Michelle O’Neill says there is no threat to Northern Ireland power sharing after Jeffrey Donaldson’s resignation
There is no threat to Northern Ireland’s power-sharing agreement after the leader of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) resigned over allegations of historical sexual offences, First Minister Michelle O’Neill has said.
Sir Jeffrey Donaldson stepped down on Friday. It is understood he will be “strenuously contesting” all charges against him.
Sinn Fein vice president Ms O’Neill told Sky News she has approached the leaders of the three other parties in the ministerial executive in Belfast to ensure “cohesion” amid the political fallout.
Sir Jeffrey Donaldson. Pic: PA
The deal that restored power sharing earlier this year hinged on the backing of Donaldson.
“I think everybody was shocked,” Ms O’Neill said of Friday’s developments.
“[It’s] a very challenging time, not least for those people that have come forward to the police.”
She added: “I’ve spoken to the new interim leader of the DUP, Gavin Robinson. I’ve also spoken to my executive colleagues, the political leaders around the executive table, just in terms of the work that we have to do, that we need to prioritise cohesion and leadership through these times.”
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Who is Sir Jeffrey Donaldson?
What is power sharing and why is the system used?
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‘It’s been a devastating revelation,’ Gavin Robinson says
No threat to power sharing
Ms O’Neill said all the party leaders shared the view there is no threat to the power-sharing institutions.
“The public here rightly deserve our newly formed executive to continue to deliver for them for now and into the future,” she said.
“My priority is to make that power sharing work, my priority is to work with the other political leaders around the executive table.
“That was why I thought it was important yesterday to reach out to each of the political leaders to talk about the need for cohesion, to talk about the need for leadership and to talk about the delivery that we now need to get on with in terms of the executive itself.”
She added she intended to “provide leadership” and to make sure the power-sharing government got results on the “day-to-day matters that people want us to be prioritising”.
“The public rightly expect their political leaders to deliver for them. That’s where I’m going to be focused,” she said.
Emma Little-Pengelly, Northern Ireland’s deputy first minister. Pic: PA
‘Victims must have opportunity for justice’
It came after Northern Ireland’s deputy first minister Emma Little-Pengelly said she was “shocked and devastated” by the news of the charges against Donaldson.
She added: “Victims must always have the best opportunity for justice. This must be fully respected and supported.
“My thoughts are with those suffering who have put their faith in the criminal justice system.
“Protecting the integrity of that process necessitates significant restrictions on what can be said. I have faith in our justice system.”
Ms Little-Pengelly went on to say that she was “determined” to work with the interim party leader Mr Robinson to “provide stability” and continue “tackling the big issues faced by Northern Ireland”.
Donaldson due in court in April
Donaldson has led the DUP since 2021 and has been the MP for Lagan Valley since 1997.
The 61-year-old will appear in court in Newry, Co Down, on 24 April.
A 57-year-old woman has been charged with aiding and abetting offences in relation to the same police investigation.
He has been suspended by the party but it is understood he remains an MP.
Satoshi Nakamoto, the pseudonymous creator of Bitcoin, marks their 50th birthday amid a year of rising institutional and geopolitical adoption of the world’s first cryptocurrency.
The identity of Nakamoto remains one of the biggest mysteries in crypto, with speculation ranging from cryptographers like Adam Back and Nick Szabo to broader theories involving government intelligence agencies.
While Nakamoto’s identity remains anonymous, the Bitcoin (BTC) creator is believed to have turned 50 on April 5 based on details shared in the past.
According to archived data from his P2P Foundation profile, Nakamoto once claimed to be a 37-year-old man living in Japan and listed his birthdate as April 5, 1975.
Source: Web.archive.org
Nakamoto’s anonymity has played a vital role in maintaining the decentralized nature of the Bitcoin network, which has no central authority or leadership.
The Bitcoin wallet associated with Nakamoto, which holds over 1 million BTC, has laid dormant for more than 16 years despite BTC rising from $0 to an all-time high above $109,000 in January.
