SINN Féin Foyle MLA Raymond McCartney has said equality and respect must be at the heart of the political institutions at Stormont.
He said: “I note that Mike Nesbitt has echoed Sinn Féin’s position that the people must be allowed to have their say in an election.
“The public is outraged by the incompetence and mishandling of the Renewable Heating Incentive scheme, the allegations of corruption and the potential loss of hundreds of millions of pounds to the public purse.
“But the election goes beyond simply being a referendum on the series of scandals involving the DUP including RHI, NAMA and Red Sky, disastrous as they have been to public confidence.
“The British government has failed to honour its agreements on an Irish Language Act, on a Bill of Rights and on legacy and have allowed the DUP to block basic equality provisions for citizens in the north.
“The Irish government, a co-guarantor of the agreements have acted as a bystander and failed to hold the British government to account.
“The actions of the British government and the DUP have undermined the political institutions and eroded public confidence.
“The people will have the opportunity to draw a line under the DUP’s arrogance and their contempt for the Irish language community and Irish identity, for our LGBT community, ethnic minorities and women.
“The political institutions have to deliver for all citizens on the basis of equality and respect and there can be no return to the status quo.”
