DUP bid to deploy petition of concern over Sinn Fein motion on EU 'observer status' for NI politicians
The DUP will seek to use cross-community protections to block a Sinn Fein motion calling for local politicians to be granted ‘observer status’ in the European Parliament, Gavin Robinson has said.
Nationalists have been pushing for local representation in Strasbourg since Brexit, when Northern Ireland stopped electing MEPs to represent the province.
However, in the recent Murphy Review of the Windsor Framework, the government left the issue on the shelf. Sinn Fein, the SDLP and Alliance had pushed for the change, but it was dropped as it did not have unionist support.
Sinn Fein will now bring a motion to the Assembly backing the special status – and proposing writing to the EU parliament to express the Assembly's position.
The DUP leader says as the motion “deals with fundamental issues regarding Northern Ireland’s constitutional position” – it should require cross-community support for it to pass.
“Last December the Government set aside the need for consensus when the Protocol’s harmful provisions were recklessly extended via a rigged vote, despite the unanimous opposition of unionists.
“Therefore it is entirely legitimate that we use the Petition of Concern mechanism on this occasion to ensure our position, and the views of those we represent, cannot again be misrepresented”, the East Belfast MP said.
He said EU observer status would bring with it no right to speak, vote or stand for election. “It would do nothing to address the democratic deficit caused by the Protocol in depriving local elected representatives of the right to make laws in over 300 areas of law. Furthermore, it would be a direct attack on Northern Ireland’s position as an integral part of the United Kingdom.
“This republican motion is designed to garner support of those who have no regard for the Union and who wish to now govern by simple majority regardless of the views of Unionists.
“We are encouraging unionists in the Assembly to work with us to reject this Sinn Fein ploy, designed to advance their goal of breaking up the United Kingdom, and to defeat any attempt to portray the Assembly as wholly supporting observer status in the European system”, he said.