‘Survey exposes SF talk on border poll as spin’

He was speaking after a survey by Liverpool University found almost 30% of people in NI support a united Ireland but almost 59% prefer to remain in the UK.

“With only one third of respondents expressing support to leave the United Kingdom, the poll exposes Sinn Fein talk about a border poll to be rhetoric and spin,” he said. This points to overwhelming support for NI remaining in the UK, he added.

“Pro-Union voters will have to make a choice at the election to use their first preference vote wisely and support the DUP, and then transfer to other unionists, to ensure unionism wins, or alternatively to have their votes used in a way that allows Sinn Fein to emerge stronger and thus misinterpret the election as support for a border poll. More pro-union seats in the Northern Ireland Assembly will put the brakes on border poll spin.”

He said the poll also points to the next Assembly election being a two-horse race in terms of who will be the largest party at Stormont.

“With Sinn Fein focused more on a border poll than on making Northern Ireland work this poll re-enforces the need for the DUP to win the next election,” he said.

The survey also suggests the NI Ireland Protocol isn’t a major issue for the majority of people, with health, Covid recovery and the economy rated as more significant.

But Sir Jeffrey said the DUP has a duty to be “guardians of the Union today and tomorrow”.

He said he recognised that the Protocol is “not the number one issue now” but that the damage it causes to the Union “will become greater as the UK and EU diverge”.