{"id":25072,"date":"2022-02-08T11:20:00","date_gmt":"2022-02-08T16:20:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/irishexaminerusa.com\/wp\/?p=25072"},"modified":"2022-02-09T13:23:11","modified_gmt":"2022-02-09T18:23:11","slug":"british-northern-ireland-secretary-rules-out-early-election-in-the-north","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/irishexaminerusa.com\/wp\/?p=25072","title":{"rendered":"British Northern Ireland Secretary Rules Out Early Election In The North"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Sinn F\u00e9in and the DUP had called for the May 5th poll to be brought forward following the resignation of first minister Paul Givan over the Northern Ireland Protocol (PA Images)<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The Northern Ireland Secretary has appeared to rule out calling an early Assembly election.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Brandon Lewis was speaking after calls by Sinn F\u00e9in and the DUP for the poll scheduled for May 5th to be brought forward.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It follows the resignation of First Minister Paul Givan last week over what the DUP regards as a lack of progress in negotiations to tackle issues with the Brexit Protocol.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mr Givan\u2019s resignation also forced deputy First Minister Michelle O\u2019Neill from the joint office.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, other Executive ministers remain in place and the Assembly is continuing to sit with a number of pieces of legislation being progressed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mr Lewis said \u201cit is right\u201d that the election takes place on May 5th.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He told the BBC it was close to the start of the formal election period already.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe Assembly under the new rules can continue to function, it\u2019s right we allow MLAs time and space to pass legislation, I\u2019ll be working to support the parties to do that, and then we can have an election on 5th May,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Earlier Northern Ireland minister Conor Burns insisted Mr Givan\u2019s resignation \u201cwill not fundamentally alter\u201d the UK\u2019s negotiations with the EU over the protocol.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI have to say very candidly that the government is clear on our intentions with the (European) Commission on the protocol and the withdrawal of the first minister will not fundamentally alter the government\u2019s determination to carry on engaging with the Commission to find resolution, to find solutions to the situation in Northern Ireland, recognizing the uniqueness of the position of Northern Ireland as part of the United Kingdom single market but also buttressing against the single market of the European Union in the form of the Irish Republic,\u201d Mr Burns told the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cFrom a UK government point of view, in terms of protocol conversations, the plan is clear, and the plan is continuing to be played out led by the foreign secretary.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mr Burns said the government \u201cprofoundly regrets\u201d the withdrawal of the first minister and has \u201curged the DUP to get the first minister back in\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He said \u201cwe\u2019ve been here before\u201d but added there is a fundamental difference to the position now, as ministers are still in place and the Assembly is still sitting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe have not actually witnessed a collapse of the institutions in the way they had before,\u201d he said, adding he noted a \u201cdegree of positioning\u201d ahead of the Assembly elections.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He said he believed there would be a \u201cvery different reaction\u201d from parties if they were two or more years away from the next election.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meanwhile, DUP MP Ian Paisley accused British prime minister Boris Johnson of a \u201ccalculated tactical decision to keep quiet\u201d over Northern Ireland, adding he feels it was a mistake for the PM not to speak publicly following the resignation of Mr Givan last Thursday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mr Burns responded: \u201cThe prime minister takes a genuinely deep interest in this \u2026 I would hope that the fact that he asked me, one of his closest friends in the House of Commons, to serve in the Northern Ireland Office, you could take as a declaration of his interest and commitment to Northern Ireland.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI don\u2019t want to diminish what is going on, but I\u2019m not sure at the moment what a prime ministerial intervention would be seeking to achieve.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe don\u2019t want to overdramatize what is going on, we are quite close to the period of dissolution anyway for a scheduled election, which is only weeks away, but I can assure you the prime minister is taking a very keen interest in this.\u201d<\/p>\n

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