Democratic Unionist Party blocks First Minister Michelle O’Neill from key engagements

The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) has taken steps to isolate First Minister Michelle O’Neill following controversies surrounding the Drumcree parading protests. DUP leader Gavin Robinson announced that deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly will no longer participate in joint engagements with O’Neill, and the party will not permit O’Neill to fulfill such duties alone.

This decision resulted in O’Neill being barred from a National Economic Council meeting in Glasgow alongside Prime Minister Andy Burnham, the Scottish First Minister, and the Welsh First Minister. The move follows internal DUP pressure, including calls from MP Carla Lockhart, MLA Diane Forsythe, and peer William McCrea for O’Neill’s removal from office. Lockhart argued that O’Neill can no longer serve due to her alleged involvement in an unlawful protest against the Orange Order parade on the Garvaghy Road.

While the DUP has stopped short of collapsing the Stormont Executive, the political impasse complicates efforts to resolve the lack of a Stormont budget. O’Neill has described the DUP’s actions as “reckless and irresponsible.”