THE DUP HAS announced that it has commissioned a “specialised and detailed independent review” into its former leader Jeffrey Donaldson after he was convicted of 18 sexual offences.
Donaldson was this week found guilty at Newry Crown Court of 18 historical sexual offences, including one count of rape, against two women when they were children.
In a statement this evening, the DUP said it “acted swiftly” when Donaldson was first charged in March 2024.
“As a party, we believe in the rule of law and that criminal proceedings must take their full course.
“Justice has been served with the guilty verdicts against him.”
The statement then adds that current leader Gavin Robinson and deputy leader Michelle McIlveen are “deeply concerned by allegations that have surfaced in recent days relating to inappropriate behaviour on behalf of Jeffrey Donaldson, and the indication that some may have had knowledge of inappropriate behaviour but which was never reported to the party officers”.
Statement below 👇 pic.twitter.com/bFGgBhN9NC
— DUP (@duponline) June 26, 2026
The party leadership today started the process of “commissioning a specialised and detailed independent review into a number of issues arising following the conviction of Donaldson”.
The statement added that “further details will be announced shortly”.
Media reports this week have raised questions about how much was known within the DUP about Donaldson’s wider conduct in the period prior to his 2024 arrest over sex abuse allegations.
Questions have also been raised around whether there was an awareness that he was allegedly engaged in behaviour in his private life that, although legal, was very much at odds with positions he adopted publicly.
BBC Spotlight has reported that some senior DUP figures were aware of another woman, who was not involved in the recent court case, who had previously raised concerns about Donaldson’s behaviour but had not wished to make a formal complaint.
Spotlight has also reported that two senior PSNI officers observed Donaldson entering a sauna in London that marketed itself as a meeting place for gay men in 2006 – despite the politician referring to homosexuality as “sinful” in the same year.
-With additional reporting from Press Association