New hopes for a peace breakthrough

The prime minister has been having further meetings with Northern Ireland's political leaders as speculation mounts that a major breakthrough is imminent.

On Wednesday morning Tony Blair held talks with Sinn Fein's Gerry Adams before meeting Alliance leader David Ford in the afternoon.

On Tuesday Blair met the Democratic Unionist Party leader Ian Paisley, who repeated that IRA decommissioning was still the main sticking point.

Speaking outside Number 10 following the talks, Paisley said: "I don't think we should be rushing and I don't think the prime minister would want us to rush it.

"We are making progress. Naturally he wants to come to completion and so do I. I have other places to visit than Downing Street everyday."

However he offended republicans whom he said should wear "sackcloth and ashes" and apologise for IRA violence.

Because of Paisley's personal commitments this week no announcement on a deal is expected until after the weekend.

Suspension

The British and Irish governments are still pushing for a final deal on IRA disarmament and restoring the power-sharing executive.

Talks will continue over the coming days, however, as part of an intense effort to secure agreement.

Hopes have grown in recent weeks that a deal can be done to bring the DUP and Sinn Fein into a power sharing administration.

The DUP is, however, warning that key issues remain unresolved.

It wants to see a firm commitment on the total decommissioning of all terrorist arms.

The DUP is demanding that weapons are stripped from all the arms dumps across Northern Ireland and the Republic.

Such a move would be overseen by decommissioning boss General John de Chastelain, who is poised to begin the process of monitoring any mass handover.