Reid hails NI peace progress

Dr Reid says the province has changed for the better

A "monumental distance" has been travelled since the Good Friday Agreement was signed, the Northern Ireland Secretary John Reid has said.

In a statement marking the fourth anniversary of the agreement, Dr Reid said while there had been problems in the peace process, there were many positives.

Speaking to the BBC, he praised the work the Policing Board had done to further the peace process and said the changes that have taken place in policing were all part of a long term process.

"People said we would never get agreement on a badge or a uniform or the symbols of policing but the policing board rose to that challenge and they designed and they produced an agreement among themselves," he said.

Daily life for millions of our ordinary citizens is vastly improved

John Reid

"The events surrounding the police ombudsman's report on Omagh, it would have taken great wisdom from any individual to reach a solution on that that had cross party cross community support and yet again the policing board rose to that."

"It is always possible to dwell on difficulties facing the peace process and focusing on what has yet to be done but we should also remember just how far we have come over the last four years.

Dr Reid pointed to the recent tit-for-tat attacks in the West Bank, saying it was a "tragic irony" that what was happening the Middle East should dominate the news on the anniversary of the peace agreement in Northern Ireland.

"Remember, Northern Ireland used to be like that, thousands dead during the troubles and normal life impossible to carry out," he told Breakfast News.

"But over the past four years, despite the enormous challenges, daily life for millions of our ordinary citizens is vastly improved because we've chosen to resolve these difficulties politically."

'Side issues'

He told the BBC "every single" element of the agreement had been implemented.

"That includes inclusive cross-community government, reformation of our institutions, human rights and decommissioning," he said.

John Reid: reflecting on what has been achieved

There were still many challenges ahead but they would be tackled with "renewed hope and determination", he added.

These included the controversy over paramilitary prisoners on the run.

In an interview with the ePolitix.com website, Dr Reid admitted the province did not have a perfect peace or a perfect democracy, but added: "the first green shoots of the new Northern Ireland are appearing".

On Thursday, Ulster Unionist leader David Trimble claimed the accord was being undermined by "side issues".

The Stormont First Minister warned attempts to resolve the issue of around 30 fugitives on the run and plans to give Northern Ireland politicians speaking rights in the Irish parliament were outside the agreement.

"We don't need things that are not in the agreement and that specifically refers firstly to the question of a form of amnesty for on-the-run terrorists," he declared.

"That's not in the agreement. There is no amnesty."