SF to consider plans for Northern talks forum

A DRAMATIC shift in Sinn Fein policy was signalled yesterday by a senior party figure, Mr Mitchel McLaughlin, when he said that Sinn Fein would seriously consider new British proposals for an elected Northern talks forum.

Mr McLaughlin said that, if an Irish Times report of a British government proposal to establish a 45 member elected body in the North, was accurate then Sinn Fein would give "very serious consideration to the proposition".

He said, significantly, it would go "some way" towards meeting Sinn Fein's requirements for all party talks.

Mr McLaughlin told The Irish Times that his comments did not contradict regular statements by the Sinn Fein president, Mr Gerry Adams, that an elected assembly "was a "non runner".

"We would give serious consideration to any new British government proposal for an elected forum, but we would have to be satisfied with the detail," he said last night.

If a proposed 45 member body could only deal with internal Northern Ireland matters, or if it was tantamount to a return to unionist Stormont rule, then it would not be acceptable, he said. If the report of a 45 member forum was correct this would be an acceptance of Sinn Fein's argument that a 90 member assembly would be unmanageable, he said.

"We would give serious consideration to any proposition that would make political progress possible, but will not be drawn into anything that will be dominated by a unionist agenda," he told yesterday's Belfast Telegraph.

"One of our principal concerns would be that any new body would be manageable and that it would be a proper negotiating forum, not just a talking shop. We would not have anything to do with another unionist dominated assembly," he added.

"Obviously, negotiating delegations selected by the parties would be a better idea, but a proposal for a 45 member forum that would not just be another talking shop would go some way to meeting Sinn Fein's requirement for all party talks and would be more workable than any 90 member body," said Mr McLaughlin.

He was careful not to over sell Sinn Fein's reaction to the forum idea. But such an election, were it to take place, could revitalise the stalled peace process.