New efforts to resolve NI impasse

The British and Irish Governments are to start work on gaining agreement between the parties in the breathing space created by the Northern Ireland Assembly's suspension.

The pro-Agreement parties were given another six weeks to try to find a way of breaking the deadlock in the political process, when Northern Ireland secretary John Reid suspended the assembly for 24 hours at the weekend.

Although the assembly is currently in recess for the summer, the work in its departments will begin again on Monday following the restoration of devolution.

The two governments have been trying to broker a resolution on the issues of decommissioning, policing, demilitarisation and concerns about the stability of the political institutions.

They presented a package of proposals aimed at breaking the impasse to the parties, but last week none of the pro-Agreement parties had fully accepted it.

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Some of the details of the plan - including the implementation plan on policing - have not yet been published.

As the governments faced the uphill task of again starting work on the issues blocking the process, the Ulster Unionist Party said the six-week period must be used to secure actual IRA decommissioning.

Party leader David Trimble has gone on holiday.

But speaking on BBC Radio Ulster on Monday, Ulster Unionist Economy minister Sir Reg Empey said republican comments of a threat to progress in the process because of suspension, was "codswallop" and that it was time for republicans to honour their obligations.

'Republicans must move'

He was responding to comments by Sinn Fein president Gerry Adams at the weekend, who accused the Northern Ireland secretary of patronising republicans over the temporary suspension of the devolved institutions.

Reg Empey: "Honour your obligations"

Mr Adams warned against trying to pressure republicans into disarming on unionist or British terms over the next six weeks.

However, Sir Reg said decommissioning was an obligation that the republican movement must honour.

He said: "We are only trying to get people to honour the commitment that they entered into and they are still using it as a bargaining chip they are still using it to keep the whole process on tenterhooks and I think it is morally repugnant."

However, Mr Adams said patronising and pressuring republicans on the issue of decommissioning would not produce a breakthrough.

"I hear also the patronising tone that the institutions have been stood down for only one day and now it's OK again. Well, it's not OK again."

Speculation is mounting that the IRA's proposal on how it will decommission its weapons may have been jeopardised by the suspension, and by unionist rejection of the offer.

The plan - to put its weapons permanently and verifiably beyond use - had been accepted by General John de Chastelain's international decommissioning body.

Dr Reid said he would be "deeply disappointed if the IRA walked away" from its agreement.

Meanwhile, the SDLP has called on Dr Reid to publish details of the proposed implementation plan on policing.

'Further certainty needed'

The party's spokesman on policing, Alex Attwood, said publication of the plan would help the process.

Mark Durkan: "Policing plan must be published"

"What we are saying to the British Government let us now create further certainty on the issue of policing by publishing the implementation plan on policing which outlines in detail how the 175 Patten recommendations are going to be implemented in detail," he said.

The party has so far refused to endorse new policing proposals, despite the governments package of proposals to address the issue, a move which has angered the Ulster Unionist Party.

The Irish Foreign Minister, Brian Cowen, called on politicians to use the extra negotiating time productively, and to work together.

The latest crisis was brought to a head by the resignation of Ulster Unionist leader David Trimble as Northern Ireland first minister, because the IRA had not begun to disarm.