Ten years after Brexit, attitudes to the EU converging north and south of the Border
JOHN DOWNING, Irish Independent, May 6th, 2026
Six out of 10 people on both sides of the Border would say "yes” to a united Ireland inside the EU if an early referendum were held on the issue, a new survey has shown.
The survey, by European Movement Ireland (EMI), examined attitudes to EU-related issues in both jurisdictions.
Against a background of war in Ukraine and the Middle East, almost half of those questioned in the Republic (48pc) back the idea of Ireland joining in EU defence co-operation. Thirty-two per cent are against Irish participation in EU defence and the balance (20pc) are undecided.
The survey found there were strong concerns over energy costs and cost-of-living issues on both sides of the Border, and, while a majority in both jurisdictions back the general direction of the EU, there are serious concerns about perceived weakness in managing migration issues.
Asked how they would vote if a reunification referendum were called by the Northern secretary tomorrow, 59pc in the Republic said they would vote in favour, with 22pc against and 19pc undecided.
North of the Border, those in favour was higher at 63pc, with 29pc against and a much lower 8pc undecided.
The survey, polling 1,200 people on each side of the Border, comes ahead of Dublin assuming the six-month EU presidency on July 1.
Next month is the 10th anniversary of the UK's Brexit referendum, which led to years of uncertainty and division over the North's special trade status.
In that referendum, a majority of Northern Ireland voters (56pc) backed staying with the EU, but their voice was overpowered by the weight of the English Leave vote.
The EMI survey shows that now, nearly three out of four voters in the North (73pc) would back rejoining the EU - well ahead of UK-wide surveys that show similar sentiments, but with lower overall majorities backing rejoining.
The survey, carried out by Amárach Research in late March, also shows similar attitudes to EU issues on both sides of the Border. This will reassure political leaders, especially in Dublin, that the post-Brexit Border issue has been definitively fixed, despite lingering objections to the Windsor Framework, which was ratified in March, 2023.
David Geary, chief executive of EMI, noted that the North's final special trade status - allowing it unimpeded market access to 450 million people in the EU single market and 60-plus million people in England, Scotland and Wales - was proving beneficial.
Cost of Living and distrust of political elites
"It has helped make Northern Ireland the fastest-growing economic region inside the UK,” Mr Geary said.
Overall, there is strong support for Ireland's continued EU membership in the North (76pc) and in the Republic (82pc).
Given that EU laws and product standards now apply north of the Border, there is a strong view - backed by 73pc of respondents there - that Northern Ireland should have a say in how these laws and rules are framed in Brussels.
Mr Geary said this issue must receive attention during Ireland's EU presidency, adding: "It is vital that the North's voice is reflected in the presidency and in wider shared Ireland initiatives.”
On the question of the EU being expanded beyond the current 27 member states, there is accord north and south of the Border, with six out of 10 people favouring the expansion of EU membership.
Currently, there is a large queue of countries waiting for membership applications, including embattled Ukraine. The last EU recruit was Croatia in 2013.
A majority of those polled north (79pc) and south (71pc) of the Border back the EU seeking greater independence from the US, given Donald Trump's hostility, and people generally feel Brussels is right to maximise developing relationships in other markets.
In the North, cost-of-living concerns (45pc) slightly exceed migration concerns (42pc). There is also a huge level of mistrust in all of the country's governing entities, from the Assembly to the London government.
EMI has been working since 1954 to promote Ireland's relationship with its European neighbours and circulate independent information on EU issues.
Pensioners will outnumber children living in Northern Ireland by next year
SEANÍN GRAHAM, Irish Times, May 6th, 2026
Population is projected to peak at 1.94m by 2031 before it starts to fall
The question Gareth Hetherington often gets asked is whether artificial intelligence (AI) will take away people’s jobs.
Since the emergence of figures suggesting Northern Ireland’s population is about to peak, the economist says the bigger worry is a projected drop in the 18-65 working age population.
“When I look at the demographic data, the question I ask is: ‘Will AI come quickly enough to take the jobs that we don’t have people to do?’” adds Hetherington, director of Ulster University’s economic policy centre.
“What that means for the working age population is the need to embrace AI and become more AI literate.”
Falling birth rates, people living longer and migration changes are among the factors driving the latest projections by the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (Nisra).
Pensioners will outnumber the number of children living in Northern Ireland by next year, according to statisticians.
Deaths are projected to exceed the number of births by mid-2030 – one year earlier than previously calculated.
The population is to peak at 1.94 million by 2031 before it starts to fall, dropping to 1.91 million by 2049.
Concerns about the “reverse” in the North’s demographic trends have sparked warnings about the impact on healthcare and funding of public services.
“If they don’t start planning for this, then there’s going to be an even bigger crisis in our public services, particularly schools and health services before the end of the decade,” says the former head of the Northern Ireland civil service, David Sterling.
Recent reports have consistently shown that the North is the “fastest ageing part of the UK”, he says.
Workforce shortages
Spiralling waiting lists, workforce shortages – particularly in nursing – and access to GP services are among the challenges that have dogged the North’s health service for more than a decade.“As you get older you have more comorbidities, you have all sorts of health issues, you also require more at-home care, social care or more frequent visits to hospital,” says Ian Shuttleworth, professor of population and migration studies at Queen’s University Belfast’s school of natural and built environment.
“The obvious thing that’s going to happen with an ageing population is increasing pressure on health services and social care more widely.
“This is actually happening now on top of a funding crisis where Northern Ireland can’t even seem to run itself with the current UK funding level – so where it’s going to be in 20 years’ time, I would hesitate to think.”
Over the next 25 years, the over-65 population is projected to grow by 44.7 per cent; the over-85s will more than double.
The demographic shift means “we need more money” by “either increasing taxes or faster economic growth”, according to Shuttleworth.
“Or it means we need to find other ways to deliver social care and healthcare.”
Research on social isolation facing older people in more rural communities is soon to be published by Queen’s.
About 5 per cent of pensioners live alone in the North, which equates to just under 95,000 people. They are predominantly women.
Cuts to community support groups and limited public transport are among the challenges facing elderly vulnerable people living alone, some of whom have life limiting illnesses, according to the study.
Connectedness
“Connectedness is one of the most critical factors in preserving the health and quality of life of older people; it’s all those services – their social groups, the networks – that have been cut,” says lead Queen’s researcher Estelle Lowry, a health geographer.
Transport was an issue that “kept coming up time and time again” in their focus groups. Almost half of pensioners living alone did not have access to their own car and were reliant on public transport.
“I think transport problems were compounded by the health and social care challenges,” Lowry adds.
Plummeting birth rates are not unique to Northern Ireland; it’s happening “all over the world” with women having fewer children and later in life, says Shuttleworth.
Stormont’s Department of Education has already warned that a drop in pupil numbers could lead to school closures over the next decade.
Such decisions will be “politically difficult”, according to Hetherington.
“We’ve gone through many years of a growing, younger age population; therefore the school estate had to grow to reflect that,” he says. “That’s in reverse now.
“Obviously closing schools will be unpopular, particularly in smaller rural communities but increasingly those schools are going to be unsustainable and will need to be closed.”
Pension contributions among the under-40s may also need to increase to fund services. The other option for the North’s younger workforce is to “work longer”, says Hetherington.
“We are going to be in a situation where significantly more people are drawing the pension and we’re going to have less people working and paying taxes to fund those pensions.”
Immigration
Relatively high levels of immigration in recent years are projected to fall in the North, while “significant population growth” is projected in the Republic, Nisra notes.The potential growing divergence between populations either side of the Border could lead to “very different social care and healthcare conditions moving forward”, according to Shuttleworth.
