DUP leader is urged to nominate deputy FM to help restore executive

Northern Ireland Secretary Brandon Lewis has urged DUP leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson to nominate a deputy first minister to allow resumption of a fully functioning devolved government.

Mr Lewis was speaking hours after the conclusion of a Stormont election which saw a historic victory for Sinn Fein to become the largest party and win the entitlement to nominate a first minister.

Sir Jeffrey has called for action on the Northern Ireland Protocol before reentering the executive.

Mr Lewis is to meet with the leaders of the Stormont parties today to talk about resurrecting the Assembly.

Appearing on the BBC’s Sunday Politics programme, he said it is widely acknowledged there are issues with the protocol that need to be resolved.

He also pointed out that the full protocol has not yet been implemented with a number of grace periods running on aspects of the post-Brexit treaty.

Unionists strongly oppose the protocol as placing a border in the Irish Sea.

Mr Lewis restated his position that the government would like to reach agreement with the EU over resolving issues with the protocol, but said nothing has been taken off the table.

He urged Sir Jeffrey to nominate a deputy first minister to get devolved government fully working again.

The executive has been unable to fully function since February when the former first minister Paul Givan resigned as part of the DUP’s call for action against the protocol.

“It’s for the UK Government to do the negotiations, Sir Jeffrey and the DUP and all parties in Stormont should together bring Stormont back to deliver on the domestic issues for Northern Ireland,” he said.

Meanwhile, Mr Lewis appeared to rule out calling a border poll, saying that while the first nationalist first minister is a significant moment, the nationalist vote overall has not grown and the unionist vote remains larger.

Appearing on the same programme, DUP MLA Jonathan Buckley responded saying his party stood on a promise to remove the protocol.

“Let me be very clear... either the Secretary of State wants an Executive or the protocol, but he can’t have both,” he said.

“The Secretary of State has a very clear choice.”

Meanwhile, Sinn Fein MP John Finucane said he was shocked anyone could deliver a message that the return of the Executive can wait amid a cost of living crisis and needed health service reform.

“There’s over £300 million sitting there, ready to go into people’s pockets, and I think it’s incumbent that we sit down collectively, because that’s what people want,” he said.

Sinn Fein has won 27 seats while the DUP has 25, the Alliance Party 17, the Ulster Unionists (UUP) nine and the SDLP eight, with four others elected.

Mr Finucane described an “excellent return” for his party, but added they could have picked up another couple of seats in some constituencies which ended in close final counts.

Mr Buckley said it had been “quite a good result” for the DUP, particularly given some predictions that his party could drop to 18 seats.

He called for unionism to have a conversation with itself, adding “divided unionism in 2022 cannot win elections”.

PHONE A FRIEND: DUP leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson, top, is under pressure to nominate a deputy first minister, while Sinn Fein Vice-President Michelle O’Neill, above left, makes an acceptance speech at the Northern Ireland Assembly at the weekend. Above right, Secretary of State Brandon Lewis.