North deal within reach but obstacles remain

A LANDMARK deal to save power-sharing and effectively fulfil the Good Friday Agreement appeared to be finally within reach last night.

After another day of knife-edge negotiations which again saw Taoiseach Brian Cowen and British Prime Minister Gordon Brown clear their diaries and go on stand-by to rush to Belfast to proclaim a moment of history, lastditch disagreements threw the process off course once more.

Sinn Féin president Gerry Adams’ reference to the transfer of powers to Belfast as a “staging post” provoked anger among hard-core unionists.