The North's political development minister yesterday met political representatives of the UDA as SDLP and Sinn Féin politicians accused the British government of pandering to loyalist paramilitaries.
Members of the Ulster Political Research Group (UPRG), which provides political advice to the UDA, held talks with David Hanson at Stormont amid continuing speculation that loyalist paramilitaries are seriously contemplating ending activity.
The meeting follows on recent separate UPRG meetings with Taoiseach Bertie Ahern and Northern Secretary Peter Hain. Some nationalist politicians complained that the British government appeared willing to pay the UDA and UVF £30 million or more to "go away" while UPRG said any money would be to develop loyalist areas.
In Belfast yesterday, Mr Hain said he was encouraged by developments within loyalism. "I think there has been a sea change in the thinking of loyalist representatives and I want to encourage that. We are not talking about particular sums of money at the moment. We are talking about switching from paramilitarism towards democracy, switching from negativism towards engagement. And that is proceeding very encouragingly," he said.
SDLP MLA John Dallat, however, said the UDA was trying to engage in a "stick-up at Stormont" and that the British government must not try to buy out "gunmen and bombers".
"Reports of how much money the UDA wants to go away range from £70 million in new money to a paltry £1 million or so out of existing programmes. The UDA brigadiers have moved up from extorting from sweetie shops and building sites to sticking up the treasury," he said.
"The UDA has not ceased paramilitary activity, has not got out of organised crime and it should not be rewarded. The latest reports suggest that it has no intention of decommissioning. Are we to be faced with the prospect of brigadiers with an Armalite in one hand and a big cheque from the Department of Social Development in the other," added Mr Dallat.
Sinn Féin Assembly member Cathy Stanton said that Mr Hanson must "stop offering unionist paramilitaries sweeteners and instead insist that they end their campaign of racist and sectarian attacks".
"David Hanson needs to state in very clear and simple terms to the UDA that their violent campaign against Catholics and ethnic minorities has to end. He must make it clear that the drug dealing and associated criminality have to end and that the UDA and other unionist paramilitaries engage with the Independent International Commission on Decommissioning," he added.
"Public money should only ever be allocated on the basis of need, not political expediency, which seems to have been the benchmark for David Hanson for some time," said Ms Stanton.
