Theresa Villiers urges Northern parties to break stalemate

The Northern Secretary Theresa Villiers has called for continued engagement between the Northern parties while appearing to rule out comprehensive British and Irish government-organised negotiations to break the political deadlock threatening Stormont.

Ms Villiers made her comments in Belfast yesterday against a backdrop of concern that a £600 million budget deficit that the Northern Executive is likely to face this autumn could bring down or lead to the suspension of the Executive and Northern Assembly.

On Wednesday a Sinn Féin delegation led by Gerry Adams and Martin McGuinness discussed the political stalemate with British prime minister David Cameron at Westminster.

While there have been some calls for intensive talks similar to the negotiations that led to last Christmas’s Stormont House Agreement Ms Villiers appeared to rule out such an initiative driven by London and Dublin.

No renegotiation

“Certainly I think the discussions have to carry on between the

Northern Ireland

parties. We are not going to be having a renegotiation of the Stormont House Agreement, we are not going to do Stormont House talks mark two,” she said.

"But we do need to keep talking to one another, to keep that dialogue going, particularly between the two largest parties, Sinn Fein and DUP, to try to ensure that the Stormont House Agreement is implemented," added Ms Villiers.

The welfare deadlock has put the rest of the measures contained in the Stormont House accord on hold.