Brexit Brief 162

October 2023 began as the month of headlines – with UK party conferences and the Irish Budget dominating coverage, before the 7 October Hamas atrocity and its aftermath changed everything and set new priorities for politics and media. The party conferences themselves saw both Prime Minister Sunak and Labour Party leader Starmer avoid direct reference to the Northern Ireland impasse with both leaders stressing the importance of the UK as a union of four nations. However, the DUP leader, Sir Jeffrey Donaldson, addressed the Stormont issues in a lengthy speech which gained some positive reaction in both Dublin and London.

The Brexit Brief is written by Tony Brown, IIEA Senior Fellow, on behalf of the IIEA’s UK Expert Group.