Efforts to form a new regional government in Northern Ireland looked set to fail on Monday, prolonging a political deadlock.

Northern Ireland's political parties had until 3 p.m. to form a power-sharing executive, but Sinn Fein walked away from the talks on Sunday night.

Disputed Irish loughs present Brexit dilemma for fishermen Waterways present Brexit conundrum Mussel fishermen share many of the concerns about Britain's divorce from the European Union. They are also felt by many people who earn a living along the border between Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic.

Disputed Irish loughs present Brexit dilemma for fishermen Fishermen are worried Many fishermen have an additional headache on top of the prospect of tariffs and trade disruption: the waters in which they fish are the subject of a territorial row that stretches back decades. Carlingford Lough is a waterway that forms part of the border between the county of Down in British-run Northern Ireland and Louth in EU member Ireland.

Disputed Irish loughs present Brexit dilemma for fishermen Carlingford Lough border issues In this picture Northern Ireland is seen on the left and the Republic of Ireland on the right with Carlingford Lough in the middle. Irish Prime Minister Enda Kenny has said it is of "vital national interest" that no physical barrier or customs controls be put back on the border, winning initial EU backing. But the fishermen of Carlingford Lough fear their concerns will not be a priority.

Disputed Irish loughs present Brexit dilemma for fishermen Stuck in the middle Fisherman MacDonald explains: "No one can define who owns what. Neither of the two governments have defined the border here and nobody can say where is the North and where is the South. We're stuck in the middle and nobody wants to talk to us about it."

Disputed Irish loughs present Brexit dilemma for fishermen Scenic view of the Irish landscape In fact, talks are ongoing between the Irish and British governments relating to the jurisdiction of Carlingford Lough and the unresolved ownership of Lough Foyle, which lies to the west between Donegal and Derry. The Loughs Agency, a cross-border body overseeing both areas, said that in a statement.

Disputed Irish loughs present Brexit dilemma for fishermen Border dispute might hurt the industry Mussel fisherman Brian Cunningham, seen here with his skipper Shay Fitzpatrick, explains, that most boats based in Northern Ireland normally fish off the coast in the Republic of Ireland. He thus fears that Brexit could lead to a doubling up of paperwork such as trawler registrations. This adds costs that would hurt the industry.

Disputed Irish loughs present Brexit dilemma for fishermen Difficult times ahead for mussel fishermen "When Brexit comes, what's going to happen? We're going to have to jump through hoops that by the time the paper work is sorted out our mussels will be dead. Mussels are landed live, processed live and sold live to the customer. It's a live animal, so it's going to be very, very difficult," Cunningham says. Author: Nadine Berghausen



The crisis was triggered in January when Sinn Fein's Martin McGuinness resigned as deputy first minister over the handling of a green energy scheme by First Leader Arlene Foster from the rival Democratic Unionist Party. He then died in March from a heart illness.

His resignation triggered a snap election, but that failed to end the stalemate between Sinn Fein, representing Catholic Irish nationalists, and the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), the pro-British and Protestant party led by Foster.

Sinn Fein pull out

Sinn Fein pulled out when they said agreement could not be reached in disputed issues including funding services for Irish language speakers, gay rights and inquiries into deaths during Northern Ireland's three decades of sectarian violence.

"The talks process has run its course and Sinn Fein will not be nominating for the position of speaker or for the executive office tomorrow," said Michelle O'Neill, the party's leader in Northern Ireland.

Watch video 02:52 Share Northern Ireland's farmers concerned about Brexit Send Facebook google+ Whatsapp Tumblr linkedin stumble Digg reddit Newsvine Permalink https://p.dw.com/p/2b1ef Northern Ireland's farmers concerned about Brexit

Foster gave a similar assessment, saying: "Regrettably the reality is that sufficient progress was not achieved in the time available to form a new executive."

London pushes for deal

Despite the two main parties declaring talks were over, London was doggedly trying to push for a deal.

"Even at this stage I urge political parties to agree to work to form an executive and provide people here with the strong and stable devolved government that they want," James Brokenshire, Britain's Northern Ireland minister who has chaired the three weeks of talks, said on Sunday.

Once the deadline passes Brokenshire must decide whether to call another election, return to direct British rule of the province or give parties more time. Analysts said he would likely announce fresh elections - the third in a year - but not set a date in a bid to provide extra time.

Theresa May is battling referendum calls in Northern Ireland and Scotland

Referendum vote

The failure came just ahead of UK Prime Minister Theresa May's plans to formally start talks on Wednesday to leave the European Union - a process that will determine Northern Ireland's political and economic future.

Sinn Fein's success in the March 2 election, where it surged to within one seat of the DUP emboldened its calls for a referendum to leave the United Kingdom and unite the island of Ireland.

The collapsed talks may have further thwarted May's hopes to show a united front to Brussels risks, with Scotland also rumbling for independence.

Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon was expected to win backing of Scottish lawmakers on Tuesday to take the referendum request to London.

May traveled to Scotland on Monday to meet Sturgeon and announce stronger powers for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

aw/ (AFP, AP, dpa)