SO just who are the DUP?

  • FOUNDED by Ian Paisley, the Democratic Unionist Party are the largest unionist political party in Northern Ireland, boasting more seats in the Northern Ireland Assembly than any other party.

They are the fifth-largest party in the House of Commons, with their ten MPs set to be crucial to the Conservatives’ hopes of forming a workable majority.

The DUP is staunchly pro-union, and is defined by its support for Northern Ireland remaining part of the UK. Ideologically, the party are closer to the Tories than previous coalition partners, the Liberal Democrats.

  • While Northern Ireland voted Remain in last year’s Brexit vote, many unionist areas voted Leave and the DUP are avowed supporters of Brexit.

That should make them viable partners for the Tories, but crucially their leader, Arlene Foster, wants a different kind of Brexit to Theresa May.

The DUP manifesto argued for a form of ‘Soft Brexit’, with no hard border with the Republic of Ireland, a maintaining of the Common Travel Area and an ease of trade regulations throughout the EU.

  • The DUP are regarded as the most ‘old-fashioned’ of Northern Ireland’s parties, and their views on civil liberties could bring them into conflict with mainstream UK opinion if they are to play a prominent role in supporting the new Government.

The DUP oppose same-sex marriage, and have also blocked attempts to introduce liberal abortion laws in Northern Ireland. The have also espoused policies in the past that appear to question the existence and impact of climate change.

  • Jeremy Corbyn’s links with the IRA became a major issue during the election campaign, but the DUP can also be linked to organisations that were involved in the ‘Troubles’. Former DUP leader and first minister Peter Robinson was heavily involved in the formation of Ulster Resistance, a loyalist movement that was formed in 1986 in opposition to the Anglo-Irish Agreement.

However, while Ian Paisley was regarded as a hardliner in his early years, his stance softened later in his life and he was integral to the success of the Good Friday Agreement.

  • The DUP’s manifesto provided more support for the public services than was on offer from the Conservatives, and it will be interesting to see Arlene Foster’s stance if Theresa May looks to push through some of her more controversial policies relating to social care and funding for education and the NHS.

The DUP want to abandon the ‘bedroom tax’ and protect bus passes for the elderly and argue for increased public investment in infrastructure. They back Trident, and are likely to be broadly supportive of the Conservatives’ foreign policies.