DUP Blocks O’Neill From Burnham’s Economic Council
The DUP has blocked First Minister Michelle O’Neill from attending the National Economic Council with Andy Burnham in Glasgow today. It acted after Sinn Féin joined protests that stopped an Orange Order march along the Garvaghy Road in Portadown. “Her law breaking must have consequences,” said Gavin Robinson. O’Neill called the move “reckless and irresponsible”.
Deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly will not take part in joint engagements with O’Neill, and the DUP will not let her act alone. Because the two offices are jointly held, Northern Ireland will have no Executive voice at the summit. O’Neill called Robinson’s remarks “arrogant and supremacist” and said the move was “a reactive stunt” driven by the DUP’s own internal pressures. Little-Pengelly has asked for a separate meeting with the prime minister about the Executive’s budget pressures. Sir Chris Bryant, the Northern Ireland Secretary, called the situation “deeply frustrating”. The row recalls the Drumcree stand-offs of the 1990s and puts strain on power-sharing.