SDLP Leader Colum Eastwood has announced today that he will contest the Foyle Westminster seat.
British MPs voted yesterday (Tuesday) to hold a General Election on Thursday, December 12.
It will be the first time a General Election has been held in December since 1923.
The move came after Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn caved in after huge pressure from the Liberal Democrats and SNP to go to the polls.
Mr Eastwood said that Brexit is a national emergency that poses an unacceptable risk to the interests of this island and particularly to Derry.
Speaking at a Press Conference in Derry’s Playhouse theatre today, he said: “Brexit is a national emergency. It threatens people, businesses and communities across this island, but particularly in Derry were travelling across the border for work, to visit family or to socialise is a basic part of our lives.
“We have spent three years talking about the threats to jobs, livelihoods and border communities. That’s the time we should have spent expanding our university to give young people the opportunity to study on this island. It’s time we should have spent upgrading our transport infrastructure to attract high-quality new jobs. It’s time we should have spent addressing the legacy of conflict and the mental health crisis in homes and communities across this city.
“We know the scale of the challenge we’re facing. The time for talking is now over, now it’s time to take control of our own future, stand up for ourselves and vote Boris Johnson’s Brexit down.
“This is a time for leadership. I understand that when the stakes are this high, you have to be prepared to take on the uncomfortable and the unprecedented.
“At a time when communities like ours should be setting the agenda, we need our first team on the pitch. Instead, Derry is on the sidelines. That’s not acceptable.
“This is a defining election. It is a moment of choice and a moment for change. I am not content to continue with the direction of travel. I will not sit idly by as our interests are undermined. Brexit can be stopped at Westminster. SDLP MPs will vote to stop Brexit.”
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