Vocal Voices

The deadline for a power sharing agreement in NI was missed, again, so a new deadline has been set up for next week, or sometime. If there is no agreement there are only two options 1. a new assembly election or 2. direct rule from Westminster.

Now that all the dirty washing is out the DUP could be in danger of losing seats in an election to the UUP or Alliance, thus putting Sinn Féin in the driving seat.

On the other hand direct rule would look to Sinn Féin and other Republicans as though the DUP was gaining control by default due its pact with the Devil Tories. How would that play out? Would the Good Friday Agreement go to the wall and violence break out again? Or would Sinn Féin take up their seats in Westminster in an attempt to neutralise what the DUP has done?

Things are not looking go for NI or the government either way.

Sinn Fein will never take up their seats in Westminster that much you can be sure of (well in my opinion anyway)

Under normal circumstances they would stay well away, agreed, but these are not normal circumstances.

What exactly are the sticking points? Are they still fundamentally after Arlene Foster's resignation, or is it now down towards more mundane issues like the acceptance of the Gaelic language in Northern Ireland?

I would like to think that sensible compromises can be reached, but there again .....