Adams to meet unionists for talks

Sinn Fein leaders were due to hold talks in Downing Street

Sinn Fein President Gerry Adams has said he is prepared to meet David Trimble to discuss the political impasse in Northern Ireland.

Mr Adams was speaking ahead of talks with the prime minister which were due to take place on Wednesday afternoon but which have been postponed due to bad weather.

The West Belfast MP is now expected to meet Tony Blair on Thursday.

The Northern Ireland Assembly has been suspended since 14 October following a row over allegations of IRA activity, including intelligence gathering at Stormont.

The bar which the unionists have raised is very very very high indeed

Gerry Adams Sinn Fein leader

Mr Adams' comments followed a call by the Ulster Unionist leader on Tuesday for a meeting to discuss ways of restoring devolution to the province.

However, the Sinn Fein president said he believed unionists' demands were too high.

"The ability of the Sinn Fein leadership and the two governments to devise a plan has happened quite a few times in the last four years," he said.

"Maybe it can be done again but even if we do that, the bar which the unionists have raised is very, very, very high indeed.

"I don't see any sense at this time of any section of unionism running into the elections prepared to engage on a pro-Agreement axis."

Mr Adams had hoped to hold a meeting with Mr Trimble on Thursday but it will now most likely be held at the beginning of next week.

On Tuesday, David Trimble met the prime minister at Downing Street.

Afterwards, Mr Trimble expressed doubts over whether elections to the Northern Ireland Assembly should take place in May.

David Trimble: Will hold talks with the Sinn Fein leader

Mr Trimble said he wanted to see political differences over decommissioning resolved, but he admitted there was little time to secure a resolution before May.

Mr Trimble said time was running out for a decision on whether the institutions could be restored.

"There is a question of whether there is any point in having an election to an institution that no longer exists and what the practical consequences of that would be," he said.

The hour-long meeting was the first in a series Tony Blair is holding this week with Northern Ireland parties.

Difficulties

The prime minister is expected to meet a delegation from the SDLP later in the week.

Mr Trimble walked out of the last meeting - with the British and Irish Governments at Stormont - over a leaked Irish Government position paper which said the IRA was still active.

In October, Mr Blair called for "acts of completion" from the republican movement to demonstrate that it has made the transition from violence to democracy.

He said this would enable the government to fully implement its part of the Good Friday Agreement.

Sinn Fein blame the difficulties in the process on unionists.

SDLP leader Mark Durkan said both the Ulster Unionists and Sinn Fein must move away from the blame game.

Following the collapse of power-sharing at Stormont, current legislation dictates that the British and Irish Governments must review the implementation of the Good Friday Agreement on which devolution was based.

But unless some common ground can be found between the parties on how to proceed, there is no mechanism for reinstating Northern Ireland's power-sharing executive.

Both the governments have stressed that there will be no re-negotiation of the Good Friday Agreement.