Northern Ireland’s government will have its first nationalist leader on Saturday, as Michelle O’Neill takes the oath of office as the first minister.
She is a member of Sinn Fein, the largest party in the devolved assembly, which has been suspended for two years due to a dispute between pro-UK and pro-Irish parties.
The assembly will resume its work after a special session, where O’Neill’s nomination will be approved, along with the deputy first minister and other ministers. The first minister and deputy first minister roles are equal, according to the 1998 peace agreement that ended decades of violence over the status of Northern Ireland.
O’Neill’s appointment is a historic and symbolic moment, as she is a Roman Catholic who supports Irish unity, in a region that was created as a Protestant-dominated part of the UK in 1921. She said on X, formerly Twitter, before her swearing-in: “This is an historic day. It is about the future.”
“As a First Minister for All, I am determined to lead positive change for everyone, and to work together with others to progress our society in a spirit of respect, cooperation, and equality.”
Sinn Fein’s leader, Mary Lou McDonald, said earlier this week that the 1921 partition was based on “creating an in-built and permanent unionist (pro-UK) majority” in Northern Ireland, but that “that day has gone”. She also said that a Sinn Fein-led government in the Republic of Ireland, which could happen after the next election, could pave the way for “a new constitutional dispensation ending partition”.
O’Neill faces many challenges as the first minister, especially the need to improve public services and resolve budget issues, which have caused strikes and protests in recent weeks. She called the assembly’s restoration “a day of optimism” and asked for a joint effort to solve the problems.
O’Neill, 47, has been waiting to become the first minister since May 2022, when Sinn Fein won the most seats in the 90-member assembly, which has power over domestic matters. However, she could not take office because the largest pro-UK party, the DUP, boycotted the assembly over the post-Brexit arrangements for Northern Ireland.
Northern Ireland has a unique position, as it shares a land border with the EU member Republic of Ireland, but is also part of the UK. The 1998 peace deal requires the border to remain open and free of checks. To avoid a hard border, the UK and the EU agreed that Northern Ireland would follow some EU rules and have checks on goods coming from the rest of the UK.
The DUP opposed this agreement, saying it created a “border in the Irish Sea” and weakened Northern Ireland’s ties with the UK. It also feared that it would make Irish reunification more likely. The DUP finally reached a deal with the UK government this week, which included removing some of the checks and the “Irish Sea border” term, allowing the assembly to resume.
The UK government also promised to give £3.3 billion ($4.2 billion) to boost public services in Northern Ireland, as part of the deal. The assembly will start its work on Saturday, with the election of a neutral Speaker, followed by the nominations of the parties that will form the executive. The third-largest party, Alliance, said it would take the justice ministry again, and another one. The smaller Ulster Unionists will also have a minister, but the fifth-largest party, the SDLP, will be in the opposition.
