REACTION - Arlene Foster resigns as First Minister of Northern Ireland

Mrs Foster’s resignation came into effect at 1pm on Monday.

That means the roles of first minister and deputy first minister will need to be filled by 1pm on Monday June 21, otherwise the UK Government will be under a legal duty to call a snap Assembly election.

Stormont speaker Alex Maskey said he had received notification from Arlene Foster that she would resign from 1pm on Monday.

Arlene Foster announces her resignation as First Minister at Stormont and promises to champion online protections for young people and women in public life going forward.

She acknowledged the ‘abundance’ of support from her family during her political career. pic.twitter.com/T0B5PcO6tK

— Q Radio News (@qnewsdesk) June 14, 2021

He said: “Mrs Foster has requested to make a personal statement to the Assembly and I have given her permission to do so at the start of business today under Speaker’s business.

“Under section 16B(2) of the Northern Ireland Act, if either the First Minister or deputy First Minister ceases to hold office at any time, the other shall also cease to hold office at that time.

“As Mrs Foster’s resignation takes effect from 1pm on 14th June 2021, both she and Mrs O’Neill will cease to hold office at that point.”

Delivering her personal statement to the Assembly, Arlene Foster said: “I have tendered my resignation as First Minister of Northern Ireland, effective from 1pm today.

“Thank you to you and your office for this opportunity to address the chamber one last time … and I promise not to sing.

“Mr Speaker, colleagues both inside and outside this House know very well that all periods of leadership must come to an end.

“That is why, when we are privileged and honoured with holding such a position, we must not waste a moment in frivolous brinkmanship but rather forge ahead on behalf of those we represent.

“Whilst I will miss the exchanges from this seat, I am looking forward to fresh challenges.”

Arlene Foster concluded by saying that “strong, functioning and successful devolution” is vital to a successful Northern Ireland.

“Our Lord taught the parable of the Good Samaritan. I’m sure we have all heard it, but remember two people passed by. They closed their eyes to the injured Jewish man.

“I haven’t always made the right calls. None of us are perfect but at the end of the parable our Lord asks ‘Who is your neighbour?’ – the one who stopped to offer help.

“Remember – stopping meant the Samaritan reaching out across a religious divide. It also meant him reaching into his own pocket and paying a price to provide shelter for the injured man.

“Let’s be good neighbours.”

Sinn Fein’s Alex Maskey said Arlene Foster has been a “key player” in the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Paying tribute to her, he said: “There has never been any shortage of people offering advice or criticism on every issue in this process, and that was often a very good thing.

“But, as I’ve often found myself, the world and his granny will always have something to say.

“However, there are only a few individuals, Arlene being one, who have had to carry the burden of leadership, and balance political views, individual party views and mandates.

“That been evident during the pandemic in the role that Arlene has played with others in getting us through this difficult period, and will be remembered, in my view, in a positive manner.

“Our outgoing First Minister has been vocal about the toxic influence that social media often has on our political discourse, and many can stand with her on the need to tackle that.

“I want to record the negative aspects that, unfortunately, now come with being in the public eye, cannot have been easy for her or her family.”

Representing the SDLP, Infrastructure Minister Nichola Mallon told the Northern Ireland Assembly that Arlene Foster will have inspired many young girls to realise there should be “no limit on their ambitions”.

She added: “Politics is never easy, and the last few weeks, I know, will not have been easy for the First Minister and her family.

“Leadership is never easy and leadership of our five-party Executive is not easy. It is incredibly challenging.”

Ms Mallon added: “It is important at this juncture to reflect on the fact that devolution has been restored on the basis of five-party agreement in New Decade, New Approach, and all of these commitments need to be honoured.

Sinn Fein’s Michelle O’Neill said power-sharing in Stormont cannot be built on “broken promises”.

Speaking about restoring the Northern Ireland Assembly, she said: “We stood in this chamber and made our commitments to working together, that it was very much a day of hope, that we needed to deliver on power-sharing.

