Coveney: People in Northern Ireland won't be helped by a winter election
Ireland's Foreign Affairs Minister Simon Coveney has said that a winter election would be "unhelpful" in the context of the cost-of-living crisis facing people in Northern Ireland.
"For us, we think that an election would be unnecessary and unhelpful at this time, that's been the Irish Government's view for some time.
"But these are difficult choices for the British Government and for the Secretary of State because of his obligations under NDNA (the New Decade New Approach agreement)."
He's also said that no decisions have yet been finalised on whether an election will be held in Northern Ireland, but he said that he expects the UK to make a decision soon.
"We had a good meeting today, obviously reflecting on the current situation, on the legal obligations that he has under the New Decade, New Approach agreement," he said.
"But also, I made it clear that the Irish Government's position is that we don't believe an election at this time is a good thing for Northern Ireland, in the context of the pressures that families and households are facing now, and also in the context of the reality that we've had an election only a number of months ago.
"So we discussed options and views on a way forward. No decisions have been finalised yet, but I don't think we're going to have to wait for very long before decisions are made in relation to the way forward.
"There really are only two options here: there is a legal obligation to set a date for an election, or else there will need to be new legislation to avoid an election at this time."