Ahern meets Blair on North

TAOISEACH Bertie Ahern and British Prime Minister Tony Blair will stick with their plan to restore a shadow Assembly in Northern Ireland before the summer, despite the opposition of Sinn Féin and the SDLP.

Speaking after the two leaders met in Brussels yesterday, Mr Ahern urged the North's major parties to cooperate with their plan.

"Politicians in Northern Ireland have to take responsibility. There is an opportunity coming up which must not be allowed to pass and might not come around for a long time again. So we would ask and urge them all parties and all sides to go with our proposals when we publish them."

The Assembly was suspended in October 2002 amid claims that Stormont had been infiltrated by a republican spy ring. Under the two governments' plan, it would be restored in a transitional or shadow form without the Executive, or cabinet.

Mr Ahern said: "If it's not possible to move quickly to set up the Executive, our plan would be to find a mechanism, which we'll outline in a few weeks' time, of keeping the Assembly going for a period of time, where they can do real business, including discussing the various proposals on ways forward."

Sinn Féin and the SDLP oppose the Assembly's restoration unless the Executive is restored at the same time. They fear that otherwise the Assembly would be under direct British rule.

The DUP backs a shadow Assembly, but opposes an immediate Executive as it is not prepared to govern with Sinn Féin.

The governments' plan will be unveiled in April.