Villiers rejects 'blackmail' slur

A British Government decision to make the delivery of a new economic aid package to the North dependent on progress tackling sectarian divisions is not an attempt to blackmail Stormont politicians into action, the UK's Secretary of State has insisted.

Visiting Belfast on the 15th anniversary of the signing of the Good Friday peace agreement, Theresa Villiers said linking measures to boost the private sector economy with the implementation of shared future initiatives was a demonstration of how strongly British Prime Minister David Cameron felt on the issue of reconciliation.