Despite roundtable discussions over the state of Stormont’s finances, a deal to restore devolution is no closer, according to the DUP’s deputy leader Gavin Robinson. Although the DUP will take part in Monday’s talks, Robinson has criticised the government’s approach, suggesting that it needed to be completely changed. Last week, Northern Ireland Secretary Chris Heaton-Harris had said that talks with the DUP were in their “final, final stages.”
The power-sharing executive in Northern Ireland collapsed in February 2022, when then-First Minister Paul Givan resigned. Subsequently, the DUP has refused to engage in a deal with the government and has protested against post-Brexit trade arrangements for the region. Furthermore, it has blocked the election of an Assembly Speaker on several occasions.
In an interview with BBC News NI’s Good Morning Ulster, Robinson contends that it was also essential to address Northern Ireland’s financial situation to “provide a sustainable basis for devolution.” During the talks, the Northern Ireland Office invited the five largest parties at Stormont to Hillsborough Castle.
Sinn Féin’s Conor Murphy said that the DUP did not appear to be “in any hurry” to resolve its talks with the government. “It’s clear that patience has run out,” he said. “It has run out among the other political parties, among the public some time back. Clearly now patience has run out with the British government. They need to bring this endless merry-go-round of private dialogue with the DUP to a close so that we get to a decision point.
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