Peace hopes dashed after Unionists reject Blair plan

THE NORTHERN Ireland peace process was plunged into uncertainty last night after the Ulster Unionists rejected Tony Blair's decommissioning and devolution plan.

The Prime Minister's efforts to persuade David Trimble's party to accept toughened decommissioning legislation and form a new government with Sinn Fein were turned down by a 15-minute session of the Ulster Unionist executive. Mr Trimble emerged from the meeting to announce: "This executive's view remains unchanged. I have not sought, nor will I seek, a change in the party's policy. It remains as it has been, the same as I expressed in the House of Commons yesterday."

In a crushing blow to the Prime Minister's hopes to have a new executive in place by this evening, the Ulster Unionist Party executive said it would not move from its position that the IRA must begin decommissioning immediately.

Arnold Hatch, an executive member, said: "We will not compromise the principles of democracy by including former terrorists in government."

Late last night Downing Street said the Northern Ireland Bill's committee stage, due in the House of Lords today, would be abandoned pending a review of the whole process. "We are not scrapping the Bill, but it will revert to a more normal time-scale," said a spokesman.

A senior government source said: "We have always acknowledged that the Ulster Unionists had difficulties with this. We still believe it is the best way forward and will continue to try to persuade people of that."

The Northern Ireland Assembly had been due to install ministers to a new executive at 5.30pm today, when the Government hoped Mr Trimble would nominate members of his party.

Earlier yesterday Mr Blair announced three amendments which the Government would have tabled in the Lords today. The amendments were designed to strengthen the "failsafe" mechanisms which would come into play in the event of republican non-compliance.

The amendments, put forward after a bruising day in the Commons where the Ulster Unionists and Conservatives launched concerted attacks on the proposed legislation, provided for a timetable to be laid down by the International Commission on Decommissioning.

The three amendments made clear that decommissioning was to happen in accordance with a specific timetable to be laid down and published by General John de Chastelain's monitoring panel.

Downing Street said General de Chastelain would name the IRA if it was in default, not Sinn Fein. The Prime Minister would then name Sinn Fein as the party in default under the legislation.

The changes closely followed appeals by the former prime minister John Major in the Commons debate on Tuesday, when Mr Blair was seen to be scribbling notes as Mo Mowlam, the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, spoke to the House.

Mr Trimble yesterday attended three important party meetings - first with his Assembly members, then his MPs and finally the executive. Sources who attended each meeting said that at no stage had he attempted to sell the decommissioning deal proposed by Mr Blair. The Prime Minister went on television in Northern Ireland last night to deliver another plea for Unionists to give the new arrangements a chance.

Sinn Fein took a dim view of the last-minute concessions to Mr Trimble. Gerry Adams, the party president, said: "Unionists are now trying to accomplish in this last few days what they failed to accomplish during the negotiations on Good Friday over a year ago.

"It's very important that we spell out clearly that these amendments undermine the Good Friday Agreement, that the legislation was not required, that it's a sop to Unionism. We are seeing the Orange card being played in a slightly updated way, and, if I can say so, quite expertly by Mr Trimble. All of that just plays to the anti-Agreement faction, to the refuseniks, to the bigots and to those who don't want a Catholic about the place. That's what all of this is about."

President Bill Clinton is ready to intervene if necessary, a White House spokesman said last night. "His message is the same for both the Unionists and the nationalists, that we have come too far in this process, there is too much at stake, to allow the issues that divide them to bring this process down."