FiFi G Meets Claire Sugden MLA

In this first FiFi G Meets… interview, we follow her unexpected path through art lessons, history tutorials and a 90-minute commute to discover how empathy and authenticity have become her trademark.

Claire Sugden’s journey from sketching in her school notebook to sparking debates in Stormont is anything but conventional.

As an independent MLA, devoted mum and passionate advocate for her North Coast community, she refuses to be boxed in, whether that means challenging age-discrimination laws, reshaping school uniform rules or holding government ministers to account. 

Claire’s earliest dreams were not of chambers or constitutions but of paintbrushes and pretend lessons. “I used to role-play being a teacher a lot,” she laughs, “and art was my thing.” By her GCSEs she had grown wary of turning creativity into a chore. “I wanted art to stay fun, not feel like work.” Fashion design felt too far-fetched, portrait painting too limiting, and A-level art left her craving a different challenge. Law was her first choice at university, but when offers from Queen’s did not come through she plunged into Clearing and landed on a politics degree instead. “I didn’t envisage myself in politics,” she admits, “but history lessons on the Troubles felt so familiar—that pulled me in. And here we are.”

At Queen’s, and later in her master’s in Irish politics, Claire explored Northern Ireland’s governmental architecture; understanding exactly how the Assembly and Executive wield real power to improve public services. 

She is quick to outline the divisions: “I know the difference between government ministers, MLAs, civil servants, even the judiciary. My job is to hold them all to account.” But it is her insistence on empathy that truly defines her style. “I strive to see where people are coming from, even if I don’t agree with their rationale.”

You won’t hear Claire lament “mum guilt”—despite 90-minute commutes and toddler routines that start at dawn. “First thing each morning I see my little one, then it is straight through until the next day,” she explains.

As an independent she sets her own rules: “If I need a day at home, I take it. At weekends I don’t touch social media.” Her husband is her rock, privy to late-night phone calls and behind-the-scenes stress. 

“He sees the nonsense headlines and knows I’m not in it for power or money; it’s about helping people.”

“I intended to breastfeed,” Claire says quietly, “but Indy arrived early and tiny. I bottle-fed to get her weight up and expressed alongside. It was exhausting.

I was lucky to grab an hour’s sleep at a stretch.” She stresses that accepting the outcome,“that it was OK”; was just as important as the effort itself. 

When she does get downtime, Claire transforms into the ultimate home comforts: slow Saturday mornings in her pyjamas, re-watching Gossip Girl, endless TikTok scrolling, then flipping through home-interior magazines.

“Half-day cleaning sessions are surprisingly therapeutic,” she grins. Representing East Londonderry means championing the place she calls home.

Castlerock was Claire’s childhood playground, and today she is raising Indy in the same seaside village they bought nearly ten years ago. Married at Mussenden Temple—“the views of the Atlantic still take my breath away”; Claire and her husband still hold this special place in their hearts.

This summer The Open comes back to Royal Portrush, she is equally thrilled to showcase sand dunes and sea stacks as the world’s best players tee off.

Co-opted eleven years ago to fill her predecessor’s seat, Claire quickly discovered her constituency’s largest demographic is older people.

She founded the All-Party Group on Ageing, marking its ten-year anniversary this spring, and is now steering a Private Member’s Bill on age discrimination, Northern Ireland remains the only UK region without it. 

From her 2022 manifesto promise to this legislative push, she is determined to see it through. She also spearheaded the amendment allowing girls to wear trousers to school, born from a primary-school child’s concern about upskirting, and says public feedback has become “overwhelmingly supportive.”

In a political arena often derailed by culture wars, UUP splits here, DUP grandstanding there; Claire’s independence lets her focus on constituent needs. She is calling for more “independent feminist” or “independent woman” voices to break free from Unionist/Nationalist pigeonholes. 

If this mandate delivers her age-discrimination Bill and a handful of meaningful amendments, she will count it a victory. “Re-election would be lovely,” she smiles, “but real, substantive change is what I’m here for.”

I asked her the final question every person in Northern Ireland gets asked: “Have you seen Game of Thrones?” She laughed. “I haven’t. I’ve been to a lot of the set because it was in my constituency, but to be honest I’m more of an Outlander fan.”

From beach walks to Stormont speeches and championing older people, Claire Sugden shows how empathy, authenticity and refusal to be boxed in can reshape politics—from Castlerock all the way to the Assembly chamber. 

Here’s to more independent voices, bold reforms and many more FiFi G Meets… conversations to come.

Love

FiFi G x