Parties trying to resolve problems: Murphy

Northern Ireland’s political parties are genuine about trying to resolve the outstanding issues from the three days of intensive talks at Leeds Castle, Secretary of State Paul Murphy has said.

The parties are set to meet at Parliament Buildings with Mr Murphy and Irish Foreign Minister Brian Cowen on Tuesday to discuss unresolved issues centering around Strands I, II and III of the Good Friday Agreement.

Speaking this morning, the Secretary of State said: “The talks at the weekend did not fail, we didn’t complete them and we need to finalise them.

“I’m not saying that we’re not facing difficult decisions, difficult negotiations over details and we’re going to start them today in Parliament Buildings. The accountability issue is something which the parties will have to address.

“We as governments are going to try and see whether we can come up with formulas which can provide a compromise so that people can work through it. But I have a very strong feeling, having been in Leeds Castle for the past three days, that parties are going, genuinely, to try and sort these issues out.”

Following criticism that his party was holding up negotiations because of a desire to see a unionist majority able to veto decisions in a new government, DUP Deputy Leader Peter Robinson said his party was willing to "roll up its sleeves and resolve these outstanding matters".

"It is far better that we get things right now than have everything unravel at some point down the line because of 'constructive ambiguities'," he added.

(MB/GMCG)