The Democratic Unionist Party has told the British government to implement a new talks structure for Northern Ireland as "they are only digging their own grave" by continuing with the present system.
The DUP leader, the Rev Ian Paisley, and the deputy leader, Mr Peter Robinson, met the Northern Ireland Secretary, Dr Mo Mowlam, for an hour in London yesterday, and submitted a four-page document which they said represented "a new structure" for the talks process.
The DUP also challenged the British to put in place legislation for a Border poll on the future of Northern Ireland "because Mr Adams has made that his top priority. Let's have it now," Dr Paisley said.
While the DUP has said it will not publish the document until Dr Mowlam has responded later this month, DUP sources confirmed last night it posed a series of questions on decommissioning and the issue of consent.
The DUP did not believe the British government "has any intention of moving on decommissioning", the source said, "and the Secretary of State doesn't treat our concerns as efficiently as those of Gerry Adams".
After the meeting, Dr Mowlam acknowledged the DUP's oppositions to the present talks process but insisted that the British government's view was "the best one we've got". Dr Mowlam "doubted" the British government would reply to the document before the end of the month, "but we will certainly reply".
However, she refused to confirm or deny reports that the British Prime Minister, Mr Tony Blair, would meet the Sinn Fein president, Mr Gerry Adams, before the talks begin in September. Downing Street said last night that no such meeting was planned.
"Tony Blair has made it absolutely clear that we are going to move on the 15th. We will continue to talk with all parties across the board to do what we can to make sure that talks on September 15th are inclusive," she said. Dr Paisley emerged from the meeting to warn the British government that the talks process amounted to "madness". The DUP's document outlined its view that the process should be altered so elected members were not forced "to sit down with the IRA. We're not talking about proximity talks, we're talking about a new structure altogether not in the talks."
Although London and Dublin had been defeated on the agreed timetable on decommissioning, Mr Robinson said the British government had confirmed it would proceed with the policy and "there is no democracy in that. The government has to realise that it has been defeated and it requires them to look for new policies."
While Dr Paisley repeated his charge that he could not see "any self-respecting Official Unionist" sitting down with Sinn Fein under the present talks structure, Dr Mowlam struck a more positive note. The DUP was still interested in talking with the British government, she said, and she believed it would be possible to move into all-party talks on September 15th.
"What I want is an inclusive process. We will continue to hope that we can build that inclusivity into this present process, but obviously alternatives will have to be considered if that doesn't work."