Claire Hanna confirmed as new SDLP leader

In her first speech as the new leader of the SDLP, Claire Hanna has pledged her commitment to a united Ireland “with reconciliation at its heart”.

A motion to ratify her as leader of the North’s second largest nationalist party was formally endorsed at the SDLP’s annual conference in Belfast on October 5.

The “status quo is limiting us” and a new, united Ireland will “create a fairer, more prosperous society with reconciliation at its heart,” the South Belfast MP told her party’s conference.

She outlined her belief that “New Ireland is a social democratic pathway to a better system”.

A functioning devolved (Six County) government at Stormont, she said, “is important, but that isn’t the limit of this party’s ambition. We’ll do everything we can to make Stormont work, but we refuse to believe that that’s as good as it gets”.

She also expressed her commitment to growing the SDLP without indicating a plan to do so. The party, which organises only in the north of Ireland and takes its seats at the Westminster parliament, has traditionally garnered the support of middle class nationalists and small numbers of disaffected republicans.

In her speech, the new leader emphasised the importance of “the patient, painstaking work of relationships – in this region, North and South, and between Britain and Ireland” because “the journey will truly shape the destination. How we get there, matters”.

While “a new Ireland isn’t a magic wand,” Ms Hanna said, “it takes us closer to a connected, dynamic economy. It takes us back into Europe, to a society that values the arts, to a progressive foreign policy, to a real say in where we’re going”.

“The evolution and change in the Republic of Ireland in the last two decades has been exhilarating to watch. An economic success, a positive force in the world, a genuine cultural superpower. I want that for everyone here,” she said.

“Change can feel daunting but the principle at its heart is simple and exciting – the people of this region, in all our difference and diversity, coming together to build something new.

“We know that a new Ireland means a new Northern Ireland along the way. It means not waiting for a Border poll to start changing people’s lives. It still means tackling the borders in our minds,” she said.

Ms Hanna, who replaces Foyle MP Colum Eastwood, acknowledged the electoral challenges faced by the SDLP, saying it had been “a bit stuck” since the Good Friday Agreement in 1998, and “we haven’t been clear about who we are, and that allowed others to define the narratives about us.

“Nostalgia is great – if you can get your hands on an Oasis ticket – but it’s no political strategy. We’re rightly proud of our yesterdays, but the SDLP is about today, and tomorrow. From today on, we talk about the future,” she said.

Urgent Appeal