‘Moment of decision’ for talks says PM

Prime Minister Tony Blair has described ongoing negotiations at Leeds Castle as the ‘moment of decision’ for everyone involved in the Northern Ireland peace process.

Mr Blair said Northern Ireland needed sustainable and durable institutions and that those institutions needed to be up and running "on the basis of a commitment to exclusively democratic and peaceful means".

“We can’t go out of this and have another set of elongated negotiations," the Prime Minister said. "This really is the moment of decision for us and it will be a test of political leadership and political will."

Ulster Unionist Party Leader David Trimble said the only way negations would succeed was if the threat of paramilitaries was removed for good.

The Upper Bann MP said that public confidence in the political process was at an all time low and that the failure of Republicans to honour their obligations was paramount to this.

Sinn Féin President Gerry Adams said a deal between the DUP and his party was inevitable but that there were still issues to be resolved, "centrally important parts of the Agreement which had been in abeyance for some time".

DUP Deputy leader Peter Robinson also agreed there had been some advances in discussions, but not sufficient enough for a deal to be done.

SDLP leader Mark Durkan said he believed things were "grinding along reasonably" but warned that "Leeds Castle has to be the last castle" for the completion and full restoration of institutions in the province.

The present three day talks schedule must be wrapped up by Saturday lunchtime, as a wedding party is being held at the same venue in the afternoon.

(MB/GB)