THE Sinn Fein leader, Mr Gerry Adams, reacting to the explosives find in London, acknowledged that it would make it more difficult for Sinn Fein to be involved in all party talks.
The discovery underlined the seriousness of the current situation and reflected the political vacuum that exists at present. He regretted the death during the police raids in London and extended his sympathy to the dead man's family.
"I blame the British government for the collapse of the peace process, but I acknowledge clearly, and I have said so, that the IRA has to accept responsibility for its own actions," Mr Adams said.
Sinn Fein, he added, would continue to try to "put together the conditions in which everyone could try and move towards some accommodation".
"I would appeal to Mr Major, even at this late stage, to take up the challenge of building a real peace process. The onus is on the British government to build confidence in a new reconstructed peace process," he said.
The DUP leader, the Rev Ian Paisley, said he regretted any death but he would rather have the death of a "terrorist than the deaths of any innocent victims".
Mr Seamus Mation, the SDLP deputy leader, said the bomb find underlined the absolute need for a complete and utter cessation of violence.
Mr Ken Maginnis, the Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) security spokesman, suggested that the IRA may have been planning a London bomb attack as a prelude to another ceasefire.
The UUP leader, Mr David Trimble, said the discovery underscored how vital it was that the issue of decommissioning be seriously addressed at the Stormont talks.
The former US congressman, Mr Bruce Morrison, said the best news of yesterday was that the bomb was actually discovered, before it could be exploded.
