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Updated at 2.45pm
AS A NEW phase of fresh talks to get the Northern Ireland Executive up and running was launched today, Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Coveney warned that the current situation “cannot be sustained for much longer”.
New Northern Ireland Secretary Karen Bradley joined Coveney to announce the next stage in negotiations, which are aimed at restoring the devolved government at Stormont.
It’s been one year since the power-sharing administration collapsed in Northern Ireland, with a political stalemate setting in between Sinn Féin and the DUP.
This next stage in the negotiations is being dubbed as “one last opportunity” to reach an agreement, with one source stating there is little over a month to strike a deal before “other options” are considered.
In a statement this afternoon, Coveney said: “We have been working together since the Assembly election in March 2017 to support discussions between the parties on the formation of a new Executive.
While significant progress has been achieved in these discussions in various formats, the necessary level of agreement between the parties that would allow them to form a new Executive has not yet been reached.
He stressed that Northern Ireland has now been without a functioning government for over a year and said this isn’t a position that can be sustained for much longer.
“We all have a responsibility over the coming weeks to make every possible effort to secure the effective operation of the devolved power-sharing institutions,” Coveney said.
“Karen and I will spare no effort in seeking a return to devolved power-sharing government in Northern Ireland, which is at the heart of the Good Friday Agreement.”
The talks will get under way next Wednesday.
A government source told TheJournal.ie yesterday that “a window exists now and a lot of work has gone in from all parties and the two governments to get it to this stage. We don’t have a lot of time and everyone knows that, but we need to make the most of this as co-guarantors of the Good Friday Agreement”.
A year of difficulties
Talks between the two main political parties in the North have been mired in difficulties over the last year, with deadlines being set by the former Northern Ireland Secretary, James Brokenshire, only for them to be missed.
It’s understood the restoration of power hinges on three issues – the access to marriage equality for LGBT couples, an Irish language act, and a bill of rights.
Sky News reports Bradley as stating that the gaps between the DUP and Sinn Féin “are narrow, but there are still significant differences to overcome”.
She is reported as stating that her conversations so far indicate that it is possible to reach agreement.
And if no agreement is reached?
Before Christmas the Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said in that case there are two options open.
“There first option is another set of elections, which is an option, although it’s hard to see what outcome would raise from that would put us in a better position. The second option is convening the British-Irish Governmental Conference, which would allow the two governments to implement the Good Friday Agreement in the absence of an assembly and executive in Northern Ireland,” he said, adding:
So essentially the Good Friday Agreement provides for matters that are not devolved to be dealt with by the British Irish Governmental Conference and that’s what we will seek.
We won’t be supporting direct rule. We didn’t support direct rule. So the alternative to the Assembly and the Executive being up and running is either a) an election or b) convening the British-Irish Government Conference and that’s what we’ll seek and I should point out that is what the Good Friday Agreement says.
So all we’d be seeking is the implementation of the Good Friday Agreement which as you know is an international agreement between two governments endorsed by referendum in both parts of the island.
Varadkar said he wouldn’t use the term “joint rule”.
I wouldn’t use the term joint rule, because that’s not the term used in the Good Friday Agreement. The Good Friday Agreement speaks of a British-Irish governmental conference which is not joint rule because obviously the legislative powers remain at Westminster but it does involve real and meaningful involvement of the Irish government.
- With reporting by Hayley Halpin
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The Good Friday Agreement turns twenty this year. It is already under attack from Brexit. It’s an embarrassment if republicans and unionists continue to make it look as if there isn’t even any need for its power sharing component. I wish Simon all the best, and hopefully the new British secretary will be able to breathe some fresh life into the process.
@Mick Tobin: how can the new British minister breath new light on this situation. She like May have sold their souls to DUP to cling onto power, and paid a £1.5 Billion bribe to do so.
@Gerry O’Rourke: yes, nearly as good as Leo’s version of democracy where he would nt regard 50% + 1 as being good enough . After nearly a century of being told that the majority in the North want to be British, Leo now wants to change the rules of democracy when it looks likely that Nationalists may soon outvote the Unionists and become ‘the majority’. Suddenly 50% + 1 is no longer good enough to become a majority. I never hear Unionism looking to compromise now that they are only marginally in the majority. As John Hume once said, “Its a United Ireland or nothing”.
@Mick Tobin: the words “fresh” and “life” are not easily conjured up when I think of British Secretaries of State – Owen Patterson, Theresa Villiers, James Brokenshire and now this unknown. Come off it – even using the word “breathe” is stretching it for some of them. But I do admire your optimism. Keep on blaming both sides. Helps avoid addressing the real issue of equality.
@M Bowe: It was promied, but so far has not yet been paid. Theresa May is good at laying down red lines to the EU, time she layed down some red lines to the DUP.
Perhaps some form of joint rule should be introduced and that might just get the DUP to start seeing the reality that the Orange State is on the verge of disappearing. SF came within 1 seat of being on par with the DUP in the last election and that alone should have the DUP realizing that the demographics of NI are changing. IF the DUP stay stuck in the past they will be overtaken without them having a strategy in place to deal with it. In a normal functioning democracy this wouldn’t be a problem but in NI it could lead to chaos and disaster.
