Robinson scandal

 Robinson scandal shocks the country

Northern Ireland’s First Minister Peter Robinson held a press briefing at his home last Wednesday, journalists from BBC, UTV and the major newspapers were summoned to Mr Robinson’s east Belfast home after rumours had been circulating around Stormont concerning the First Minister’s marriage to Strangford MP Iris Robinson. Rumours began in December 2009 after Mrs Robinson announced that she would stand down as an MP and MLA after the next election, there was also rumours regarding a forthcoming BBC Spotlight special about Iris Robinson. The First Minister’s wife has never been far from controversy, she was suspended from Stormont in 2007 after refusing to withdraw a comment she made, about Health Minister Michael McGimpsey misleading the Assembly over a health budget. But it was Mrs Robinson’s beliefs about homosexuality that caused outrage in Northern Ireland and further afield, speaking on Stephen Nolan’s radio show in June 2008 she described homosexuality as an “abomination”, and she later said that she stood by those remarks. The Robinson family were under scrutiny again earlier this year after the Westminster MPs expenses scandal broke, Iris described the reporting of the story as “A witch hunt”, among the Robinson’s expense claims was £30,000 for food over a four year period and £160,000 in mortgage interest.




Upon arriving at the home of Northern Irelands “First Couple” the journalists received a written statement from Iris Robinson, in the statement Iris revealed that she had attempted suicide and also had a brief affair early last year. With only minutes to digest the two bombshells contained in her statement, the journalists were ushered into the study where a casually dressed Peter Robinson joined them and he then read out a prepared statement, in the statement he talked about his 40 year marriage to Iris and about how he found out about his wife’s affair around midnight on March 1st last year- the night she tried to take her own life, he said “Each single morning since then I have asked for the strength to carry this burden.”

The DUP leader said in his statement that his first impulse was to walk away from his marriage but he went on to say
“Over time and on calmer reflection I set her inappropriate behaviour against 40 years of bringing up our children often alone. Forty years of selflessly giving me the space to pursue my beliefs, of facing public pressure for the stand that I was taking and having to live with the threats and dangers my position visited upon my family.”

Throughout the briefing which was being recorded for TV Mr Robinson looked emotionally-drained and at times he physically struggled to get his words out, he said he loved his wife and had forgiven her for the affair and that she had sought and received God’s forgiveness. He went on to say
“I only ask that if people feel they must judge her; that they find within themselves, as I have done, the gift of doing so with mercy and compassion.
It is heart breaking that all the good work that she has done, for so many people, over so many years, will be overshadowed by what she has outlined today.”

In the statement that Iris Robinson released to the media she spoke about her mental illness and her infidelity and how these led to her attempting to take her own life. One paragraph in her statement had journalists and the general public speculating that more revelations lay ahead –
“Over a year and a half ago I was involved in a relationship. It began completely innocently when I gave support to someone following a family death.
I encouraged friends to assist him by providing financial support for a business venture. Regrettably the relationship later developed into a brief affair.”


There was a lot of sympathy and understanding for Peter Robinson after his emotional interview was broadcast. The DUP and most of the other political parties in Northern Ireland said that the Robinson family should be given time and space to sort out this personal tragedy, and the majority of the public that were interviewed by the media, showed support for Northern Irelands First Minister. Reaction to Iris Robinson was mixed, although a lot of people felt sorry for her, most people were just revelling in the scandal and controversy.

The next evening on Thursday January 7th a BBC Spotlight programme was aired on BBC2 Northern Ireland, the programme said that Iris Robinson obtained £50,000 from two property developers Fred Fraser now deceased, and Ken Campbell and she then gave the money to her teenage lover to help him launch a cafe. Her lover was revealed as Kirk McCambley, now 21, and the joint owner of lock Keeper’s Inn off the Shaw’s Road in south Belfast. Kirk was nineteen when he began an affair with Iris Robinson who was then 59, he had known Iris from his childhood when she had been a frequent customer at his fathers butcher shop in east Belfast. William McCambley (Kirk’s father) died in early 2008 and Iris promised him that she would look after his only son,
“She made sure I was ok” Kirk McCambley told the Spotlight programme
“Obviously anyone who has ever lost a parent knows it’s an incredibly hard time, and she was there to help.”

                                                                                                       Northern Irelands First Minister, his wife and her lover
At the heart of the Spotlight programme was the allegations made by Mrs Robinson’s former adviser Selwyn Black, Dr Black is a lecturer specialising in trauma counselling and he is also a former military chaplain. He started working as a political adviser for Iris in January 2008; he helped her in her role on Stormont’s health committee. Mrs Robinson sent more than 150 text messages to Dr Black which traced the development of her relationship with Kirk McCambley. He resigned in December 2009, the same month that Iris Robinson announced that she was stepping down from political life.

The main allegations made against Mrs Robinson in the programme were
• she broke the law by not declaring a financial interest in organising a £50,000 business deal to help Kirk McCambley to set up his business
• She did not declare an interest in the business despite sitting on the local council that awarded the tender to Kirk McCambley
• She took £5,000 for herself.

The programme also claimed that First Minister Peter Robinson became aware of the situation but did not take steps to alert the appropriate authorities.

Reaction to Peter and Iris Robinson changed overnight as the scandal engrossed Northern Ireland following the Spotlight programme, most of the public’s sympathy and good feeling towards the Robinsons was quickly replaced with judgment, and ridicule. All the political parties quickly called for a full investigation into Mr Robinson’s alleged knowledge of his wife’s wrongdoings. In the following days all major newspapers in Northern Ireland dedicated their first ten pages to the Robinson scandal and all news and current affairs programmes on TV and radio were dominated by the scandal. DUP ministers were abnormally hushed about the allegations made against the leader of their party, the only minister who spoke to the media was the dim-witted Edwin Poots MP who spoke on Good Morning Ulster and compared the scandal to allegations that were made against Gerry Adams’ brother.


By Monday the scandal was in full swing and Peter Robinson’s position was looking more and more unsustainable, the DUP revealed that Iris Robinson was receiving “acute psychiatric treatment” and they said the rumours that she was in a French ski resort were “completely untrue”. Former first minister David Trimble said Peter Robinson can “no longer deliver” as first minister and the other first minister was back in the spotlight when Ian Paisley appeared at Stormont alongside his unionist colleagues in an attempted show of strength from the DUP. On the Nolan show that morning Arlene Foster MLA told Stephen Nolan that the DUP gave their full support to their leader Peter Robinson.

On Monday afternoon following meetings with party colleagues and the Deputy First Minister, Peter Robinson said that he was stepping aside from his role as first minister, he named Arlene Foster as the new temporary first minister of Northern Ireland. Mr Robinson said he was standing aside to devote time to his family he again denied any allegations made against him by saying “I continue to contend that I acted ethically and properly”

Arlene Foster MLA (Northern Ireland's temporary first minister)

He also said he would continue as the head of the DUP and would work on issues regarding the devolvement of policing and justice powers.

Various investigations will now take place into the allegations made against Peter and Iris Robinson, Castlereagh Council have already said that a full investigation will be held regarding the actions of Iris, and I suspect there will be parliamentary and assembly investigations into the action of both of them. Will Peter Robinson return as first minister? How will this sex scandal affect the Christian DUP voters in the forthcoming election? And how will all this affect Northern Irelands shared government? We will just have to wait and see.