Lockhart quits DUP after clash with leadership over response to Drumcree dispute

Upper Bann MP Carla Lockhart has resigned from the DUP over its handling of the fallout from the Drumcree parading dispute.

Ms Lockhart said she will now sit as an independent unionist in the House of Commons.

Her resignation was widely expected after a clash with the DUP leadership over its failure to remove Sinn Féin’s Michelle O’Neill from her role as First Minister.

Ms Lockhart believes Ms O’Neill can no longer serve as one of Stormont’s co-leaders due to her participation in an allegedly unlawful protest against an Orange Order Drumcree parade in Portadown in September.

Ms O’Neill and several of her party colleagues are being investigated by police for taking part in the protest on the Garvaghy Road that was staged to prevent the parade proceeding through the predominantly nationalist area.

The MP had called on her party to withdraw its deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly from her office – a move that would automatically force Ms O’Neill from her role.

The DUP stopped short of pulling Ms Little-Pengelly out of her role but on Thursday last week announced she would no longer participate in joint engagements with Ms O’Neill.

Ms Little-Pengelly will also not be giving permission for Ms O’Neill to fulfil engagements on her own in the role of First Minister.

Ms Lockhart, who quit as a member of the DUP’s internal decision making body two weeks ago, posted a copy of her resignation from the party to DUP leader Gavin Robinson on social media on Monday evening.

“It is with deep regret that I resign from the DUP Parliamentary group and my membership of the party with immediate effect,” she wrote.

“I will continue to serve Upper Bann as an independent unionist MP and will copy this letter to the Speaker accordingly. The DUP has been my political home for more than two decades. This is a painful decision, reached after much reflection.”

She added: “The party’s response has fallen far short of the profound consequences promised (for Ms O’Neill). Alongside my concerns over the implementation of the Irish Sea border, this has left me unable, in all conscience, to continue within the party.

“I must remain true to my principles and the trust those who elected me have placed in me. I appreciate the cordial manner in which you have approached our disagreements.

“None of this is personal, and I bear no animosity towards you or the party. There is much upon which we can continue to work together for Northern Ireland and our place within the Union. I stand ready to do so in friendship and cooperation.”

In a statement, the DUP expressed regret at Ms Lockhart’s decision.

“We regret Carla Lockhart’s decision to resign from the Democratic Unionist Party.

“We thank her for her service to the Party and recognise her work on behalf of the people of Upper Bann.

“The only winner out of further divisions within unionism is Sinn Féin.

“We share the anger felt across unionism at Michelle O’Neill’s actions. Our disagreement is over the course of action that will secure accountability and best serve Northern Ireland.”

Withdrawing Ms Little-Pengelly from her post would automatically force Ms O’Neill from office because of the joint nature of the powersharing structures in Northern Ireland.

Such a step would effectively collapse the devolved administration in Belfast as the Executive could no longer meet to make significant decisions.

However, individual departmental ministers would remain in post for up to six months and the Northern Ireland Assembly could continue to sit.

The furore is playing out amid the customary political manoeuvring that takes place at Stormont ahead of an Assembly election.

A decision by the Parades Commission adjudication body to allow the Orange Order to parade down the Garvaghy Road for the first time in almost 30 years prompted a two-week stand-off at the site of what was a notorious parading flashpoint during the Troubles.

The parade was ultimately unable to take place because of significant numbers of protesters on the Garvaghy Road, leading Northern Ireland Secretary Sir Chris Bryant to overturn the commission’s decision and ban the procession. His decision was upheld by a High Court judge last week.

Under parading laws in Northern Ireland, protests must be notified to, and approved by, the Parades Commission.

Police investigating the unnotified Garvaghy Road protest, which was staged on the day the Drumcree parade was meant to proceed on September 27, have said invitations to attend interviews were sent to individuals “reasonably suspected of committing offences”.

The political dispute over Drumcree is unfolding at a time when Stormont is still without an agreed budget for the current financial year.

TUV leader Jim Allister, who had previously said Ms Lockhart would have been welcome to join the ranks of his party, congratulated her on “following her conscience” and quitting the DUP.

“Having myself resigned from the DUP almost 20 years ago, I know this was not an easy decision. But for honest politicians principle matters more than position,” he said.

“The DUP’s preference for ‘O’Neill Must Stay’ caused them to choose Michelle O’Neill over Carla Lockhart. Little wonder their electoral base is deserting them.”

Earlier, Stormont First Minister Ms O’Neill insisted she would “not be deterred” from doing her job by the DUP move to block her from taking part in public engagements.

Addressing the Stormont Assembly, the Sinn Féin vice president claimed the DUP was motivated by a “supremacist” approach to nationalists.

“At the core of it all is the DUP’s inability to comprehend a nationalist First Minister,” Ms O’Neill told the Assembly.

The senior republican accused the DUP of “desperately trying to turn back the clock and to undermine democracy”.

At a Stormont press conference shortly after her statement, Ms O’Neill added: “I’m not going to be deterred from doing my job.”

Earlier, DUP leader Mr Robinson, speaking to reporters at Parliament Buildings, accused Ms O’Neill of “arrogance”.

But he insisted collapsing the Executive was not the right response to events in Portadown.

“It cannot be that every time a lawmaker in Northern Ireland breaks the law, that the answer is to bring down the institutions,” he said.

Speaking ahead of her resignation, Mr Robinson said he was sorry that Ms Lockhart disagreed with the majority view inside his party.

“We are in fundamentally different places,” he added.

At the weekend, Mr Robinson’s party colleague Jonathan Buckley wrote an open letter to unionist political leaders in Northern Ireland, including his own, calling for them to engage in discussions to secure increased electoral co-operation ahead of next year’s scheduled Assembly election.

Ulster Unionist leader Jon Burrows has indicated a willingness to engage in the initiative but TUV leader Mr Allister has claimed the letter was motivated by DUP self-interest.

On the budget impasse, the Executive parties are scheduled to have further talks with Sir Chris later this week.

Stormont ministers have refused to set a budget, insisting the level of funding on offer from the Treasury is not enough to adequately fund public service in Northern Ireland.

The Government contends that the funding on offer is sufficient and Sir Chris has accused devolved ministers of being financially irresponsible.