Jim Fitzpatrick

Politicians from The Five biggest parties in Northern Ireland are due to go head-to-head in The Final TV debate of The Assembly election campaign on Tuesday.

Sir Jeffrey Donaldson of the Democratic Unionist Party , Sinn Féin's Michelle O'Neill, the SDLP's Colum Eastwood , the Ulster Unionist Party 's Doug Beattie and The Alliance Party's Naomi Long , are to take part in BBC Northern Ireland 's The Leaders' Debate.

They will set out their key policies and arguments in The Final run-up to the Northern Ireland Assembly election on Thursday.

It is The Second TV debate of The Campaign , following The First on UTV on Sunday.

The Debate will be broadcast on Bbc One Northern Ireland from 21:00 on Tuesday and will run for an hour. It will be moderated by BBC Spotlight NI's Jim Fitzpatrick .

It will be broadcast at the same time on the Bbc News Channel and iPlayer and will also be streamed live, with added analysis, on the Bbc News NI website.

Jim said: " This is a crucial forum for debate between the leaders of The Five main parties just Two Days before Election Day .

" It's exciting to be putting them in front of a Studio audience who will hold them and their policies to account with probing questions on the issues that matter to them. "

Sir Jeffrey Donaldson - - He has argued that the DUP is the only Unionist Party which can stop Sinn Féin winning The Most seats - a scenario in which he argues Sinn Féin would Step Up demands for a referendum on Irish unification. When asked if the DUP would take up The Post of deputy First Minister if It Comes second behind Sinn Féin, Sir Jeffrey has not directly answered, but has said he is a democrat. He also argues that a vote for the DUP can help send a message to Westminster, Dublin and Brussels about unionist opposition to the Northern Ireland Protocol, to which he is strongly opposed, and has said the DUP will not enter into the power-sharing executive after the election unless steps are taken to dismantle the protocol.

Michelle O'Neill - - The Party has put the cost of living crisis at The Heart of the Sinn Féin campaign rather than its Long -held ambition for a referendum on Irish unification. The Party has campaigned under the slogan " time for real change" and she has said her priority is to show that politics works and to convince voters that " real change is possible". That belief in Irish unity is still a key policy though, and she has said it would be " reckless" not to plan for the unification of Ireland.

Colum Eastwood - - He is not standing in the election as he is the Westminster MP for Foyle, but has been front and centre of his party's campaign, saying the SDLP are the only party which will " put families first". His party is also promising lots of investment, from £1bn in the health service to a 6% pay rise for nurses. He says that the SDLP is focusing on pulling people out of poverty, rather than talking about referendums or the NI Protocol.

Doug Beattie - In charge of his party for just under a year, he has been trying to rebrand it as a more liberal movement with a more diverse set of candidates. While he wants the NI Protocol to be fundamentally changed, his party has focused on other issues, in particular healthcare due to holding the health department brief in the executive for The Past Two years. The Party says it is The Most important election it has fought in its history stretching back almost 120 years as it seeks to finally challenge the DUP after almost Two decades on the back foot.

Naomi Long - - Two years after a string of good election results in 2019, she hopes this can be the year her party makes significant gains in The Assembly . She has Once Again campaigned on Alliance being distinct from The Other big parties on The Debate around whether Northern Ireland should stay in the UK or not, arguing that voters like that Alliance focuses instead on " bread and butter" issues. She will be hoping to win over voters from both the unionist and nationalist camps.

The parties taking part are The Five largest parties and for The Past Two years have governed together as part of the multi-party Northern Ireland Executive.

The views of the leaders of the Traditional Unionist Voice, the Green Party and People Before Profit will be incorporated in an extended Bbc Newsline on Tuesday at 22:35.

Putting five party leaders together under the glare of lights in a TV Studio - just days before their electoral fates are Sealed - makes for 60 Minutes their press teams don't relish.

For voters, it's a chance to see the politicians go head-to-head, having been fighting it out on the doorsteps for weeks.

In The First televised debate on UTV, all five leaders managed to sidestep any major slip-ups, knowing well that that happening this close to polling day could come back to bite them.

But there was no shortage of spats and at times it was four versus one when Sir Jeffrey Donaldson faced a backlash over his decision to withdraw the DUP First Minister in February, which left NI without a functioning devolved government.

That issue, as well as the cost of living crisis, the NI Protocol and dealing with health dominated The Debate .

Don't expect The Topics to change in round Two at The Next leaders' debate.

This assembly election campaign has been characterised by many journalists and commentators as tepid and pretty slow, due to the lack of " stand out" sound bites and gaffes.

There's still, of course, a possibility that could change Tomorrow Night - it's live TV After All .

But the politicians have each been practising and perfecting their routines, hoping they won't be The One to fall at The Final hurdle.

Questions will come from grassroots party supporters and some undecided voters who represent a range of different political opinions and demographics.

The Audience will reflect The Broad range of political opinions on many of the issues affecting Northern Ireland . That could be based on voting history, views on big issues like the cost of living, the protocol and whether the Stormont Executive will return after the election.

The production team ask audience members to submit questions And Then choose The Most topical and representative of these.

The First Time The Panel hears each question is when The Audience member asks it.

Throughout the programme, audience members are also given the opportunity to put further points to the politicians.

Source of news: bbc.com