Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
ARLENE POOTED OUT
» Agriculture Minister is tipped as new DUP leader » Foster forced to quit by revolt of MLAS & MPS
ARLENE Foster is quitting as DUP leader and First Minister – with Edwin Poots tipped to replace her.
She made the shock announcement yesterday less than a day after most of her MLAS and half the party’s MPS signed a letter of no-confidence.
Mrs Foster will resign as leader on May 28 and leave her First Minister role a month later.
She said: “I have sought to lead the party and Northern Ireland away from division to a better path. We must learn to be generous to each other.”
Last night, bookies made Agriculture Minister Poots the 4-6 favourite to be her successor.
ARLENE Foster is stepping down as First Minister and leader of the DUP after an unprecedented internal revolt.
She will stand aside as party leader on May 28 and will leave her post in the Executive at the end of June.
Mrs Foster also signalled she could leave frontline politics completely, saying she is preparing to “depart the political stage”.
It comes after more than 20 DUP MLAS and four MPS signed a letter of no-confidence in her leadership.
Unionist discontent over Mrs Foster’s handling of the post-brexit NI Protocol, disagreement over an Assembly motion on gay conversion therapy and a commitment to implementing Irish language legislation are considered among the issues which led to her downfall.
She has been DUP leader since December 2015 and became First Minister the following month – the first woman and the youngest person to hold either job. She endured a turbulent five years at the helm – dealing with Brexit, the RHI scandal which brought down devolution for three years and the pandemic when Stormont was finally restored.
Mrs Foster, an MLA for Fermanagh/ South Tyrone since 2003, said serving the people of Northern Ireland “has been the privilege of my life”.
She added: “My election as leader of the Democratic Unionist Party broke a glass ceiling and I am glad to have inspired other women to enter politics and spurred them on to take up elected office.
“I understand the misogynistic criticisms that female public figures have to take and sadly it’s the same for all women in public life.
“I want to encourage you to keep going and don’t let the online lynch mobs get you down.”
Mrs Foster said it was important to give space over the coming weeks for party officers to make arrangements for the election of a new leader.
If there is a formal leadership contest, it will be the first in the DUP’S 50-year history.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson thanked Mrs Foster for her “dedication to the people of Northern Ireland”.
He added: “She will continue to play a vital role as First Minister until June and I hope she stays in public service for years to come.”
Taoiseach Micheal Martin wished Mrs Foster all the best for the future and paid tribute to the DUP leader’s role in guiding Northern Ireland through this “challenging period”.
Agriculture Minister Edwin Poots, who is tipped as Mrs Foster’s potential successor, tweeted: “I wish to thank Arlene for her service, sacrifice and commitment to the DUP and country.
“We all wish her well for whatever the future may hold for her and her family.”
East Belfast MP Gavin Robinson, who is also considered a contender for
the party leadership, thanked Mrs Foster for her “dedicated service to Northern Ireland”.
Meanwhile, DUP veteran Sammy Wilson has denied undermining Mrs Foster’s leadership during the pandemic.
The East Antrim MP criticised lockdown measures at various stages and was also outspoken against face masks. Reacting to her resignation, he denied he had eroded her authority as she tried to navigate Northern Ireland through the coronavirus crisis.
Mr Wilson told BBC Radio Ulster: “It’s not being disloyal to any leader or it’s not undermining any leader to express a different point of view, I hear it every week in the House of Commons.
“When I believed the restrictions were unnecessary I said they were unnecessary, when I thought that they were right I said they were right, that wasn’t in any way to undermine her.”
Mr Wilson suggested Mrs Foster had faced “unfair criticism” and had been left “carrying the can” for the actions of others, both in relation to the pandemic and Brexit.
He refused to confirm whether or not he had signed the letter of no-confidence circulated among senior DUP politicians in recent days.
It followed reports Mr Wilson and East Derry MP Gregory Campbell refused to sign the letter that triggered her resignation.