Almost two months since June’s vote to leave the European Union, the dust continues to settle and questions persist as to what the future holds for the UK and, particularly, that special case that is Northern Ireland.

Wednesday’s letter from the First Minister and deputy First Minister to the Prime Minister, Theresa May, and this weekend’s statement from the Chancellor, Philip Hammond, provide a glimpse as to where the NI Executive’s priorities lie and what the Treasury’s intentions for the short- to medium-term entail.

In Arlene Foster and Martin McGuinness’s communication to the PM they said they must be involved in forthcoming negotiations with the EU and other countries.

They outlined their five key priorities as:

  • the Irish border;
  • trading costs;
  • the energy market;
  • EU funding;
  • the agri-food sector.

On Thursday Arlene Foster rejected opposition claims that the DUP are u-turning on their support for Brexit and have left it too late to raise concerns.

Such accusations were dismissed by the FM. It would be “negligent”, she said, not to have pointed out areas where she believes challenges exist; the letter is about “protecting interests” and she stressed opportunities also lie ahead.

This may not have brought a halt to her opposition’s questioning of the DUP’s position, as debate continued on the airwaves and social media.

However, perhaps it may have been more surprising had a letter raising issues, concerns and priorities from the Executive not been sent.

To all the uncertainty, the Chancellor has at least brought some assurances. EU structural and investment projects in Northern Ireland signed before the Autumn Statement (due in November) will be funded if they continue after Brexit. EU payments to farmers will be upheld until 2020, and universities bidding competitively for EU projects will have their payments underwritten if they continue after Brexit.

The NI Executive’s priorities are clear, yet questions still remain before negotiations to leave the EU commence.