The other part of the problem is that there is no clear strategy for Brexit and this more than anything else is going to screw the DUP big time. When NI farmers come knocking on the DUP’s door demanding that they come up with a solution for the EU subsides that will be lost the DUP will have no plan in place. With the possibility of a Labour government in the next UK election, Foster and her cronies could well be left without any friends in Westminster. No more boasting of get £1 billion from London.
If the DUP don’t cop on they may well lose ground and that could severely damage the Peace Process. Entitled Unionists who for generations ruled a sectarian State will not give up their dominance ( or whats’ left of it) easily and the result could well be a slide back into violence. No doubt the deep State and establishment will back them to the hilt while the FFG party sits on the sidelines blaming the republicans for everything while failing their fellow Irish citizens in NI as usual.
@Brian Ward: You could be wrong that DUP have plenty of friends at Westminster, the entire conservative government. You could also be wrong that DUP can go on forever putting two fingers up to SF and nationalists. Ask people in the north what they really think about a united Ireland and I guarantee that a large majority will say they prefer to stay with the UK….money talks my friend.
@Chris Kirk: Indeed money talks and when the full force of Brexit hits it could be money that swings for a united Ireland. The loss of EU subsides, EU market restrictions and structural funding issues will put pressure not only on NI but the rest of the UK also. NI farmers alone get approx £350 million in EU grants and that money will now have to come out of the UK budget as a whole.
When the full cost of supporting a bigoted, homophobic, Jurassic party like the DUP and the Unionist ethic that they represent becomes apparent on the “Mainland” the people of the UK might start to think that they would be better off without a bunch of mad Irish nutters from a totally different island.
Unionists strut the streets of Belfast proclaiming themselves to be “British” except that when they open their mouths in London they are identified as Irish, not British. The sooner they realize that the rest of the UK doesn’t see them as real Brits the better.
@Chris Kirk: The last Poll on the issue showed the opposite, but lets have the real thing. Bring on a border poll.
Like coveneys big strategic new housing accouncements that had so little effect on the housing crisis!
@Adrian: there is no housing crisis in this country. Single mothers living it up in hotels while waiting for the state to build them a nice new three bedroom house is not a housing crisis, its a social welfare crisis.
@oh i dunno: Yea your right there. You don’t know!
This Coveney fella is really starting to grow on me with his handling of Brexit and the north-eastern part of our island.
@Brendan McLaughlin: Wait until election time before telling us who you will vote for.
@Brendan McLaughlin:
lol frapist troll………lmao ha ha
When martin mc guinness decided to pull the plug ,it was obvious unionism had failed in the basic principles of the good friday agreement ,one year on what has changed from that view? ,absolutely nothing ,the dup are in a time warp ,only this time, event s around them are changing quickly ,their narrow minded ,neanderthal attitude is slowly explaining to all decent minded folk they are absolutely not fit for governing .arlene has been a total disaster for the six counties .
@Anthony Gallagher: Indeed it was obvious that the two parties were drifting apart months earlier when they could not reach agreement over budgets and how money should be spent, that the UK government cut their budget due to the under spend.. It is also obvious that Arlene Foster has a big chip on her shoulder and wants to rule the roost over her DUP colleagues. The problem comes with her own party now having a fractured agenda since the death of their founder Ian Paisley. Clearly Arlene sees herself representing a border constituency where businesses rely on cross border trade. Other members of her party in Belfast don’t really care about the border and therefore believe that power is centred in around Belfast. I also think that they are perfectly happy to prop up May’s government in the knowledge that they have the prime ministers ear, where SF definately do not share that confidence.
Not a lot of time left they say,they said that for 12 months of 2017.nothing,zilch,happened.but all politicians received full salaries.joke of a country when it comes to politicians and accountability.
@@mdmak33: MLA salaries could be cut by about 30% or £14,000 and may be cut further in steps the longer the impasse goes on. It should have been done months ago and we probably would have a working assembly by now.
@Brian Ward: The DUP are comfortable propping up May’s government, why would they want extra work and not get paid for it.
@Brian Ward: Nothing to do with money, Brian. The nationalist people of the North were way ahead of SF on this one and that Party caught up just in time by pulling the plug on Stormont just before a large section of Northern nationalists pulled the plug on them. They took too much abuse for too long and got nowt from the DUP. The election worked well for them to their great surprise and they are back at the front again — for now or until they go too soft again. Reconciliation needs to work both ways. The DUP want to fight the entire Troubles all over again with every victim, except nationalist ones of course. They don’t count, apparently.
Maybe Simon and his UK colleagues can put a loaf of bread on their heads and do a dance..
There seems to be no warmth or chemistry between Michelle and Arlene….Compared to Martin and Rev Ian….
@Hurt Stoogie: Like three witches (Macbeth) dancing around a cauldron, and three suns in the sky above.
@John003: Arlene?? It would be like cuddling up to an iceberg.
The usual tripe from the IRA/SF brigade.
@Adam Reid: great word tripe!!! Can I say it again….tripe. Great.
direct rule is best for that part of the UK
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