Two key unionists, Nigel Dodds and Kate Hoey, take their seats in House of Lords — a welcome addition to Westminster’s upper chamber

Nigel Dodds and Kate Hoey are important additions to Westminster’s upper chamber. They bring to their new roles both longstanding political experience and unwavering commitment to Northern Ireland.

It has not been a good political time for the Province.

Yesterday there was ongoing wrangling between the UK and EU, but for all the government’s tough rhetoric, and amid the nonsense talked by critics of the Internal Market Bill, Downing Street has been in denial about the Boris betrayal.

Northern Ireland will in effect be in the EU economic and trade zone, and no longer have a full place in the UK internal market. It is an appalling outcome, that no other major nation state would accept for an integral part of its territory, and it is a specific repudiation by the prime minister of his own tough rhetoric at the 2018 DUP conference in his bid to be premier.

Lord Dodds and Baroness Hoey are both emphatic supporters of Brexit. They know well how weak even Tory ministers are in dealings with Irish politicians (specifically with republicans but also Irish ministers, whose views on most key matters pertaining to Northern Ireland are barely distinguishable from Sinn Fein).

The DUP deputy leader and the former Labour MP for Vauxhall between them spent almost half a century in the Commons and as a result have parliamentary contacts that would be hard to surpass.

They join other peers who are key advocates of the Union, including Lords Bew, Empey, Kilclooney, Trimble, Caine, Lexden, McCrea, Morrow and Browne. And Lord Alderdice, while he would not characterise himself as unionist, has been highly critical of EU inflexibility over the Irish border issue.

The backdrop to these two new peerages, of a major new Irish Sea barrier, is a grim one but the elevations themselves could not be more welcome.

——— ———

A message from the Editor:

Thank you for reading this story on our website. While I have your attention, I also have an important request to make of you.

With the coronavirus lockdown having a major impact on many of our advertisers — and consequently the revenue we receive — we are more reliant than ever on you taking out a digital subscription.

Subscribe to newsletter.co.uk and enjoy unlimited access to the best Northern Ireland and UK news and information online and on our app. With a digital subscription, you can read more than 5 articles, see fewer ads, enjoy faster load times, and get access to exclusive newsletters and content. Visit https://www.newsletter.co.uk/subscriptions now to sign up.

Our journalism costs money and we rely on advertising, print and digital revenues to help to support them. By supporting us, we are able to support you in providing trusted, fact-checked content for this website.

Alistair Bushe

Editor