Opposition talks crime in the North
Speaking at a press conference at the end of the day-long visit, Mr Kenny said he was not optimistic that the parties will agree to restore devolution by the November 24 deadline.
Mr Kenny and Pat Rabbitte were in Stormont where they held discussions with Rev Ian Paisley of the DUP; Mark Durkan of the SDLP; Gerry Adams of Sinn Féin; Sir Reg Empey of the UUP; and David Forde of Alliance. They also discussed policing issues with PSNI Chief Constable Sir Hugh Orde.
Mr Rabbitte said paramilitary involvement in crime was unlikely to come to an end in the near future.
“If you are waiting for the day when every paramilitary in Northern Ireland abandons crime, I do not think it is likely that we will see the dawning of that day soon,” he said.
Both leaders stressed the need to tackle the problem of loyalist and republican paramilitaries involved in criminality.
The Labour leader said that a Sinn Féin decision to take its place on the policing board would be immensely helpful to the process.
Mr Kenny said he was a strong supporter of the Good Friday Agreement and pointed out the bipartisan support in the Dáil for the Government’s involvement in the process.
On his meeting with Sir Huge Orde, he said: “We discussed criminality, the reorganisation of the Police Service of Northern Ireland, the dismantling of watch towers, the reorganisation of barracks and recruitment.”
Speaking after his meeting with the two leaders, the SDLP’s Mark Durkan said:
“We told Fine Gael and Labour that we have made no secret of the fact that we have been entirely sceptical of the DUP’s position all along.
“We never bought the myth that the DUP were up for a deal that Sinn Féin and others fell for over the last couple of years.”
He said despite some soft language, “the bottom line is that they are not going to adhere to any deadline that the Governments set.”
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