Decisions to make for the UK kingmaker

The DUP is expected to prop up a government set to make key decisions affecting the future of Europe. What can we anticipate from the Northern party, asks Mary C Murphy

IN ORDER to ensure the survival of her minority government, UK prime minister Theresa May has chosen to pursue a confidence and supply arrangement with Northern Ireland’s Democratic Unionist Party.

For the DUP, the unexpected post-election arithmetic allows it a degree of political leverage during the lifetime of the current UK government. This means the party now assumes a potentially influential role in shaping the Brexit process, not just for Northern Ireland but for the UK as a whole.