FILE PHOTO: Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) Deputy Leader Nigel Dodds speaks at the DUP annual party conference in Belfast, Northern Ireland November 24, 2018. REUTERS/Clodagh Kilcoyne/File Photo

LONDON (Reuters) - The Northern Irish party that props up Prime Minister Theresa May’s government said on Friday it wanted to reach consensus on a deal that worked for the European Union and United Kingdom and that it saw paths to avoid the border backstop.

“We want to reach a consensus which respects the constitutional and economic integrity of the United Kingdom and which also works for our neighbours in the Republic of Ireland,” Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) deputy leader Nigel Dodds said.

“The trap of the backstop is the problem,” he added. “There are ways forward which do not require this backstop and we need to see a willingness to explore such options.”

Dodds said he was encouraged by what he called a more realistic approach from the EU.