Stormont: Edwin Poots challenged over ‘clock cleaned’ comments

Stormont Speaker Edwin Poots has said no connotation should be drawn from remarks in which he said he would have Traditional Unionist Voice (TUV) leader Jim Allister’s “clock cleaned”.

The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) assembly member was responding after Mr Allister raised questions over the comments made on Monday on BBC Radio Ulster’s Good Morning Ulster.

It had followed Mr Allister suggesting the speaker appointment was a trade-off in return for Mr Poots supporting the party’s return to Stormont power-sharing.

In response, Mr Poots told the programme: “I couldn’t respond to Mr Allister, and he certainly would have had his clock cleaned if I could have.”

In the assembly on Tuesday, Mr Allister asked Mr Poots: “Given the dignity and expectations of your office, how was it compatible for you to publicly vent your desire to ‘clean my clock’, which has the colloquial and indisputable meaning of indulging in physical violence?”

Mr Poots said he felt the assembly member for North Antrim was “being a little sensitive”.

Smiling, he said he meant that “had I had the opportunity to put you right, I would have put you right on that occasion”.

But he said “no other connotation should be taken from it” as that would be “entirely disingenuous and misleading”.

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