First Minister Rev Ian Paisley has set out the reasons behind his decision to stand down, saying it was time for a "new generation" to shape the country's future.
The 81-year-old, who will retire as First Minister in May, dismissed suggestions he had been forced out by an internal Democratic Unionist Party coup.
And in a provocative statement, he said Sinn Fein were no longer "true republicans" because they had accepted Britain's right to govern in Northern Ireland.
Dr. Ian R. K. Paisley | 3/18/2009
