Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The First Minister-elect of Northern Ireland, Michelle O'Neill, wrote to the Secretary of State, Chris Heaton-Harris, last Friday emphasising the gravity of the current stalemate in the North and the imperative for urgent action. The Taoiseach will be aware that all-party talks commenced yesterday. The public administration in Belfast is facing massive financial challenges including the issue of parity for public sector workers. The North has been underfunded by the Tory Government to a huge extent. I hate to disillusion Deputy Murphy, but there has been no game-changing financial offer put on the table. In fact the offer made by the British Government is entirely insufficient. The talks need to be concluded promptly. We need the Executive and we need the Assembly. It is, of course, crucial that we negotiate with the Treasury but I believe this can be done as effectively or more effectively with a functioning Executive. Will the Taoiseach impress upon the British Government the need for these talks to be brought to a speedy conclusion? Will he also outline the work that has been done on plan B should plan A fail?

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