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Stormont has no plans for Brexit emergency meeting

There are no plans as yet for the DUP-Sinn Féin-run Stormont to discuss last week's Brexit vote. Picture by David Young/PA Wire
There are no plans as yet for the DUP-Sinn Féin-run Stormont to discuss last week's Brexit vote. Picture by David Young/PA Wire There are no plans as yet for the DUP-Sinn Féin-run Stormont to discuss last week's Brexit vote. Picture by David Young/PA Wire

IT remained unclear on Sunday night when the Northern Ireland executive plans to meet to discuss the implications of the EU referendum.

The devolved government in Scotland met on Friday and the Welsh cabinet is expected to meet today to discuss the surprise outcome of the vote.

The Dáil has also been recalled and will meet today to discuss the fall-out of the Brexit.

However, so far there is no plan for a corresponding meeting involving Stormont's governing parties.

The DUP and Sinn Féin were on opposing sides during the referendum campaign, with the former supporting the UK's withdrawal from the EU.

Arlene Foster, who welcomed the vote saying she was convinced it would build an even stronger UK, travelled to France at the weekend to see Northern Ireland defeated by Wales in football's European Championship.

The first minister was pictured meeting players after their defeat and had sent a video message on Twitter before the game wishing the team well.

It also unclear if the assembly plans to debate last Thursday's referendum result during its last week of business before the summer recess.

Ulster Unionist leader Mike Nesbitt said Stormont was "totally ill-prepared" for the outcome of the vote.

Mr Nesbitt said that as chairman of the assembly's executive office committee he had quizzed the DUP and Sinn Féin leaders at Stormont earlier this month about a Brexit contingency plan.

The Irish government has already published its provisional arrangements for dealing with the surprise referendum.

They include setting up a hotline for exporters on the practical implications of Brexit and holding a possible early meeting of the British-Irish Council.

The document also highlights infrastructure projects co-funded by the north and Republic may be affected.

However Mr Nesbitt said there were no apparent provisional arrangements at Stormont.

"When I asked the Executive Office if where there plans in place for the possibility of the UK voting to leave they EU, they conceded there were none.

"If the governor of the Bank of England had adopted a similar strategy we'd be looking at complete economic meltdown."

The Strangford MLA, who is to table an oral question today calling on the first minister to make an urgent statement, said the assembly's business schedule should be "ripped up" and that MLAs should debate the referendum result immediately.

"While discussing the implications of Brexit should be a priority for the executive and the assembly that isn't going to happen because the DUP and Sinn Féin are completely different pages – the last thing they want is a debate," he said.

Alliance MLA Stephen Farry questioned why there were no immediate plans for the Executive to discuss Brexit.

"I am surprised and somewhat disconcerted that there does not seem to be any plans for the Executive to meet ahead of its anticipated regular meeting on Thursday," he said.

"For Alliance's part, we will be seeking to use our influence to have the implications from the vote to Leave debated in the Assembly on Monday. Business as usual can't continue."

Welsh First Minister Carwyn Jones has already laid out six priority areas for action in his initial response to the result.

In Thursday's referendum 52.5 per cent of voters in Wales backed Leave, compared with 47.5 per cent supporting Remain.

And out of Wales' 22 councils, 17 backed Brexit while only five voted to Remain – despite Wales being heavily funded by the European Union for a number of projects.

Mr Jones, who backed the campaign to remain in the EU, said: "This will be one of the most important cabinet meetings since devolution, where we will look at an initial evaluation of the potential consequences of this result for Wales, and agree how we will take the priorities forward in the national interest."

He said the full implications of the vote were "far from clear and will not be so for some time".

"However, one thing is certain – we as the Welsh government are utterly determined to stay internationally engaged, outward-looking and pro-business in our approach," he said.