Sinn Féin MLA Philip McGuigan launched a scathing attack on the Ulster Unionist Party on Tuesday, accusing its leader Jon Burrows of displaying a 'deeply arrogant, superior, supremacist attitude' over comments about nationalist votes.

Mr McGuigan told the Assembly that Mr Burrows, who has yet to win an election, said he found the fact that Sinn Féin gets so many votes in the North 'deeply uncomfortable'. The North Antrim MLA linked the remark to historical discrimination under UUP governments, citing the Special Powers Act, gerrymandering in Derry, and the B-Specials.

'For over 50 years after partition, his party governed an Orange state in which Catholic families faced discrimination in housing, Catholics and nationalists faced discrimination in employment and electoral boundaries were designed and drawn to maintain unionist control,' Mr McGuigan said.

He added: 'We will take no lectures from Jon Burrows on democracy.'

The comments came during Members' Statements, a period when MLAs raise issues of concern without a formal debate. Mr McGuigan's speech drew no immediate response from the UUP in the chamber, but it underscored ongoing tensions between the two parties over legacy issues and electoral politics.

Mr Burrows became UUP leader in September 2026, succeeding Doug Beattie. He has faced criticism from Sinn Féin and others over his party's positioning on legacy and identity issues.

Mr McGuigan also referenced the ongoing dispute over a controversial Orange Order parade on the Garvaghy Road in Portadown, which has seen tensions in recent weeks. He accused the DUP and Orange Order of trying to 'turn the clock back 28 years' to a time of 'triumphalist and sectarian' marches.

The Assembly session began with two minutes of silence, observed by members, before moving to Members' Statements.

No other substantive business was conducted on Tuesday, as the Assembly sat only for statements and then adjourned. The next full sitting is expected to debate a range of committee business and legislation.