DUP Rejects Pre-Christmas Deal to Restore Power Sharing in Northern Ireland

UK Government's £2.5 Billion Financial Package Deemed Insufficient as Talks Over Post-Brexit Trading Arrangements Continue

The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) has rejected the possibility of a deal to restore power sharing in Northern Ireland before Christmas, stating that talks with the UK government over post-Brexit trading arrangements need more time.
The UK government had offered a £2.5 billion financial package to Northern Ireland on the condition that the executive is revived, but the DUP and other parties have deemed this insufficient.
The DUP's boycott of the Stormont executive and assembly has been ongoing for 22 months, in protest of checks on goods entering Northern Ireland from Great Britain.
The DUP's leader, Jeffrey Donaldson, faces pressure from within his party and from outspoken loyalists, who demand the complete elimination of the Irish Sea border.
If a Stormont executive has not been reformed by January 18, Northern Ireland Secretary Chris Heaton-Harris is legally obligated to call another assembly election.