The Taoiseach and the British Prime Minister have had what was described as a useful exchange of views on the current difficulties in the Northern peace process. The two leaders held an hour-long meeting on the margins of the Nice summit. Earlier, the Minster for Foreign Affairs, Brian Cowen, said that he hoped the visit next week by President Bill Clinton would inject some momentum into the ongoing discussions aimed at solving the current problems.
Earlier, the Church of Ireland Primate has said that there can be no acceptable level of violence in any civilised country. In his Christmas message, Archbishop Robin Eames said that he hoped widespread terrorism and violence could be consigned to history. Dr Eames also criticised the culture of violence, which, he said, corroded too many lives and bred fear among the elderly and the young alike. It proclaimed that violence in the street or in the home was an acceptable behaviour pattern for which society too easily found excuses. That belief, he said, must be challenged.
Meanwhile, Ulster Unionist leader David Trimble was warned tonight he could be facing another bid from hardliners in the New Year to tie his party into a “no guns, no government” policy. Anti-Good Friday Agreement MP Jeffrey Donaldson signalled he was willing to move in January to force the party to exclude Sinn Féin from the Stormont executive if there was no progress on IRA decommissioning.
