Almost half of the people surveyed in a British opinion poll believe the Prime Minister, Mr Blair, is "soft on terrorism" and nearly three-quarters oppose the early release of terrorist prisoners unless paramilitary groups decommission their weapons.
A large majority of those surveyed in the Daily Telegraph poll believe the handing over of all weapons should be an essential precondition of Sinn Fein's involvement in any power-sharing executive.
The survey, conducted by Gallup, showed that 59 per cent of people believed Northern Ireland was moving towards peace, while 35 per cent said it was not. A total of 83 per cent approved of the government talking to terrorist organisations which had not yet decommissioned any weapons.
Asked whether they approved of the early release of prisoners before all weapons were decommissioned, 70 per cent were opposed, while 20 per cent approved.
Only 21 per cent of those surveyed believed the IRA had permanently renounced terrorism, with 71 per cent believing it had not.
A total of 50 per cent said Northern Ireland's culture should remain as British as it is now.
Regarding the reform of the RUC, 54 per cent believed it should be substantially reformed, 25 per cent said it should remain unchanged and 10 per cent said it should stay as it is, but drop the word "royal".