Having failed to win an overall majority in the UK鈥檚 general election, Theresa May鈥檚 Conservative party is hoping to foster an informal coalition with Northern Ireland鈥檚 Democratic Unionist Party (DUP). Members of the party have taken controversial stances on everything from climate change to evolution, with one assembly member being unaware that heterosexual people can contract HIV. Here are five things you need to know when it comes to science and the DUP
Climate change
The party has a history of speaking out against climate change. Senior member Sammy Wilson has , and described the Paris Agreement as 鈥渨indow dressing for climate chancers鈥�. During his time as Northern Ireland鈥檚 environment minister, he said that people would eventually 鈥渓ook back at this whole climate change debate and ask ourselves how on Earth we were ever conned into spending billions of pounds鈥� on the issue.
It isn鈥檛 just Wilson though 鈥� in 2014, DUP ministers tried to oppose proposals to introduce local measures against climate change in Northern Ireland.
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Abortion
Northern Ireland remains the only part of the UK where women cannot access abortion unless their life is endangered by pregnancy 鈥� a legal situation that is incompatible with the European Convention on Human Rights, according to a Belfast High Court ruling in 2015.
But on taking leadership of the party in 2016, Arlene Foster promised to block any attempt to change these laws, 鈥淚 would not want abortion to be as freely available here as it is in England.鈥�
Foster did, however, say she might consider an amendment in cases of rape. But the DUP鈥檚 Jim Wells 鈥� formerly the health minister for Northern Ireland 鈥� .
Evolution
DUP assembly member Thomas Buchanan has previously . In 2016, he voiced support for an evangelical Christian programme that offers 鈥渉elpful practical advice on how to counter evolutionary teaching鈥�. He has expressed a desire to see every school in Northern Ireland teaching creationism, describing evolution as a 鈥減eddled lie鈥�.
Buchanan told the 鈥淚鈥檓 someone who believes in creationism and that the world was spoken into existence in six days by His power,鈥� adding that children had been 鈥渃orrupted by the teaching of evolution鈥�.
Green energy
The DUP鈥檚 leader narrowly following a disastrous attempt to bolster green energy in Northern Ireland by providing subsidies for wood burners. Arlene Foster introduced the scheme in 2012 when she was head of the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investment. The original budget was 拢25 million, but a lack of price controls meant that, over five years, almost 拢500 million went up in smoke.
HIV
Last year, DUP assembly member Trevor Clarke admitted that he had thought , until a charity explained otherwise. He made the comments during a parliamentary debate around a campaign to 鈥減romote awareness and prevention鈥� of HIV in Northern Ireland and to increase support for those living with HIV.
Read more: How YouGov鈥檚 experimental poll correctly called the UK election