“It needs to be about tackling waiting lists and reforming our health service.

“You cannot build power-sharing on broken promises.

“You must deliver upon agreements that have been made. I’m committed to that, I hope others are committed to doing that.

“Arlene, every best wish for the future and I hope you get some special time with your family.”

Michelle O’Neill commends Arlene Foster for all her years of public service and says the pair have had to share the common challenge and ‘additional burden of misogyny’.

The deputy First Minister warned MLAs ‘you can’t build power-sharing on broken promises’. pic.twitter.com/qE460LWWXI

— Q Radio News (@qnewsdesk) June 14, 2021

Ms O’Neill added: “Being in public life, as we all know, isn’t an easy job. It can very challenging and there are many highs and many low.

“For a female in public life it is even more challenging. Sacrifices are made and we have to deal with the additional burden of misogyny that exists.

“If there is one thing we have done well together, it is highlight that on numerous occasions.”

Arlene Foster told the Northern Ireland Assembly: “This will be my last speech in this forum, but I very much plan to continue to speak up on behalf of women in public life, as well as our children, by seeking better protections for everyone on social media.

“When I was at school bullying occurred but, when children stepped off the bus, their home could be a safe haven. Today, our young people have no escape, the bullies are following them right into their bedroom. We must act.

“Suffice to say, just like all politicians who resign, I will now spend more time with my family. So my lovely mum, my darling husband and my three beloved children will see more of me – whether they like it or not.

“It’s just as well, Mr Speaker, I am such a good daughter, wife and mother. Those of us in public life know that we cannot fully function without the support of our loved ones and I’ve had that support in abundance.

“I wish my successors as party leader and First Minister well, and I want to thank politicians from across the political spectrum for their good wishes.

“I’ve been overwhelmed – even some in the naughty corner found something good to say. If only you had said all those nice things a few years ago, it would have saved us all time.”

Arlene Foster referred to the RHI controversy, which led to the collapse of Stormont.

She said: “When faced with false allegations of corruption, I defended myself vigorously to clear my name.

“No-one should have to tolerate such assaults on their character, but misleading interviews and salacious claims that would not survive the glare of an inquiry created a febrile atmosphere that coincided with the declining health of Martin McGuinness.

“The result: a crisis that led to the unnecessary loss of devolution.

“Lost years for Northern Ireland and a period when public services inevitably slumped backwards.”

Arlene Foster continued: “Too often a demand to advance Irish identity in the language of equality saw simultaneous calls to reduce or denigrate other forms of expression.

“This was always a destabilising approach in a society seeking healing, and risked simply creating a new dispossessed community. This cycle needed to be broken.

“This is why my team and I sought and secured a cultural package that would see a range of measures to advance identities and protect them for future generations.

“This is the only model for success – not one step forward for some and one step back for others.

“This will be the basis for sharing this place we all cherish and take pride in.

“And, yes, it also includes a Commissioner for the Irish language.

History will be “kind” to Arlene Foster, new DUP leader has said.

Edwin Poots told the Northern Ireland Assembly that Mrs Foster has had a “hugely successful” career.

“I believe history will be very kind to Arlene, it should be very kind to her because she has done a considerable course of work in ensuring that we move forward.

“Even after the difficult times of 2017 with the collapse of devolution, the commitment was there, and always there to ensure that we could get back together again, that we could take people forward again. And they could ensure that the public had this place to make decisions for them on their behalf.”

Mr Poots described Mrs Foster as a unionist and also a devolutionist.

“She, like I, was a child of the Troubles, and had a similar circumstance in that the Troubles visited our homes,” he said.

“For Arlene I believe having peace in Northern Ireland and ensuring that we have peace and that we have a away of working with each other was a powerful part of what she done in her politics and what she sought to ensure in her politics, and in leading her to work with people who would have been regarded as enemies.”

Edwin Poots praises Arlene Foster as a unionist and devolutionist who pursued peace despite being personally affected by the Troubles herself.

