Questions raised over £12,000 MoD payment to Jeffrey Donaldson for Cameroon peace consultancy work

North Antrim MP Jim Allister, and inset, former Lagan Valley MP, Jeffrey Donaldson

Questions have been raised over payments totalling almost £12,000 made by the Ministry of Defence to former Lagan Valley MP Jeffrey Donaldson while he was serving as a sitting Member of Parliament.

The issue has been brought into the spotlight by North Antrim MP and TUV leader Jim Allister, who said the payments were made for consultancy work connected to peace efforts in Cameroon at a time when Donaldson was already receiving a parliamentary salary.

According to information released by the Ministry of Defence in response to a parliamentary question tabled by Mr Allister, payments of £6,210.27 and £5,541.27 were authorised in July 2018 and June 2019 respectively.

Together, the payments amounted to £11,751.54.

Ministry of Defence confirms consultancy role

The parliamentary answer confirmed that the payments related to consultancy work advising the UK Government on the Anglophone Crisis in Cameroon and assisting in the development of a peace process plan for the Government of Cameroon.

The Ministry of Defence said Donaldson had been selected for the role because of his previous involvement in peace processes in Northern Ireland and Colombia.

The response was provided by Defence Minister Calvin Bailey following a written parliamentary question submitted by Mr Allister on 29 June 2026.

In his question, the North Antrim MP asked why the Ministry of Defence had authorised payments recorded in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests dated 17 December 2018 and 21 October 2019 to the then Member for Lagan Valley.

Allister questions circumstances surrounding payments

Responding to the answer, Mr Allister questioned whether the consultancy arrangement represented an additional benefit linked to Donaldson’s role as an MP during the period of the DUP’s confidence and supply agreement with Theresa May’s Conservative government.

Mr Allister said:

“The MOD has confirmed to me in a parliamentary answer that Jeffrey Donaldson while serving as a paid Member of Parliament was additionally paid by the Government as a ‘consultant’ for peace advice on the conflict in Cameroon.

“Almost £12,000 was paid to him in 2018/19.

“The answer also references peace work by Donaldson in NI and Columbia.

“I will be asking if he received payment for this as well.

“Was this another way in which Donaldson exploited his paid public role while at the same time making himself ‘useful’ to the government?

“This would appear to have been in the days of the DUP ‘Confidence and Supply Deal’ with the May government.

“Were there any other fringe benefits to this deal?”

Payments recorded in parliamentary interests register

The payments referenced by Mr Allister were declared in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests, the parliamentary system used to record outside earnings and financial interests held by MPs.

The Ministry of Defence response confirms the department itself authorised the payments for consultancy services connected to peace process work overseas.

No suggestion of wrongdoing has been made by the Ministry of Defence in relation to the payments, which were declared publicly through parliamentary procedures at the time.

However, the disclosure is likely to prompt further political scrutiny over the nature of the consultancy arrangement and whether any additional payments were made for related peace advisory work referred to in the government’s response.

Mr Allister has indicated he intends to pursue further questions regarding any payments linked to Donaldson’s involvement in peace initiatives in Northern Ireland and Colombia.