The Queen’s academic grew up in Barnetby le Wold, a village in Lincolnshire in England, and moved to Belfast in 1990.
“My dad was alive until last year. He was 97. I used to go over quite a lot to see him. I know if I wanted to get a doctor for him, I could ring up and he could get a phone call the same day.”
Shuttleworth has spent four years on the waiting list for a knee replacement after breaking his leg and has to use a wheelchair for long distances; there is a six-month waiting list for the operation in England.
“The urgent waiting list was three years,” he says, referring to Northern Ireland.
If the North’s working age population shrinks in coming decades, there will be a need for increased migration to address the healthcare workforce shortage, argues Hetherington.
“For family reasons, I’ve had to make many hospital visits over the past few years and it’s apparent very quickly how reliant Northern Ireland’s health service is on migrant labour,” he says.
“My personal opinion is if the economic costs of constraining migration become more apparent, public attitudes to migration may change and we see higher levels of migration than projected.”
Stormont decision-makers need to “shift” their focus, says Shuttleworth.
He criticises the “localism” in the North’s politics.
Flags and statues
Political rows over “flags and statues” are diverting attention away from “the major long-term strategic problem facing Northern Ireland – that is demographic change,” he says.
“If we’re struggling now, and if we get lots of people who are needing more care, intensive care, more health access, I don’t see how the system is going to manage if it continues as it is at present.”
Hetherington agrees the “status quo is not an option”.
“But rather than frame it as a really bleak outlook, there should be more optimism,” he says.
“People are living longer, this is good news. But it isn’t just about living 10 years longer, it’s about having 10 years longer of a healthy life.
“That will facilitate people working longer.”
A “relentless focus” is required to grow the economy and embracing new technologies such as AI is a “big part of the solution”.
“As an economist, AI is something that has been front of mind for the last of couple of years.
“In simple terms, AI won’t take your job – but someone using AI will. So it may as well be you.”
More centralised healthcare services are required; experts have warned over the past 20 years that the duplication of services across multiple acute hospitals is not sustainable.
“Yes, that means having to travel further for health services but there are better outcomes,” says Hetherington.
“At the minute, it seems to me the public would rather die in a hospital five miles from home than recover in a hospital 25 miles from home.
“If people just expect and want services at their doorstep, that’s not sustainable.
“The focus is currently on the here and now, we’re not looking to the future. That needs to change.”
Migration reduces Irish voters’ support for the EU
PAT LEAHY Political Editor, Irish Times, May 6th, 2026
Support for the Republic remaining a member of the EU remains strong, but fewer than half of all people in the State believe that the bloc is “moving in the right direction”, according to a new survey.
Migration was the single greatest concern among voters who believe the EU is moving in the wrong direction, with almost a third (31 per cent) of respondents citing “immigration control issues” as the reason they believed that.
Asked about where the EU’s performance is weakest, almost half of voters (49 per cent) cited the area of migration.
The poll was carried out by Amárach Research for the European Movement Ireland, a pro-EU think tank.
While a large majority of respondents (82 per cent) favour continued membership of the European Union, this represents a decline from a high of 93 per cent in 2019, at the height of Brexit negotiations, and from 88 per cent in 2023.
Just 45 per cent of respondents say that the EU is moving in the right direction, a decline from 58 per cent in 2023, with 26 per cent believing it is not moving in the right direction and 28 per cent expressing no opinion.
Aside from immigration, 27 per cent cited “economic and regulatory issues” and 26 per cent cited “federalism and national sovereignty” as reasons for believing that the EU is moving in the wrong direction. Ten per cent cited “militarisation concerns”.
Defence and security
However, almost half of respondents said the Republic “should be part of increased EU defence and security co-operation”, with 32 per cent opposed and 20 per cent expressing no opinion.
Asked which issues they were “most concerned about at an EU level”, 58 per cent of respondents nominated the cost of living, while 48 per cent mentioned migration and 41 per cent housing. A large majority (71 per cent) say that the EU should “seek greater independence from the US”.
Just half of all those polled said the European Union is effectively upholding its core values, described as “respect for human dignity, freedom, democracy, equality, the rule of law and human rights”, in its policies and actions. A third said they did not believe the bloc was upholding its values.
A simultaneous survey was carried out in Northern Ireland. It found that if there was a referendum on the United Kingdom rejoining the EU, almost three-quarters (73 per cent) would vote in favour.
Asked if they would vote for a “united Ireland in the EU”, 63 per cent said they would. In the Republic, 59 per cent said they would vote for it.
The online poll is the latest phase of research commissioned by the European Movement Ireland on an annual basis since 2013.
Two simultaneous surveys, each conducted among 1,200 people, were carried out in the Republic and Northern Ireland between March 26th and 31st last. The margin of error is plus or minus 2.2 per cent.
More than five times as many people here trust the EU than Stormont
SUZANNE BREEN, POLITICAL EDITOR, Belfast Telegraph, May 6th, 2026
NEW POLL SHOWS GREATER SUPPORT TO REJOIN THE EUROPEAN UNION
More than five times as many people in Northern Ireland trust the EU than the Stormont Executive, according to a new opinion poll.
Asked who they trust, 28pc say Brussels; 20pc the Irish Government; 8pc the British Government, and just 5pc the Executive.
However, almost four in 10 people (38pc) here say they trust none of those institutions.
The poll was conducted by Amárach Research for European Movement Ireland. It carries out annual all-island research on European affairs.
As the 10th anniversary of the Brexit referendum approaches, 73pc of people here say they would vote to rejoin the EU if a referendum was held tomorrow.
The same number believe that Northern Ireland should have a greater role in EU decision making given that EU laws apply here.
Some 63pc support a united Ireland within the EU tomorrow. Almost eight in 10 people (79pc) think the EU should seek more independence from the US.
European Movement Ireland CEO David Geary said: “Ten years on from Brexit, where citizens in Northern Ireland voted to remain, there remains a clear and growing pro-European outlook, shaped in part by the political and economic challenges post-Brexit, alongside strong support for a united Ireland within the EU.
NI voice must be heard in Irish Presidency
“As Ireland prepares for its first EU presidency without the UK, it is vital that the north's voice is reflected in the presidency and in wider shared island initiatives.
“Our research, tracking NI-EU relations and EU sentiment in the north over the past four years, points to important discussions ahead about the island's future.”
Mr Geary added: “With the current US administration steering the US away from multilateralism and established diplomatic norms in trade and foreign policy, the data indicates people in Northern Ireland support the EU's efforts to diversify its trade links and become more independent from the US.”
Almost half of people (49pc) view trade as the EU's strongest area of performance here, compared to 39% in the South.
Asked what issues they were most concerned about on an EU level, 45pc say the cost of living; followed by migration (42pc); the EU's response to the Middle East conflict (41pc), and defence and security (40pc).
While 46pc of people believe the EU is moving in the right direction, a majority are either dissatisfied (36pc) or don't know (17pc).
In Northern Ireland, 44pc said migration was the EU's weakest area of performance, followed by 22pc stating defence and security, and 11pc climate change.
Opinion is divided on whether the EU is effectively upholding its core values such as respect for human rights, freedom, and equality.
Some 50pc agree that it is doing so, but 40pc disagree and 10pc are unsure.
Mr Geary said: “Despite Northern Ireland's unique access to both EU and UK markets, and its status as the fastest-growing economy in Britain, rising inflation and cost-of-living pressures continue to strain households.
