By Thanasis Gavou

The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) Northern Ireland has agreed to return to local government with Sinn Féin, as provided for in the Good Friday peace deal, putting an end to the political deadlock which had paralyzed the provincial institutions of the United Kingdom for two years.

The midnight announcement was made by DUP leader Sir Geoffrey Donaldson at the end of another round of intensive negotiations with the UK government’s Northern Ireland Secretary Chris Heaton-Harris.

The party’s return to coalition government, which will allow the executive to fully function again in Northern Ireland as well as the local Stormont parliament, is conditional on the promotion of new legislation by Rishi Sunak’s government in London.

Mr Heaton-Harris announced that the measures of the new legislation would be presented to the House of Commons as early as Wednesday.

The DUP’s abstention from the coalition began in February 2022 in protest at Brexit rules. The DUP felt that the London-Brussels deal placed unacceptable barriers and controls on trade between Northern Ireland and Great Britain, threatening the integrity of the UK.

The resulting freeze on Stormond and the devolved executive power meant, among other things, that funds could not be used for increases in the public sector.

Although the details of the new deal have not been released, Sir Jeffrey said the DUP believed it would remove barriers to trade with the UK.

The 1998 peace agreement provides for the sharing of power in Northern Ireland between the largest parties from the republican community (who want the union of Ireland and leaving the UK Crown) and the unionist community (who want to remain in the United Kingdom ).

First in the election, republican Sinn Féin will choose the local prime minister and the unionist DUP the deputy prime minister.