UUP eyes package with deep suspicions

While British and Irish spokespersons have insisted their package designed to break the political deadlock will be balanced, senior Ulster Unionists have warned that reported elements of the deal are totally unacceptable.

Ulster Unionists were in contact with both the British and Irish governments yesterday demanding that reported features of the package dealing with issues such as former paramilitaries being eligible to join local policing boards and an indemnity for paramilitaries on the run must be renounced.

The British and Irish document is expected to be published either tomorrow or, more likely, Friday, and against a mood of political hard-balling and much political nervousness, the two governments are trying to provide reassurance that their proposals are fair and workable.

The UUP MLA Mr Fred Cobain said that possible features of the document reported in yesterday's Irish Times would be "rejected outright" by Ulster Unionists.

The UUP industry minister, Sir Reg Empey, again warned that if there was insufficient movement on IRA weapons the British-Irish initiative would fail.

UUP politicians contacted the British and Irish governments to complain of indications that the document would be weighted to meet the concerns of nationalists rather than unionists. "The mood in the Assembly grouping is certainly not receptive to another raft of concessions to the Shinners," said one senior source.

An Irish Government spokesman said the package was designed to be fair and to deal with the four major issues, arms, policing, demilitarisation and safeguarding the institutions of the Belfast Agreement.

"The two governments have worked to the maximum to produce a balanced package, taking account of everybody's concerns, bearing in mind that there are four issues to be addressed," he added.

A British government spokesman added: "The package is balanced. It addresses the concerns of all sides."

Another insider, however, admitted that balance was no guarantee of success. "We believe this is the key to unlock the problems, but whether the parties will seize the opportunity is completely out of our hands," he said.

Sources said the document was likely to be released to the media in order to avoid selective leaking of its details. And while there has been some leaking of expected elements of the package, it is still unclear how the IRA will respond.

Another insider, attempting to reinforce the issue of balance, stressed that without movement on arms the prospects of breaking the deadlock were grim. "If you have movement on three issues, but not on the fourth, then it won't work," he said.

Republicans were giving little away yesterday. The Sinn Fein MLA, Mr Gerry Kelly, when asked about speculation of a possible statement from the IRA, said he was unaware of any such impending statement.

Mr Martin McGuinness, speaking in Cork at the weekend, said the positions adopted by the two governments at Weston Park in Shropshire fell short on issues such as "policing, demilitarisation, justice and the security and integrity of the institutions".

"These issues all have to be dealt with and no one issue can be elevated into a position of more importance than the others. The issue of weapons has to be left to the de Chastelain commission, and we believe that it can and will be resolved," added Mr McGuinness.