{"podcast":{"title":"Stormont Sources","slug":"stormont-sources-7219509","podcast_index_feed_id":7219509,"rss_url":"https://feeds.acast.com/public/shows/67a0e00da78c5e076777bb77","website_url":"https://stormontsources.com","image_url":"https://assets.pippa.io/shows/67a0e00da78c5e076777bb77/1770832650513-b2585af7-4b85-4d15-929d-fd3d5f5db9f2.jpeg","author":"Shortbread Media","episode_count":83,"summary":"Welcome inside politics in Northern Ireland. Listen to the podcast which brings you analysis, insight and experience from Stormont. Join journalist, David McCann, plus Tim Cairns, a former Special Advisor to Peter Robinson and Head of Policy for the DUP and Micheal McKernan, a former Special Advisor in the SDLP worked in the Executive from 2007-2016. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.","last_synced_at":"2026-07-24T04:21:38.973444+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/stormont-sources-7219509"},"episode":{"title":"DUP's Deborah Erskine: Maternity Leave, Late Nights, and Stormont Reality","slug":"dup-s-deborah-erskine-maternity-leave-late-nights-and-stormont-reality","published_at":"2026-04-09T17:45:09+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/stormont-sources-7219509/dup-s-deborah-erskine-maternity-leave-late-nights-and-stormont-reality","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/stormont-sources-7219509","url":"https://shows.acast.com/stormont-sources/episodes/dups-deborah-erskine-maternity-leave-late-nights-and-stormon","audio_url":"https://sphinx.acast.com/p/open/s/67a0e00da78c5e076777bb77/e/69d7b9d93ae78d6f119d4a46/media.mp3","summary":"In this episode of Stormont Sources, David McCann, Tim Cairns, and Michael McKiernan break down the latest \"Ireland Thinks\" poll from the Sunday Independent. Irish Unity failed to make it near the top list of concerns for voters in the Republic. Does this signal a cooling of the \"inevitability\" narrative, or is it just the reality of the cost-of-living crisis? Later we are joined by the DUP’s Deborah Erskine MLA. Having recently returned from maternity leave, Deborah shares a refreshingly honest look at the \"mad, crazy job\" of being an MLA while caring for a newborn with medical challenges. We discuss whether Stormont is truly family-friendly, the \"unfiltered\" tone of the chamber, and her outlook for the next Assembly election in Fermanagh and South Tyrone. In this episode: Why housing and immigration are trumping the border question in the South. Is the opposition’s flagship policy failing to cut through? Deborah Erskine on the \"chamber substitute\" system and the lack of childcare. 📩 Get in touch: hello@stormontsources.com 📞 WhatsApp: 0333 404 6507 (start your message with “Stormont”) Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.","meta_description":"In this episode of Stormont Sources, David McCann, Tim Cairns, and Michael McKiernan break down the latest \"Ireland Thinks\" poll from the Sunday Independe…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":3325,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/stormont-sources-7219509/episodes/dup-s-deborah-erskine-maternity-leave-late-nights-and-stormont-reality/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/stormont-sources-7219509/dup-s-deborah-erskine-maternity-leave-late-nights-and-stormont-reality.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}