IRA heist claim leaves peace hopes in tatters

THE faltering Northern peace process has suffered a grievous blow after the IRA was blamed for the £26.5 million Northern Bank heist, the Government conceded last night.

Taoiseach Bertie Ahern said the development was “a serious setback for the political process in Northern Ireland and is corrosive of public confidence”.

While insisting the process could be revived, Mr Ahern said yesterday’s statement by PSNI chief constable Huge Orde blaming the robbery on the IRA made it “more difficult because it damages the levels of trust and confidence we are trying to develop”. In so doing, he tacitly acknowledged the possibility of a long period of political inertia in the North.