Parties meet face-to-face in talks marathon

The North’s political parties met face-to-face for crunch talks tonight as the Irish and British governments expressed hopes the powersharing administration could be saved.

The round table meeting chaired by Taoiseach Brian Cowen and British Prime Minister Gordon Brown at Hillsborough Castle, Co Down, brought together the Democratic Unionists, Sinn Féin, the SDLP, Ulster Unionists and Alliance Party for the first time during the talks.