DUP accused of cross border 'ambush'

Talks to resolve sticking points are to continue at Stormont

Nationalists say attempts are being made to "slow and strangle" cross-border cooperation as laid out in the Good Friday Agreement.

On the second day of post- Leeds Castle talks at Stormont on Wednesday, the Democratic Unionists (DUP) produced fresh proposals to end the latest political impasse.

The party wants more control over Belfast-Dublin relations. But nationalists are unhappy.

Their unease stems from a second government document which has been obtained by the BBC.

It is entitled "Accountability - Strand Two" and covers north-south relations.

It has caused annoyance in nationalist circles at Stormont as it proposes more ministerial accountability over joint policy initiatives with the Irish government.

Sinn Fein said it had "major concerns" about the proposals, whilst a senior SDLP source warned that it could lead to "abuse, delay and bureaucracy".

The leaked paper proposes a number of key changes to the workings of the North-South Ministerial Council (NSMC), the institution which brings together ministers from Stormont and Dublin.

The main proposals are:

• Draft NSMC decision papers would be circulated to all executive members within a fixed period (i.e. two weeks)

• all executive members would have the right to question, comment, request consultation, etc

• executive ministers, in some circumstances, would be required to make every effort to ensure all members of the executive agreed with draft decision papers

• Stormont ministers who accompany the lead minister to the NSMC would be given equal status under the law (at present the lead minister is the one whose department is most affected and accompanying minister has a monitoring role and comes from the opposite tradition

• all NSMC agendas would be given to the Assembly 14 days in advance

• committees could summon the minister and prevent them from proceeding on an agenda item through a cross-community vote; the executive would then examine the matter

As the SDLP prepared its own document on the current dispute over ministerial powers in any power sharing executive, a party source claimed the Democratic Unionists were trying to strangle and veto North/South institutions.

A party source said: "All of these measures are designed to slow and strangle the North/South bodies and they're way beyond what we could accept.

"There were 63 North/South meetings during the last administration and on no occasion did the DUP at any time say there was anything wrong.

"There was never a whimper from them and yet the DUP is trying now to legislate measures which would slow down and strangle the cross-border bodies."

The political institutions in Northern Ireland were suspended in October 2002 amid allegations of IRA intelligence gathering at the Northern Ireland Office.