Northern Ireland First Minister Michelle O'Neill says parties 'united' on resolving issues

Northern Ireland's first and deputy first ministers have said the Executive is united, ready to work together to deliver for people and bring about a "sustainable future".

Michelle O'Neill and Emma Little Pengelly were speaking in their first joint press conference ahead of the first full Executive meeting on Monday after power sharing was restored on Saturday after two years of a DUP boycott.

First Minister Michelle O’Neill said the new Executive was presenting a “united front” in terms of Northern Ireland’s financial situation.

She said: “Today is a good day, we have an Executive functioning, we have an Executive in place who want to tackle all the issues that we are trying to tackle. “Emma and I stand in front of you today as first and deputy first minister. We are trying to do our best to get to grips with some of these issues that we have ahead of us.” She added: “Let’s for today focus on the fact that we have presented a united front in terms of the finance situation that we face here. “We are about to start this Executive meeting and we are all going to work together to do whatever we can to secure the best possible financial situation that allows us to deliver good public services.”

On Monday both Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Taoiseach Leo Varadkar visited Stormont to meet with the parties.

Michelle O’Neill said the meeting with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak focused on Stormont’s finances. “We very much majored today on the issue of the finances, public services needing to be properly resourced,” she told reporters.

“We had a fair good discussion, I think, with the prime minister in relation to that, with the taoiseach in terms of north-south co-operation and how we can effectively work together. “We’re going to get in now and have our first executive meeting, executive colleagues have been engaged all morning and I think we certainly have a large in-tray of issues to get to.”

Deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly said ministers had to deliver on high public expectation that issues with struggling public services will be addressed. “I think we’re very conscious that there are big, big issues for all of the Executive members and ourselves to try and tackle,” she said. “The first big issue, of course, is trying to secure the sufficient resources and the right fiscal arrangements to ensure that we can deliver. “We know that there’s a very clear expectation of delivery, we want to deliver, we need to fix our public services, we need to help those people who are struggling at the moment in terms of getting access to those necessary public services. “So we took the opportunity this morning to raise that issue directly with the Prime Minister. I welcome the fact that the Prime Minister has indicated that he will continue with those conversations, that those will be detailed conversations around issues such as the fiscal floor and public sector pay. “We want to ensure that this Executive has the right tools, the sufficient resources, to do what it needs to do, and that is to deliver for the people of Northern Ireland. “We’re up for that challenge. We’re up for a very constructive working relationship, to try to tackle those issues together and with our Executive colleagues around the Executive table.”

Ms Little-Pengelly said the Executive told the Prime Minister that the right package for public sector pay had to be agreed. She said: “We have been very clear with the Prime Minister throughout this process that we do want Northern Ireland’s finances to be on a sustainable basis. “But we have also highlighted that in order to do that does require reform. “That reform will require investment. We can only do that while supporting the continuance of our public services at the same time if we are sufficiently resourced. “I think that is something the Prime Minister, as someone who was part and parcel of the Treasury for many years, understands. “That is why we appealed to him to say, it’s not just about reform and investment, it is not just about supporting our public services, but it is also about getting the right package in terms of public sector pay. “We recognise that the workers within that system are absolutely necessary if we are to achieve what we want to achieve.”

She added: “Within every department there are very important issues. “But the key thing here is we are only going to find resolutions for those by working together and working constructively together. “That’s what we’re up for, I think the rest of the Executive is up for that challenge.”

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