6 October 2026
The SDLP has selected childcare campaigner Rebecca Harper to contest Lagan Valley in the 2027 Assembly election.
Rebecca co-founded Melted Parents NI, building a grassroots movement of thousands of parents that helped force childcare up the political agenda and became one of the strongest voices for affordable, accessible and high-quality childcare in Northern Ireland.
SDLP Lagan Valley Assembly candidate Rebecca Harper said:
“I am incredibly proud to have been selected to stand for the SDLP in Lagan Valley.
“Campaigning on childcare taught me that politics can change things when people organise, speak up and refuse to accept that nothing can be done. That experience brought me into politics and it is the same determination I will bring to this campaign.
“I want to be a strong voice for people across Lagan Valley – fighting for affordable childcare, tackling violence against women and girls, improving our public services and making sure communities here get the investment and representation they deserve.
“I didn’t come from a nationalist tradition. I came to support the SDLP’s vision for a New Ireland because I believe it offers the best future for my daughters and their generation.
“For me, that means persuasion, not division. It means building something that people from every tradition can see themselves in and belong to. And it means making Northern Ireland work better today, because we cannot ask people to believe in a better future if politics cannot deliver for them in the here and now.
“I’m delighted to be taking on this campaign alongside Cllr Pat Catney and the Lagan Valley SDLP team. Pat has spent his public life bringing people together and delivering for this constituency. There is a strong team here with deep roots across Lagan Valley, and I’m looking forward to building on that record.”
SDLP Leader Claire Hanna MP said:
“Rebecca has already shown that she can turn frustration into action and action into change. She helped take the experiences of thousands of parents struggling with childcare and build a campaign that politicians could no longer ignore.
“She also represents the confident, inclusive politics that the SDLP is determined to offer. Rebecca didn’t grow up in the nationalist tradition but she has reached her own conclusions about the future she wants for her family and this place, while remaining completely comfortable and confident in where she comes from.
“That is exactly how change will happen here – not through sectarian headcounts or by telling people what they should believe, but by listening, persuading and building common ground.
“The SDLP has won in Lagan Valley before. We are ambitious about winning here again, and Rebecca has the energy, ability and determination to make that happen.”
SDLP Lisburn North Councillor and former Lagan Valley MLA Pat Catney said:
“I am delighted that Rebecca has been selected for Lagan Valley and I’m looking forward to getting out across the constituency and campaigning alongside her.
“Lagan Valley is full of people who work hard for their families and communities and want politics to do the same for them. They deserve representatives who listen, show up and get things done.
“Rebecca has already proved that she can bring people together and turn campaigning into real political pressure. Her energy is infectious, she works incredibly hard and she cares deeply about making things better.
“I know the difference strong SDLP representation can make in Lagan Valley. Rebecca has everything it takes to provide that representation and I’ll be doing everything I can to help get her elected.”