Sinn Féin is holding its party ard fheis (annual conference) in Athlone.
Party leader Mary Lou McDonald has given a keynote speech.
She has addressed housing, healthcare, climate change and the bombardment of Gaza
The party won the most seats in the 2022 NI Assembly election and is in opposition in the Irish parliament.
Thank you for following our live coverage of Sinn Féin party leader Mary Lou McDonald's speech at the party's ard fheis (conference) in Athlone.
For more from our newsdesk in Belfast and our reporters on the ground, read this story and keep an eye on our Sinn Féin topic page.
Image source, Sinn FeinKey points in Mary Lou McDonald's speech:
Enda McClafferty
Â鶹¹ÙÍøÊ×Ò³Èë¿Ú News NI political editor
It was the perfect location for Mary Lou McDonald to fire the starter gun on her party’s election campaign: Standing in the middle of a race track in a synthetic velodrome flanked by her top team.
She made a pitch to voters promising big change, prioritising housing, health and the cost of living crisis.
On the Stormont standoff her message to the government was blunt: Call time on the endless talks with the DUP.
But if the government doesn’t act then there is little Sinn Féin can do.
The stand-out moment came when the Sinn Fein president called for the Israeli ambassador to be sent home.
It was a moment of release for delegates clearly frustrated by the party’s muddled message.
The next time we see Mary Lou McDonald on an ard fheis stage she could be taoiseach standing alongside Michelle O’ Neill as first minister.
But that is likely to depend on the party finding political partners in Dublin and Belfast.
And that's a process that will only start when the finishing line has been crossed.
Sinn Féin says her party would lead a 'government for change'
Mary Lou McDonald says Sinn Féin is "on our marks" for the several elections in the next 18 months.
She says: "There is a clear choice. Between the jaded politics of Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael or a government for change led by Sinn Féin. Between devastating Tory austerity or a future of real progress, building public services and prosperity together."
Talking about Stormont she says the DUP "must end its boycott of government.
"The British government must stop endlessly indulging this boycott".
And ahead of the potential election in the Republic she says: "Our ambition is to lead government in the south. A new government without Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil for the first time in a hundred years. Just imagine that."
Ms McDonald says that to build a new Ireland, government must plan for democratic constitutional change.
She calls for a citizens' assembly on north-south unity, saying: "The day is coming when everyone on this island will have their say in referendums."
"Each vote counting equally, no vetoes and no shifting of the goal posts," she continues.
"Momentum is building, the conversation is live, history is happening now. Irish unity is the very best opportunity for the future."
Image source, Sinn FéinPalestinian ambassador to Ireland Dr Jilan Abdalmajid also addressed the ard fheis
Mary Lou McDonald calls on the Irish government to send the Israeli ambassador home.
She says there needs to be an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and calls Gaza "a graveyard of children". She says Israeli actions are "barbaric, hateful, cowardly".
She says: "This is a moment of reckoning for world leaders, for the European Union, a test of commitment to human rights, peace, democracy. We ask, where is the protection of international law for every child killed in Gaza?"
"Israel must stop its slaughter in Gaza. Hamas must release all hostages. Ceasefires must be called.
"Only a peace process, dialogue, international law can deliver peace and Palestinian freedom."
Mary Lou McDonald says the climate crisis is real, the clock is ticking and the damage caused by recent flooding across Ireland shows the impact of climate change.
She talks about the ecological catastrophe on Lough Neagh, saying that it "urgently requires a response based on public ownership".
She says a government is needed with "the drive to achieve energy independence" and calls for "off-shore wind, solar, and green hydrogen which will spearhead Ireland’s energy revolution".
She calls for "pace and scale, a planning system that’s fit for purpose, and strategic investment in our infrastructure".
The Sinn Féin President says the "government has thrown in the towel on health".
She tells delegates the Irish government "left a €1.3bn hole in the health budget" last month (£1.1bn, $1.4bn).
"And now, while the system creaks, a stop has been put to the recruitment of vital staff," she continues.
"We have a plan to deliver the right care, in the right place, at the right time. To cut the cost of healthcare. To invest in more beds, more frontline staff, to increase capacity in diagnostics and surgical theatre space, so that no child is left to wait and wait in agony for the spinal procedure that could change their life."
Ms McDonald says housing is Sinn Féin's "number one priority".
Under the current government, she says, "home ownership has collapsed for an entire generation".
"We need a new government to bring energy, pace, and the plan to fix housing."
A Sinn Fein government, she says, would "build genuinely affordable homes, build enough of them, get the targets right, increase capital expenditure. Cut rents, giving a month’s rent back to every renter, and ban rent increases for three years."
More than a thousand party members are at the ard fheis in Athlone
Ms McDonald says her party wants to "build a new Ireland".
"A nation home for all. A unified nation of confidence and compassion, talent and ingenuity, claiming our future, our rightful place among the nations of the world.
A new Ireland. The Orange and Green reconciled. No place for racism, Islamophobia, antisemitism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, or sectarianism. Where there is no them, only us."
You can watch Mary Lou McDonald’s conference speech by hitting the play icon at the top of this page.
Image source, PAMary Lou McDonald is seen here with the party's deputy leader, Michelle O'Neill, in Belfast
The stalemate at Stormont is likely to be one of the key topics addressed in Ms McDonald’s speech.
The executive has not met since February 2022 and there is no functioning legislative assembly because of the Democratic Unionist Party’s (DUP) protest against post-Brexit trading rules.
The DUP is in talks with the government about resolving this, however, there is no indication of an imminent return to Stormont.
After the results of last year’s assembly election, Sinn Féin’s Michelle O’Neill would be entitled to the role of first minister.
Many people are struggling in Northern Ireland with inflation and the cost of living, while there has also been a crisis in policing in recent months. These subjects could also feature.
Image source, PA MediaMs McDonald has led Sinn Féin for five years
Born on the southside of Dublin, the TD for Dublin Central took up the position of Sinn Féin president in 2018, succeeding Gerry Adams.
She led the party in the 2020 general election in the Republic of Ireland when it increased its vote significantly, returning the highest number of first preferences.
The party entered opposition after Fianna Fáil, a party Ms McDonald initially joined at the start of her political career, formed a coalition government with Fine Gael and the Green Party.
Good evening and welcome to our live coverage of Sinn Féin President Mary-Lou McDonald’s address to her party’s ard fheis (annual conference).
You will be able to watch her speech in Athlone live by pressing play at the top of this page. It will also be available via catch-up afterwards.