Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour) | Oireachtas source

Those of us who have been on the edges of discussions such as this understand perfectly that the Tánaiste cannot be completely upfront and frank with us as to what has happened to date. I think all of us wish him well in his endeavours because this really is important. We will not get back the past 1,000-plus days. It is most regrettable that we have had a shocking void in representational politics in Northern Ireland at this critical time for the island of Ireland during the critical phases of the discussions on Brexit. It is all the more urgent that we have a solution to these matters now and I hope the Tánaiste's endeavours will be successful in that regard.

I would not be as sanguine as the Tánaiste in respect of the option of an election. Of the 90 MLAs who were elected, several have already opted out of politics. There has been somewhat of a transformation in mood. The most recent Westminster elections have indicated that, and I am delighted to see the return to Westminster of two SDLP MPs and one from the Alliance Party. A fresh mandate might not be a terrible thing, but it would be preferable if we could have institutions up and working right now. We cannot get back the past 1,000 days, but all of the political parties in Northern Ireland have got a clear message from the electorate while knocking on doors that people expect the institutions to be functioning again, particularly in the teeth of a health crisis and a nurses' strike.

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