President Michael D Higgins, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar and Sinn Féin deputy leader Michelle O’Neill will all attend the coronation of King Charles in Westminster Abbey on May 6th.
President Higgins will be accompanied by his wife Sabina, and they will also attend a reception in Buckingham Palace the previous evening.
Ms O’Neill announced on Wednesday she would be attending the event, which will see King Charles – who acceded to the throne on the death of his mother Queen Elizabeth last year – crowned King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and other Commonwealth realms, including Canada, Australia and New Zealand.
The ceremony will be conducted by the Archbishop of Canterbury in front of about 2,000 invited guests.
Announcing her decision, Ms O’Neill said: “We are living in a time of great change. A time to respect our differing and equally legitimate aspirations, a time to firmly focus on the future and the opportunities that the next decade will bring.
“I am an Irish republican. I also recognise there are many people on our island for whom the coronation is a hugely important occasion.
“I am committed to being a First Minister for all, representing the whole community, building good relations between the people of these islands, and advancing peace and reconciliation through respectful and mature engagement.”
Ms O’Neill would be in line to become Northern Ireland’s First Minister if the current powersharing impasse is resolved and devolution returns in Belfast.
In September, she attended the Queen’s funeral service in London.
The DUP welcomed the announcement, describing it as an “improvement” on previous positions but called for the party to expand its support for expressions of British identity through the rank and file.
“If Sinn Féin truly believes in building a shared future, then they should have no problem in supporting the union flag being raised on all public buildings to mark the coronation,” Brian Kingston, the party’s spokesman on local Government said.
- Additional reporting: PA
