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Belfast Live
Belfast Live
National
Brendan Hughes

No agreement on Stormont Assembly offices plan three weeks after election

Stormont parties have yet to agree on how to share out office space at Parliament Buildings more than three weeks after the Assembly election.

The Assembly has remained tight-lipped on the reasons for the delay in allocating MLA offices and party meeting rooms.

There is speculation that a dispute between some parties over proposed room allocations is a factor in the hold-up.

Read more: DUP minister's plan to rename department HQ for Queen's jubilee 'still under consideration'

The lack of agreement has left 11 new Alliance MLAs without any permanent office space in the building.

A proposed room layout plan from officials was presented to parties but it has still not been signed off, according to sources.

The Assembly said the new office allocations will "reflect the relative party strengths in the new mandate".

But it would not be drawn on whether pushback from some parties was a reason for not yet finalising the details.

In a statement a spokeswoman said: "A revised accommodation layout, to reflect the relative party strengths in the new mandate, is currently being agreed with the political parties for offices for members and parties."

The apparent stand-off has been dubbed "roomgate" by one Stormont insider, The Irish News reported.

The recent election saw Sinn Féin overtake the DUP to become the biggest party in the Stormont Assembly for the first time.

Alliance also became the third-largest party, leapfrogging the Ulster Unionists and SDLP.

But the DUP has blocked the formation of a new Assembly and power-sharing Executive in protest over Brexit's Northern Ireland Protocol.

The Assembly is due to meet on Monday in a fresh attempt to nominate an Assembly Speaker after more than 30 MLAs signed a recall petition brought by Sinn Féin.

Sinn Féin vice-president Michelle O'Neill called on MLAs to "get down to business", but DUP leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson branded the move a "stunt".

He said his party would continue to veto the return of the devolved institutions until it saw action to resolve its concerns over the Protocol.

Read more: DUP minister's plan to rename department HQ for Queen's jubilee 'still under consideration'

Read more: Vacant properties owned by Stormont lying dormant at £1million cost in security fees

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