The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) is facing a critical moment as the party’s officers determine whether to support a new deal to restore power-sharing at Stormont. The party, which is the assembly’s second-largest, has been blocking a functional executive and assembly since February 2022. A final proposal is expected to be presented, and the officers are expected to make a “yay or nay” decision. If the board chooses to support the deal, over 100 members of the party’s executive will have the opportunity to discuss and make decisions about the proposal.
The former head of the civil service, Sir David Sterling, hopes that the DUP will back the deal and return to power-sharing, calling it a “pivotal moment” for Northern Ireland. If political institutions fail to return, he believes unionists will suffer the most. The impasse began when the DUP withdrew from the government in protest against post-Brexit trade checks between Northern Ireland and Great Britain. Despite a new agreement between the UK and the European Union, called the Windsor Framework, aimed at resolving issues associated with the prior agreement, Northern Ireland, the DUP insists that it does not go far enough and is negotiating with the government in search of further changes.
The meeting of the party’s officers follows a nation-wide mass protest by public sector workers in Northern Ireland, who commenced a 24-hour strike to show their displeasure. In addition, the assembly was recalled for the seventh time in May 2022 to restore devolved government across the region. However, the DUP blocked the election of an assembly speaker, leading to the failure of all other business. The potential return of power-sharing could depend on the officers’ votes on the deal proposed in this meeting.
Ulster Unionist Party leader Doug Beattie expressed that “unionism has to do things better” if the party returns to the executive and cautioned that the party’s decision to opt back in could cause a fracture. Furthermore, if the post-Brexit rules remain the same, Traditional Unionist Voice leader Jim Allister believes that the unionist people were cheated by a fraudulent bill of goods. Alliance Party deputy leader Stephen Farry voiced his wariness of the outcome and expressed disappointment in the timing of the meeting, following Thursday’s strike.
In conclusion, the meeting of the DUP’s officers marks a critical moment for power-sharing in Northern Ireland, with the possibility of a long-awaited solution at hand. The outcome of this meeting would depend on the willingness of the board’s members to back a deal that has already been proposed and whether the party executive would support it
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