Sir Robert Buckland stated he wished to see a “flourishing Northern Ireland”
The new chair of the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee says he will have interaction with Sir Jeffery Donaldson and different celebration leaders to restore Stormont.
Sir Robert Buckland stated he wished to see a “flourishing Northern Ireland”, which was solely attainable “with an effective and efficient executive”.
The celebration has blocked power-sharing since February 2022.
“I am more than happy to carry on that work to engage directly with him and other leaders,” he stated.
“I believe it’s in the best interests of those of us, like me who believe passionately in the union and unionism, to take the reins of responsibility again.”
Sir Robert Buckland defended the NI secretary of state
The incoming chair of the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee additionally defended Chris Heaton-Harris’s document.
He stated the NI secretary of state was a “dedicated public servant” who did care “deeply about communities and their stories”.
“I will of course as chair of the committee engage closely with him, and hold him and the government to account if I think, and the committee feels, that not enough work is being done to help bring the parties together,” he stated.
A former everlasting secretary within the Northern Ireland civil service, Dr Andrew McCormick, beforehand criticised Mr Heaton-Harris for “abdicating his responsibility”.
But Sir Robert stated the secretary of state “far from abdicating his responsibility, he is doing his level best to respect the parameters in which he operates”.
‘Foolish and rash’
Sir Robert was additionally requested about the potential for the UK leaving the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) as a part of a plan to cope with migrant crossings.
He stated the transfer could be “foolish and rash” and ignored the actual fact the ECHR “underpins the very fabric of the Good Friday/Belfast Agreement”.
“To ignore that reality in the context of a debate about migration would be to threaten and endanger…the process once again.”
He is a former authorities minister who beforehand held two cupboard positions.
