7 September 2026

SDLP Leader of the Opposition Matthew O'Toole MLA has challenged deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly over the Executive's failure to agree a Budget, warning that the DUP cannot use renewed controversy around Drumcree to distract from the urgent challenges facing public services.

Speaking at the first Assembly Question Time after the summer recess, Mr O'Toole said Northern Ireland could not afford to be dragged back into the divisions and disputes of the past while the serious problems facing people today go unaddressed.

Matthew O'Toole MLA said:

"People watching the Assembly return today could be forgiven for wondering whether this Executive is living in the same Northern Ireland as everyone else.

"Ministers have returned having achieved nothing over the summer and without a Budget, leaving public services facing huge uncertainty. Meanwhile, the DUP seems determined to make Drumcree and a parading dispute stretching back 30 years a major political priority.

"Whatever people's views on the recent ruling, they are entitled to ask where the priorities of the DUP and the wider Executive lie. Drumcree cannot be used as a convenient political distraction. Our health service is in crisis and waiting lists remain far too long, Lough Neagh is again facing environmental catastrophe and organisations delivering vital public services are being left without the certainty they need to plan.

"People here are fed up with politics that constantly retreats into the arguments of the past while the problems of the present are allowed to worsen. They want a government focused on making their lives better and fixing the services they rely on. The DUP, like every other party around the Executive table, needs to take responsibility, agree a Budget and start dealing with the crises facing people now."