NI MPs - are they at work or not?

[wannabebetter]

Genuine question.... with Stormont still inactive I assumed the NI MPs are currently not working (there has been outcry here about them still claiming salaries for example). So, with the exception of the DUP bigots who appear to have moved into HoC, are there any other MPs in residence who would actually be representing the views of the NI people in the current circumstances? I've seen lots of advice telling everyone to tell their MPs how to vote - but does this apply to us NI residents (who probably need to have a say more than most!!)?

Lady Sylvia Hermon is a sane and hardworking MP (North Down).

Er ... that's it.

You're represented badly by DUP MPs, and not represented at all by Sinn Fein MPs who don't take their seats.

OTOH ... there are currently surprisingly few NI signatures on the revoke A50 petition. If you are a remainer, and have lots of remain friends on social media, get sharing!

petition.parliament.uk/petitions/241584

I'm not an expert on this, but Stormont is the seat of the Northern Ireland Assembly, whose members are called MLAs, Members of the Legislative Assembly. They are separate from MPs in the same way that Members of the Scottish Parliament are separate from MPs.

So the MPs from Northern Ireland are still working - except for the Sinn Fein ones as Mistigri says.

The Assembly has been suspended but the members are indeed still claiming a salary - I guess the difficulty is that if the Assembly were unsuspended it wouldn't be great if most of the seats were vacant because the members had had to resign to take up other jobs.

MLAs aren't sitting in Stormont so whilst they're continuing with constituency work- there's no legislative body.

With regards to MPs the DUP and Sylvia Harmon are sitting and Sinn Fein have never taken their seats so it's no change with regard to the representation of NI in the Commons and people of NI voted for the MPs so the DUP can legitimately argue that they are representing the NI public - however that obviously doesn't translate with regards to the Remain vote in NI and their own political party agenda. Sylvia Harmon is one the sanest, hardworking MPs and Sinn Fein have always been an absentionist party.

Question Time was presented from Belfast last week.

A member of the audience did raise the question of why the NI MPs on the panel were being paid a salary - because they were hardly doing any work! I believe that civil servants are running the country instead.

Sinn Fein MPs do not take and never have taken their seats in Westminster.

Sinn Fein MPs do not take and never have taken their seats in Westminster.

Yes - that was criticised as well.

They're doing constituency work, but what I can't imagine. My Mp certainly doesn't do anything for me, no point emailing him about Brexit because he's SF and doesn't sit in Westminster. Useless pack of cunts.

MLA ≠ MP

MLAs aren't sitting because... God knows- probably Ash For Cash, or flags, or something.

Sylvia Harmon (independent MP) sits at Westminster, as do the DUP. The SF MPs don't sit, never have sat and stand in the full knowledge and expectation that that will continue to be the case. On the one hand you could say that means people within SF constituencies are unrepresented (true) but you could also say they've brought it upon themselves (also true). Apart from not sitting in the chamber or voting, they do normal constituency work.

The clustercuss of the piece being that all the people who didn't vote for SF are being represented by....well, no-one. First past the post sucks.

Oh, and no, the SF MPs don't take an MP's salary (or pension) but they can claim for travel, staff and office expenses.

As up thread - MLAs are not sitting and are being paid some of their salary. MPs are still sittings and being paid.

Sinn Fein do not take their MP seats.

Thanks everyone, that explains things well!! It is however a shame that the only people who can speak for me in this shitstorm are 1 independent (who is probably inundated) and the DUP spacemen....... so for majority of NI we may as well just sit here & see what is done to us!!!

The seven SF MPs do not take their seats. The stated reason for this has recently changed again. It used to be because of the 'Mandate of 1918' and their claim to be the sole legitimate representatives of the Irish People North and South. When they decided to contest Dial seats, it became a matter of the Oath of Allegiance.

Recently, Michelle O'Neill stated in a BBC TV interview that the oath was irrelevant and its dispensation would not change their policy.

SF MPs receive no salary, a fact they whinge about on their website, but do claim very substantial expenses for employing staff in their constituencies and maintaining offices.

It makes me smile that SF MPs are happy to take the King's Shilling in expenses paid for by UK taxpayers.
But the DUP are a bunch of wankers too.