Other News In Brief

Stormont Failure 'Testing The Public's Faith In Politics' – SDLP

The failure to establish the Stormont institutions is testing the public's faith in politics, SDLP 'Leader of the Opposition' Matthew O'Toole has said.

Mr O'Toole was speaking after the Assembly recall on Thursday.

He said the DUP's decision to stop the institutions from functioning was making people in the North consider alternative constitutional arrangements.

South Belfast MLA Mr O'Toole said: "The latest failure to restore the institutions at Stormont today has left us facing an unwanted winter Assembly election that would be a shameful failure and should not be allowed to happen. We cannot be knocking on the doors of people across the North, who are struggling to heat their homes and put food on their table, and asking them to vote, but that's the situation the DUP's boycott has left us in with the likely result achieving nothing more than further polarising society here and increasing cynicism.

"Getting the Assembly and Executive up and running again would not be a panacea for the issues impacting people in our communities, but it's ridiculous to say that local representatives taking decisions on everything from the cost of living emergency to our crumbling health service would not be in the best interests of people here.

"The SDLP has always strived to make these institutions work, we have taken tough decisions and made big gestures because it was in the best interests of people in Northern Ireland. We remain committed to making politics work here, but the fact is that the repeated failure of Stormont to deliver for people here has led to many losing faith and is increasing conversation around future relationships on these islands.

"If the political chaos here continues it is inevitable that people's attentions will turn to building a new North, in a new Ireland, inside Europe. Everyone here deserves more than what they've been getting from their politics and the SDLP will keep working to deliver a social democratic new Ireland that lifts people out of poverty and delivers a better life for everyone on this island."

UUP 'Firmly Rejects' Joint Authority

UUP Leader Doug Beattie has said that his party "firmly rejects" the idea of introducing Joint Authority.

Mr Beattie said: "The Ulster Unionist Party has already very firmly rejected the notion of Joint Authority between London and Dublin in Northern Ireland.

"As Unionists we are clear that only the United Kingdom has the right to exercise sovereignty over Northern Ireland.

"We would advise anyone seeking the imposition of Joint Authority to read the Belfast Agreement, especially the section 'Constitutional Issues' where it states that 'it would be wrong to make any change in the status of Northern Ireland save with the consent of a majority of its people'.

"Joint Authority would clearly be a massive change in our constitutional status.

"The Belfast Agreement has already been damaged by the NI Protocol and the imposition of a border in the Irish Sea between Northern Ireland and the rest of the United Kingdom. Clearly any attempt to impose some form of Joint Authority between London and Dublin on Northern Ireland would run contrary to that, breach the Principle of Consent and deal a fatal blow to the Belfast Agreement.

"We need to focus our efforts on getting Stormont back up and running again and working the Belfast Agreement. That is what Northern Ireland needs right now."

SF Calls For Everyone To Get Involved In Debate On Constitutional Future

Everyone should be free to take part in an informed debate on the constitutional future, Sinn Féin Caoimhe Archibald has said.

The East Derry MLA said: "As night follows day, the publication of a report on Irish Unity by Professor Colin Harvey and Mark Bassett has been followed by criticism from unionist politicians about the use of Professor Harvey's university logo.

"How these unionist politicians still refuse to understand the concept of academic freedom is beyond me, university Vice-Chancellors do not and should not tell academics what to study, teach or research.

"The attempts by unionist politicians to stifle academic debate need to stop.

"Everyone is free to discuss, argue and participate in an informed debate on our constitutional future, the work of Professor Harvey and others is a vital part of that informed debate.

"I hope our universities will robustly defend their academics and their right to freedom of expression in the face of these attacks on academic freedom."