A DECISION on the repatriation of IRA prisoner Patrick Kelly from Maghaberry Prison to Portlaoise in the Republic is not imminent, according to senior Whitehall sources. This was made clear yesterday following Tuesday's meeting between the West Belfast MP, Dr Joe Hendron, and the Prisons Minister, Ms Ann Widdecombe.
Dr Hendron said he hoped the transfer would be granted on humanitarian grounds, and as an aid to the Northern Ireland peace process.
But British government lawyers are still considering the papers in the case, recently returned by the Irish authorities.
Sources yesterday said Kelly's condition - he is suffering from cancer - is not considered life threatening, and that he would be unlikely to gain the transfer on compassionate grounds. The sources said the request was being dealt with as a "normal repatriation" case, and that London remained anxious that, if granted, the Irish authorities would ensure he served a significant part of his sentence.