“At the same time, growing political polarisation and declining trust in institutions highlight the need for the EU to lead by example, upholding its core values and defending international law, while fostering deeper public and civic engagement on these issues.”
'Stormont status quo is not a healthy nor sustainable way to do business'
ANDREW MADDEN, Belfast Telegraph, May 6th, 2026
LONG ON ALLIANCE'S PUSH FOR INSTITUTIONS SHAKE-UP TO END THE RISK OF COLLAPSE BY SINN FEIN/DUP
The Alliance Party has set out plans to reform Stormont and introduce stricter rules on political donations.
Political donations have long been a thorny issue in Northern Ireland, with legislation only passed in recent years to publish detailed information in this area.
As well as donations from benefactors and private individuals, parties receive public money through the House of Commons, the Assembly and the Electoral Commission.
The Electoral Commission has the responsibility for regulating political financing.
Under commission rules, donations over £11,180 must be reported, or smaller donations from the same source that together meet the threshold.
Last year local parties received almost £260,000 in donations and public funding.
Alliance's new 'Democratic Renewal' paper sets out proposals for reform, including introducing an annual cap on the amount single private sources can donate, and lowering the reporting threshold from £11,180 to £500.
Following legislation in 2018, donations to parties here have been published, covering the period from the beginning of July 2017, even though the recording of donations began in 2014.
The UK Government rejected calls to make the transparency rules retrospective to January 2014, despite an Electoral Commission recommendation to do so.
Mrs Long (right) told the Belfast Telegraph: “I think that that was a flaw because it covered a critical period when I believe that Northern Ireland was being subjected, I think, to some fairly dodgy practice in terms of our finances.
“So from my perspective, I would like to see not just that addressed, because I still think there is a public interest in knowing who funds who and for what purpose, but I also think that we need to look again at how much further we can go in terms of transparency and accountability.
“For example, there have been numerous scandals, if you look to Westminster, around people receiving gifts that are perhaps at the lower end of the financial spectrum of donations, but nevertheless could be influential in terms of how people conduct their private lives.
“I think it's important that there is a light shone on all those things.”
Alliance wants details of donations from 2014 onwards to be published, and for more funding to be provided to the Electoral Commission to help it investigate breaches of spending rules.
Donations and shutdowns
Donations to parties have drawn scrutiny in recent years, such as when the DUP received a record £435,000 from the Constitutional Research Council during the 2016 Brexit campaign.
Sinn Fein also received more than £1.5m from the estate of deceased Englishman William Hampton, despite the former market trader having no links to the party.
An all-island party, Sinn Fein has also come under scrutiny as there are limits to political donations in the Republic, but not north of the border, allowing it to accept donations through its operation here which would not be permissible in the south.
The Democratic Renewal paper also contains several proposals on reforming how Stormont functions.
In the immediate term, Alliance wants to change the current process that essentially allows the largest unionist or nationalist party to block the formation of an Executive if they refuse to nominate a First or Deputy First Minister.
Under its plans, the Northern Ireland Act would be reformed so the next largest party can nominate a First or Deputy First Minister if the first eligible party refuses to do so.
The party also wants to change the system whereby cross-community votes on key decisions require the backing of 50% of both unionists and nationalists, and instead use a weighted majority, with votes requiring the backing of two-thirds of MLAs.
Mrs Long said the fact Sinn Fein or the DUP can collapse the Executive whenever they choose “gives them a huge amount of control over whether or not these institutions actually see it out to the end of this mandate”.
“It doesn't necessarily have to be big issues that cause collapse. It can be those attritional small issues that irritate, that annoy, that escalate,” she said.
“I think the budget is probably the biggest crisis that we're facing, but perversely, the noise around that is much less than the noise around some of these smaller issues, which are nevertheless significant to those parties and their support base.
“There is no real generosity within the government structure today. There isn't that sense that we are all in this together, and that we need to work together, cooperate.
“That is partly because of the attitude of some politicians, but it's also partly because the structures don't actually encourage cooperation and collaboration.
“They don't encourage the idea that we should be dependent on each other, and instead give people these vetoes where they can constantly frustrate their opponents.
“That isn't a healthy way to do business and it isn't a sustainable way either.”
Poll finds that more than 60% would vote for united Ireland
GRÁINNE NÍ AODHA, Irish News, May 6th, 2026
A MAJORITY of people on the island of Ireland would vote for Irish unity as part of the EU, according to a poll.
An EU sentiment poll indicates that 73% in Northern Ireland would vote for the UK to rejoin the EU, while more than 70% of people both north and south believe the EU should become more independent from the US.
The poll also indicates a continued decline in satisfaction with the direction of the EU since 2023, with issues such as migration and cost of living cited as concerns.
European Movement Ireland’s Island of Ireland EU Poll 2026, conducted by Amarach Research, found that support for Ireland remaining a member of the EU is at 82% in Ireland and 76% in Northern Ireland.
The online survey was carried out among 1,200 adults in both jurisdictions between March 26 and 31 2026. The margin of error is plus or minus 2.2%.
The poll indicated that if a referendum were held today on a united Ireland in the EU, 59% in Ireland would vote in favour and 22% against, with 63% voting in favour in Northern Ireland and 29% against.
Almost three-quarters of respondents in Northern Ireland said that if the UK held a referendum today on rejoining the EU, they would vote in favour (73%), with 23% stating they would vote against.
The poll also indicates that 71% south of the border believe the EU should seek greater independence from the United States, with the figure jumping to 79% in Northern Ireland.
Almost half of Irish respondents said Ireland should take part in increased EU defence and security co-operation (48%), with 32% saying no and 20% stating they were unsure.
There appeared to be a decline in satisfaction with the direction of the EU from 58% in 2023 to 45% in 2026.
The top issues flagged with those who are dissatisfied were migration (31%), economic and regulatory issues (27%), and federalism and national sovereignty (26%).
Those who believe the EU is moving in the right direction cited unity and co-operation (33%), economic benefits (25%) and stability and security (19%) as their reasons.
In Northern Ireland, 46% expressed satisfaction with the direction of the EU, and 36% expressed dissatisfaction.
Reasons for dissatisfaction
The top three reasons for dissatisfaction were economic and regulatory issues (36%), federalism and national sovereignty (26%) and immigration control (19%), with unity and co-operation (50%), economic benefits (25%) and defence (18%) listed as the top reasons for satisfaction with the EU.
Trade is listed in both jurisdictions as the issue where the EU performs its strongest, and migration as its weakest point.
Asked what were their top five concerns at EU level, Irish citizens said cost of living (58%), migration (48%), housing (41%), energy (36%) and defence and security (36%).
A poll has examined Irish support for remaining in the EU
In Northern Ireland, the five main concerns were the cost of living (45%), migration (42%), the EU’s response to the Middle East conflict (41%), defence and security (40%) and energy (37%).
A plurality of respondents in Ireland (37%) said they do not trust either the Irish government or the EU, with 36% stating they trust the Irish government and 27% stating they trust the EU. Asked which institution they trusted the most, 28% of respondents in Northern Ireland said the EU, 20% said the Irish government, 8% said the UK government and 5% said the Executive, with 38% stating they trusted “none of the above”.
Asked where they get their information on EU issues, 65% in Ireland said newspapers, radio and TV; 51% said the traditional media’s online offering; and 33% said social media; while in Northern Ireland, 68% said the traditional media’s online offering; 62% said newspapers, radio and TV and 39% said social media.
Chief executive of European Movement Ireland David Geary said that while there was “strongly pro-European” sentiment in Ireland and Northern Ireland, in Ireland there were “areas of disconnect emerging”.
