Taoiseach to meet PUP leader in Dublin

Taoiseach Bertie Ahern is expected to reiterate his call today on loyalists to build stability within their community in the …

Taoiseach Bertie Ahern is expected to reiterate his call today on loyalists to build stability within their community in the North.

Mr Ahern is due to hold talks at Government Buildings in Dublin with Progressive Unionist Party (PUP) leader David Ervine as he tries to plot a route towards renewed power-sharing talks in early 2006.

The Taoiseach told a recent Wolfe Tone republican commemoration in Bodenstown County Kildare that he wanted to reach out to loyalists in the wake of recent rioting and internal paramilitary feuding.

"Loyalists seeking genuine efforts at transformation will see a positive and open response from my Government," he said.

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The PUP, which has been criticised for a lack of leadership in the loyalist community by the SDLP, recently reaffirmed its links to paramilitary groups such as the Ulster Volunteer Force and the Red Hand Commando.