Satoshi Nakamoto statue in Lugano, Switzerland. Source: Cointelegraph
Nakamoto’s 50th birthday comes nearly a month after US President Donald Trump signed an executive order creating a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and a Digital Asset Stockpile, marking the first major step toward integrating Bitcoin into the US financial system.
Related: Bitcoin at 16: From experiment to trillion-dollar asset
Nakamoto’s legacy: a “cornerstone of economic sovereignty”
“At 50, Nakamoto’s legacy is no longer just code; it’s a cornerstone of economic sovereignty,” according to Anndy Lian, author and intergovernmental blockchain expert.
“Bitcoin’s reserve status signals trust in its scarcity and resilience,” Lian told Cointelegraph, adding:
“What’s fascinating is the timing. Fifty feels symbolic — half a century of life, mirrored by Bitcoin’s journey from a white paper to a trillion-dollar asset. Nakamoto’s vision of trustless, peer-to-peer money has outgrown its cypherpunk roots, entering the halls of power.”
However, lingering questions about Nakamoto remain unanswered, including whether they still hold the keys to their wallet, which is “a fortune now tied to US policy,” Lian said.
Related: Bitcoin’s next catalyst: End of $36T US debt ceiling suspension
Is Satoshi Nakamoto wealthier than Bill Gates?
In February, Arkham Intelligence published findings that attribute 1.096 million BTC — then valued at more than $108 billion — to Nakamoto. That would place him above Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates on the global wealth rankings, according to data shared by Coinbase director Conor Grogan.
Satoshi’s new addresses. Source: Conor Grogan
If accurate, this would make Nakamoto the world’s 16th richest person.
Despite the growing interest in Nakamoto’s identity and holdings, his early decision to remain anonymous and inactive has helped preserve Bitcoin’s decentralized ethos — a principle that continues to define the cryptocurrency to this day.
Magazine: 10 crypto theories that missed as badly as ‘Peter Todd is Satoshi’
The United States stock market lost more in value over the April 4 trading day than the entire cryptocurrency market is worth, as fears over US President Donald Trump’s tariffs continue to ramp up.
On April 4, the US stock market lost $3.25 trillion — around $570 billion more than the entire crypto market’s $2.68 trillion valuation at the time of publication.
Nasdaq 100 is now “in a bear market”
Among the Magnificent-7 stocks, Tesla (TSLA) led the losses on the day with a 10.42% drop, followed by Nvidia (NVDA) down 7.36% and Apple (AAPL) falling 7.29%, according to TradingView data.
The significant decline across the board signals that the Nasdaq 100 is now “in a bear market” after falling 6% across the trading day, trading resource account The Kobeissi Letter said in an April 4 X post. This is the largest daily decline since March 16, 2020.
“US stocks have now erased a massive -$11 TRILLION since February 19 with recession odds ABOVE 60%,” it added. The Kobessi Letter said Trump’s April 2 tariff announcement was “historic” and if the tariffs continue, a recession will be “impossible to avoid.”
Source: Anthony Scaramucci
On April 2, Trump signed an executive order establishing reciprocal tariffs on trading partners and a 10% baseline tariff on all imports from all countries.
Trump said the reciprocal tariffs will be roughly half the rate US trading partners impose on American goods.
Related: Bitcoin bulls defend $80K support as ‘World War 3 of trade wars’ crushes US stocks
Meanwhile, the crypto industry has pointed out that while the stock market continues to decline, Bitcoin (BTC) remains stronger than most expected.
Crypto trader Plan Markus pointed out in an April 4 X post that while the entire stock market “is tanking,” Bitcoin is holding.
Source: Jeff Dorman
Even some crypto skeptics have pointed out the contrast between Bitcoin’s performance and the US stock market during the recent period of macro uncertainty.
Stock market commentator Dividend Hero told his 203,200 X followers that he has “hated on Bitcoin in the past, but seeing it not tank while the stock market does is very interesting to me.”
Meanwhile, technical trader Urkel said Bitcoin “doesn’t appear to care one bit about tariff wars and markets tanking.” Bitcoin is trading at $83,749 at the time of publication, down 0.16% over the past seven days, according to CoinMarketCap data.
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