An IRA commitment to end paramilitary activity and criminality would need to be verified over a period of time so that everyone could see it was "real and lasting", Northern Ireland Secretary of State Peter Hain said yesterday.
Addressing the Ictu biennial conference in the Waterfront Hall, Belfast, Mr Hain made it clear that a commitment in words by the IRA would not be sufficient to secure a return to devolved government.
Nevertheless, he was optimistic that an inclusive, power-sharing executive could be re-established, and achieving that aim was the overriding goal of the new ministerial team in the North, he said.
Mr Hain told delegates that while intensive negotiations on the North's future last autumn had "brought us to the brink of success", the trust that was essential for sustaining the political institutions had evaporated.
"It was clear that the transition that would see a permanent end to paramilitary and criminal activity had not yet been made," he said.
"For that trust to be restored there must be a clear, definitive and permanent end to paramilitary activity and its associated criminality. Words are not enough, but they are an important start and I hope people would not underestimate the significance of a credible statement from the IRA following their consultation exercise.
"A commitment in words needs to be capable of being verified over a period of time so that everyone can see that the commitment is real and lasting." If that happened, he said, there was "every reason to hope and expect" that an exclusive power-sharing executive could be re-established.
"I am genuinely optimistic about that prospect." Mr Hain said that on a recent visit to Derry he had met community groups from both traditions and they had spoken with "one voice".
Their message was for politicians to "get on with it, close a deal and empower the people of Northern Ireland by putting their future in their own hands.
"That is their desire and my priority," he said. In the absence of devolved government, however, he and his ministerial colleagues would "get on with the job of governing with purpose and resolve".
There was a real urgency about a range of matters that needed to be tackled and some simply could not wait.
"Hospital waiting-lists and education funding come to mind. To mothball some of the pressing challenges and duck tough decisions could seriously jeopardise the capacity of Northern Ireland to generate the necessary wealth and resources to effect sustainable long-term growth."
Northern Ireland had to improve its competitiveness as a premier place to invest, he added. "The unprecedented levels of investment planned for the island of Ireland over the next 10 years demonstrates that North-South co-operation results in practical mutual benefits for both."
The one-time post office workers official complimented delegates on the "vital role" played by trade unions, North and South, during the decades of violence in Northern Ireland.
