Orde concerned by UVF statement

PSNI chief constable Hugh Orde has expressed concerns following the Ulster Volunteer Force's announcement that its commitment to the peace process is under strain.

The UVF said yesterday that the IRA had undermined its confidence in the process and it warned the Irish and British Governments not to make unilateral concessions to republicans.

The UVF statement accused the IRA of "wholesale targeting of the pro-union population". Loyalist sources said the organisation may announce an end to its talks with the decommissioning body in the coming days, but a breakdown in the UVF ceasefire is not expected.

Speaking to an Ulster Unionist Party meeting, Mr Orde said he had no intelligence to suggest the UVF ceasefire was under threat, but he said the paramilitary organisation has behaved as well as any other group in recent years and talk of walking away from the peace process is a cause for concern.