THE QUIET BUT HAPPY BIRTHDAY FOR TORY-DUP ALLIANCE
A BIRTHDAY passed at Westminster this week without a single candle blown out in celebration. Last Wednesday marked the first anniversary of the signing of Theresa May’s alliance with the Democratic Unionist Party. To the Prime Minister’s relief the “confidence and supply” arrangement, where the 10 MPs from the Northern Ireland party back the Government in key Commons votes, remains firm despite a couple of rocky moments.
The passing of the anniversary with barely any comment shows that the alliance forced on Mrs May by the loss of her Commons majority in last year’s snap election is a testament to its quiet success in keeping her in Downing Street and bolstering her Brexit drive. The pairing has been a contrast to David Cameron’s fractious coalition with the Lib Dems between 2010 and 2015.
By not entering a coalition and taking up ministerial positions, the Tories and the DUP have been spared having to make unpalatable compromises. Relations are also helped by the fact the two parties seek the voters of separate electorates.
Most importantly for the survival of the cross-party Commons alliance, the DUP has taken an opposite approach to Nick Clegg’s gang of whingers in the coalition. Lib Dem attempts to discredit their Tory coalition partners and rubbish government policies only backfired on the smaller party. “We have made sure, in most cases, that we settle our disagreements with the Government in private,” one DUP MP told me. The only public spat between the Tories and the DUP erupted when the Brexit negotiations over the Irish border raised questions about the future sovereignty of Northern Ireland, the issue at the heart of the Unionist cause.
Speculation about an early election still circulates among MPs of all parties given the hung parliament and divisions over Brexit. Yet while her DUP support remains firm, their hopes of seeing the Government collapse appear ill founded. Mrs May’s alliance looks set to mark a few more birthdays before another general election.