MLAs' pay should be cut but it means all suffer because of SF

They brought down devolution, and yet everyone takes the blame, not just them.

The latest manifestation of this pattern is the near consensus that MLAs must have their pay cut because they are not doing their jobs.

And so they should.

But why are they not doing their jobs?

Because there is a system of mandatory coalition that depends on goodwill, and depends on no one party taking advantage of the fact that none of the main parties can be excluded.

That, however, is precisely what Sinn Fein have done.

They know they cannot be excluded. If the slightest sanction was taken against them they would be encouraging street protests, as happened over the Irish language.

Sinn Fein behave disgracefully, everyone pays.

This is always the way.

Every crisis at Stormont since 1998 has been caused by republicans.

Now they see Irish unity ahead, so it suits them well to have instability in a state that they say is failed.

Meanwhile, Dublin adopts every republican position in sight. Despite the comprehensive defeat it suffered in the Hooded Men case at the European Court of Human Rights it now seems to be gearing up for another appeal (if one is even possible).

Simon Coveney has been interfering over the detention of the hard-core republican Tony Taylor.

He told Northern Ireland that it must have an Irish language act and is telling it that it must have regulatory convergence with the EU.

At what point does a Conservative government propped up by the DUP snub such a hostile Irish government by introducing direct rule and paying the legal minimum heed to any cross-border requirements?