Vicki Hawthorne: Stormont's clock struck one, in the nursery rhyme it didn't end well for the clock

Hickory dickory dock, the mouse ran up the clock.

The clock struck one, the mouse ran down, hickory dickory dock. It feels like the clock struck one at Stormont last Thursday. Paul Givan's resignation as first minister was the culmination of months of warnings from the DUP Leader that he would pull ministers from Stormont if the NI Protocol wasn't dealt with.

The mouse has run down and the clock is ticking down to an Assembly election. The Secretary of State Brandon Lewis has confirmed this morning there won't be an early election and it will take place on May 5 as planned.

> NI secretary rules out prospect of early Assembly election

Laws passed at Westminster last night allow the Assembly to continue working without an Executive and essentially prevent the Secretary of State calling an earlier than planned election within the next six weeks. Nonetheless, it is good to get clarity on the matter directly from Mr Lewis.

An early election would have prevented MLAs finalising work on 28 outstanding bills in the Assembly. It will still be a challenge to get all of that legislation passed before the Assembly rises at the end of March.

A significant bill on organ donation is expected to get through the assembly today. It automatically makes everyone in Northern Ireland organ donors, unless they opt out. So important work is progressing, but the clock in the Great Hall at Parliament Buildings hangs prominently as a constant reminder now that time is still of the essence. There could be extra sitting days, less time for speeches in an effort to conserve assembly time. But the Government is also running out of time at Westminster.

> Government 'firmly intends' to bring NI language legislation before election

There was a reminder of this at the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee this morning with NI Minister Conor Burns MP answering questions from MPs.

He was asked by SDLP MP Claire Hanna at what stage the Cultural, Identity and Language legislation will be brought forward at Westminster.

The Government had committed to progressing this through Westminster if it wasn't dealt with at Stormont by last Autumn.

While Conor Burns MP wouldn't commit to a specific date for the legislation which has also been billed by some as an Irish Language Act, he did say the Government recognised the benefit of dealing with it before the Assembly election. If it doesn't, the issues around culture, identity and language will be left to hang over Stormont after the election once more.

The same goes for legislation on legacy.

These are important issues that have derailed politics in Northern Ireland many times over the years. In some versions of the Hickory Dickory nursery rhyme the final verse ends with an elephant running up the clock. It doesn't end well for the clock.