12:48

The first minister in the last power sharing government in Northern Ireland has described the 8 June general election as a chance for a “vote for the union”.

Arlene Foster, the Democratic Unionist leader, said re-electing her party’s eight MPs would give them a “mandate given to use to ensure the interests of Northern Ireland are to the fore”.

Sinn Féin’s leader in Northern Ireland, Michelle O’Neill, meanwhile, focussed on opposing Brexit as a major plank of her party’s general election campaign.

She said the electoral battle would be an “opportunity for voters to oppose Brexit and reject Tory cuts and austerity”.

Perhaps it is worth here listing the MPs who won parliamentary seats in the last general election.

The DUP hold the largest number of seats: Belfast North and East, North and East Antrim, Strangford, East Londonderry, Lagan Valley and Upper Bann. With the exception perhaps of Belfast North the DUP should retain these seats.

Sinn Féin, of course, boycotts Westminster in line with traditional republican policy. However, it has four seats: Belfast West, Newry and Armagh, Mid Ulster and West Tyrone. The party might make a gain in Fermanagh and South Tyrone but will also be hopeful of taking Belfast South too.

The SDLP holds the Belfast South but its share over the vote in that constituency has been falling over the last two Westminster and assembly elections. The party also will face a Sinn Féin challenge in both Foyle and South Down.

Finally the Ulster Unionists have two seats : Fermanagh and South Tyrone, and South Antrim. A joint DUP-UUP election pact could help unionism defend its seat in the former constituency while giving the DUP a chance to wrestle back Belfast South from the SDLP.



All of these constituency battles are taking place while four big parties in Northern Ireland are supposed to be trying to reach a power-sharing deal in the region. The general election is undoubtedly going to create further division in terms of political and community relations in Northern Ireland, and quite clearly it will make it even more difficult for the parties to secure a power sharing deal in Belfast.

