Stormont at a Crossroads: Only One in Four Believe Power-Sharing Has Improved Their Lives
Twenty-eight years after the Good Friday Agreement, a damning new poll has found that only one in four people in Northern Ireland believe the Stormont power-sharing executive has improved their lives — as the Assembly faces mounting criticism for legislative gridlock, a controversial pay rise for MLAs, and chronic failures in public services.
Background
The Northern Ireland Assembly, established under the 1998 Good Friday Agreement, operates on a mandatory coalition basis between the two largest parties — currently Sinn Féin and the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP). The system is designed to ensure cross-community governance, but critics argue it has increasingly become a vehicle for political paralysis rather than effective government.
Key Developments
The Assembly has passed only 12 bills since its most recent restoration, the majority of which were described as minor "housekeeping" matters. Major policy areas — including the establishment of an independent Environmental Protection Agency, which had previously been agreed — have been blocked by single-party vetoes. The cross-community Alliance Party has highlighted how the current structure incentivises crisis over collaboration, allowing individual parties to veto previously agreed policies.
The dysfunction is exacerbating crises across public services. The health service is overstretched, roads are deteriorating, and water infrastructure is nearing collapse — a situation that is also impeding new housing construction. Against this backdrop, Assembly members voted to increase their own salaries to £67,200 per year from April 2026, a move widely condemned as a reward for political failure.
The Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) has put forward reform proposals, including creating joint first minister roles to remove symbolic hierarchy and dropping the single-party veto on executive formation. The UK Parliament's Joint Committee on Human Rights was also scheduled to question the Northern Ireland Secretary on Monday over the contentious Northern Ireland Troubles Bill.
Why It Matters
The poll findings reflect a growing sense of public disillusionment with devolved government in Northern Ireland. With nationalist parties expected to make gains in the May 2026 elections across the UK, and Sinn Féin continuing to push for a border poll on Irish reunification by 2030, the pressure on the power-sharing framework is intensifying. Some architects of the original agreement maintain that its fundamental success lies in the preservation of peace — but critics argue that peace alone is no longer sufficient justification for a system that is failing to deliver for citizens.
What's Next
Reform proposals from the SDLP and Alliance Party are expected to be debated in the Assembly in the coming weeks. The Northern Ireland Secretary faces continued scrutiny at Westminster over the Troubles Bill, while the May elections will provide a fresh indication of where public sentiment lies on the future of devolved government.
Sources: The Guardian; Hansard Society
