Final hurdle to devolution gone, says Hain

The final obstacle to the restoration of stable power sharing in the North has been cleared by the ceasefire watchdog, Peter Hain claimed today.

As speculation mounted that the Irish and British governments will press ahead with plans for a fresh Stormont Assembly election, the Northern Secretary said the latest positive assessment of the Provisional IRA by the Independent Monitoring Commission (IMC) meant the pressure was now on the North's politicians to deliver devolution.