Papers hail 'historic' IRA move

"Peace gets another chance" is the headline in the Times, which says the IRA's move on decommissioning offers Northern Ireland "new hope after 30 years of conflict that has claimed more than 3,000 lives".

The word "historic" is widely used by the papers as they try to sum up the significance of the IRA's step.

However, writing in the Independent Donald MacIntyre argues that for once the term "hardly does justice to the momentousness of what has happened."

According to the Guardian, the decision was hastened by the arrest of three IRA suspects in Columbia and the post-11 September global backlash against terrorist groups.

The Sun says with much of the American money which funds the provisionals having dried up, "the appetite for horror has ebbed."

The Mirror views the IRA's move as "a momentous leap of faith."

This stance is shared by the Belfast Newsletter, which recalling the terrorists' slogan of "not a bullet, not an ounce", says the unthinkable has happened.

However, amid all the euphoria some of the papers sound more cautionary notes. Writing in the Times, the author of a book about the IRA, Kevin Toolis, warns that the Real IRA will almost certainly try to bomb the British mainland "to prove that its own version of republicanism is still alive."

Cannabis puns

The prospect of a relaxation of the drugs laws provides plenty of food for thought for many of the headline writers.

The Daily Express opts for "Gone To Pot" while the Daily Star goes for "Land of Dope and Glory".

The Guardian says the reclassification of cannabis "marks official recognition that the drug is widely seen as no more harmful than tobacco or alcohol."

The Independent highlights the long-term health risks of smoking the drug, which include mouth and lung cancers, bronchitis and an increased risk of heart attacks.

Writing in the Daily Mail, leading brain specialist Susan Greenfield argues that the increased use of cannabis could lead to a society where, instead of looking at broader horizons, young people regard drugs as the "solution to all their problems."

Spin suspicion

The Sun is suspicious about the timing of David Blunkett's announcement about cannabis.

Under the headline "it's now a very good day to go soft on spliffs", the paper says the move triggered claims that it had been made, so it would be "buried" by news of the breakthrough in Northern Ireland.

The Independent believes Stephen Byers' special adviser, Jo Moore, also benefited from the government's news management, as coverage of a commons debate on her conduct became overtaken by events elsewhere.

The paper believes she must go, or as it says, in the words of a spin doctor, "pursue other opportunities."

Writing in the Times, Peter Riddell, recalling how "sleaze ate away the credibility of the Major government", warns Tony Blair that "spin and trust" could undermine his administration in the long term.

Stereotype

Several of the papers report how the Advertising Standards Authority has ruled that describing the Germans as "Krauts" is not racist, but simply a "light-hearted reference to a national stereotype."

The ruling followed a complaint about an advert coinciding with last month's England-Germany World Cup qualifying match.

The Mirror condemns the decision asking: "surely we've moved on from this kind of cheap xenophobia?"