NI Committee Chair Simon Hoare admits 'mistakes' in role as he's promoted to junior minister in Rishi Sunak reshuffle

In a statement on social media platform X, the North Dorset MP said: “It has been the most enormous pleasure, and honour to Chair the NI Affairs Committee since 2019. I’ve made many many friends along the way. NI and her people are both very special and I hope I have done some good along the way. I’ve made some mistakes I know but I have always tried my best”.

The Alliance MP Stephen Farry congratulated Mr Hoare on his appointment to government and said he “threw considerable energy and enthusiasm into his role as Chair of the Northern Ireland Affairs, and notably processed a considerable number of inquiries. He will be missed.”

However, the TUV vice chairman Councillor Allister Kyle said no unionist would be sad to see him go. “Simon Hoare was the most openly partisan chairman of the Northern Ireland Select Committee anyone can remember. He did not even pretend to be impartial but rather displayed evident delight in putting the boot into Unionists. No one from the Unionist community will regret his departure from the Northern Ireland Select Committee and will wish him a short tenure in his new post as part of a government which is clearly on the way out.”

Former NIAC chair Baroness Hoey told the News Letter: “To his credit he did take a genuine interest in Northern Ireland, and even if it did seem at times he was biased he did at least look into the issues facing loyalist working class communities”.

The SDLP MP Claire Hanna said “As Chair of the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee Simon Hoare had a difficult job, particularly in the context of Brexit and subsequent collapse of the Assembly. No politician gets everything right, but I always found him to be open-minded, fair and, unlike many of his party colleagues, believe he made a genuine effort to understand this place and its people. He will be quite a hard act to follow.

“I wish Simon all the best in his new role as a minister and hope he will bring his thoughtful perspective on Northern Ireland to the table. Far too often we see UK Government Ministers with little knowledge or interest about Northern Ireland and the challenges we face and that has had a significant negative impact on our politics.”

Earlier this year Hoare reportedly met with loyalist paramilitaries in an effort to persuade them on the merits of the Windsor Framework. He also invited the loyalist activist Jamie Bryson to speak at the committee – an exchange which the DUP MP Carla Lockhart described as a “character assassination” on Mr Bryson. Bryson’s appearance at the committee is understood to have caused unease among nationalist and Alliance representatives, none of whom were able to attend due to other commitments.

Hoare will now serve as Minister for Local Government in Rishi Sunak’s government. Yesterday, he welcomed the appointment of David Cameron saying “we need as many steady hands on deck as possible in support of the work and vision of Rishi Sunak”.

A prolific social media user, Simon Hoare has posted on issues which have landed him in hot water in Northern Ireland. In 2021 he apologised after posting “Who knew William of Orange arrived in Ireland with hundreds of wooden pallets hence the traditional pallet burning fiesta began” in relation to eleventh night bonfires.

His promotion means that the NI affairs committee will need to elect a new chair. One name that has been mentioned is the Conservative MP Sir Robert Buckland. He already sits on the committee and is across the complex issues currently facing Northern Ireland. The former cabinet minister is seen as a moderate in the party. He has previously asked the Prime Minister to water down the Rwanda policy describing it as “knee-jerk”.

Meanwhile, Suella Braverman whose sacking prompted the cabinet reshuffle has accused Rishi Sunak of having "manifestly and repeatedly failed to deliver" on his key policies. She said his "distinctive style of government” means he “incapable of doing so".

The former home secretary said the Prime Minister had not lived up to his promise to do "whatever it takes" to stop small boat crossings and urged him to "change course urgently".