Today, Chris Heaton-Harris, the Northern Ireland secretary, is expected to outline the next steps for the UK government following a failed attempt to restore power sharing in Northern Ireland before Christmas. The DUP has been boycotting devolved government at Stormont for 22 months due to their objections to post-Brexit trade arrangements. Meanwhile, business groups have supported calls for extra Treasury funding for Stormont to be backdated.
Roundtable talks are continuing this week involving the four largest parties: Sinn Féin, the DUP, Alliance and the Ulster Unionist Party. While the UK government has hoped an agreement could be reached before parliamentary recess on Tuesday, the DUP said negotiations continue and it is “critical” to get them right. Some progress was achieved in the talks, where a £2.5bn financial offer was made by the UK government if Stormont returns. But in talks on Monday, there was no firm outcome in those discussions with the Treasury and Northern Ireland Office officials.
The DUP withdrew its first minister from Stormont’s power-sharing executive in February 2022 in protest over the Northern Ireland Protocol. The protocol was introduced to preclude the need for goods checks along the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, which is still an EU member state. Earlier this year, trade rules contained in the protocol were eased by the Windsor Framework, a new arrangement negotiated by Boris Johnson with the EU. However, the DUP has said it did not go far enough and has been in closed talks with the government for months to demand further changes to the framework.
Last week, British Chancellor Rishi Sunak said his government was poised to legislate to protect Northern Ireland’s place in the UK internal market. But the DUP has also asked for new legislation that “safeguards and protects Northern Ireland’s ability to trade within the United Kingdom”.
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