PM holds justice devolution talks

Peter Robinson and Martin McGuinness have held talks with the prime minister and the secretary of state over the devolution of policing and justice.

The first and deputy first ministers met Gordon Brown and Shaun Woodward in Westminster on Saturday.

They are expected to meet again shortly to continue discussions on the issue.

Last month the prime minister offered a £1b budget to pay for the extra costs involved in devolving the powers to Stormont.

The latest round of talks follow a week during which relations between the two main parties in Northern Ireland appeared to hit another low.

On Friday, Mr Robinson warned Sinn Fein that talks on devolving justice could halt if they resort to "blackmail".

Earlier this week, a senior Sinn Fein official said the impasse over justice could send politics into "free-fall".

Declan Kearney used a newspaper article to warn the DUP and the government that republicans should not be taken for granted and.

Sinn Fein Junior Minister Gerry Kelly denied that was a threat to pull out of Stormont.

However, DUP leader Peter Robinson said his party would neither submit to blackmail nor negotiate in a climate of blackmail.

"I know it is hard for Sinn Fein to come to terms with the new circumstances in which they can no longer bully and browbeat in order to get their way," he said.

"Past governments and the UUP may have caved-in to those tactics but the DUP will not yield to threats about facing "melt-down" or "free-fall" if Sinn Fein is not mollified.

"Democracy can be frustrating at times but constant whinging and threatening to sink the vessel they are sailing in seems more than a trifle unwise."

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