Unionist pressure is mounting on the Northern Secretary, Dr Mo Mowlam, to take action against Sinn Fein for alleged breaches of the Provisional IRA ceasefire. She is due to meet the party's chief negotiator, Mr Martin McGuinness, today.
The Ulster Unionist deputy leader, Mr John Taylor, said Dr Mowlam must demand a total ceasefire by the Provisional IRA. He said the existing ceasefire was "qualified and limited". While it meant an end to attacks on the British army and RUC, it allowed for "punishment attacks, expulsions and the killing of Catholics the IRA dislikes".
Dr Mowlam was briefed by the RUC Chief Constable, Sir Ronnie Flanagan, and other leading security figures yesterday. She said she would decide on the state of the IRA ceasefire in the next few days.
Mr McGuinness again insisted the ceasefire remained intact. He accused unionists of deliberately attempting to stall the peace process.
There was no official response in Dublin last night to the Secretary of State's announcement that she would decide on the state of the IRA ceasefire soon.
Unionist politicians said Dr Mowlam could no longer ignore alleged breaches including the murder of Mr Charles Bennett, the Florida gun-smuggling operation, and the ongoing "punishment" attacks. However, they believed she was unlikely to take "meaningful" action against Sinn Fein.
They predicted that if she did act, her most likely response would be to suspend temporarily the release of Provisional IRA prisoners. The vast majority have already been released under the Belfast Agreement and only 65 remain in jail in the North.
Unionists said Dr Mowlam could also be considering a token suspension of Sinn Fein from the talks process. British government ministers might refuse to meet the party for several weeks or it might be excluded from the initial stages of Senator George Mitchell's review of the Belfast Agreement which begins next month.
Despite persistent media questioning yesterday, Dr Mowlam refused to state that the ceasefire had been breached.
"People say the dogs in the street know what is going on. I cannot listen to the dogs in the street. I have to listen to my advisers, read the evidence and make an evaluation in the round. I won't shirk from that but I won't be pushed in interviews to reach conclusions without full consultation."
The Ulster Unionist MP for West Tyrone, Mr Willie Thompson, said: "Mo Mowlam is motivated by political, not security, reasons. She wants to keep Sinn Fein in the process. I wouldn't be surprised if she continues to ignore the ceasefire breaches." The DUP deputy leader, Mr Peter Robinson, said: "Mo Mowlam says she needs time to assess the situation. What is there to assess?"
However, Mr Martin McGuinness said: "In my view the ceasefire is intact. That's all we need to say about it."
He accused unionists of "continually dragging up excuses" to avoid sharing power with nationalists. He demanded the full implementation of the Belfast Agreement.