Secretary of State Chris Heaton-Harris accused of ‘mind games’ over Stormont election

The Northern Ireland Secretary has said he will call a snap Assembly election but has not set a date.

It had been widely anticipated that Mr Heaton-Harris would announce the date for an election on Friday, after a deadline to restore devolved government at Stormont passed at midnight.

Instead he said he would give more information next week and would meet with the Stormont parties, but is still insistent an election will be called.

Responding, TUV leader Jim Allister said: "It’s not mind games we need from the Secretary of State over an election, but prioritisation of recovery from the EU of full UK sovereignty over the part of the UK of which he is Secretary of State."

He continued: “As Secretary of State his first priority, especially as a ‘Conservative and Unionist’, should be to stabilise Northern Ireland by restoring constitutional certainty through recovering from the EU its ill-gotten sovereignty over Northern Ireland."

The North Antrim MLA added: “He is not really Secretary of State of Northern Ireland if it is EU laws that govern much of our economy under a Protocol which decrees Great Britain a foreign country when it comes to importing its goods here. It is righting this wrong which should be occupying Chris Heston-Harris, rather than trying to railroad unionists into operating the Union-dismantling Protocol which he is failing to remove."

With no ministerial executive in place, the UK Government assumes a legal responsibility to call another election.