The overwhelming majority of people in Northern Ireland want their politicians to take part in all-party talks, including the vast majority of supporters of the two main unionist parties, according to an opinion poll published yesterday.
A total of 92 per cent of respondents to the poll wants the political party they support to take part in negotiations due to begin on Monday. That includes 93 per cent of Ulster Unionist supporters and, surprisingly, 76 per cent of DUP supporters.
The DUP has been boycotting the talks process since July. The executive committee of the UUP meets tomorrow to decide whether it will continue to remain in negotiations. The opinion poll was carried out by Queen's University Belfast and the Rowntree Trust in association with the Belfast Telegraph and Ulster Television. Almost 1,000 people were interviewed.
It shows that Catholics are more positive about the process than Protestants, with 98 per cent offering support for negotiations, compared to 86 per cent of Protestants.
A majority of Catholics, 52 per cent, found decommissioning of paramilitary arms in advance of a settlement unacceptable, while two-thirds of Protestants found talks without a ceasefire unacceptable.