Opinion

Alex Kane: The parties have wasted an opportunity to make a returned Stormont better than before

Alex Kane

Alex Kane

Alex Kane is an Irish News columnist and political commentator and a former director of communications for the Ulster Unionist Party.

Locked gates, a closed assembly chamber and no executive are among Stormont's achievements as the 20th anniversary of full devolution from Westminster nears. Picture by Niall Carson/PA Wire
Locked gates, a closed assembly chamber and no executive are among Stormont's achievements as the 20th anniversary of full devolution from Westminster nears. Picture by Niall Carson/PA Wire Locked gates, a closed assembly chamber and no executive are among Stormont's achievements as the 20th anniversary of full devolution from Westminster nears. Picture by Niall Carson/PA Wire

Just imagine that Remain had won the referendum in 2016 and that the whole Brexit hoopla hadn't happened.

Then, further imagine that Arlene Foster had stepped aside in December 2016, when the RHI story broke, paving the way for a short internal departmental investigation, followed by a report outlining necessary reform and recommendations which was passed through the executive and immediately implemented.

In other words, imagine a world in which the assembly hadn't collapsed, there hadn't been an unpleasant 'crocodile' election and the DUP had never become kingmakers in a Conservative government because there had never been any need to replace David Cameron. The political/electoral equivalent of It's A Wonderful Life, if you like.

Would it have made any difference to politics here? Would the big-ticket issues have been any closer to resolution? Would Sinn Féin's grassroots (who appear to have real problems with her) think better of Arlene Foster? Would Foster have replied 'blonde' when asked what she thought of when she thought of Michelle O'Neill? Would Alliance be seen in a kindlier light by elements of unionism? Would the prospect of Irish unity have been relegated to the sidelines? Would our waiting lists for a variety of health services be less than they are now?

Would our schools have been given the funding so many of them need? Would observers/commentators like me be able to write about much-needed legislation having been passed, rather than trying to explain the latest spat between the DUP and Sinn Féin? Would the assembly have agreed on a replacement for the 11+ transfer test (my eldest daughter was the first generation of P7s who did the AQE and QL and now her sister is preparing for the same 'temporary' replacement)? I'm fairly sure that the answer to all those questions is no.

The reason I'm mentioning this is because I'm sick to death - I really am - of people telling me how wonderful things would be here if it hadn't been for RHI and Brexit. Have they all forgotten what it was like between 2007 and June 2016? Have they all forgotten about the serial crises, key decisions deferred, rotating ministers, emergency talks, ministers threatening each other with legal action, the executive not meeting for six months, non-stop whingeing and prime ministers and Americans flying in to try and steer us in the right direction? And, as we all now know thanks to the RHI inquiry, departments having some very odd ways of conducting their business without much in the way of proper scrutiny and accountability.

As it stands I don't see the return of the assembly anytime soon: and that's not withstanding the 'threat' by the UK government to legislate on abortion, same-sex-marriage and opposite-sex civil partnership. Let's be honest, telling local parties that you will take the difficult decisions for them (because they're too scared to do them) is hardly the best way of getting them back to government. Mind you, I still have a feeling that the NIO is probably looking for a way to avoid carrying the can for a decision that should never have been theirs to make in the first place.

A couple of years ago I suggested the parties should take the opportunity afforded by suspension - and none of us knew how long it would be - to talk to civil servants, academics, experts and key players across a whole range of interests and services to better inform themselves in advance of having to prepare and agree a new Programme for Government. But from what I can gather that hasn't been done. It's almost as if they don't actually want to agree and adopt a collective approach and common sense of purpose.

One very senior hospital consultant told me a few weeks ago she was "fed up reading statements from the health spokespeople for political parties who couldn't even be bothered going through the nitty-gritty with me or my colleagues first. It's not like they're stuck in the assembly all day."

And therein lies the biggest problem we face with a rebooted assembly. The MLAs haven't taken the time afforded by the last three years to prepare for its return. It strikes me they are no better informed than they were in December 2016. We'd start off from where they left off. 1,000 days wasted...in every sense of the word.