Devolution bid goes ahead

Northern Ireland Secretary Peter Hain has thrown down the gauntlet to the province's Assembly members to plot a path back to power sharing or face the closure of Stormont.

Mr Hain signed the restoration order for devolution at Hillsborough Castle, requiring the Assembly members to gather at Stormont on Monday to nominate a new locally elected government of unionists and nationalists.

The Reverend Ian Paisley's Democratic Unionist Party has already indicated that they will not be in a position to form a devolved government until an agreed date in May.

Over 90% of the Democratic Unionists 120 member party executive backed the resolution asking the Government and the Northern Ireland parties for more time to prepare for devolution.

Mr Hain acknowledged the DUP had broken new ground in the resolution because it signalled a willingness to share power with Sinn Fein at some point in May.

But with the Assembly teetering on the brink of collapse, the Northern Ireland Secretary said the only way the DUP's plan for power sharing in May could work is if all the Stormont parties came back to him totally agreed on pursuing the new strategy.

Mr Hain added: "This is the first time the DUP has said they will share power with Sinn Fein. People said this would never happen and it is a breakthrough.

"It has followed a number of seismic changes including Sinn Fein signing up to policing and the rule of law, the IRA giving up its armed campaign, giving up its weapons and driving criminality out of the organisation."

He continued: "We are in entirely new territory. The St Andrews process has brought us to a point which some people said at the turn of the year was inconceivable.

"However at this point we have set out the course that we are going to take. If the parties are not going to do it our way through this route, then they have to do it their way.

"However the parties are going to have to come forward with consensus and tell us what they want to do."

Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams has accused the DUP of frustrating the will of people who voted this month for a new Assembly and power sharing government.

But he also told the DUP that if it wanted an Assembly after tomorrow's deadline for devolution it must put its proposals directly to this and other parties.

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