He said that Ireland “can’t be complacent” as it prepares to take on the six-month EU Council presidency term in July.
“The highest level support for the EU is amongst the 18 to 34 and 55-plus age cohort, but really evenly split between men and women, which is good to see,” he said.
“There are some areas of disconnect that are emerging, only 45% of people believe the EU is moving in the right direction. That’s obviously something that needs to be focused on,” he said.
“The question that we ask on a regular basis is ‘upholding core values’. Now, 50% say that it is which is really good, but 33% say no, and 17% say they don’t know. So that’s effectively split between people who do believe it’s standing up for its core values and it isn’t.
“We would see the presidency as a key opportunity for a reinvigorated national conversation on our place in the EU.”
He said that the responses in favour of Irish unity were higher in this poll compared to others due to the “EU framing”.
“There was higher ‘don’t knows’ in the south, 19% compared to 8% in Northern Ireland, and higher support than other unity polling, which is likely due to the EU framing,” he said.
“I think there is a clear appeal of EU membership.”
He said that the EU element of Irish reunification was just one dimension, and that areas such as health, education, and justice would also require consideration.
He also said that the high number stating that Northern Ireland should have a greater say in EU decision-making (73%) was significant, adding: “62% of ‘Leave’ voters support more representation, despite opposition to rejoining.”
He said: “I think it’s really welcome that the Irish government plans to include Northern Ireland in the presidency, I think that’s a really positive step in the right direction.”
'Just an excuse to riot': Residents outraged by tribute to drug dealer
OLIVIA McATEER, Belfast Telegraph, May 6th, 2026
Residents of the Stewartstown Road area in west Belfast have expressed their disgust and fear following a car meet which developed into a riot early on Monday evening.
Local resident Tracey told the Belfast Telegraph that she believes the tribute to Shea McGreevy, a low-level convicted drug dealer with connections to the gang known as The Firm, was “just an excuse to riot”.
Mr McGreevy drowned in a jetski accident on Lough Neagh last week.
The tribute cruise took place on the Stewartstown Road in the Poleglass area of west Belfast but quickly escalated into chaos and anti-social behaviour.
Multiple motorbikes, e-bikes and cars were seen being driven dangerously, with a crowd of youths in balaclavas eventually getting involved and pelting stones at police officers in the Dairy Farm area.
Two officers were injured along with some damage sustained to PSNI vehicles.
“It was absolutely disgusting, we don't need that in this community,” Tracey said.
The disruption has alarmed people in the community, with residents branding the anti-social behaviour “unacceptable and selfish”.
“They just don't care. I've lived here my whole life but this makes me want to leave,” Tracey said.
Sinn Féin MLA Danny Baker has strongly condemned those who organised it, but also strongly criticised the PSNI for a lack of urgency in reacting to news of the event and preventing the meet from taking place.
“It was completely avoidable,” he said.
The meet was organised via the Facebook group 'Underground Diffing,' which locals and Mr Baker say they reported to the police hours before the scheduled event.
“I asked for preventative measures, none of them were listened to, there was a very 'stand-off' operation,” he said.
“There was nothing we could do about it. We had asked for that support, and we didn't get it,” Mr Baker said.
PSNI losing trust of community
He claims the community has lost trust in the PSNI and that it will “take a while” for them to regain it.
“Residents last night were scared to leave their house and they are asking where the PSNI was, so there's a lot of anger in the community,” he said.
The MLA emphasised the level of danger and violence that erupted due to reckless behaviour as rioters were seen falling off motorbikes and crashing into Glider buses, although no one was seriously injured.
Mr Baker told the Belfast Telegraph: “Lives could have been lost last night. Our community deserved better.”
UUP leader and former senior PSNI officer Jon Burrows believes there has been a lack of training in combating anti-social behaviour, particularly when it comes to the use of e-bikes and scooters.
“There is a fundamental challenge here, I would draw a parallel to e-scooters — if people are using vehicles in a dangerous way, we need to give the PSNI the support and the tactics to pursue those people,” he said.
Mr Burrows believes in a three-fold approach to the problem: education, investigation and revised police tactics.
“What they need to do is launch a proactive investigation, everything comes down to education and enforcement. They should put messages out about how dangerous the modification of the cars is, then they need to review what's on social media and try and identify the people and apprehend them.
“The officers need a tactic they can use to safely apprehend the people involved. They need support from society, the [Police] Ombudsman and the officers around them.
“We need to make sure the police officers feel confident, there is a fear factor in policing,” he said.
Consequences
The UUP leader also believes an appeal to parents is necessary, as often e-bikes and scooters are bought for children without the knowledge of the risk they pose to the public, as well as the individuals riding them.
In a statement to the Belfast Telegraph, Chief Inspector Kelly Gibson said: “We acknowledge local concern around this incident and will continue to engage with representatives and residents in order to help prevent further instances of this behaviour.
“Those who choose to get involved in this type of disorder are causing destruction within their own community. Their actions impact on their own families, friends and neighbours.
“There is also a wider societal issue to highlight, and we would particularly ask parents and guardians to speak to their children, and make sure that they do not become involved in something which could lead to someone getting seriously hurt.
“Thankfully, the injured officers were able to remain on duty, although the damaged police vehicles will be off the road until they can be repaired.
“Our enquiries are ongoing. Our Air Support Unit gathered evidence which will now be reviewed by our Public Order Evidence Team.
“There will be consequences, by way of proactive arrests, for those identified as being involved.”
Judge issues warning over start to Donaldson historical abuse trial
CHRISTOPHER WOODHOUSE, Belfast Telegraph, May 6th, 2026
A judge has warned he will be “extremely disappointed” if the trial of former DUP leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson on alleged historical sexual abuse charges does not proceed this month.
The trial is listed to begin at Newry Crown Court on May 26.
Proceedings have been delayed twice due to medical issues related to Eleanor Donaldson, the wife of the former Lagan Valley MP.
Jeffrey Donaldson (63) has pleaded not guilty to 18 alleged offences.
Eleanor Donaldson (60) of Dublinhill Road, Dromore, Co Down, faces charges of aiding and abetting, which she denies.
The latest hearing of the case was told by senior prosecution counsel, Rosemary Walsh KC, that a doctor is due to assess Eleanor Donaldson with an addendum report expected on May 18.
Her barrister, Ian Turkington, told the court they were taking their own steps to obtain further medical evidence.
Mr Turkington said there was “cogent medical evidence” in relation to the “unfitness” of his client and insisted it would be “grossly unfair” to commence a trial against her if she was not in condition to participate in it.
Judge Paul Ramsey KC said every facility had been given for the matters to be explored and he would be dismayed if the trial didn't proceed on its scheduled date.
Listing the case for a review on May 19, he said he appreciated it was a short turnaround time.
“I really would be extremely disappointed if this case did not proceed on the 26th of May,” he said.
He said he realised there was some public concern over the “apparent delay” in the case.
“But there is genuine medical evidence here in this case that we have to look at and we have to consider before we can proceed,” he added.
“But I think every effort must be made to expedite that so that we're ready to go on the 26th of May, because I think it's in the interest of all parties that the case should commence.”
Neither of the Donaldsons attended yesterday's hearing in Newry courthouse.
Jeffrey Donaldson has pleaded not guilty to 18 alleged offences, including one count of rape, as well as allegations of indecent assault and gross indecency.
The alleged offences span a time period between 1985 and 2008, and there are two alleged victims.
Jeffrey Donaldson, the MP for Lagan Valley since 1997, was arrested and charged at the end of March 2024.
