British govt cash called for to bolster peace
The British government is facing demands to pump funds into Northern Ireland in a bid to bolster a talks deal if it is struck, Sinn Féin leader Gerry Adams said tonight.
As Sinn Féin and the Democratic Union considered proposals put to them by British and Irish governments for reviving power sharing, Mr Adams said Whitehall was being urged to help cement any deal by providing a peace dividend.
He said: “We actually were the party – and we welcome the DUP coming on board - who originally called for a peace dividend.
“We certainly believe that the money that goes into the British war machine should be diverted into an economic dividend, particularly for disadvantaged areas.
“I have some hope – because we talked to Tony Blair about this the last time we met, and we will be talking to (Northern Ireland Secretary) Paul Murphy also about the detail of all of this -- I have some hope that there will be a peace dividend.
“How much will it be? I don’t know, but I have some hope that we may get it.”
The Rev Ian Paisley, Democratic Unionist, has pressed in negotiations with the two governments for a financial package to accompany any deal to revive evolution.
Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown would have to approve the peace dividend.
But it is believed the DUP and Sinn Féin would like the Government to commit £1bn (over €1.4bn) to help offset the problems in Northern Ireland infrastructure.
The DUP believes the North has seen its water sewerage system fall into disrepair, as a result of 30 years of direct rule from Westminster, and that the cash is also needed to boost transport, schools and other essential services.
The negotiations are believed to be delicately poised, with Sinn Féin and the DUP still raising some concerns about the two governments proposals.
If power sharing is to be restored, it will require a significant move by the IRA on disarmament.
It is believed an IRA weapons decommissioning act could be witnessed by Protestant and Catholic clergy, but the DUP would like a visual aspect to it, with either photographic or video evidence.
Both parties are also understood to have concerns about the operation of political institutions under the deal, and Sinn Féin is keen to pin down London and Dublin on a commitment to transfer policing and justice powers from Westminster to Stormont within two years.
It is also understood that the DUP has some concerns about the rolling out of any deal and the time frame in which it might take place.
Mr Murphy today indicated he was hopeful that the DUP and Sinn Féin, which are the only parties in Northern Ireland to have seen the two Government proposals, could accept them.
Speaking on the 30th anniversary of the Birmingham pub bombings, he said: “Although I do think that apologies mean certain things to certain people, the important thing now is to try and get us into a new society in Northern Ireland that turns its back on events such as occurred in Birmingham 30 years ago and what occurred in Omagh.
“This week is actually an important week in that respect as the parties are, hopefully, coming to the conclusion of our negotiations and discussions.”
However, the governments came under fire today from nationalist SDLP Leader Mark Durkan for excluding some of the parties which supported the Good Friday Agreement from having full access to the proposals.
Mr Durkan, whose party has only been briefed on the document contents, argued: “The package needs to be shared with those who originally negotiated the Agreement, and not just between two parties if it is going to have credibility.
“We know the reason why the SDLP has not been given full sight – not because we cannot be trusted to leak them but because we cannot be relied upon to not speak the truth,
“If there are laws or problems, we will point it out in an attempt to rectify them.
“That is what we did before the Leeds Castle talks, during them and after them.”
