A SURPRISE deal between the SDLP and the UUP last night opened the door for progress at the inter party political talks at Stormont and appeared to end fears about an imminent breakdown of the loyalist paramilitary ceasefire.
The terms set out jointly by the two parties were bitterly opposed by the DUP and the UK Unionist party as the talks session continued into the early hours of this, morning.
But shortly after 1 a.m. a UUP spokesman emerged and said that agreement had been reached on an agenda for the remainder of the opening plenary session.
He said the agenda had been proposed in the names of seven parties - Alliance, Labour, Womens' Coalition, the PUP, SDLP, UDP and the UUR It had finally been deemed to have been passed "by sufficient consensus".
The process which led to the dramatic late night advance began late yesterday afternoon when the SDLP and the UUP jointly proposed a draft agenda for the remainder of the opening plenary session of the talks.
A key phrase in the five point agenda suggested that the parties should seek agreement on mechanisms necessary to enable further progress to be made on decommissioning "alongside negotiations in three strands".
This appeared to be in line with the Mitchell Report recommendations on handling the vital issue of decommissioning, and broadly compatible with the proposal by the two governments a fortnight ago that, in effect, a separate channel should be set up to consider the issue.
When the SDLP/UUP proposal was tabled at around 5.30 p.m. yesterday, it led to an intensive seven hour debate involving all the parties.
As the discussions continued, a member of the UK Unionist Party's negotiating team, Mr Cedric Wilson, emerged from Castle Buildings and accused the UUP of entering into a pact with the SDLP to circumvent the decommissioning issue.
The first item on the draft agenda proposed jointly by the UUP and the SDLP is the "Circulation and introduction of proposals regarding, the comprehensive agenda."
The second item is "Consideration of the International Body's proposals on decommissioning."
This is sub divided into three sections: (a) discussion of proposals, (b) participants' commitment to work constructively to implement agreements on decommissioning, and (c) consideration of, and agreement on, mechanisms to enable further progress to be made on decommissioning alongside negotiations in three strands.
A further item proposes: "Launch of three stranded negotiations and establishment of agreed mechanisms on decommissioning."
Sources close to the talks suggested that the proposed means of overcoming the decommissioning roadblock were aimed specifically at the loyalists, and that the UUP would raise an entirely different and more rigorous set of conditions to be applied to Sinn Fein if and when there is a proposal, to bring them into the talks.
The SDLP leader, Mr John Hume, said they were pleased to have got so much consensus across the board. None of the issues had been resolved, but they had agreed an agenda "for discussing the issues seriously".
A UUP statement claimed the party's actions had ensured that agreement on decommissioning would have priority over agreement on all other matters.
DUP leader, the Rev Ian Paisley, said he was aggrieved that the decommissioning issue was not getting priority.
As he left Stormont early today he said: "People went out and voted for (Ulster) Unionist candidates who told them they would stand up to the IRA and everybody against our province."