refusing to fight the next election under a joint banner with the Conservative Party.

The Tories and Ulster Unionists are fielding joint candidates across Northern Ireland for the first time but Lady Hermon has refused to take the Conservative whip at Westminster.

This week, her party formally announced her refusal to endorse their new venture and she said she was considering her next move, with speculation she may stand as an independent. The Tories have promised a new non-sectarian political option in Northern Ireland.