Northern Ireland’s devolved government is not expected to be restored by Thursday’s legal deadline after parliament again failed to elect a speaker on Wednesday amid an ongoing boycott by the Democratic Unionist Party.
The DUP was forced to withdraw from the Northern Ireland Assembly in Stormont in February 2022, arguing that post-Brexit trade rules would undermine the region’s place in the broader United Kingdom.
On Wednesday, parliament was recalled for the seventh time to elect a speaker, but the bid failed as none of the candidates received the necessary support, prolonging the stalemate.
The British government had set a deadline of Thursday for the restoration of parliament, which was required by law to hold new elections if it failed.
Northern Ireland Minister Chris Heaton-Harris said it was “disappointing” that a chair was not elected.
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“A return to locally elected, accountable and effective decentralized government is the best way to govern Northern Ireland,” he said.
“However, in the absence of an executive, the Government will move forward with a pragmatic and rational approach to supporting Northern Ireland.”
Heaton-Harris said she would pass a bill to extend Thursday’s deadline rather than hold an election.
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There is growing frustration in the state over political dysfunction and the collapse of public services, which have been hit by central budget cuts from London.
Unionist hardliners who support Northern Ireland’s membership in the UK say there remain problems with trade rules with the EU after Brexit.
They said the changes negotiated by Chancellor Rishi Sunak with Brussels under the so-called “Windsor Framework” adopted in March last year failed to eliminate the de facto border with mainland Britain in the Irish Sea. It is claimed that
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The DUP’s political opponents, including Sinn Féin, the largest pro-Irish nationalist party, are increasing pressure on the party to return to Stormont.
Sinn Féin deputy president Michelle O’Neill warned on Wednesday that the power-sharing institutions set up as part of the peace process that ended decades of sectarian violence were at risk.
“If[DUP leader]Geoffrey Donaldson does not change his approach, this could be the last sitting of this parliament,” she said.
“I am concerned that the democratic institutions of the Good Friday Agreement are disintegrating.”