'DUP cannot be a permanent roadblock to devolution' says Northern Ireland Affairs Committee Chair

The Chair of the Northern Ireland Affairs Select Committee has said the DUP cannot be the permanant roadblock to the delivery of devolution or of reform of the Northern Ireland Protocol.

He was speaking on UTV's View From Stormont programme alongside former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern.

He stressed however that he "thinks a deal can be done", adding "the relationships are right - a huge amount of work has been done."

Meanwhile, Bertie Ahern said "a lot of this is about trust and confidence, and it certainly seems like trust and confidence has been restored."

Referring to the Good Friday Agreement, he went on to say "25 years ago, a poll said we had a 5% chance of success - so there was nothing easy then and there's nothing easy now. But the issues round the protocol are nothing compared to what we went through then."

He added the issues are tough, but they're not beyond the grasp of the London and Dublin governments.

Protocol talks are expected to continue after the Secretary of State Chris Heaton-Harris climbed down on a promised Stormont election. The DUP insist they will not take their seat in Stormont until a resolution has been agreed.

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