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The opt-out donation system was passed by MLAs last year but the secondary legislation required to implement it cannot be approved at Stormont due to the political stalemate.

Daithi MacGabhann, six, from Belfast, is on the organ transplant waiting list and his family have campaigned for the new legislation.

Daithi and his parents Mairtin and Seph met with Northern Ireland Secretary Chris Heaton-Harris at Hillsborough on Wednesday.

Afterwards, Mr MacGabhann said Mr Heaton-Harris had told the family it would take too long for the Government to intervene and pass the laws at Westminster.

“Daithi’s Law deserves to have a go-live date in spring as planned but after the meeting today it looks like we’re not getting that,” he said.

Mr MacGabhann recounted the family’s meeting with Chris Heaton-Harris.

“He did speak to us not just as a politician, he spoke to us as a family man as well,” he said.

“He shared our frustrations with our politicians, but we already know that, we’re already frustrated with our politicians, the whole place is frustrated with our politicians.

“But our point was that there is no assembly and, without the assembly, this secondary legislation can’t go through.

“We’re bitterly disappointed and, to be honest, I’m just so angry at the whole situation. We told the Secretary of State that this is much bigger than Daithi’s law – this is a beacon of hope for the organ donation and transplantation community here.”

Mr MacGabhann said the family would consider legal action to try to get the law introduced and were also prepared to go directly to the Prime Minister in an effort to get the situation resolved.

He expressed concern that the family was being punished for the Stormont impasse and being used in a “political game of football”.

He said time was not on the family’s side as he stressed the seriousness of Daithi’s heart condition.

“We were at the funeral of a young boy last week who died of the same condition as Daithi – time is not on our side, we don’t have the time,” he said.

“That is what basically the Secretary of State said to us, that it will take too much time if it was to go through him.”

Former DUP first minister Paul Givan, whose resignation last February triggered the collapse of the executive, met with Daithi MacGabhann and his family after the meeting.

He insisted Chris Heaton-Harris could move rapidly to implement the law at Westminster.

“The Secretary of State has this within his power to take through legislation rapidly at Westminster and the Government really do need to act because this is an issue that all of the parties in Northern Ireland have given support to,” he said.

Mr Givan added: “There is no excuse for the Secretary of State not to be moving this forward and it can be taken forward rapidly. The legislation is there.”

Daithi's Law: Father of six-year-old Daithi MacGabhann ‘disappointed and angry’ over delays to implementing new organ donation laws