The SDLP and the future of Northern nationalism

They've been steadily losing ground to a resurgent Sinn Féin - and now there are rumours of a merger with Fianna Fáil. So does the SDLP really have a future? Mark Durkan clears the air.

Jason O'Toole, 19 Mar 2008

The SDLP (The Socialist Democratic and Labour Party) was once the powerhouse Nationalist party in Northern Ireland, but its support has dwindled dramatically in recent years.

It’s hard to believe the extent of the reversal the party has suffered – it’s only a decade, after all, since then leader John Hume was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his contribution to the Northern Ireland peace process.

Fianna Fail, meanwhile, have made no secret of their desire to spread their political wings into Northern Ireland. There have been rumours of a merger, but so far the SDLP have been curiously reticent about commenting. In fact, any member of the SDLP I spoke with in recent months would only discuss the proposed merger off the record – until now, that is.

JASON O’TOOLE: Why do you think SDLP lost so many seats to Sinn Fein in the last election?

MARK DURKAN: We always knew that the absence of violence was going to create a more competitive electoral environment. We have seen Sinn Fein – who spent years attacking SDLP policies and justifying violence in opposition to those policies – actually adopting them. We now have Sinn Fein almost as a tribute band to the SDLP. The SDLP hasn’t run out of road or run out of mission – after all, if there wasn’t an SDLP where would Sinn Fein get their policies from in the future? Elections are all about margins and we have to improve our margins.

But the SDLP is underperforming badly. Why?

In the period since the Good Friday agreement, there was some instability in the institutions, because of the way in which the process was being managed by the two Governments. We also had a lot of instability centring on the issue of decommissioning. Sinn Fein and David Trimble’s UUP, as the two parties who were central to that instability, effectively starred in the process outside of the institutions. Sinn Fein were able to give the impression that the process was revolving around them – even though, in reality, they were stopping the process. And that certainly came at an electoral price to the SDLP. Our role became taken for granted.

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