The DUP and Sinn Féin are continuing in their search for a deal on the devolution of policing and justice powers tonight after the 48-hour deadline set by Taoiseach Brian Cowen and Prime Minister Gordon Brown ran out.
The parties are weighing up whether they should accept the draft outline of a deal for breaking the political deadlock put to them by Taoiseach Brian Cowen and Prime Minister Gordon Brown on Wednesday.
The talks moved into a fifth night at Hillsborough Castle after discussions passed the deadline for agreement this afternoon with no sign of imminent success.
The DUP and Sinn Féin must decide whether the British-Irish proposals on the key issues of policing and justice, and parading, are sufficient to avert the collapse of the Northern Executive and Assembly.
But discussions are continuing tonight at Hillsborough castle, Co Down, with the DUP demanding more time for negotiations, while Sinn Féin said it will soon have to ‘make a call’ on whether a deal is possible.
Sinn Féin negotiators briefed party members this afternoon on progress, but adjourned the meeting to return to the talks.
If they reject or postpone responding to the “pathway to a deal” proposed by the governments at Hillsborough Castle then Mr Cowen and Mr Brown must put forward their proposals on the best way out of the impasse.
Dublin and London are expected to allow the parties time if they feel there is a prospect of a resolution – to make known their positions on the proposals.
DUP’s Edwin Poots tonight said: “There has been a considerable amount of work done. I think we are getting to know where the bottom lines are here, and I think it is absolutely necessary that we have total clarity and certainty both on policing and justice, and on the parades issue.”
But he said he wanted an unambiguous deal that “every Ulster man and woman” could understand.
“The DUP are not about wrecking we are not about pulling the Assembly down. It’s up to Martin McGuinness if he wants to crash the process, we are not going to be crashing any process,” said the DUP Minister.
Sinn Féin’s Conor Murphy, asked if ‘a deal was on’, said: “Not as yet, it’s not on.
“I hope that that changes over the coming hours, and we will certainly remain focused to try to achieve that, but unfortunately to date, a deal is not yet on.”
Mr Murphy added: “If there is a possibility of a deal, we will pursue that, but at some stage we will have to call whether the DUP are capable or willing to do the business or not.”
Speculation earlier today that the two leaders could return to Hillsborough to seal a successful conclusion to the talks dwindled as the talking went on without a final deal.
Mr Brown and Mr Cowen want the two sides to agree a process to transfer the powers from London to Belfast by the start of May.
DUP leader Peter Robinson arrived at Hillsborough Castle at about 12.30pm. Half an hour later, SDLP leader Mark Durkan stepped outside to give his assessment of whether a potential settlement was achievable.
“I would like to think we are on the threshold of a very big choice – either we can go for completion of devolution or we can go for a complete mess, and people I believe out there want things to work,” he said. Mr Durkan claimed the public anger that has been so evident since talks broke down earlier in the week had refocused minds among the parties.
Returning to the talks venue after breaking for lunch, Mr Robinson insisted that a agreement could be struck if all sides were willing to give some ground.
“I think it is perfectly possible, if everybody was prepared to move that little bit further, to get an outcome,” he said. “But we have to do it in a way that people are comfortable and they believe that they have a commodity they can sell to the people who sent them here.”
While refusing to go into detail, the DUP leader said there were two issues still to be bridged.
“You will not reach an agreement here today or any other day unless the parties that are here and talking are prepared to stretch, that’s what it comes down to,” he said. “Accommodation is what is the outcome of any successful negotiation process and people don’t get everything that they want and we recognise that, but there are key principles that have to be established.
“We want a deal that we can go out and sell to the community in Northern Ireland. I believe honestly that people do want to have a successful outcome and we will stretch and stay here until the very end to see if that’s possible.”
As Mr Robinson spoke, members of the Sinn Féin negotiating team drove back into the Hillsborough Castle estate after breaking for a period to brief assembly colleagues on the progress of the negotiations.
Mr Cowen earlier cancelled a scheduled engagement in Co Meath today and has cleared his diary of other meetings, prompting speculation that he and Mr Brown could be poised to return to Hillsborough. The Taoiseach is understood to have been in constant phone contact with Hillsborough and Downing Street throughout the day.
Downing Street stressed today that Mr Brown wanted the parties to work out the details of an agreement among themselves.
“The Prime Minister and the Taoiseach made it very clear that today is the day for a progress report,” Mr Brown’s spokesman said. “It’s a good sign that discussions are continuing.”