Raid 'was nationalist betrayal'

Eddie McGrady said nationalist voters had been let down

The SDLP should examine the possibility of entering a coalition without Sinn Fein at Stormont, one of the party's MPs has said.

Speaking in the wake of allegations of IRA involvement in the £26.5m Northern Bank robbery, Eddie McGrady said his party should consider its options.

Mr McGrady said that nationalist voters had been betrayed by the IRA.

"If they want to exclude themselves by their extremism, there is very little you can do about it" he said.

He told BBC Radio Ulster's Inside Politics programme on Saturday: "Inclusivity is now the buzz word, but it doesn't mean that you have to stretch every parameter in every direction to include everybody.

"It means that you have a reasonable core set of behavioural conditions, and the people who want to subscribe to that in agreement do so and become members of the club."

Responding to Mr McGrady's comments, Sinn Fein South Down MLA Caitriona Ruane called for SDLP leader Mark Durkan to clarify his party's position.

Millions of pounds were stolen from the bank on 20 December

She said Mr McGrady's comments would "infuriate and anger" the vast majority of nationalists and republicans.

"Mr McGrady very clearly indicates that the SDLP are considering running with the DUP proposal for some sort of voluntary coalition excluding the majority of nationalist opinion," she said.

"The very least Mark Durkan can do now is to clarify publicly whether or not this is now the SDLP position."

The Democratic Unionist Party has called for the removal of allowances and privileges at Westminster from Sinn Fein's four MPs.

It follows an assessment by the PSNI Chief Constable Hugh Orde that the IRA was behind the raid on the bank head office in Belfast on 20 December.

The IRA has denied the claims and Sinn Fein backed its denials.

Ulster Unionist leader David Trimble has said republicans should not be given a last chance to join the political process.

Mr Trimble said that the prime minister had not taken strong enough action against them over the years.

On Thursday, Sinn Fein President Gerry Adams warned republicans would resist any attempt to discriminate against their electorate.