Northern Ireland Assembly members have inadvertently pulled the plug on TV coverage of Stormont proceedings, it was revealed tonight.
A decision taken by MLAs to restrict the filming of events within Parliament Buildings after a row about a republican commemoration means TV cameras can no longer film within the debating chamber, the Assembly has confirmed.
As the rule stands, live TV coverage of Assembly proceedings on Monday will not be screened as scheduled. The Assembly's governing body last night agreed criteria on future events at Stormont after it banned a memorial for an IRA woman shot dead by the SAS 20 years ago.
The DUP member of the Assembly Commission, Stephen Moutray, proposed a restriction on filming outside of the building's Great Hall amid concerns that if Sinn Fein switched its planned event to its private offices the press could still film it.
However commission members did not realise this ban would include the Assembly chamber. The commission has now hastily arranged a meeting for Monday to see if the chamber can be exempted from the criteria.
An Assembly spokesman said tonight: "At present, coverage of the Assembly falls within the criteria of prohibition on filming outside the area of the Great Hall within Parliament Buildings agreed by the Commission yesterday. "Commission members will meet on Monday morning to discuss whether to table an amendment to the criteria to exempt the chamber."
PA