Northern Ireland: Who will replace first minister Arlene Foster?
The Story
The Times
3.9 • 1.6K Ratings
🗓️ 7 May 2021
⏱️ 34 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Northern Ireland's first minister, DUP leader Arlene Foster, has stepped down. Who will take over the top job? And what could it mean for the future of Northern Ireland?
This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today and get one month free at: thetimes.co.uk/storiesofourtimes.
Guests:
- Henry McDonald, contributing writer, The Sunday Times.
- Sam McBride, political editor, Belfast News Letter.
Host: David Aaronovitch.
Clips: BBC, Belfast Telegraph, DUP, Channel 4, Euronews.
This podcast was brought to you thanks to subscribers of The Times and The Sunday Times. To enjoy unlimited digital access to all our journalism subscribe here.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | Last week, a major politician made a shocking announcement, and it shocked me. |
| 0:08.0 | Arlene Foster, leader of Northern Ireland's ruling Democratic Union, |
| 0:12.0 | this party, threw in the towel. |
| 0:14.0 | The Belfast Telegraph reported this afternoon that 21 DUP MLA's |
| 0:20.0 | four MPs and one peer have signed this letter calling for Arlene Foster |
| 0:26.0 | to stand down. |
| 0:27.0 | The party's first ever leadership contest is about to take place, |
| 0:31.0 | a contest that could shape the future of unionism and of Northern Ireland. |
| 0:36.0 | Her departure creates a juncture for the DUP and unionism in general. |
| 0:41.0 | You have to choose which road to go down. |
| 0:44.0 | You're listening to stories of our times and the times and the Sunday times. |
| 0:48.0 | I'm David Aronabitch. |
| 0:49.0 | Today, goodbye Arlene, the state of unionism in Northern Ireland. |
| 0:58.0 | Politics is a rough business and she knows that. |
| 1:02.0 | This is Henry McDonald. |
| 1:04.0 | I've been a journalist covering the Northern Ireland conflict for about 35 years. |
| 1:09.0 | He's also currently writing for the times and the Sunday times from Belfast. |
| 1:13.0 | Looking at Arlene Foster in the run, she's been throwing off a lot in her life |
| 1:17.0 | and I think that's worth explaining. |
| 1:20.0 | Understand the early life of Arlene Foster and you may understand how we all got to this point. |
| 1:27.0 | So buckle up because we're taking you back in time to her childhood in the bad old 1970s. |
| 1:33.0 | She's someone who grew up in one of the cockpits of the Northern Ireland conflict. |
... |
Please login to see the full transcript.
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from The Times, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.
Generated transcripts are the property of The Times and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.