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Good Morning John

I don’t personally know DCI John Caldwell but within hours of this bloody attack, I was quite clear he is exactly the type of police officer Northern Ireland needs. We need him back at his desk making our streets safer.

Evidently by the reports, John feared no one and saw his duty to take the fight to the criminals whether they were pedalling drugs or some other organised crime activity.

Let’s all remember him in prayer as well as his wife and family.

When I was with the Chief Constable yesterday, I reminded the other leaders that it was never right to shoot police officers. It was a member of my own family who was the first RUC Officer murdered by the IRA in August 1970.

There was an alternative to shooting police officers in 1970 and there is no justification in 2023.

You will have read speculation about the Prime Minister and the EU Commission president reaching a deal on the NI Protocol.

The objective in London and Brussels should be to get this right rather than rushed. The wrong deal will not restore powersharing but will deepen division for future generations.

Over eighteen months ago we outlined our seven tests and used those to mark out the parameters for the way forward. Those tests will be how we will judge any deal between the EU and UK.

The checks on the Irish Sea border are the symptom of the underlying problem, namely, that Northern Ireland is subject to a different set of laws imposed upon us by a foreign entity without any say or vote by any elected representative of the people of Northern Ireland.

If the NI Executive is to be restored, then the protocol issues need to be satisfactorily resolved. This means that new arrangements must command unionist support and safeguard Northern Ireland and it’s place in the United Kingdom.

It was a mistake to press ahead and ignore the opposition of unionists in 2020. That has been recognised in London, Dublin, Brussels and Washington. They should not make the same mistake twice.

So let’s focus on the prize of a long-lasting solution instead of a short-term fix. The Protocol must be replaced by arrangements that restore NI’s place in the UK internal market and our constitutional position must be respected.

Thank you for your support.

Sir Jeffrey Donaldson MP

DUP Leader