Britain's Northern Ireland secretary Chris Heaton-Harris has failed to set a date for a snap Assembly election, despite the deadline for the formation of a devolved government passing.
However, Mr Heaton-Harris has insisted that he will still call the Stormont election but would meet with political parties first.
His announcement on Friday was heavily criticised by political leaders in Northern Ireland.
Sinn Féin’s Michelle O’Neill accused him of a “bizarre U-turn” while DUP leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson said “the chaos continues”.
It had been widely anticipated that Mr Heaton-Harris would announce the date for an election on Friday, after the deadline to restore Stormont passed at midnight.
Stormont ministers, who have been operating in shadow form since the Assembly collapsed earlier this year, also ceased to hold office at midnight.
Mr Heaton-Harris instead said he would give more information next week and would meet with the Stormont parties.
The DUP’s boycott of the Stormont institution is part of a campaign of opposition to the Northern Ireland Protocol, and the party says it will not return to powersharing until decisive action is taken to remove economic barriers on trade between Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
The UK government has vowed to secure changes to the protocol, either by a negotiated compromise with the EU or through proposed domestic legislation, the Northern Ireland Protocol Bill, which would empower ministers to scrap the arrangements without the approval of Brussels.
Speaking in Belfast on Friday, Mr Heaton-Harris said: “I am deeply disappointed we are where we are now.
“This is a really serious situation.
“As of a minute past midnight last night, there are no longer ministers in office in the Northern Ireland Executive.
“I will take limited but necessary steps to ensure public services do continue and to protect the public finances.
“But there is a limit to what the secretary of state can do in these circumstances.”
With no ministerial executive in place, the UK government assumes a legal responsibility to call another election.
Responsibility for running devolved departments will now pass to senior civil servants, although their powers are limited.
I am extremely disappointed that the Executive has not reformed.
The people of Northern Ireland deserve a fully-functioning devolved government.
(1/2)— Chris Heaton-Harris MP (@chhcalling) October 28, 2022
Mr Heaton-Harris said he has held “lots and lots” of talks with all the parties and will meet with them again next week.
“I hear it when parties say that they really do not want an election at all but nearly all of them are parties who signed up to the law that means I need to call an election,” he added.
“So you’ll hear more from me on that particular point next week.
“Nearly all the parties who have been saying this won’t help the situation actually signed up to the rules that make this situation happen.
“Why call it now? Because I am legally bound to do so.”
He also denied his decision not to call an election immediately was a U-turn.
He said he understood that the “big impasse” for the unionist community was the ongoing issues with the protocol.
“But as I continually say, the atmosphere in those talks is completely changed in recent weeks and I am optimist and I really do believe that we can get somewhere on those too,” he added.
Mr Heaton-Harris said he will also be considering his options to act on MLA pay.
Ms O’Neill said: “Today, he is doing a bizarre U-turn, one of which he obviously communicated to the media in advance of speaking to the local parties, from my understanding at least.
“I think just think it is bizarre, it reflects the chaotic nature of the Tories, it is more dysfunction, it is spilling into our politics.
“But you see for the workers and families tonight and the businesses that are struggling, the people here that are left without an Assembly, an Executive, there is not even a caretaker minister in place and we have a situation tonight where people just don’t know what is going to happen next.”
DUP leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson said: “The chaos continues and we do not yet know whether we are going to have an election in Northern Ireland or not.
“The Northern Ireland Office has been talking up for some time the prospect of an election but evidently no decision has yet been taken.
“And we’re ready to fight an election.
“I will be travelling around all the constituencies as we prepare to fight a campaign to ensure we renew the mandate we have been given, which is very clear, and that is until we get decisive action to restore Northern Ireland’s place in the UK internal market and remove the rubble and debris of the protocol, we are not in a position and there is not a consensus for the restoration of the devolved institutions.”
Taoiseach Micheál Martin has reiterated the Government has a role to play in Northern Ireland in the absence of a devolved government at Stormont.
He said: “The Good Friday Agreement is there in terms of the framework and both governments will operate within the framework of the Good Friday Agreement.
“That does involve consultation between the Irish Government and the British government if there is any prolonged period of direct rule, or no devolution, so to speak.”
