UDA delegation says there is no going back to past

Representatives of the UDA have reassured the head of the Catholic Church in Ireland that there is no going back to the violent past in the North.

The Ulster Political Research Group, which has links to the loyalist paramilitary group, made the comment after meeting Cardinal Sean Brady in Armagh today.

Cardinal Brady says he used the occasion to convey the fear felt by Catholics about the possibility of future violence by loyalists in response to recent attacks by dissident republicans.

However, both sides agreed the only future for the North was a totally peaceful one.

The UDA is coming under increasing pressure from the British government to finally begin decommissioning its weapons.