British to make decision on ceasefire 'breaches'

The British government will reveal today if it would impose financial punishments on Sinn Féin for alleged IRA ceasefire breaches.

Recommendations that the republican party and the loyalist Progressive Unionists face sanctions are believed to be contained in a new report by the Independent Monitoring Commission.

With the four-man body’s first dossier on paramilitary activity expected to have an impact on the troubled Northern Ireland peace process, Northern Ireland Secretary Paul Murphy faces a tough call.

Sinn Féin has vowed to resist any proposal for their Assembly members’ salaries to be deducted.

But the IMC is said to have agreed with Northern Ireland chief constable Hugh Orde’s verdict that the Provisionals plotted the kidnapping of dissident republican Bobby Tohill.

It was his abduction from a Belfast city centre pub in February and the political fall-out which ensued that persuaded the IMC to rush forward its first report.

The commission was set up last year to monitor terrorist ceasefires and whether all sides are honouring commitments under the Good Friday Agreement.

Its members are former Northern Ireland Assembly Speaker John Alderdice, ex-Metropolitan Police anti-terrorist squad chief John Grieve, retired Irish civil servant Joe Brosnan and Richard Kerr, who was the deputy director of the CIA.

Although the IRA denied it had authorised any attack on Tohill, who was rescued by police, Mr Orde’s assessment left unionists demanding sanctions against Sinn Féin.

The report, which was handed to the British and Irish governments last week, also contains judgments on the level of loyalist violence.

Mr Murphy is due to make a statement on the document in the Commons today.

As power-sharing does not exist in Northern Ireland at present, it is believed the commission has looked at the possibility of fining Sinn Féin and the PUP over IRA and UVF activity.

Sinn Féin has always pooled its members’ salaries into a fund which goes towards the party and paying all its staff.

The party has 24 MLAs and Assembly salaries are worth around £31,000 (€46,000) each.

Following the release of the IMC report, the British and Irish governments are planning intensive all-party talks in London later this month to deal with paramilitarism and other problems in the peace process.