'This is the final offer,' says NI secretary over £1.5bn Stormont funding package

The Northern Ireland Secretary of State has said the government's £1.5bn financial package for Stormont is his "final offer" and has given executive parties until next Thursday to respond.

Sir Chris Bryant said there was "no more money" available and that the Northern Ireland Executive needed to agree on a budget.

He said he would have to consider "every eventuality" if the executive failed to reach an agreement, including the possibility of a budget being passed at Westminster but wanted to "sit down and I'll be as cooperative as I possibly can".

However some parties have criticised the deadline with the DUP's Diane Dodds describing it as "reckless".

Earlier this month, Bryant made an offer of a financial package worth about £1.5bn over the next three years - that was a rise from an initial proposal of £1.1bn.

But executive parties said it did not go far enough and have argued that significant gaps remain before they can agree to a deal that would allow them to set a budget.

Some six months have passed since the executive should have set a budget for this financial year.

Speaking to BBC Newsline , Sir Chris said he had given executive parties until noon next Thursday to come back to him with a plan for agreeing a budget for this year and the following two years.