1 October 2026

The Drumcree dispute must not become a reason for Executive parties to abdicate or abandon their governance responsibilities, SDLP Leader of the Opposition Matthew O’Toole has said.

He was speaking as Northern Ireland passed the halfway point in the financial year without an agreed Budget – edging public services into ever greater uncertainty – and amid increasing toxicity at Stormont, heightening speculation of Executive collapse.

Matthew O’Toole MLA said:

"The past week has been challenging for Northern Ireland and remains so. But failing to agree a Budget or collapsing devolved Government won’t make the Drumcree dispute any easier to resolve. Nor will shouting insults across the Assembly chamber and revelling in division.

"The long-running failure to set a Budget is now being compounded by the toxicity at Stormont, the latest example of which is the Education Minister’s indefensible decision to withdraw his officials from cooperating with a statutory committee.

"People across Northern Ireland have been shaken by what feels like this region being dragged back to dark times. Too much of our politics still thrives on that kind of darkness rather than providing people with hope that politics can improve their communities and their lives.

"It doesn’t have to be like this. For what is left of this mandate, there are clear and practical actions we can take – starting with setting a multi-year Budget – that give the public hope that politics can be about the future, not just the past."