FORMER Secretary of State for Northern Ireland and Torfaen MP Paul Murphy reacted with sadness to the news of Dr Ian Paisley's death.
“I was sorry to hear this sad news. I knew and worked with Ian Paisley for almost 20 years. When I first met him, I was apprehensive about encountering a man of such fierce reputation. However, I have to say he was always impeccably kind and courteous to me personally.
"He would greet me warmly as ‘the Apostle Paul’, which is quite something given his history, and when you consider that I was the first Catholic Secretary of State for Northern Ireland.
He added: "At first he was fiercely sceptical and suspicious of the process that led to the Good Friday Agreement. But in the end, his strong convictions did not stand in the way of him making a huge contribution to peace and the political process in Northern Ireland. Without him, I doubt we could have achieved the later stages of devolution. My prayers and respects go to his family today. ”
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