The Ulster Unionist leader, Mr David Trimble, has claimed "a widening" of the British government's powers following a House of Lords amendment to the legislation establishing the Independent Monitoring Commission (IMC) to monitor paramilitary ceasefires.
The amendment, proposed by the Liberal Democrats and backed by the Conservatives and unionists, would allow the Secretary of State to exclude an individual or party from a Stormont Executive for up to two weeks in exceptional circumstances pending a determination by the IMC. The indications are that the Northern Ireland Secretary, Mr Paul Murphy, will not seek to overturn this amendment when the legislation comes before the House of Commons this afternoon.
However, the government will resist continuing Conservative and Ulster Unionist attempts to give the Secretary of State unrestrained or unilateral powers and to reduce the IMC to an advisory role.
With Liberal Democrat support on Monday in the Lords the government defeated an Ulster Unionist proposal which would have allowed the Secretary of State to move the exclusion of individuals or parties from office having regard to recommendations from the IMC and other factors. In the Commons today the government will also reject a Conservative amendment which would exclude the Irish and American members of the IMC from adjudicating on issues which impinge on internal matters of the Assembly, including the composition of the Executive. Under the government's proposals all four members will consider any claim concerning a ceasefire breach and make recommendations, in the first instance to the Assembly, about sanctions to be taken.
Mr Trimble has told members of his ruling Ulster Unionist Council that the new "exclusion" power would be "vested in the British government alone". However, a Whitehall source last night said that "to seek a completely unrestrained power for the Secretary of State" would render the creation of the IMC pointless.