He resigned as DUP leader and was suspended from the party after the allegations emerged.
Weeks before his arrest, he had led the DUP back into Stormont after a two-year boycott of the powersharing institutions.
'Deeply concerning' attacks on residents in Fountain estate condemned by MLA
SHAUN KEENAN, Belfast Telegraph, May 6th, 2026
Residents in Londonderry's Fountain estate came under attack earlier this week after youths threw stones and other bits of masonry.
One local MLA condemned the incident as “deeply concerning” while the area's MP said they were motivated by sectarianism.
The PSNI confirmed they received a report of the anti-social behaviour shortly after 8.30pm on Monday from the Nailors Row and Fountain areas of the city.
Foyle MLA Julie Middleton said she had been in contact with the police, who had “officers on the ground”, and said she has also spoken directly with some residents to check on their welfare.
“Last night's attacks on residents in the Fountain estate were deeply concerning.
“No one should have to endure this kind of intimidation or violence in their own community,” she said.
“These disgraceful attacks achieve nothing and only serve to spread fear and disruption.
“Those responsible must be held fully accountable for their actions.
“I will continue to engage closely with the police and with residents, and anyone who needs assistance should not hesitate to get in touch. I remain available and will do everything I can to help.”
The disorder also sparked anger on social media.
Young children breaking tiles
One woman commented under the DUP MLA's Facebook post, saying she had been visiting a nearby nursing home when she saw what she described as “young children breaking up tiles at the barrier and throwing them over the wall at the Fountain”.
They added: “I was visiting family at Alexandra House tonight. I was so shocked to see the age of these young children breaking up tiles at the barrier and firing them over the wall at the Fountain.
“They actually pulled off the historic pictures.
“I tried to reason with them but to no avail. I am disgusted seeing this tonight, it's not acceptable.”
Meanwhile, another wrote: “Horrible this is happening. I had hoped such days were behind us.”
Foyle MP Colum Eastwood said the attacks were “depressing, deeply disappointing” and “sectarian”.
He added: “It is completely unacceptable that residents in the Fountain have become used to regular attacks on their homes from kids throwing stones, bricks and bottles around this time of the year.
“No one in this city should have to live with the normalised fear that their home will be attacked or they could be hurt while walking through their own community.
“I am appealing to parents to sit down with their kids and explain the impact it has on a family to have their home attacked or to feel afraid in their own community.
“The last thing we want is for someone to get injured or young people to be criminalised.”
A PSNI spokesperson said: “Police in Derry/Londonderry dealt with anti-social behaviour in the areas of Nailors Row and The Fountain last night, Monday, 4 May. A report was made, shortly after 8.30pm, that youths were reported to be throwing stones.
“Officers responded and, following engagement, those who had gathered left the area, and there were no further reports of any incidents.”
“Police are appealing for anyone with information, or relevant footage which could help identify those responsible, to contact them on 101 or submit a report online at psni.police.uk/makeareport.”
Lessons must be learned from disorder on west Belfast roads
Pro Fide et Patria, Irish News, May 6th, 2026
“ The vast majority of people in the west of the city were appalled by what happened on Monday night, and want to support the police in impartially but firmly maintaining the rule of law and order
THE disorder which took place in west Belfast on Monday night, after a gathering which was reportedly in memory of a young man who died in a jet ski accident in Lough Neagh, was by any standards at an alarming level, and raises a number of serious questions.
Shea McGreevy, who was in his late 20s, got into difficulties near the Gawley’s Gate shore in Co Antrim on Thursday, and, after a major search, his body was later recovered from the water by community rescue teams.
He was originally from Belfast, and his friends were fully entitled to pay tribute to him after his death.
However, what was not legitimate were the scenes witnessed in the Twinbrook district of the city after what was referred to as a “cruise/diffing event” was organised via social media to honour him.
Despite requests for a respectful atmosphere, video footage shared on social media showed that hundreds of vehicles turned up on the Stewartstown Road and became engaged in multiple episodes of reckless driving which endangered the lives of residents.
Motorcycles accelerated through the neighbourhood, while cars performed donut-style high-speed turns close to busy junctions as crowds of young people, many drinking alcohol, cheered them on.
Concerns have been expressed that police were slow to attend, even though elected representatives said they had directly passed on their concerns well in advance, with hooligans, some wearing balaclavas, then throwing missiles which injured two officers and damaged PSNI vehicles.
It was all a deeply disturbing set of circumstances, and it is essential that the key perpetrators are swiftly brought to justice, but it is also vital that police take on board the lessons of the evening.
While the difficulties involved in responding to prolonged acts of public disorder have been well documented, it is clear that the PSNI should have been better prepared when, as widely expected, aggressive crowds began to assemble along main roads.
It was also alarming that large groups believed they should respond to the entirely accidental death of a young man some 20 miles away by staging confrontations and attacking police officers in a densely populated area of Belfast.
The vast majority of people in the west of the city were appalled by what happened on Monday night, and want to support the police in impartially but firmly maintaining the rule of law and order.
It is extremely unfortunate that the PSNI tactics in Twinbrook have come under scrutiny, and it must be hoped that explanations will be offered to community leaders without delay.
Boy arrested after police attacked with petrol bombs in Londonderry
By Jonathan McCambridge, Press Association, Belfast News Letter, May 6th, 2026
The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) said an investigation was underway to identify those involved in the disorder in the Bishop Street area on Tuesday evening
The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) said an investigation was underway to identify those involved in the disorder in the Bishop Street area on Tuesday evening
A 13-year-old boy has been arrested after police were attacked with petrol bombs and masonry in Londonderry .
The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) said an investigation was underway to identify those involved in the disorder in the Bishop Street area on Tuesday evening.
Police said there had been a number of incidents of antisocial behaviour in the Bishop Street, The Fountain and Nailors Row areas in the past week.
A spokesperson said a number of people, believed to be youths, had been involved with some wearing masks.
Police received a report at around 5.30pm on Tuesday that a number of masked youths were gathered in the area.
A PSNI spokesperson said: "Bishop Street was closed temporarily to deal with the disorder, causing disruption and fear yet again to the local communities.
"A number of glass bottles were thrown, with fireworks also set off and petrol bombs and masonry thrown at police vehicles.
"A 13-year-old boy was arrested on suspicion of riotous behaviour and has since been released on bail to allow for further police enquiries.
"An investigation is underway to identify all those involved, and we will take action against anyone identified as committing offences."
Anyone with information, including dashcam, CCTV or other footage, can contact police on 101, quoting reference number 1383 of 05/05/26.
Family of murdered Catholic man ‘threatened and taunted’ after killing
CONNLA YOUNG, Irish News, May 6th, 2026
Charles McGrillen was shot dead by the UDA/UFF in March 1988
THE family of a Catholic man shot dead in a sectarian attack almost 40 years ago have revealed how they were threatened and cruelly taunted after his murder.
Charles ‘Charlie’ McGrillen, 25, was killed by a UDA/ UFF murder squad as he worked at Dunne’s Stores at Annadale Embankment in south Belfast on March 15, 1988.
The trade union official, who lived with his wife Catherine and young daughter Charlene at nearby Hatfield Street, off the Ormeau Road, would have turned 65 today.
His devoted family has now produced a personal family report about Mr McGrillen’s life and murder with the help of Relatives for Justice (RFJ).
Catherine reveals how she received threatening letters after her young husband was killed.
The family report sets out how, after attending an RUC station with her mother and brother to report the threat, they were fingerprinted and “treated like criminals rather than victims”.
The report sets out Catherine’s belief that there was “no sympathetic concern for them, and the letter was not treated seriously”.
