DUP deputy First Minister will travel to US for St Patrick’s Day

NORTHERN IRELAND’S DEPUTY First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly has confirmed she will travel to Washington, DC next month for St Patrick’s Day.

It comes after First Minister Michelle O’Neill, in line with her Sinn Féin colleagues, said she will not attend the White House as part of “a principled stance against the threat of mass expulsion of the Palestinian people from Gaza”.

Earlier this month, Trump suggested Israel would turn Gaza over to the US for redevelopment into the “riviera of the Middle East”- involving a mass displacement of Palestinians from the territory.

The proposals were widely condemned and later comments from the administration sought to suggest the displacement would be voluntary and temporary.

Little-Pengelly said she would attend events but did not confirm if she will go to the White House.

The DUP politician told media at Parliament Buildings: “I intend to go to Washington next month. I think it’s an incredibly important time where Northern Ireland has, quite frankly, unprecedented access to the president of the United States, to the administration.

“Of course, we engage with the president’s office and we have a long and rewarding relationship with the US.

“It’s a very particular relationship, particularly in relation to foreign direct investment, on trade, in relation to our economy, so of course I will be there standing up for Northern Ireland, making sure that Northern Ireland’s voice is heard in DC that week.

“There is a number of events and I look forward to engaging positively with the administration.”

Asked whether she will meet US President Donald Trump, Little-Pengelly said: “I don’t know. The programme of events is still being worked through, but we know that there are a number of key events over the course of that week.

“It does represent unprecedented access and the opportunity for us in Northern Ireland to have that key role in DC right throughout that week.”

Taoiseach Micheál Martin has yet to receive a formal invitation to a bilateral meeting with Trump at the White House, but said he expects the meeting to go ahead.

The SDLP meanwhile has said it will not attend any St Patrick’s Day events in Washington DC this year.

Its leader Claire Hanna said the party could not “in good conscience” attend parties hosted in DC in the context of Trump’s actions.

Last year, O’Neill and Little-Pengelly were lauded in Washington as they travelled together to attend St Patrick’s Day events only weeks after the powersharing institutions at Stormont were restored.

-With additional reporting from Diarmuid Pepper