Doubts raised about planned Ahern-Blair Belfast trip
Doubts are being raised about a planned trip to Belfast at the end of this month by the Taoiseach Bertie Ahern and British Prime Minister Tony Blair.
The two men are planning the trip in an effort to push for progress in the peace process.
However, the meeting is now in doubt, with efforts to prepare the ground for the talks descending into farce over the weekend.
The British government has appointed a committee at Stormont to set out the issues that need to be resolved in order to pave the way for restored devolution.
However, the various political parties failed to reach agreement on a chairperson for the body yesterday, with all other groups blaming the DUP for holding up the process.
Sinn Féin had proposed that the parties rotate the chair, but the DUP objected, saying it would not tolerate any chairmanship that included republicans.
The committee is due to meet again later today, but it is unclear whether any progress will be made.
