Former Kilkenny Senator says ‘Northern politics is finished’
The Stormont Assembly has failed to elect a Speaker after the DUP blocked proposed appointments from the UUP and SDLP

Northern politics is finished, according to former Kilkenny Senator Pat O’Neill.
The Stormont Assembly has failed to elect a Speaker in it’s first sitting since the election on Friday afternoon.
The DUP blocked proposed appointments from the UUP and SDLP, meaning the Northern Irish Parliament cannot conduct any business.
The DUP say they won’t change their stance until there has been reform of the Northern Ireland Brexit Protocol.
Former Fine Gael Seanadór Pat O’Neill says he can’t see how any issues can be resolved in the North now with the position becoming entrenched.
Pat’s told The Way It Is on KCLR that even if another election is called and the DUP become the largest party again he can’t see how Sinn Fein would support their nomination for First Minister.
He says direct rule from Britian is the only outcome which means ”Northern politics is finished, I Think, at this stage, the way things have gone”.