Sinn Fein delegates will begin a three-day visit to republican prisoners in Britain today to maintain pressure on the British and Irish governments to speed up prisoner transfers. The visit coincides with Thursday's meeting in London between Mr Tony Blair, the British Prime Minister, and the Sinn Fein president, Mr Gerry Adams.
The delegation includes the party's vice-president, Mr Pat Doherty, its representative in north Belfast, Mr Gerry Kelly, and its prisoner department representative, Ms Bernie Farrell. The group will visit Whitemoor prison in Cambridgeshire today and Frank land prison, near York, tomorrow.
On Thursday they will visit republican prisoners in Belmarsh prison, south London. Mr Doherty said the visit would give Sinn Fein the opportunity to update prisoners on the progress of the Stormont talks and allow them "to raise issues which are of concern to them", principally that of transfers.