Taoiseach Micheal Martin has been told there is a 'window of opportunity' to reform powersharing arrangements at Stormont before the next Assembly elections. The issue featured heavily in the Irish premier's meetings with Northern Ireland political parties in Belfast on Thursday.
Alliance Party leader Naomi Long said the UK and Irish governments have responsibility to drive reform. She said her party has refreshed its proposals, including on transparency around party political financing, and believes the time is now right for change. 'It's very clear that all parties recognise the current situation where our institutions are constantly destabilised by the threat of collapse,' she said.
SDLP leader Claire Hanna said she discussed the urgency of delivering reform before the next Assembly election in 2027. 'The fact is that people here deserve better than failing government, and government that is never far from collapse,' she said, urging the Taoiseach and UK Government to convene a process.
However, DUP leader Gavin Robinson said he was 'not rushing to' read the Alliance reform paper, and argued that the biggest challenge is 'willingness for people to work together'. He said the system is built on coalition politics and compromise, adding that 'the idea that you can change people's will through structures and proposals for reform is for the birds'.