He says he has had ‘much common ground’ with Mrs Foster adding ‘history will be kind’ to her. pic.twitter.com/4fp0QnRIWW

— Q Radio News (@qnewsdesk) June 14, 2021

TUV leader Jim Allister said that retiring is the last word you would associate with Arlene Foster.

He added: “We have had many disagreements, still have. But she has always conducted her office in a manner with considerable poise and presence, which will not be easy to replicate.

“In all my dealings with her, I found her straightforward and honourable. It could not be said that her removal from office was either straightforward or honourable.”

Mr Allister said the process had left a “considerable scar on the body politic”.

Ulster Unionist leader Doug Beattie thanked Arlene Foster for her commitment, service and sacrifices.

He added: “You have carried yourself with the utmost dignity.

“Even when that ‘et tu, Brute’ moment came from those who you would have called your friends, I think you held yourself with incredible dignity.

“If there is something I will reflect on in the months and years ahead, is just how our First Minister went through this crisis and many other crises before holding your head up high and you should be proud.

“It’s noticed politically and it’s noticed by society in general.

“I don’t mean just Northern Ireland, I mean further afield.

“There was lots to be done, it wasn’t all completed but I thought that was a fine final speech as you resigned. You could have made much mischief in the House, but you didn’t and set a very clear path.”

DUP colleague and Arlene Foster’s closest friend in the Assembly, Peter Weir, said that she is “good banter and good company”.

“I have known Arlene through her days at Queen’s (University), through her days in young unionists, through days as a solicitor, through her days as Environment Minister, ETI Minister, Finance Minister and finally as First Minister,” Mr Weir told the Assembly.

“I can reflect on the many public achievements she is associated with, through the form of local government, to the massive boost she gave to the economy, to taking us through the pandemic, to shattering the glass ceiling and indeed, most recently, taking on and have the guts to take on the internet trolls.

“It’s also the private Arlene who is good company and good banter. I can remember a duet once that involved Arlene and Nelson McCausland when they sang Islands In The Stream, when somehow Nelson started singing the Dolly Parton part.

“I also remember her as part of the many one-to-one private interactions that Arlene gave to people.

“The one thing I associate with Arlene is that of loyalty.

“Loyalty to her friends and family, loyalty to her beloved Fermanagh and South Tyrone, loyalty to the people of Northern Ireland and loyalty to the unionist cause.

“Loyalty sometimes comes at a cost but it is always a price worth paying.”

Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Brandon Lewis, called Arlene Foster a “truly dedicated public servant”.

He added: “It is now essential that the transition to new leadership is as smooth as possible, and I have encouraged both the DUP and Sinn Fein to ensure that their nominations for First Minister and deputy First Minister are put forward in good time.

“The people of Northern Ireland need strong political leadership. It is paramount that there remains a functioning Executive that is able to work in the best interests of all the people and communities of Northern Ireland, delivering on the issues that matter to them most.

“Over the coming days I will remain resolutely committed to engaging with all the Northern Ireland parties and doing everything I can to ensure that a stable and functioning Executive continues to be in place.

“History has shown that political stability cannot be taken for granted and we all have a responsibility to protect it.”

Alliance Party leader and Justice Minister Naomi Long thanked Arlene Foster for her efforts in leading the Executive.

Mrs Long said: “It would be fair to say that we have not always seen eye-to-eye and have had our fair share of disagreements over the years, some of them can even be described as heated.

“However, we have been able to disagree and continue to work together to deliver the best possible outcomes for those we represent.”

The Alliance leader added: “The things that you remember most about people are often not the big public events and set pieces but the quiet personal moments when you see the true measure of someone and who they really are.

“I will always recall that Arlene was the first unionist politician to come to speak to me to offer solidarity and support and to ask how I was the day after I received my first death threat during the flags protest.

“That small gesture probably meant more to me than she knew, but it stood out because she was one of only two people who did so that day.”