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Northern Ireland’s First Minister, Michelle O’Neill, has expressed serious concerns about the future of the United Kingdom, describing it as “cracking at the seams.” Speaking at Sinn Féin’s annual ard fheis conference, held in Belfast for the first time since 2018, O’Neill accused Westminster of consistently failing Northern Ireland. The gathering, postponed from last year due to “logistical and strategic” challenges, took place this spring instead.
O’Neill highlighted the rising support for nationalist parties in upcoming elections in Scotland and Wales as evidence of an increasing desire for independence across the UK. She also turned a critical eye towards the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), Sinn Féin’s power-sharing partner at Stormont. Since her party gained the most seats in the 2022 assembly election, O’Neill was installed as the first nationalist first minister. However, she lamented that progress within the executive has been hampered, holding the DUP responsible for delays and obstructions. “Despite my best efforts, and those of Sinn Féin ministers, there are quite simply some who do not want to work together,” she said, accusing the DUP of attempting to “turn the clock back” and blocking initiatives that would positively impact people’s lives. She further charged the DUP with attacking “everything to do with Irish national identity.”
During her address, O’Neill pledged that Sinn Féin would pursue reforms to make the institutions of the Northern Ireland assembly more effective and accountable. She stated, “I am giving a commitment that we will look at proposals to reform the institutions,” and emphasized that her party would collaborate with other progressive groups to break the deadlock and advance necessary changes. In sharp criticism of the UK government, she denounced what she described as its persistent “underfunding and neglect” of Northern Ireland, regardless of who leads Westminster. “One constant has and will always remain – their contempt and complete disregard for people and communities here,” she remarked, referencing past and current UK leaders by name.
Sinn Féin has experienced significant electoral successes recently, becoming the largest party in Northern Ireland both at Westminster and at the local council level, although its Westminster MPs do not take their seats. O’Neill described upcoming elections in Northern Ireland, Westminster, and the Republic of Ireland as a “tipping point” for sending a strong message about constitutional change. She reiterated her party’s commitment to the Casement Park GAA stadium redevelopment in west Belfast and condemned the government over legacy issues, accusing it of prioritizing political calculations that favor state forces over victims. “They have made a political calculation to give preferential treatment to their state forces rather than deliver for victims,” she stated.
Reflecting on the eight years since Sinn Féin last convened their ard fheis in Belfast—when the DUP was still the dominant party and devolution was suspended—much has changed. With O’Neill now holding the role of first minister, she noted that some challenges remain the same, particularly the ongoing reluctance of the DUP to engage productively within the executive. While Sinn Féin’s electoral strategy has proven effective, and enthusiasm was high among the roughly 700 conference attendees, questions remain about whether the party can turn its ambitions for nationalist communities into sustained progress at Stormont. For now, O’Neill was notably more critical of the UK government than of the fractured relations within the power-sharing government. Meanwhile, Sinn Féin president Mary Lou McDonald is scheduled to close the conference with a keynote speech
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