Sinn Féin and the British government must reveal what documents were in the hands of republicans who infiltrated Northern Ireland Secretary Dr John Reid's office, the SDLP demanded today.
As a third person prepared to face charges over the infiltration of the Northern Ireland Office, SDLP deputy leader Ms Bríd Rodgers said there were "huge question marks" over Sinn Féin and the British government's handling of the allegations.
The Stormont Executive is on the verge of collapse because of the alleged spying operation by republicans.
Ms Rodgers, the Northern Ireland agriculture minister, said: "The bottom line is the SDLP does not know what was going on. The British government clearly knew something for a year. How they knew, how much they knew and what they knew and why they didn't share it with the rest of us is a mystery to me.
"We also do not know why they chose to bring it to people's attention now," she said.
"But as for Sinn Féin, serious questions have also been raised. Newspaper reports have said among the documents were notes of private meetings we had with the British government as well as documents that were passed between the British and Irish governments.
"That would suggest to me that they were spying on the rest of us in nationalism to get our positions and get a political advantage. That is very serious.
"Not only has it destroyed trust between us and them and the Irish Government, it has totally destroyed trust between the pro-Agreement unionist community," Ms Rodgers said.
PA