It has been confirmed that the election to the Northern Ireland Assembly will take place on 7 March, 2007 and as a consequence the standard election guidelines are now in force.

In order to enable balanced and interesting debates, messageboards and discussion forums across the BBC will be operating under the BBC's agreed policies. This means there will be additional guidelines for members to abide by if they intend to discuss election issues.

In addition to the existing House Rules you must:

• Declare if you are a candidate
• Discuss the issues, not the personalities
• Avoid sloganeering
• Avoid campaigning

From time to time during the campaign it may be necessary to restrict or close certain discussions. More information on the BBC's guidelines during local elections can be found here.

If you wish to discuss the election guidelines with other Researchers, please use the Conversation Forum below.