A subsequent letter sent to the grieving widow was not reported.
Graffti
The document also reveals that graffiti “making fun” of Mr McGrillen’s murder was also scrawled on a wall before being removed by neighbours.
In a moving account, the report tells how in an effort to protect Charlene, the toddler was told her father was sick, and “had gone to heaven to get his medicine, where he would stay”.
“Charlene spent some time thinking that her daddy would come back eventually and got very upset when she realised this was not the case.
“She cried for days after that.”
Irati Oleaga, advocacy casework manager at RFJ, said the impact of Mr McGrillen’s killing “continues to shape the lives of his family across generations.
Charles McGrillen would have turned 65 today.
“The family have spent years seeking truth and accountability. That pursuit has been repeatedly frustrated – most recently when the Police Ombudsman accepted the case under its ‘grave and exceptional’ policy, only for that investigation to be shut down by the Legacy Act,” she said.
Many families have rejected the British government’s Independent Commission for Reconciliation and Information Recovery (ICRIR).
Ms Oleaga said some families have been forced to investigate the past themselves.
“In the absence of any effective, human rights-compliant process, families are being left to do this work themselves – documenting the truth, preserving memory, and continuing their fight for justice,” she said.
Ditching Stormont won’t solve basic problem that we just don’t like each other
The relationship between unionism and nationalism is as bad now, or maybe worse, than it was before 1998
By Alex Kane, Irish News, May 6th, 2026
My fellow columnist Brian Feeney was in rare old form last week, urging Sinn Féin to abandon the ‘failing Assembly’.
In fairness, I do have broad sympathy with the point he is making, although I would argue that the failure is as much to do with Sinn Féin as the DUP.
The two of them bought into the St Andrews deal – two governments in the one executive, as I described it at the time – which allowed them to reassure their respective bases that they weren’t actually sharing power with each other.
It’s clear the only reason the deal was struck was because neither party had an alternative strategy on offer.
Indeed, the entire deal was predicated on the freedom it gave them to do their own thing.
When the DUP realised how uncomfortable its base was with the Chuckle Brothers relationship between Pasiley and McGuinness, the key members of the party and the Martyrs Memorial orchestrated his defenestration faster than you could shout ‘No Pope Here’.
It was also the Sinn Féin base’s discomfit with Arlene Foster post-2015 which persuaded the party to use the ‘ash for cash’ issue as its much-needed opportunity to bring down the Foster-McGuinness leadership.
There have been a whole series of moments when the DUP and Sinn Féin could have worked together to reform the structures; and a whole series of moments when they could have reached a collective agreement with the other Executive parties which would have allowed sensible prioritising of key issues, along with collective responsibility and accountability.
No trust
It didn’t happen. And it didn’t happen because neither party trusted the other. Let’s not forget, either, that their respective electoral bases didn’t want a comfortable relationship.
It’s far too easy to get stuck down the rabbit hole of, ‘Well, we were up for it, but they never were’. I have been in the game long enough to know that the brutal reality of politics is that you can never move too far ahead of your electoral base.
Yes, there may have been a number of people in the DUP and Sinn Féin who could probably have worked together in common cause on some socio-economic issues, but their bases would have punished them.
By the way, I don’t buy into Michelle O’Neill’s assessment that the DUP “yearn for the days of unionist misrule”.
There is no-one in unionism – and I really do mean no-one – who is yearning for that pre-1972 era. They all know that it is not returning, not least because no British government would agree to its return.
It’s maybe worth noting, too, that neither Sinn Féin nor the IRA accepted Sunningdale as a viable alternative to the Northern Ireland Parliament.
I know that it collapsed because of the UUUC protests, but I still think it’s worth remembering SF/IRA antagonism to the power-sharing deal. It was, after all, the first serious effort to prevent a return to the past.
The continuing electoral success of the DUP and Sinn Féin points to one inescapable conclusion: the fact that reconciliation – in the sense of nudging nationalism and unionism towards a more comfortable relationship – is not the choice of the collective majority in Northern Ireland.
I would go further and suggest that the relationship is at least as bad now – maybe even worse, to be honest – than it was before both the Good Friday and St Andrews agreements.
Neither side can please, let alone win the trust, of the other. The smaller parties of nationalism and unionism are, broadly speaking, on the same page as the larger parties. And the so-called middle is down to around 15%.
So yes, I think Brian and I would both agree that the Assembly and Executive will not be changing how business is done; a position which seems, to me anyway, to be precisely that of their electoral bases.
A DUP source has ruled out returning to the Stormont Executive before Christmas
If Sinn Féin and the DUP ditched the assembly, what would be the alternative? (Liam McBurney/PA)
In which case, it seems fair to conclude that there is no real reason for either Sinn Féin or the DUP to remain in the Assembly. Which raises an important question: what is the alternative? There wasn’t one in 1998, nor in 2007.
One thing seems clear to me. There won’t be direct rule and there won’t be joint rule/sovereignty. Day-to-day governance won’t be noticeably worse because it’s terrible already.
Violence, from both loyalism and republicanism is a possibility – because it often fills a vacuum here.
A border poll won’t be called if the Assembly falls, because the campaign on both sides would be particularly divisive; and who the hell would want us in those circumstances.
What we have right now is the stalemate I’ve written about for years. Stalemate, with no signposts indicating the route to progress.
I don’t see a middle path anywhere, nor any evidence of new thinking.
We are where we are. And it’s horrible.
No, Alex, the game’s up for the Assembly - the solution is ending partition
BRIAN FEENEY, Irish News, May 6th, 2026
FIRST, Alex, to clarify: last week’s column didn’t advocate Sinn Féin downing tools and walking out of the assembly immediately.
The whole expensive charade would stagger on for months with ministers still in place and deprive Sinn Féin of leverage.
No, Alex, the question in last week’s column was: “What is the use of going back into the Stormont arrangements again in 2027 when they don’t deliver on anything?”
Lying behind that was another fundamental question: “What is the point of the Stormont assembly except to perpetuate partition, which is the cause of the problem?”
You accept, Alex, that partition is the problem, but a partition assembly does nothing to solve that problem. That’s been proven repeatedly beyond peradventure over the last hundred-odd years.
In fact, you show that in your piece, Alex, as your relate the causes of the serial collapses from 1974.
You’re right about 1974 too when you say it wasn’t just the UUUC and the Ulster Workers Council who wrecked it, but the IRA too.
It was never going to work anyway, with one-sided internment of Catholics and republicans still operating at full tilt, the RUC unreformed, and 22,000 British soldiers kicking in doors and wrecking houses in Catholic districts.
More fundamentally, Alex, you miss the point that republicans have never been enamoured of a partition assembly.
In 1974, Sinn Féin didn’t amount to a hill of beans. Republicans didn’t stand in elections because they didn’t accept this sub-polity had any legitimacy – still don’t.
It wasn’t until Bobby Sands’ election demonstrated the depth of support in the nationalist community that Sinn Féin launched into electoral politics with gusto and success.
You will remember, Alex, that in 1997-98 the party’s opening position was to oppose a Stormont assembly, but they had to yield reluctantly to the two governments and all the other parties.
You’ll also remember that ‘all the other parties’ didn’t include the DUP, whose leader and henchmen were chased out of Stormont after Good Friday 1998 with the shouts of derision from those other parties (especially the PUP) ringing in their ears.
However, only about 50% of unionist voters supported the Good Friday Agreement, while there was overwhelming support among nationalists.
Truce, not peace
Don’t mistake that for overwhelming support for an assembly, Alex. Nationalists supported a peace deal, not a political settlement.
