Former Sinn Féin TD Peadar Tóibín has announced the name of his new political movement: Aontú.

Mr Toibin told The Irish Times “Aontú means unity and consent.” He continued: “We seek the unity of Irish people north and south and to build an Ireland for everyone – Protestant, Catholic and Dissenter in the tradition of the United Irishmen of 1798. We’ll seek to build an all-Ireland economy to mitigate the worst effects of Brexit, economic justice for all and to protect the right to life.”

Mr Tóibín has applied to register the political movement with electoral bodies in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.

Some 1,400 people have signed up to join the new party, while more than 20 local Cumainn have been formed, with six of these in the north of Ireland.

Yesterday, he also welcomed another sitting councillor to his new party. Úna D’Arcy, a Westmeath councillor, relinquished her membership of Sinn Féin one week ago and confirmed yesterday that she was signing up for Mr Toibin’s new party.