THE British government last night signalled its determination that the Stormont talks process would proceed with or without Sinn Fein.
In advance of the expected telephone conversation between the Prime Minister, Mr John Major and the Taoiseach, Mr Bruton, Downing Street sources stressed that the two governments marched hand in hand and would not be blown off course by Saturday's bomb attack in Manchester.
Mr Major avowed: "I condemn utterly this callous and barbaric crime, which has shocked all decent people far beyond the shores of Britain. We shall not rest until those responsible have been brought to justice. The terrorists must see that their guns and their bombs will not deflect a democratic society either from the beliefs it holds so dear or from the determined pursuit of a lasting peace in Northern Ireland."
As Manchester began the business of reconstruction, the British government was adopting a wait and see approach to political developments amid mounting speculation about possible divisions within the republican movement.
Ministers privately acknowledged that they simply did not know whether the developing republican strategy presaged a ceasefire or further attacks in Britain.
But officials yesterday echoed the warning from the Home Secretary, Mr Michael Howard, that a simple reinstatement of the IRA ceasefire would not be enough to bring Sinn Fein to the conference table immediately.
The Home Secretary, who toured Manchester and visited victims of the bomb attack yesterday, repeated his warning that the talks entry requirement for Sinn Fein had effectively been raised as a result of the bombing, which left more than 200 people injured.
"I and others in the government have made it very clear it will be much more difficult, as a consequence of what happened on Saturday, for any ceasefire that may occur to be regarded as permanent and genuine", said Mr Howard.
Mr Andrew Hunter, chairman of the Conservative backbench Northern Ireland committee, told The Irish Times that he believed Sinn Fein's exclusion from the talks process for the foreseeable future was "absolute".
The Northern Ireland Secretary, Sir Patrick Mayhew, is expected to address Conservative backbenchers at Westminster either tonight or tomorrow.
Sir Patrick met Mr David Trimble yesterday to hear Ulster Unionist proposals for a number of specific new security measures. Mr Trimble can expect considerable sympathy from Tory MPs, not least as protection has been strengthened around a number of them amid apparent police fears of a political assassination.
Ahead of the Cabinet discussion in Dublin this morning on whether to maintain links with Sinn Fein, the British have made no moves to formally close the door on the party. Sources yesterday explained that London had little in policy terms to review, given the ministerial ban on meetings with Sinn Fein and the negligible level of official contact with the party since the ending of the ceasefire on February 9th.
However, ministers do appear resigned to the probable ending of the Northern Ireland "peace process". And there is added anxiety now to see the multi party talks at Stormont graduate beyond procedural disputes into substantive negotiations involving the two governments and the constitutional parties.