Northern Ireland talks to ‘go down to the wire’ in runup to Christmas

http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2014/dec/23/northern-ireland-talks-belfast-political-agreement-christmas

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Northern Ireland’s five political parties have resumed talks aimed at solving issues hanging over from the peace process as well as saving devolution.

Negotiations began at 7am on Tuesday as the parties discussed questions such as contentious Ulster loyalist marches, the flying of flags and the critical question of how to deal with the legacy of the Troubles.

Northern Ireland’s first minister, Peter Robinson, predicted the discussions – which have lasted for more than 11 weeks – would “go down to the wire” before the Christmas break.

Robinson, leader of the Democratic Unionists, the single biggest party in the region, said: “I think there is a real chance for us to do the job but it does require all of us to apply ourselves and at the end of the day it will require all of us to stretch ourselves.”

Sinn Féin negotiator and MP Conor Murphy also signalled that there could be compromise between the parties. “I think there is a sense of common purpose among the parties, not on every position but on a willingness to try and find something we can all live with,” he said.

Last week the parties reached agreement on welfare reform, a key issue that had been dogging the talks. The five parties sent the government a joint financial paper calling on the UK Treasury to grant the region £2bn in aid if they agreed in Belfast to carry out major reforms of the local welfare state and public sector. The money, the parties argued, would be used to cushion the impact of changes to the welfare system over the next decade.

It is understood that the British government has moved closer to the parties’ demands for extra cash though disagreements remain over the other issues.

The Northern Ireland secretary, Theresa Villiers, said on Monday night that the government’s financial offer had been “positive and generous”, but also reflected the UK’s “extremely difficult fiscal situation”. She added that the government also had to be fair to all parts of the UK.

The extra funding the parties are looking for includes additional cash for a new system to investigate and deal with the past conflict and the thousands of unsolved crimes from the Troubles.