Jeffrey Donaldson steps down as UK's DUP leader

LONDON - Jeffrey Donaldson is stepping down as leader of Britain's Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) with immediate effect, the party said on Friday.

"The Party Chairman has received a letter from Sir Jeffrey Donaldson MP confirming that he has been charged with allegations of a historical nature and indicating that he is stepping down as Leader of the Democratic Unionist Party with immediate effect," the DUP said in a statement,

"In accordance with the Party Rules, the Party Officers have suspended Mr. Donaldson from membership, pending the outcome of a judicial process," said the statement.

According to the statement, Gavin Robinson has been appointed as the interim party leader.

Donaldson, who has been an MP (Member of Parliament) since 1997, has led the DUP since 2021. As the longest-serving MP in Northern Ireland, he recently led his party back into government in Northern Ireland after a two-year boycott of the Stormont institutions.

The DUP had walked out of government, claiming that the Northern Ireland Protocol, the post-Brexit arrangements, had undermined the region's position in Britain.