The Secretary of State is set to extend a deadline for calling a fresh Stormont election and cut MLA pay, according to reports.
Chris Heaton-Harris will extend the current January 19 deadline by six weeks, with an option to extend it by a further six weeks.
He is also expected to reduce MLA pay by just under a third, 27%. The basic salary for MLAs is £51,500, with the 27% reduction this would mean wages of roughly £37,000 – a drop of £14,000
Read more: Dozens of Stormont questions go unanswered after caretaker ministers removed from office
The moves will require legislation to be laid and passed at Westminster.
The Northern Ireland secretary is due to confirm his plans in a statement to the House of Commons on Wednesday.
A failure to form a Stormont Executive since May's Assembly election currently places a legal responsibility on the UK Government to hold a poll by January 19.
Mr Heaton-Harris has already ruled out a December election, while a poll in January would present logistical challenges as the election campaign would run through the festive period.
On Tuesday Downing Street said the restoration of Stormont power-sharing was an "absolute priority".
The DUP is blocking the restoration of the devolved institutions in protest against Brexit's Northern Ireland Protocol.
It has made clear it will not return to power-sharing until the protocol's economic barriers on trade between Great Britain and Northern Ireland are scrapped.
Negotiations between London and Brussels aimed at securing changes to the protocol are continuing.
The deadline to establish a new Executive lapsed on October 28, with the Government assuming a legal responsibility to hold a fresh poll within 12 weeks.
Mr Heaton-Harris had repeatedly vowed to set an election date the minute the deadline expired, but he was accused of a U-turn after backtracking on his pledge.
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