Trimble: North needs evidence of decommissioning

Visible evidence of IRA decommissioning will be needed as part of any deal to break the political deadlock in the North, Ulster Unionist leader David Trimble said today.

He made clear unionists would not be satisfied with a simple statement from the international decommissioning body chief, Canadian General John de Chastelain, that an act of decommissioning had taken place.

Twice before the general has announced the decommissioning of provisional weapons, but given no details about where or how many.

Many unionists were sceptical whether either act was meaningful, some even questioning whether they had taken place at all.

As part of any new deal to restore devolved government at Stormont there would need to be “acts of completion” and clear evidence of weapons being put beyond use, said Mr Trimble.

The unionist leader has met Sinn Féin President Gerry Adams four times in the past fortnight as efforts to restore the Northern Ireland Assembly step up a gear.

Interviewed on BBC Radio Ulster’s Inside Politics he refused to be drawn on the detail of their talks, but said as part of any breakthrough there would have to be acts of completion by the IRA which were “immediate and permanent”.

That would need to involve a statement that the war was over, an end to all paramilitary activity and closure on the arms issue.

He predicted the “no information, no evidence” approach of General de Chastelain would be abandoned.

“We warned General de Chastelain beforehand that accepting this arrangement whereby there would be no information, no evidence that the public can point to other than a statement by him, was going to cause huge problems and it has,” he said.

“I think he now recognises that, and I don’t expect that we will have a repeat of that.

“I expect that there will be clear evidence in the public domain as to what happened.”

The power sharing devolved administration at Stormont was suspended last October amid allegations of an IRA spy ring operating at the heart of the government.

Assembly elections that had been due to be held in May this year were put off when parties failed to find agreement on the way forward.

A peaceful summer marching season and a flurry of meetings involving the Northern Ireland parties and the British and Irish governments have raised hopes of a breakthrough and elections before Christmas.

Mr Trimble said time was tight if there was to be a poll this year and added that he did not know if agreement was possible in the time frame.

He said a December poll was too late because of the effect the run up to Christmas would have on the turn-out levels.

He said he had been advised that October 16 was the cut-off date for a deal if Assembly elections were to take place on November 13 – the 6th and 20th of November have been ruled out because 11 Plus exams will be taking place in primary schools which are used as polling stations.