IN a lacklustre debate, the British government failed yesterday to fully adopt the key recommendations by an independent review team to prevent a repetition of Drumcree and further violence during the North's marching season.
After describing the events at Drumcree last year as "shocking", the Northern Ireland Secretary, Sir Patrick Mayhew, announced in a Commons statement that although he planned to establish an Independent Parades Commission as soon as possible, he intended to consult further before accepting the second main recommendation.
Sir Patrick said that the British government felt the "radical and far reaching" proposal for the commission to also take over the RUC's decision making powers over the marches needed to be discussed further with all the interested parties and he set a time limit for the end of March.
However, the Shadow Northern Ireland Secretary, Dr Mo Mowlam, challenged Sir Patrick to explain why the British government felt it could improve on the review's conclusions, which were reached over five months, in just eight weeks.
"The members of the review team, after thoroughly examining the views of all the interested parties have recommended that, on balance, what is central is that an independent commission should be created, that it should be not an advisory body, but its conclusions should have the force of law, subject of course to appeal and review," she said.
Dr Mowlam stressed that the Labour Party would support the necessary legislation to ensure the commission is established before the start of the 1997 marching season. It was important to get this right, as "we will just be storing up trouble for the years ahead if we don't".
Sir Patrick said that the British government immediately accepted the seven fundamental principles, outlined by the review team, which formed the basis for the development of processes and procedures governing parades.
"The government believes that a new body of this kind could valuably provide both a focus and a catalyst for mediation and conciliation efforts at local level. In respect of these non adjudicatory functions, the government endorses the report's recommendations," he said.
Welcoming the period for further consultation, the Ulster Unionist leader, Mr David Trimble, said the proposal would have "radical constitutional implications" and warned that the commission might create "|more problems" than it would solve.
The Democratic Unionist leader, the Rev Ian Paisley, pointed out that a majority of people in Northern Ireland supported the parades and asked why the British government did not enforce the same public order laws that applied to England.
"Make sure that whatever laws go on the statute book, everybody is equally subject to them and under the same law, because republican bands don't give the seven days notice at present, and they walk, and nothing is done about them," he said.
Mr Seamus Mallon, the deputy SDLP leader, suggested the British government's acceptance of a further consultation period had been influenced by the parliamentary arithmetic and pointed out that a decision would eventually have to be made.
"The perception abroad will be now a cynical view, and I'm not saying it is my view, in the north of Ireland, that here again is the British government long fingering something to get it over the problem they experience in the Commons, and the well being of the people in the north of Ireland during the summer months is secondary to that consideration," he warned.
Rejecting this suggestion, Sir Patrick argued that if the accusation was true he could have chosen not to set a time limit for the consultation period.