Northern Ireland secretary urges assembly to reach deal

The British government will consider whether to stop paying members of the Northern Ireland assembly if Ulster politicians fail to reach a deal to restore power-sharing government in the region.

The Northern Ireland secretary raised the possibility on Friday that individual salaries of more than £50,000 per annum being frozen in the absence of the Stormont assembly getting up and running again.

James Brokenshire also warned that while London prefers to see the restoration of devolved government in Belfast, the Westminster government could be forced back into direct rule.

In a speech to the British Irish Association at Cambridge University on Friday evening, Brokenshire said: “In the continuing absence of devolution, the UK government retains ultimate responsibility for good governance and political stability in Northern Ireland as part of the United Kingdom and we will not shirk from the necessary measures to deliver that.

“At the same time we will need to consider carefully a range of other issues reflecting public concern, including whether it can continue to be justified to pay assembly members who have not met for several months now.”

Brokenshire acknowledged that it would be “a hugely retrograde step, a massive setback after so many years of progress and hope” if the government in London had to take back direct charge of Northern Ireland.

He continued: “If things don’t change we are on a glide path to greater and greater UK government intervention. But we can still change course.”

The Northern Ireland secretary urged the assembly parties, in particular Sinn Féin and the Democratic Unionists, to reach a compromise aimed at bringing back power-sharing government in the region.

Britain’s commitment to the 1998 Good Friday agreement remains “steadfast” according to Brokenshire.

The government would continue to defend the common travel area between the UK and Ireland after Brexit, he said.

Brokenshire said he was concerned that without a functioning power-sharing executive in Belfast, Northern Ireland’s voice was severely weakened in the debate about Brexit and its implications for the region and the entire island.

Power-sharing government in Northern Ireland has been suspended since the beginning of 2017, after the late Martin McGuinness withdrew from the post as deputy first minister of Northern Ireland.

McGuinness resigned after Arlene Foster refused to temporarily stand down from office while an inquiry was held over a controversial and costly renewable energy scheme which the DUP championed in government.

Under the rules of devolved power-sharing, if the leading representative of one section of the community resigns from office the entire administration falls.