jayne mccormack.hive of activity in recent days with devolution restored after a three—year hiatus. the dup and sinn fein agreed a deal that includes new legislation for the irish language and ulster scots and now the five main parties have rejoined the executive. it feels like business as usual but it's not. that's because after the december general election, the dup and sinn fein saw their vote fall while the alliance party saw a surge in its vote. it will be keen to make its muscle felt in the new assembly. there are new ministers in the executive, too, tasked with taking tough decisions on health and education, with those budgets are under severe strain. there is £1 billion in extra funding coming from the government to help with that but money isn't everything. the parties have to prove now that they can get past the honeymoon period and share power again. but time will tell if this really is a new decade with a new approach. jayne mccormack. there were fresh developments in scotland, too, as bor