Going right back to the 1950s, and Sinn Féin’s huge success in the 1955 British election when they polled 152,000 votes, there’s one clear conclusion to be drawn: northern nationalists like republican politics, but reject republican violence as they did in the subsequent border campaign.
You ask, Alex, what’s the alternative to the assembly even though it’s a failure? The answer is to work to solve the problem: end partition.
How? Sinn Féin stands in 2027, renews its mandate as the largest party with the biggest vote, but refuses to enter an executive, first unless and until the British government publishes its criteria for calling a referendum.
Secondly, Alex, and an even more important demand, the Irish government must begin preparations, starting with the publication of a green paper on reunification.
Much work has already been done, as you may know, with the all-party Oireachtas committee on implementing the GFA producing a report in 2024. They recommended that the Irish government begin to prepare “immediately”.
Micheál Martin of course ignored the report. He has done a 180-degree turn on reunification since Sinn Féin’s electoral breakthrough in 2020. Before that he had plans and senior party figures like Jim O’Callaghan even presented a paper on reunification at Cambridge in 2021. Since then, all is silence because Martin knows reunification is the end of Fianna Fáil.
The initiative on reunification must come from the Irish government, Alex. They must give it agency. EU diplomats and politicians can’t understand why the Irish government doesn’t. Sinn Féin must hold their feet to the fire on this, refuse to return to a partition assembly.
It’s a no-brainer that the form of unity must be acceptable to the Irish government and only they can say what it is.
A key element, Alex, of the pressure Sinn Féin, as the largest party in the north, can demand in 2027 is for the Irish government in its preparations for a referendum to reach out to unionists and guarantee them that when sovereignty passes to Dublin, the GFA still stands and the Irish government will apply “rigorous impartiality” to their British citizens in the north as the GFA requires.
Failure to do any of that with their electoral mandate will leave Sinn Féin and the DUP, as you say, in stalemate.
However, in chess stalemate means the end of the game and the game’s up for Stormont.
LETTERS, Irish News, May 6th, 2026 - Feeney-Kane dialogue
For Sinn Féin to collapse Stormont would not just be daft but dangerous
WHO doesn’t enjoy a bit of vitriol? There’s nothing like a few hundred words of well-aimed polemic to get your day going, and the venerable Brian Feeney is certainly dedicated to his craft. Even when my party (which is to say his former party) is the target, I enjoy the panache and pith with which Brian goes about his work.
But his piece last week, recommending that Sinn Féin abandon government – the upshot of which would be indefinite rule from London – needs to be challenged.
Feeney says the DUP blocks progress and Stormont is a Potemkin assembly, Right on both counts, but his answer – for the largest nationalist party to collapse devolved government in frustration – isn’t just daft, it’s dangerous.
As grindingly dysfunctional as Stormont is, the immediate consequence of bringing it down and blocking government would be key decisions made in London. Or no decisions at all, because the Labour government, like the Tories before them, would simply ignore the place. Some distracted ‘proconsul’, to use a vintage Feeneyism, would be running the place… or not. What then?
“We may be at a critical point in the journey towards constitutional change, and abandoning the responsibility to lead that change in order to save the blushes of one political party would be a grave error
Would they rush to call a border poll and would the Irish government (another favourite target) be pressing them to? Given both of their records and stated policies, it seems unlikely. And the voice of northern nationalism would be limited once again to Westminster. What then?
Bad government is exhausting (though not inevitable) but no government is a different order of problem.
Thousands of words were written in this paper, including by Brian Feeney, on the futility and self-destructiveness of the DUP boycott of government between 2022 and 2024. Now that is the position he himself is arguing. It is precisely the same one as Jim Allister and Jamie Bryson take, but in reverse. It would be hilarious if it wasn’t so serious. Coming after the events at Dunmurry police station, dissident republicans, as small in number and unsupported as they are, would relish a political vacuum. As would the drug-dealing wide boys and wasters in loyalist gangs.
The DUP is infuriating and venal, made worse by their fear of the encroaching TUV. They trivialise the trauma of the Troubles for cheap partisan shots, ignoring their party’s own dark past. They block progress constantly. Every day they discredit the jurisdiction they exist to promote and defend, but is their obduracy a catch-all alibi for ineptitude by other parties, whether Sinn Féin or Alliance?
I would argue that given we in nationalism are aiming for one of the most significant projects of constitutional change in Western Europe this century, we need to be demanding high, not low, standards of one another.
For most of my life, northern nationalism prided itself on its ability to strategically influence and persuade. Forced into ingenuity by an unjust system, engagement and persuasion allowed our broad political tradition to shape the process that ended conflict, and achieve a more direct democratic route to ending partition. ocratic route to ending partition.
For that achievement, nationalism had to take responsibility for shaping the future and leading others – in unionism, Dublin and London – towards it, often unwillingly. Now, the main party of nationalism seems to relish being defined by its professed powerlessness.
Collapsing devolution wouldn’t create pressure for a border poll (it might do the opposite). It wouldn’t enthuse wavering voters in the south or persuade open-minded types in the north. It would be a surreal tribute act to hardline unionism. It would be spite in place of strategy.
We may well be at a critical point in the journey towards constitutional change, and abandoning the responsibility to lead that change in order to save the blushes of one political party would be a grave error.
MATTHEW O’TOOLE MLA
Language group accuses Lyons of ‘ministerial negligence’ over a funding gap for Irish street signs
JOHN BRESLIN, Irish News, May 6th, 2026
Conradh na Gaeilge hit out amid an ongoing row between Stormont departments over who is responsible for funding the Northern Ireland Place Name Project
DUP Communities Minister Lyons said the decision to stop the £90,000 a year funding for the Northern Ireland Place-Name Project was taken by the Department of Finance led by Sinn Féin’s John O’Dowd.
But the Department of Finance said responsibility for the project transferred to communities in 2022, with the “understanding” the latter department would manage “longer term funding”.
Conchúr Ó Muadaigh, advocacy manager with Conradh na Gaeilge, insisted “ultimate responsibility to continue, or indeed to discontinue this scheme, lies fully with Minister Lyons”.
Mr Lyons, in an interview on BBC, said the issue of funding the project “never reached” his desk and emails show the finance department saying “on multiple occasions” that “they were not prepared to fund it anymore”.
“I’m not saving £90,000, I’m not reallocating £90,000 elsewhere. The only department that has made a saving in allocating that money elsewhere is Sinn Féin-led Department of Finance,” the minister said.
When asked to see the emails, the DfC said the request was passed on to the Freedom of Information department. FoI requests are supposed to be answered within 21 days but often take longer across all government departments and other agencies covered by the act.
A finance spokesperson said: “In 2022 responsibility for the Place-Name Project transferred from the Department of Finance to the department with responsibility for languages with funding in place until March 31 2026.
“When the project transferred it did so on the understanding that the department it transferred to would have responsibility for longer term funding for the project.”
In answer to a written Assembly question from Sinn Féin MLA Colm Gildernew at the end of January, Mr Lyons said: “Funding for the work of the Northern Ireland Place-Names Project (www.placenamesni.org) was transferred from the Department of Finance to the Department for Communities in 2022.
‘Responsibility to discontinue lies with Mr Lyons’
“Funding is available to continue the work until Summer 2026. Future funding options are currently being assessed by my officials.”
However, late last week, the Queen’s University-based Place-Name Project said it “has now reached the end of its current funding period and the team is in the process of winding down activities”.
“We regret that we are no longer in a position to respond to requests for information or translations. We appreciate your understanding as we conclude this phase.”
