The DUP confirmed it received a donation of around £435,000 during the Brexit campaign from the Constitutional Research Council, a group of pro-union business people chaired by a former vice chairman of the Scottish Conservative Party. The money was spent on pro-Brexit advertising throughout the UK, including an advert in the London-based Metro newspaper. Sinn Féin President Gerry Adams has said the DUP needs to explain the background to the donation.

DUP MP Jim Shannon cried in the House of Commons during a debate, initiated by the DUP, around the investigation and prosecution of former members of the security forces during the Troubles. Mr Shannon said victims want closure and justice, as he referred to the death of his cousin, killed by the IRA, and other UDR members he knew personally.

Taoiseach Enda Kenny called for a provision in the Brexit agreement to be negotiated between the EU and UK to allow for Irish reunification in line with terms of the Good Friday Agreement. With German reunification providing a precedent, he said such this would mean Northern Ireland would avoid a lengthy accession process should it enter the EU. Also this week, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said the EU does not want a hard border between Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic.

Enda Kenny, who previously stated he will not lead Fine Gael into the next Irish general election, told a meeting of the Fine Gael parliamentary party he will deal with his future as Taoiseach and party leader after his official St Patrick’s Day trip to Washington DC. There has been speculation he may step down in early April. The currently reported front-runners to replace Mr Kenny are Minister for Housing Simon Coveney and Minister for Social Protection Leo Varadkar.

The Labour Party lost the Westminster seat of Copeland to the Conservatives, the first by-election to see a governing party pick up a seat since 1982. In another by-election, Stoke-on-Trent Central, the party held off a challenge from UKIP but it was Copeland that made the headlines. Leader Jeremy Corbyn issued a rallying call at the Scottish Labour conference, urging the party to “remain united”, and not to “give up”. The by-election loss, he said, shows “the scale of how hard our task is to persuade people of our message”.