Sinn Féin’s Michelle O’Neill says next days will be ‘crucial’ in restoring power-sharing.

Sinn Féin’s Michelle O’Neill has said it is a day of “optimism” after the Democratic Unionist Parry (DUP) announced it would back a deal to restore power-sharing after a 23-month absence.

The DUP collapsed the executive nearly two years ago in protest against post-Brexit trade arrangements.

Its leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson said the deal provided a basis for Stormont’s return, subject to laws being passed at parliament.

Sinn Féin is the largest party in Northern Ireland after the last assembly election and will nominate Ms O’Neill for the position of first minister, with the DUP the second largest, entitling it to the role of deputy first minister.

This will be the first time the Northern Ireland Assembly will have a nationalist first minister.

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