Jim Allister, the chief of the Traditional Unionist Voice party, has pledged to field candidates against the protocol in all constituencies across Northern Ireland. However, he declined to comment on the possibility of this decision leading to a division within the unionist voters in the region.
Just last month, the TUV confirmed an electoral alliance with Reform UK, planning to field mutually agreed candidates in Northern Ireland. This agreement was unveiled during the TUV conference in Co Antrim, with the presence of Richard Tice, the head of Reform.
The TUV is a stern critic of the post-Brexit trading procedures that have resulted in economic barriers to the transit of goods between Britain and Northern Ireland. They have vehemently criticised the decision of the DUP to strike a trade agreement with the UK government, a deal that ended a two-year stalemate of power sharing and saw the return to a devolved government at Stormont.
Allister confirmed his plan to contest the next general election with anti-protocol candidates from either the TUV or Reform in all 18 constituencies. He said it was the “aspiration”. “Although we haven’t announced all 18 candidates, it’s certainly our aim to do that,” he said on the BBC’s Sunday Politics Northern Ireland programme.
Allister also expressed his belief that those who feel disturbed by the controversial Northern Ireland Protocol post-Brexit deserve a say. Fielding anti-protocol candidates could potentially challenge the DUP’s stronghold in seats like Lagan Valley and East Belfast.
“If a larger number of unionists oppose this Donaldson agreement, it won’t survive, and that’s the chance they’ll get. They should be allowed to decide,” asserted Allister. “Democracy allows the people to make the decisions. There might not be much disparity between a protocol executor, regardless of the flag they fly.”
Jeffrey Donaldson, the leader of the DUP, resigned last month faced with sexual offence allegations. Despite this upheaval, the Deputy First Minister of the party, Emma Little-Pengelly, continues to serve in Stormont, following the reinstatement of the power-sharing agreement earlier this year in February after a hiatus of two years.
Mr Allister, when queried about his intentions to run in the upcoming general election, was non-committal, implying that his decision was yet to be made. He shared that there was a particular time and setting for such announcements, which would be revealed in due course.