Arlene Foster has asked the Irish Government "Why is it the backstop or nothing?"
Leader of the DUP Arlene Foster appeared on Morning Ireland to talk about her plans for working with Boris Johnson and Brexit on Wednesday.
Speaking on
RTÉ's Morning Ireland, Foster said that she hopes they can now “dial back on the rhetoric” and look for a different solution.
Foster said that while a no-deal Brexit is undesirable for everyone, she believes that the government in the Republic of Ireland have been belligerent in their pursuit of a backstop in the Brexit agreement.
She said: "Let’s be clear, nobody wants a no-deal situation. We want to find a way forward that’s good for the UK, including Northern Ireland, and is good for the Republic of Ireland as well.
"Unfortunately, what we have met thus far is a belligerence and an intolerance towards Northern Ireland from Dublin saying, ‘it’s the backstop or nothing.’"
When asked about the importance of the her relationship with Britain's new Prime Minister, Foster said that she is looking forward to working with Boris Johnson, to find a way forward that is good for the whole of the island of Ireland.
She also said she wants to work with Johnson on restoring Stormont, but said that the restoration of the assembly is being hampered because of Sinn Féin's "growing list" of demands that is "getting longer by the day."
