Statement by TUV Comber councillor Stephen Cooper:
“With Stormont having presided over waiting lists which have spiralled out of control and a GP service which has effectively collapsed we are indeed unfortunate that devolution has imploded just at the very point when all these issues were about to be sorted out.
“Of more concern is that there are no issues facing the health service which cannot be sorted out any better at Stormont than at Westminster.
“In fact, one suspects that Westminster would make a better job of addressing the challenges, the dysfunctionality at the heart of an irasf inclusive mandatory coalition in the executive is an ongoing problem that needs to be addressed by all of society.
“In layman’s terms, Sinn Fein/IRA aren’t in government to make Northern Ireland work.
“The BMA would be better looking for solutions, regardless of who makes the decisions, than seeking to blackmail Unionists into operating a system which requires them to implement the Protocol, the very thing which a few months ago Europe was threatening to deploy in order to prevent lifesaving vaccines coming to Northern Ireland.
“To be clear, the Protocol has to go, mandatory coalition has to go, and root and branch reform of Stormont is desperately needed to bring stability and sustainable government to the people of Northern Ireland.”