The North's First Minister, Mr David Trimble, has attempted to breathe fresh life into the stalled political process in advance of next month's Belfast Agreement review, designed to break the impasse on IRA decommissioning and the formation of an executive. Mr Trimble said yesterday that the offer to form an inclusive executive simultaneously with a start to IRA decommissioning was fair and ensured no loss of face for either republicans or unionists. Politicians now had "to pick up the pieces" following the failure of the talks in June and July, he said.
Meanwhile, Dr Mowlam corrected the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Andrews, when he said yesterday that both he and the Northern Secretary were in agreement that the IRA ceasefire was intact. She insisted she had not yet made up her mind on the state of the ceasefire.
Mr Trimble also urged the SDLP deputy leader, Mr Seamus Mallon, to reconsider his decision to resign as Deputy First Minister. He told reporters in Omagh, Co Tyrone, that Dr Mowlam must "tell the truth" about whether the IRA was involved in the murder of Charles Bennett and the foiled Florida gunrunning operation. He would not say whether Sinn Fein should be penalised if Dr Mowlam finds that the IRA breached its ceasefire, but he insisted some action must be taken. It appeared implicit in his scripted speech to the Omagh Summer School that, like his colleague, Mr Ken Maginnis, he wants Sinn Fein involved in next month's review.
"The important thing now is to pick up the pieces," he said. He confirmed that the Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) had moved from a position of seeking prior disarmament to one of the parallel formation of an executive and the beginning of IRA decommissioning.
"We have made the offer to Sinn Fein that they and ourselves can jump together. This offer is more than fair. It involves no loss of dignity on either side."
The Sinn Fein chairman, Mr Mitchel McLaughlin, accused Mr Trimble of posturing.
At Stormont there was a brief difference of opinion between Dr Mowlam and Mr Andrews who, with the Minister of State, Ms Liz O'Donnell, met to discuss the September 6th review and the IRA cessation.
In a press conference afterwards Mr Andrews said: "We discussed at some depth the IRA ceasefire and where we are in that regard. And in the round we came to the conclusion that the ceasefire was still intact."
But Dr Mowlam interrupted: "No. I think we made it clear we didn't reach that conclusion." Mr Andrews: "Quite."
Dr Mowlam, whose decision on the ceasefire is expected this week, said there was no disagreement with the Irish Government "as to the analysis of the facts" surrounding the state of the cessation.
Meanwhile, the Patten Commission has confirmed that its report on policing will be published in the "first half of September", coinciding with the review. Mr John Taylor, the UUP deputy leader, said last night that any proposals such as the abolition of the title, Royal Ulster Constabulary, would be met with a "massive campaign" in Britain and Northern Ireland.
