Stormont has until midnight to resurrect power-sharing as the deadline looms for calling a snap election.
If no ministerial Executive is in place by then, the UK Government assumes a legal responsibility to call another poll.
Secretary of State Chris Heaton-Harris has been adamant he will do so if the devolved institutions are not restored on Thursday, with the likely election date December 15.
Read more: December Northern Ireland Assembly election to cost £6.5m
MLAs have been recalled to the Assembly for an emergency sitting at noon in a last-ditch effort to restore the institutions.
But the attempt looks doomed to fail, as the DUP will veto it.
The party has been blocking the re-establishment of the Executive and Assembly since elections in May in protest over Brexit's Northern Ireland Protocol.
It has said it will not resume power-sharing until decisive action is taken to remove the protocol's economic barriers on trade between Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
The UK Government has vowed to secure changes to the protocol, either by a negotiated compromise with the EU or through proposed domestic legislation.
DUP leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson said his party is "ready to fight" in a fresh election.
Speaking after talks with the Secretary of State, Sir Jeffrey said: "We need to clear away the debris of the protocol, that needs to be our focus.
"We need to get agreement on arrangements that respect Northern Ireland’s place within the United Kingdom and that allow for continuing cross-border trade where that is required, and I don’t see how an election helps us to get there.
“But, to be clear, we’re ready to fight in that election, I've just been signing off on our election literature, we're ready to go.
“If the Secretary of State decides to call the election I’m not afraid to take my case to the people."
Sinn Fein, supported by the Alliance Party, collected the required 30 MLA signatures for a successful petition to recall the Assembly on Thursday.
The sitting will attempt to elect a new Speaker - a pre-requisite before ministers can be appointed - but the DUP will block the move.
DUP Economy Minister Gordon Lyons has branded the move a "stunt", saying that power-sharing cannot be restored until changes are secured to the protocol.
It will be the fourth attempt since May's election to elect a new Speaker and restore the power-sharing institutions.
Sinn Fein deputy leader Michelle O'Neill said her priority was to restore devolved government.
But she warned the "clock is ticking" and said if efforts fail there can be no return to direct rule from London.
She called for a "joint approach" between London and Dublin if devolution cannot be salvaged, but the DUP leader warned any suggestion of joint authority would do "enormous harm".
Ms O'Neill tweeted: "People deserve parties working together to support them through rising living costs.
"I appeal to those blocking an Executive, to work with the rest of us and put money into people's pockets."
Mr Heaton-Harris, who was reappointed to his role by new Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on Tuesday, repeated on Wednesday his warning over another election.
He tweeted: "The people of Northern Ireland deserve a fully-functioning devolved government so I understand the public's frustration.
"However, if the parties will not re-form, I will call an election."
Asked about the prospect of a snap poll, the Prime Minister's official spokesman said: "That position remains that that will be triggered on the 28th.
"The exact date for the election will have to be set out subsequently."
While Northern Ireland currently has no first or deputy first ministers, most other ministers from the previous mandate have remained in post since May's election with limited decision-making powers.
But if Friday's deadline passes without a new Executive being formed, those remaining ministers will cease to hold office.
Election officials have said a fresh poll would cost the public approximately more than £6.5million.
Alliance Party health spokesperson Paula Bradshaw said it was "unconscionable" to leave the health system without clear political leadership over the winter months.
The MLA said a recent statement from Health Minister Robin Swann outlining the challenges was a "further reminder what people in Northern Ireland need is a government, not yet another election".
READ NEXT:
- Snap Stormont election in December would be 'diabolical', UUP leader Doug Beattie says
- NI Electoral Office preparing for potential snap Stormont Assembly election in December
- No action to be taken over Sinn Féin Irish-language road signs, Stormont department says
- Call a snap election if Stormont is not restored by October, shadow Northern Ireland secretary says
For all the latest news, visit the Belfast Live homepage here. To sign up to our FREE newsletters, see here.
