What the papers say

Journalist Tony MacAuley takes a look at what is making the headlines in Friday's morning papers.

Politics dominates the local papers, with the News Letter reporting on Tony Blair's intervention on Thursday to keep the St Andrews Agreement alive amid concerns that the proposed Sinn Fein conference on law and order could be cancelled.

The paper says: "Tony Blair made it clear yesterday that Sinn Fein had to support policing in word and deed before the political process can move on." The headline is: "Deliver."

Its Morning View column says "progress will not be made" with what it calls "quick-fix tactics that would inevitably unravel at the slightest sign of pressure".

The Irish News reports that a fifth Sinn Fein MLA, Thomas O'Reilly who represents Fermanagh and South Tyrone, has said he will not seek re-election in the proposed March poll while a sixth MLA, Philip McGuigan from North Antrim, has refused to confirm his plans.

The Irish Times says "Sinn Fein president Gerry Adams is to take time over the weekend to consider whether he will press ahead with a party ard fheis on policing".

The Irish Independent quotes Taoiseach Bertie Ahern saying that "it was only on the basis of clarity that they could proceed with an election in the north".

'Honesty and transparency'

The Belfast Telegraph's comment column says: "Ordinary people in Northern Ireland could be forgiven for thinking that rather than reach agreement, Sinn Fein and the DUP are seeking ways of escaping their responsibilities under the St Andrews Agreement".

It says that ordinary people expect their politicians, "who are extremely well paid for their job, to conduct themselves with honesty and transparency".

The Irish News says there has been a "dramatic U-turn on controversial plans to centralise life-saving hospital services to Belfast".

The paper says the proposals leaked last year caused public outcry by "leaving a third of the population more than an hour away from major trauma services at the Royal".

It says that "health officials last night confirmed the proposals had been 'revised' and would be released for full public consultation in the coming weeks".

The editorial welcomes the decision and adds that the consultation process must not be "a cosmetic exercise but a vital contribution to the final decision".

'Human-animal embryos'

Meanwhile, the Times reports on a proposed ban on the creation of 'human-animal' embryos such as rabbit-human embryos.

The paper says "the proposed ban on fusing human DNA with animal eggs" is described by leading scientists as "an affront to thousands of Britons suffering from conditions such as motor neurone disease and Alzheimer's".

The Guardian reports on new research published in the Lancet, that says "giving women with certain breast cancers the drug Herceptin improves survival rates two years on".

However, the study indicates the drug can cause cardiac damage in some women, the paper says.

The Sun reports that those who took the drug for a year after having had tumours removed and a course of chemotherapy, were almost twice as likely to remain cancer free.

On a lighter note, the Sun reports that England cricket star Monty Panesar has won Beard of The Year. He beat Fidel Castro into second place with the Archbishop of Canterbury picking up third place.

The paper says the awards are given by the Beard Liberation Front, who describe themselves as "an informal network of beard wearers".