The Place-Name project began in 1987 with the aim of researching the origins and meanings of local placenames, based on a collection of over 30,000 names of settlements and physical features.
In recent years, the project led by Professor Mícheál Ó Mainnín and assisted by a full-time researcher and volunteers has played a vital role in ensuring the proper Irish translation is included on new dual language street signs.
Conchúr Ó Muadaigh, advocacy manager with Conradh na Gaeilge, said the “letter of offer for the funding of this project since 2022 was clearly from the Department for Communities”.
“The Communities Minister himself confirmed this in a written answer in March of this year,” he said.
“This was a project that was entirely under the administration and management of the Department for Communities, so let there be little doubt, the ultimate responsibility to continue, or indeed to discontinue this scheme, lies fully with Minister Lyons.”
Mr Ó Mudaigh added: “The Placenames Project flagged all of these issues directly with the Department for Communities in November 2025, over 6 months ago.
“Departmental mismanagement and ministerial negligence, or worse, has led to this project essentially closing down.”
'Understanding' reached in 2022 that Gordon Lyons' dept would pay for scheme
By David Thompson, Belfast News Letter, May 5th, 2026
Sinn Fein and the DUP are embroiled in a fresh row over the Irish language amid recriminations over who is responsible for funding a scheme on the origins and meanings of local place names.
Communities minister Gordon Lyons said funding had been cut by the Sinn Fein finance minister’s department, after the party had accused the DUP of attempting to “attack and undermine Irish identity” by cutting funding.
The DUP communities minister says he has emails showing that the Department of Finance (DoF), led by John O’Dowd, wouldn’t fund the Place-Name project.
However, Mr O’Dowd’s department has told the News Letter that “responsibility for” the scheme transferred to DfC on 2022 with funding in place until the 31 March 2026.
A DoF spokesperson told the News Letter: “When the project transferred it did so on the understanding that the department it transferred to would have responsibility for longer term funding for the project”. At that time, both portfolios were held by Sinn Fein.
Minister Lyons has previously told the Assembly that funding was given by DoF to the communities department (DfC) in 2022, to fund the scheme until 2026.
The News Letter had submitted a series of questions to both departments in a bid to ascertain where responsibility for funding the scheme lies. DfC is yet to respond.
Mr Lyons’s claim was made on BBC’s Good Morning Ulster programme, and followed accusations by Colm Gildernew that he and the DUP had “shown only contempt” towards Irish – branding the funding cut a disgrace.
The Sinn Fein MLA said it was a very small amount of funding – and that his party would call the communities minister to the Assembly to answer questions.
However, the DUP minister said the programme had been funded by DoF who had stopped funding it this year, after handing responsibility for it over to the Department for Communities (DfC).
“I haven’t stopped the funding, I'm not saving £90,000. I'm not reallocating £90,000 elsewhere. The only department that has made a saving or is allocating that money elsewhere is (the) Sinn Fein-led Department of Finance.
“I actually have emails in front of me here between officials and the Department for Communities and the Department of Finance, from March and April, asking the Department of Finance if they were prepared to continue to fund this project.
“The answer that came back on multiple occasions is that they were not prepared to fund it anymore, and were handing this over to the Department for Communities.
“So Sinn Fein have been trying to whip up their supporters into a frenzy and saying that this was the DUP that has stopped funding. There's only one department that has stopped funding to this project, and that's the Department of Finance”, minister Lyons said.
Mr Gildernew said it was his understanding “that this funding was moved into” the DfC.
Asked if it was true that the scheme has been funded by the DoF for the past four years, Mr Gildernew said DfC is responsible for promoting the Irish language.
“I raised this with the Permanent Secretary on Thursday. She didn't give any indication that this was outside their remit. And in fact, I believe they met with the project later that afternoon or the following day.
“And on Friday, 1 May, the project closed. So the minister for communities is responsible for the promotion of the Irish language, he has shown blatant disrespect to the language across a period of time”, the SF MLA said.
The Fermanagh South Tyrone MLA declined to say that he would call the SF finance minister to the Assembly, but would instead seek to establish what has gone on between the two departments.
“Clearly they have been engaging now, and we find that this project has now collapsed under the Department for Communities”, Mr Gildernew said.
The News Letter asked both departments whether any conditions were attached to the 2022 transfer about who would fund the scheme post-2026. We also asked why the scheme was funded by DoF and not DfC out of its own budget.
A DoF spokesperson said: “In 2022 responsibility for the Place Name Project transferred from the DoF to the department with responsibility for languages with funding in place until the 31 March 2026. When the project transferred it did so on the understanding that the department it transferred to would have responsibility for longer term funding for the project.”
DfC has yet to respond.
The Northern Ireland Place-Name Project is based within the department of Irish & Celtic Studies at Queen's University, Belfast.
Its website says it “has now reached the end of its current funding period. As a result, the project team is in the process of winding down activities. At this time, we regret that we are no longer in a position to respond to new enquiries or requests for information or translations. We appreciate your understanding as the project concludes this phase of its work”.
The project has a searchable online database which contains information on the origins and meanings of over 30,000 place-names from all over Northern Ireland.
Irish language misused as ‘bargaining chip in united Ireland negotiations’
JOHN BRESLIN, Irish News, May 6th, 2026
THE Irish language should not be offered up as some type of “bargaining chip” in negotiations around a united Ireland, a new report argues.
Many conversations around a new Ireland have framed the Irish language through “an incredibly regressive and negative lens”, according to the author of the report commissioned by Conradh na Gaeilge.
“This has resulted in the Irish language being proposed by academics and senior politicians alike as something which must be reconsidered or ‘de-emphasized’, in the event of Irish unity, or offered up as a bargaining chip or a symbolic concession to be negotiated,” said Róisín Nic Liam, a researcher at Queen’s University Belfast.
The report ‘A United Ireland: A Transformative Opportunity for the Irish Language and Gaeltacht’ was launched yesterday at the university’s Séamus Heaney Centre at Queen’s University, with speakers including Conradh na Gaeilge President, Ciaran Mac Giolla Bhéin and Colin Harvey, Queen’s professor of human rights law, with the event hosted by Dr Síobhra Aiken of the institution’s Department of Irish and Celtic Studies.
It argues the Irish language community “should seize the historic opportunity presented by the conversations on Irish unity to articulate its own progressive vision and its own demands regarding the future of the language and the Gaeltacht”.
Ms Nic Liam said the report “encourages the Irish-language and Gaeltacht community to set out a positive, progressive and rights based vision for the language in any new political arrangement”.
A new, united Ireland is an “unprecedented opportunity to radically reset the relationship between an Ghaeilge, the state, and the people of Ireland in general” following the “failure” of both the north and south “to adequately attend to the needs of Irish-language and Gaeltacht communities since partition” despite historic recent progress.
The report concludes by positioning the Irish-language and Gaeltacht community as ‘integral architects’ in the shaping a new Ireland, recommending that the community “should seize the historic opportunity presented by the conversations on Irish unity to articulate its own progressive vision and its own demands regarding the future of the language and the Gaeltacht,” Ms Nic Liam said.
Mr Mac Giolla Bhéin said his organisation was “delighted to finally present the report to the public and we hope it becomes a major catalyst in the reframing of the debate around the Irish language and Irish unity”.
This debate should be “based on rights and respect, where constitutional change is viewed as a generational opportunity for genuine equality and transformative change”.
That would put an “end to centuries of marginalisation and oppression against Irish speakers across this island and in which the language can act as a catalyst to inspire a more inclusive, progressive vision for a new Ireland”.
