Baroness Foster rejects potential for united Ireland and points to ‘facts’
Baroness Arlene Foster, former first minister of Northern Ireland and former leader of the DUP (Liam McBurney/PA)
Former First Minister Arlene Foster has dismissed the prospect of a united Ireland saying "there are nowhere near enough people to take us out of the United Kingdom".
Speaking to ITV News on a visit to Jersey with her pro-unionist organisation Together UK, the ex-DUP leader claimed: “The dial hasn't really moved in terms of a united Ireland, they (republican and nationalist parties) portray it as such... but actually, it is important to look at the facts."
Baroness Foster conceded that the case for unionism in Northern Ireland had been made by "too many parties".
She added: "It's important that we all speak with one voice on the Union."
Baroness Foster served as First Minister in two spells from 2016 to 2017 and 2020 to 2021.
The former Fermanagh-South Tyrone MLA, who now sits in the House of Lords, argues that Jersey has a lot to gain from its relationship with the United Kingdom as a self-governing Crown Dependency with close ties to the rest of the British Isles.
"Sharing experience", she says, is key to that, referencing the 'Shop Local' card introduced in Jersey during the Covid pandemic.
Baroness Foster told ITV: "I heard about it and I actually then telephoned John Le Fondré [then Jersey's Chief Minister], had a conversation, we then introduced it in Northern Ireland and it made a difference to retailers.
"That's a learning experience I got from Jersey."
This was Baroness Foster's first visit to Jersey, which she said reminds her of Northern Ireland.
Her mission is to show the relevance of Unionism "to everyday life nowadays, whether it's economic, cultural, social, political".
She added: "When I look at the UK now, I think there's a lot of people who don't understand Unionism and that's what my mission is all about, to try and make it relevant for everyday life."
She was the first woman to lead Northern Ireland and, speaking after the removal of Jersey's first female Chief Minister, Deputy Kristina Moore, reflected on the challenges of being a woman in politics.
She said it is "still very tough for women, particularly in terms of social media, in terms of the abuse women take” and there is still an “emphasis on appearance and how women look as opposed to men".
