DUP leader warns that divided unionism benefits opponents at NI conference

Gavin Robinson, the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) leader, used his annual conference outside Belfast to warn that "when unionism is divided, our opponents prosper." He acknowledged the Northern Ireland Assembly is far from perfect but dismissed suggestions that people would be better off with Starmer than with Stormont.

Robinson will renew calls for greater co-operation among unionist parties as the DUP, Sinn Féin, the Alliance Party and the Ulster Unionist Party share power at Stormont after ending a boycott over post-Brexit rules. The conference is the second since devolution was restored in 2024 following a two-year hiatus.

Robinson, East Belfast MP, will tell the conference that "no party or personality should ever trump our shared strategic aims" and that, "Under my leadership, we will be strong, but we will not be selfish."

He is expected to reinforce support for Northern Ireland's devolved government, saying "things happen" when DUP ministers hold office, and that "those who argue we would be better off with Starmer than with Stormont cannot point to a single area, or a single policy, where it would be better without devolution."

The DUP was previously the largest party in Northern Ireland at Stormont, Westminster and in local councils, but it has been overtaken in recent elections by Sinn Féin, which took the first minister post in the Northern Ireland Executive last year.

The conference, being held outside Belfast, is the first since Michelle McIlveen became deputy leader in March.

Analyst Gareth Gordon, BBC News NI political correspondent, notes that Sinn Féin’s rise and the presence of the Traditional Unionist Voice (TUV) continue to shape the DUP’s challenges. The TUV, founded by Jim Allister, remains a fixture in unionist politics even as it has never won more than one Assembly seat. A LucidTalk poll cited in the analysis had the DUP at 17% with the TUV at 13%, ahead of Alliance, the SDLP and the Ulster Unionists. The case for the TUV endures partly because voters view some DUP proposals as still tied to the controversial Irish Sea border.

There has been a recent uptick in attacks on Sinn Féin since assembly members returned after the summer break, and observers expect more of that pressure at the weekend conference. Naomi Long, leader of the Alliance Party, has argued that the DUP’s assembly campaign for 2027 has begun, while the Ulster Unionists have warned that parties should not try to out-TUV the TUV. The evolving dynamic within Northern Ireland’s unionist bloc underscores how post-devolution politics continue to test cross-party cooperation as elections approach.

Beyond the rhetoric, the conference highlights how the DUP seeks to navigate a landscape in which power-sharing remains in place but internal unity within unionism is fragile, and where smaller rivals are eager to capitalize on any perceived weakness. The next steps for the party will likely center on balancing a commitment to devolved governance with the need to shore up support among voters who have grown wary of intra-unionist divisions.