Attempt to restore Stormont power sharing ends in failure

 The latest bid to restore Northern Ireland’s powersharing institutions has failed.

The attempt to elect an Assembly speaker – a prerequisite of reconstituting the devolved legislature – was always set to fail, due to an ongoing DUP block on the operation of Stormont.

Devolution in Belfast has been in flux since February when the DUP withdrew its first minister from the governing executive in protest at the economic border created in the Irish Sea by Brexit’s Northern Ireland Protocol.

The party has vetoed several attempts to resuscitate the powersharing institutions following May’s Assembly election.

Two prior attempts to choose a speaker, who would have allowed for the election of new executives and the nomination of first and deputy first ministers, have also failed.

Parliament is now considering controversial government legislation that would allow UK ministers to unilaterally revoke the convention on Irish Sea trade that was reached with the EU in 2019.

The DUP has made a connection between the Bill's advancement and its return to Stormont.

Although it had been anticipated that the DUP might take an initial step back into powersharing by allowing the election of a speaker after the Bill passed through the Commons stages last month, the resignation of Boris Johnson and the ensuing uncertainty over the next prime minister's position on the Bill have caused the party to delay that first move.

Before the meeting on Wednesday, DUP leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson insisted that his party would only make a decision once the next prime minister was in office and had made plain his or her intentions on the procedure.

Two MLAs were proposed for the position of speaker during the SDLP-instigated recall of the Assembly on Wednesday: Patsy McGlone of the SDLP and Mike Nesbitt of the UUP.

Both candidates for office were also put forth in the previous two failed attempts to choose a speaker.

Similar to earlier times, the DUP used its veto power to prevent either individual from being nominated by voting against the nominations on Wednesday.

Michelle O'Neill, vice president of Sinn Fein, addressed the DUP during a discussion prior to the voting, calling the party's opposition to powersharing "unforgivable."

All of your activities won't erase the protocol, and the British Government's decision to pass legislation denouncing the convention won't erase the rule of law on a global scale, she argued.

"The reckless strategy adopted by the DUP and the Tories in London is all about them and them alone, their own self-serving interests, and to hell with the common people, to hell with the people who are actually struggling to put a roof over their heads, to keep a roof over their heads, to actually heat their homes, and the pressures which they're facing in their everyday lives.

However, you don't seem to care, and I would advise you to care.

Brian Kingston, a DUP lawmaker, criticised the Assembly recall as "stunt politics."

He claimed that "these actions are not a sincere endeavour by the parties opposite to restore the political institutions, rather they indicate a deliberate contempt for the opinions of unionists and the notion of powersharing itself in Northern Ireland."

According to Mr. Kingston, the protocol had "really fractured our politics."

He stated, "That breach will continue to widen unless it is addressed immediately and through solutions that command cross-community consent."

In his opening remarks, newly elected Alliance MLA Patrick Brown urged Stormont change to "put a stop to ransom politics."

He claimed that one party could no longer legitimately prevent the election of an assembly and executive.

"Our capacity to deal with crises like the cost-of-living problem will continue to be constrained until this place can operate in a mature and democratic manner," he said.

He called the situation a "scandal," adding that "the DUP bears complete responsibility for that scandal."

It is "preposterous," according to SDLP MLA Matthew O'Toole, the head of the official opposition at Stormont, that the DUP is waiting for the outcome of the Conservative leadership race.

Since our last meeting, the cost of living situation has gotten worse, and inflation is now almost double digits. We are aware that estimates suggest that monthly energy expenses for households might reach £500. For many people, "this is unprecedented in their lifetimes."he said. 

"Are the DUP really claiming that there is no need for a government and that hundreds of millions of pounds can remain unapplied at Stormont while people without support as the cost-of-living crisis bites?

"I find that to be absolutely inexcusable,"

Jim Allister, the leader of TUV, claimed that there was a simple explanation for why the recall was merely a "stunt sitting."

The protocol, he continued, is the "very simple reason."

The protocol was incompatible with Northern Ireland's constitutional status as a "integral part of the United Kingdom," according to him, and too many MLAs did not want to face this "truth."

No UUP MLAs participated in the discussion other than recommending their colleague Mr. Nesbitt as a potential speaker.

Prior to the meeting, Mr. Nesbitt stated that he didn't think the recall would accomplish anything as long as there were still unresolved issues with the process.

It won't move in any direction. Everyone is aware that it will not succeed. So, we ponder the purpose of this," he remarked.

"I think that party leaders meeting quietly, privately, and attempting to address the disagreements would be preferable to a spectacle, a public show in that chamber."

     The Lord Edward Carson Statue in the grounds of Stormont in Belfast. Picture by Niall Carson/PA Wire