The political talks at Hillsborough Castle, to try to resolve the crisis in the power-sharing government of Northern Ireland, are continuing this evening.
Sinn Féin President Gerry Adams said this evening his party was there to do a deal and was still working at that.
He said discussions were at a fairly sensitive and defining point and hopefully they could get the business done and added that discussions so far had been focused and well mannered.
DUP leader Peter Robinson said earlier his party is not interested in deadlines.
Mr Robinson said he felt progress had been made during efforts to break the deadlock over the devolution of policing and justice powers but that there were still issues to be resolved.
Sinn Féin's Conor Murphy said a demand by the DUP to scrap the parades commission was stalling the process.
He described it as 'a foolish demand' put into the negotiations at the behest of the Orange Order.
Parties had been given until this afternoon to reach a deal on the devolution of justice and policing powers, before the Irish and British governments publish their own proposals.
Taoiseach Brian Cowen and British Prime Minister Gordon Brown are prepared to travel to Hillsborough in the event of agreement being reached.
Brian Cowen and Gordon Brown spent three days this week trying to help Northern Ireland's political parties break the deadlock.
They could not find agreement on issues such as the transfer of justice and policing powers and how to handle contentious Orange Order parades.
Mr Cowen and Mr Brown want the two sides to agree a process to transfer the powers from London to Belfast by the start of May.
Minister for Foreign Affairs Micheál Martin and Northern Secretary Shaun Woodward have remained at Hillsborough Castle to supervise efforts.
Officials reported genuine efforts at engagement at yesterday's talks. Sinn Féin President Gerry Adams and DUP leader and First Minister Peter Robinson had a number of conversations.
However, Mr Adams said: 'Anybody who thinks that the price of policing and justice is a walk down the Garvaghy Road (Drumcree) or through Ardoyne (north Belfast), it is just ridiculous.
'Let's deal with the issues sensibly, let's do our best to make sure the outstanding matters of this agreement are implemented.'
Yesterday, the DUP's Sammy Wilson said it would be better for all the parties to have their own agreed deal that was 'made in Ulster,' rather than one that was imposed by London and Dublin.
He said he wanted a deal that was sustainable, that would allow them to sail through the choppy waters ahead, to by-pass the icebergs and bring them to their destination.
He said there was still significant work to be done but he said his party would endeavour to have the outstanding differences resolved.
