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Today the DUP leader said she was against the NI Protocol from the start. As most will already know this is untrue. Here's a walk through the DUP's position on the EU over the last few years.
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This is the DUP's election manifesto the year before the EU referendum, 2015. Look at the language.
Although historically an EU-sceptic party they can see the clear advantages membership brings and want that to continue, extolling the single market and free movement.
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Although historically an EU-sceptic party they can see the clear advantages membership brings and want that to continue, extolling the single market and free movement.
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The EU referendum date was announced in late 2015 for June the following year, 2016. Cameron had been trying to get more opt-outs for the UK. The DUP met in late Feb 2016 at their HQ to discuss & decide their stance. "On balance" the DUP decided to back leave.
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As you can see above the DUP were not extolling a hard Brexit. In fact what they said at the time didn't allude in any way to the complexities that leaving the EU could bring, either for the UK nor even for NI. It looked like they had not considered them.
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In 2019 Jim Wells, then without the party whip, admitted this to Stephen Nolan. The hours long meeting decided the referendum position in minutes and didn't weigh up the consequences. Economic issues weren't considered. He revealed a shockingly reckless lack of scrutiny.
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In summary, Jim confirmed:
Irish border solution not discussed
pros & cons of leaving Vs remain not compared
back leave, work out details later
decision made solely on "senseless bureaucracy, interference, meddling and control"
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Irish border solution not discussedpros & cons of leaving Vs remain not comparedback leave, work out details later decision made solely on "senseless bureaucracy, interference, meddling and control"6/n
By April 2016 there were 2 main groups campaigning to leave the EU. DUP Deputy Leader Nigel Dodds joined the board of Vote Leave & also their Campaign Committee with Cummings, Gove, Johnson & Baker. They promised little would change & that the NHS would have £350m week more.
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In the last days of the close campaign a 4 page DUP funded ad was taken out in a GB newspaper. Mervyn Storey defended the cost of the ad which was greatly in excess of what the DUP could afford. The DUP had been used to funnel money to get round Vote Leave's spending limits.
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Several years later we still don't know the true source of the money but that is was funnelled through a group called CRC. DUP Treasurer Jeffrey Donaldson did not disclose the due diligence he did on the suspicious £435k donation.
9/n https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/dark-money-investigations/revealed-dirty-secrets-of-dup-s-dark-money-brexit-donor/
9/n https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/dark-money-investigations/revealed-dirty-secrets-of-dup-s-dark-money-brexit-donor/
It would also later be revealed that the DUP paid Aggregate IQ (a company linked to Cambridge Analytica) £33k. Aggregate IQ are involved in using social media data to manipulate opinions of voters.
Jeffrey said he can't remember what they were paid for.
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Jeffrey said he can't remember what they were paid for.
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The result of the referendum was known in hours, in favour of leave 52:48. In NI, the result was 56:44 remain. Early takes from some DUP reps were quite astonishing. Foster committed to "get the people of NI the deal they deserve."
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Cameron immediately resigned and was replaced by Theresa May who called a snap election in April 2017 but she lost her majority and became dependant on the 10 DUP MPs to agree and pass legislation.
12/n https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/dup-conservatives-election-results-hung-parliament-theresa-may-coalition-deal-a7781281.html
12/n https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/dup-conservatives-election-results-hung-parliament-theresa-may-coalition-deal-a7781281.html
NI's first ministers wrote to Theresa May in August 2016 to stress elements important to NI because of it's unique situation. A lot of emphasis is given to needing a close deal with the EU with their concerns about the peace process and political settlement (GFA) mentioned.
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In January 2017 May announced UK would leave the EU's Single Market (agreed laws to enable free movement of goods & people) & Customs Union (trading area to sell goods in all EU). This announcement meant trouble for NI because of its shared EU border.
14/n https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2017/jan/17/key-points-from-mays-what-have-we-learned
14/n https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2017/jan/17/key-points-from-mays-what-have-we-learned
Despite being in a very powerful position the DUP did not use this time to suggest a preferred form of Brexit that would suit NI. Others then took the initiative with May trying to find common ground. In late 2017 Foster introduced her 1 red line.
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May's earlier red lines and Foster's red lines were incompatible and any solution would require major compromises from from one or all parties.
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In order to solve the NI problem May and Barnier spent most of 2017 trying to find a solution and May agreed all of UK to stay in the EU Customs Union and to follow many EU Single Market rules.
A temporary backstop was to be put in place while a trade deal was negotiated.
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A temporary backstop was to be put in place while a trade deal was negotiated.
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Foster rejected the deal the UK & EU were due to sign in late 2017 due to the backstop. DUP wanted NI to leave EU on the same terms as GB, something that was impossible without a hard land border or very close UK-EU relationship, which most Brexiteers would object to.
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Discussions on squaring this circle continued through to 2019 with revisions made to try to bring DUP onboard & get enough votes to get through UK Parliament. During that time the DUP still didn't suggest a suitable solution & elements of the DUP sided with hard Brexiteers.
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Another parallel complicating factor was the fall of the NI Assembly in early 2017 following the resignation of the terminally ill Deputy FM when Arlene Foster failed to step down during an investigation into the RHI scandal.
20/n https://www.irishtimes.com/news/politics/mcguinness-resignation-why-did-he-quit-and-what-happens-next-1.2930528?mode=amp
20/n https://www.irishtimes.com/news/politics/mcguinness-resignation-why-did-he-quit-and-what-happens-next-1.2930528?mode=amp
It meant that during this period the predominant voice heard by the UK Govt was that of the DUP, whose votes they needed to govern. The DUP were not respresnting NI in these discussions, which voted to remain, but their own party view, driven increasing by hard Brexiteers.
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Back to mid 2017, about a year after the EU referendum, UK had a General Election. May had already decided UK would leave SM & CU. At this point everyone realised the problems that would create for NI which shares a Common Travel Area and land border with Ireland.
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Only the DUP failed to anticipate or recognise the problems this would create. Their election manifesto, released in May 2017, contained impossible contradictions in a wishlist of desired outcomes, the preface to their 30 points demonstrating hostility to the EU.
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Contradictions like points 2, 4 and 7 on trade. The only way to have all of this would be for all UK to stay in SM & CU. Similarly on point 29, leaving the ECJ would make 14 and 25 impossible. Incredibly there is no mention at all of the Customs Union or Single Market.
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While recognising that the closer the relationship with EU the better for NI the fact that UK had already decided the opposite in leaving the CU & SM meant that they either had a poor understanding of EU membership or wilfully ignored the impossibility of their wishlist.
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As mentioned earlier in the thread May lost her majority in this GE & then needed the 10 DUP votes to pass legislation, particulary on EU. This would have been the perfect time for DUP to insist all UK staying in CU & SM but they didn't.
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