A tolerant and prosperous Northern Ireland was within reach, the British Prime Minister, Mr Tony Blair, said in Belfast yesterday. "If only the legacy of mistrust on both sides can be tackled successfully, the prize is a remarkable one, an impossible dream even a year ago. Now, if we have the courage, the prize is there for the taking", he said during a visit to Hazelwood Integrated College in north Belfast, accompanied by the Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, and the Northern Secretary, Dr Mo Mowlam.
Mr Blair said he genuinely believed that the parties involved wanted to reach agreement. "I genuinely believe that all the parties engaged in this want it to work, even more so than at this stage last year."
Referring to his own background, he said: "On my mother's side were very strong Irish Protestants. I married a Catholic, although I am Church of England. We are about to enter the 21st century. Do these things really have to pull people apart?"
Mr Ahern emphasised that what was needed was "compromise and movement", but he said there was no magic formula. "We have all moved too far to think about going back or giving up", he added.
The following is what Mr Blair said about Northern Ireland: "Huge progress has been made since the Taoiseach and I were here a year ago: a referendum on the Good Friday Agreement; elections; a better, more peaceful life for many of Northern Ireland's people.
"The principle of consent is established - whether Northern Ireland remains part of the UK or becomes part of a united Ireland is for people here to decide. No one else. And we established the principle that there must be equality and fairness for all.
"We are poised to set up a new devolved government for Northern Ireland, with all parties committed to peace playing a part and North-South bodies to build practical co-operation.
"The crucial next step is to form the new institutions provided for in the agreement. To appoint Ministers to run the new Northern Ireland Assembly Department, initially on a shadow basis; then for real after the transfer of powers from Westminster. And to get the other institutions - the North/South Ministerial Council, the British-Irish Council and the British Irish Intergovernmental conference - up and running.
"If we can achieve that, it will be clear to everyone that the agreement is working. Northern Ireland politicians will be able to get down to the real issues which engage people in all parts of the world - health, education, the development of a vibrant economy.
"How can we take the next vital step? It is clear that everyone who supports the agreement agrees on at least three things: the importance of establishing the new institutions as envisaged in the agreement; the fact that the new government of Northern Ireland will only work if it is genuinely inclusive and both communities are fully represented; and the need to take the gun out of politics in Northern Ireland, for good.
"Those are objectives we all share. But there is a dispute between the parties standing in the way. It is a dispute that goes to the heart of the agreement. Because it is about trust. Without trust between the parties this agreement isn't going to work. Trust that the way of democracy has been chosen; and the way of the gun put behind us for good.
"It's not just a matter for the politicians. It matters to everyone in society, whoever you are. We have to build that trust - enough so that all parties can take the next step and appoint an executive that is genuinely cross-community. After talking to the parties here last night and today, I believe we can get there. The Taoiseach and I are here to do all we can. But it is your politicians, elected by the people here, who will make this work.
"I know it is what the people here want. You want the agreement to work. It is your hope for the future. Your vision of a confident, tolerant and prosperous Northern Ireland. And it is within our grasp, if only the legacy of mistrust on both sides can be tackled successfully. The prize is a remarkable one. An impossible dream even a year ago. Now, if we have the courage, the prize is there for the taking."