THE SDLP and Alliance have urged political parties at Stormont to "break free from failure" in their new year messages.
In separate statements, the leaders of both parties reflected on a "frustrating year politically" during 2017 and called for other political parties to renew their commitment to restoring power- sharing at Stormont.
It comes just days after the DUP said a date for a fresh round of political talks to restore power sharing in Northern Ireland would be set soon. But Sinn Féin said it believed "another round of talks for talks sake have no political or public credibility".
The Stormont executive ground to a halt last January when Martin McGuinness resigned as deputy first minister in protest over his DUP power-sharing partner's handling of a bungled green energy scheme.
Despite several rounds of discussions between the two parties, they have failed to reach a resolution.
SDLP leader Colm Eastwood last night called for "all in political life must reach for solutions" and said he believes "direct rule does not need to be inevitable".
"January 26th will officially mark one year without a government in Northern Ireland," he said.
"In the absence of a dramatic change in their failed strategies, Sinn Féin and the DUP are set to fully and freely hand power back to the British government for the long-term.
"Their incompetence and inability to govern has left us with the worst level of economic growth on these islands, a business community left to fend for itself with the challenges of Brexit, static wages for working families and our hospitals and school system either breaking or broken.
"Under their failed leadership, the north’s voice is not only an afterthought in terms of Brexit but our economy and public services have been an afterthought during one year of talking between the DUP and Sinn Féin.
"People deserve to know; their focus is elsewhere and not on the people who actually elected them."
He added: "This year has moved us no closer to the only future worth knowing - a future where we truly share power and finally deliver good government for all our people".
Alliance leader Naomi Long said a "change of attitude, not venue, is required to see the talks process reach a successful conclusion" in the new year.
She said while 2017 "had been a frustrating year politically, 2018 promised more, if parties showed a renewed commitment to restoring the institutions".
"This past year was one in which political progress was grindingly slow and where relationships between parties became incredibly strained and fractious," she said.
"Thanks to the ongoing impasse, people are hurting and our public services are suffering, all while we continue to see an absence of locally accountable political decision-making.
"However, instead of a change of talks venue, as has been rumoured, we need to see a change of attitude from some of the participants.
"If so, I have no doubt we can still move forward together in a respectful and cooperative manner, restoring the institutions and delivering the progress Northern Ireland desperately needs."
