UUP launches independent safeguarding review into Jeffrey Donaldson

The probe will cover the period of his 21-year membership of the party

The Ulster Unionist Party has launched an independent safeguarding review into Jeffrey Donaldson, covering the period of his 21-year membership of the party from 1982 to his resignation in December 2003.

The review has been commissioned by UUP leader Jon Burrows MLA and will be led by Anne Marks, an independent, trauma-informed safeguarding consultant with more than thirty years’ frontline experience in trauma and victim-survivor support. Anne Marks will be supported by an advisory group of independent victim advocates.

The UUP said the review will provide a “confidential, independent, and trauma-informed channel” for anyone with relevant information to come forward. This includes members of the public, former and current Ulster Unionist Party members, staff, constituency workers, elected representatives, volunteers, witnesses and confidants.

The party said it is “deliberately broad in scope”, and while Donaldson was convicted of offences against children, the probe will receive information concerning alleged sexual misconduct, harassment, coercive or controlling behaviour, bullying, misogyny, intimidation, exploitation, abuse of status or authority, retaliation, and other boundary violations involving adults.

Donaldson, 63, was convicted at Newry Crown Court earlier this year of 18 sex offences, including one count of rape, relating to the abuse of two women when they were children. The offences were committed between 1985 and 2008.

Where the law requires disclosure, the Independent Safeguarding Professional will refer information directly to the Police Service of Northern Ireland, without recourse to the Ulster Unionist Party.

The review will examine, among other matters, any concerns reported to the party during the 1982 to 2003 period, the response those concerns received, the extent to which Donaldson’s status and power affected that response, and what the party can learn to strengthen its safeguarding practice, standards and culture. Concerns raised about behaviour post-2003 will, with consent, be shared with the relevant review or body.

The UUP said the review has been shaped by consultation with a number of victims’ groups, whose expertise in supporting survivors of abuse has informed the process at every stage. This has included Men’s Advisory Project, Nexus NI, NI Survivor Council (NISC), Victim Support NI and Women’s Aid.

At the conclusion of the Review, the Independent Safeguarding Professional will author a report setting out her findings and recommendations. The Ulster Unionist Party said they have committed to publishing the report as far as is legally possible.

Ulster Unionist Party Leader Jon Burrows MLA said: “The conviction of Jeffrey Donaldson exposed one of the most serious breaches of trust in public life in Northern Ireland. My first thoughts, today as ever, are with the two women whose courage brought his crimes into the light.

“Jeffrey Donaldson was a member of the Ulster Unionist Party for 21 years, from 1982 to 2003. That fact carries an obligation. We owe it to the victims, and we owe it to the public, to establish honestly and independently whether there is anything the party should have known, should have acted upon or should have done differently during those years.

“That is what this Review is for. It is independent. It is led by one of the most experienced safeguarding professionals in Northern Ireland. It is confidential for anyone who comes forward, and it has a direct referral pathway to the police where the law requires. Whatever it finds, this party will act upon its findings.

“I want to say clearly to anyone with information, or with an experience they have carried, sometimes for many years: please come forward. Your voice will be heard, and you will be given all the support necessary.

“This review was designed in consultation with victims’ groups, whose expertise and honesty have shaped it. I am grateful to them, and to those they represent, for the work they have done alongside us to ensure this process can command confidence.

“The Ulster Unionist Party called on the UK Government for a full independent public inquiry into what was known about Jeffrey Donaldson throughout his public career. That inquiry has been declined.

“In its absence, we are determined to ensure that anyone affected by this man during his years in the Ulster Unionist Party has the opportunity to be heard, to have their experience properly examined and to help ensure the full truth is told. That is what this Review is for.”

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