Stormont’s failure to elect a chair leaves Daithi Mac Gavan’s parents with no other choice.
Martin Mac Gavan said he was disappointed but not surprised after Stormont City Council failed to elect a chairperson again. This meant that it could not pass the regulations necessary to enforce the Daiti law.
His 6-year-old son Daiti is currently waiting for a heart transplant. The new law would introduce an opt-out organ donation system in North Korea.
The DUP has refused to join the devolved government until concerns over the Northern Ireland Protocol are resolved.
Parliament’s failure to act has now put the focus on Northern Ireland Secretary of State Chris Heaton-Harris and MPs with constituencies in the north.
Mac Gavan said Westminster was their “last hope”. He added that the cries of “joke” in the chamber after the failure to elect a speaker showed that his family was not alone in their frustration.
Sinn Féin Vice-President Michelle O’Neill meets six-year-old Dicey Mac Gavan in the Great Hall of Parliament House in Stormont.Photo: Liam McBurney/Pennsylvania
“It’s a very disappointing day for us,” he said yesterday. “Today is Valentine’s Day, Heart Day, and Congenital Heart Defects Day. We had a chance to have a bit of a fairytale ending when it comes to Daiti’s Law, but unfortunately it’s not.
“We are not at all surprised, but we have never lost hope. Until that last moment, we still had a glimmer of hope. But today we have a focus solely on Westminster.” I think it gave me an opportunity to guess.”
He continued: “We would like to have another conversation with the members of Congress, but there was also talk about a joint amendment. It’s very easy to understand from the floor. [of the Assembly] It is extremely unfortunate that even though all political parties supported it, they were unable to cross the line.
“We’re not going to let this rest. We’re still going to fight, but what we’ll probably do now is look at flights next week. We’re going to take the fight to London.”
The DUP says the regulations could be passed at Westminster. However, the Northern Ireland Office (NIO) expressed doubts about the DUP’s plans to implement the law with some planned amendments.
Mr Mac Gavan called for clarity on the process at Westminster.
“We just wish there was some transparency right now. We heard some things, we saw other things, but… [but] All we need is the truth. We need to know what happens at Westminster.
“I demand honesty and transparency from members of Congress and the Secretary of State.
“Is this political football game over?” I hope so. I hope that now we can get the answers that we not only need, but deserve. ”
Six-year-old Daithi Mac Gavan and his parents, father Martin Mac Gavan and mother Sef Ní Mearein, at Parliament House in Stormont.Photo: Liam McBurney/Pennsylvania
An NIO spokesperson said the Secretary of State “shares the frustration of Mr Dighty and the Mac Govern family that the political impasse in Northern Ireland is causing unnecessary delays to life-saving legislation”.
“The quickest and easiest way to implement Dicey’s Law is for Northern Ireland’s political parties to push the bill through Parliament,” they added.
