Queen's Speech to Take Place Next Wednesday

Theresa May faced a backlash from republican parties at a series of meetings in Downing Street on Thursday over her plan to strike a deal with Northern Ireland's Democratic Unionist party to prop up her minority Conservative government, reported The Guardian.

The leader of the House of Commons, Andrea Leadsom, announced that the Conservatives would press ahead with presenting a Queen's speech next Wednesday, while negotiations continued with the DUP.

But at a series of meetings at No 10 aimed at re-establishing power-sharing in Northern Ireland, key figures from other Northern Irish parties expressed deep concern about the prospect of a Conservative-DUP pact.

The Sinn Féin leader, Gerry Adams, said he believed the deal would be in breach of the Good Friday agreement because it would undermine the government's role as a neutral convener.