Blair and Ahern in Ulster devolution talks

Taoiseach Bertie Ahern and British Prime Minister Tony Blair arrived in Northern Ireland today in a bid to re-energise talks on devolution.

The two prime ministers travelled to Hillsborough Castle for meetings with the Northern Ireland Assembly parties.

As their cars swept into the castle, a group protesting against alleged collusion between the security forces in Northern Ireland and loyalist paramilitaries arrived.

They unfurled banners from Sinn Féin asking “who sanctioned the loyalist death squads?” and described collusion as “state murder”.

Spokesman for the victims’ group Mark Sykes, who was among those wounded in the 1992 Ormeau Road bookmaker’s massacre which claimed the lives of five people, said they wanted to get to the truth about the deaths of their relatives.

They also called for the implementation of the Cory Report on four controversial killings.

Mr Sykes said: “The British government has never accepted its responsibility for the deaths which resulted from this policy.

“Enormous efforts are being made to conceal the truth about collusion.

“The truth needs now to be told and the structures which operated this policy needs to be dismantled. That is our message to Tony Blair here today.”

Among those who joined the crowd of around 30 protesters was Sinn Féin Assembly member for West Belfast Michael Ferguson.