Sinn Féin and the Democratic Unionist Party from Maastricht to Brexit. An analysis of the factors which influence political parties positions on Europ

In the wake of the Brexit referendum result, there is a need to analyse why Northern Ireland's
political parties behave the way they do with regards to European integration. In the case of
two parties, Sinn Féin and the Democratic Unionist Party (the DUP), the European
integration question has become a defining and divisive issue. As I will discuss below, these
parties present irregular positions on Europe compared to their contemporary governing
parties abroad and have also struggled to offer a consistent position to their electorate.
This thesis will offer an in-depth examination of the factors which have contributed to both
parties relationship with European integration. This will be done through an analysis which
looks at elements such as the role of party competition, the role of party membership, and the
role of the press. It will contribute to our understanding of both of the parties internally and
their enormous impact on Northern Irish, Irish, and British public discourse. It will also
contribute to our understanding of how political parties come to form positions on key issues,
in particular in relation to European integration.