Historic shift in Northern Ireland: Republican Michelle O'Neill becomes Prime Minister. The 47-year-old leader of Northern Ireland's Sinn Fein was appointed Prime Minister after the restart of the province's institutions.
Local government, responsible for areas such as housing, health, employment, agriculture and the environment, must be formed. Current affairs had been managed by the administration and London for two years due to the blockage which caused exasperation among the population. After months of negotiations with the British government, unionists from the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) announced their decision this week to end their boycott.