Bertie Ahern (Dublin Central, Fianna Fail)

That is a fair question. During all of last year security intelligence in the Republic and in the North was that significant moves were being made to make progress as per paragraph 13 on paramilitary activity, training, targeting and such like. At the same time, some large raids took place. Apart from the transparency of decommissioning, which we did not finalise in the comprehensive talks, the final big issue the Government and the Sinn Féin leadership and the Sinn Féin leadership and the IRA were endeavouring to deal with related to criminal activity. It was not possible to get agreement on the formula of words we had put forward. We are left with only one conclusion on that matter now. It was to end the criminality that was going on. We had witnessed almost the total ceasing of punishment beatings and other activities, so much so that Hugh Orde, who has now made statements on this matter which almost everybody in the House supports, went out of his way to make further moves to help the comprehensive agreement in the days immediately before 8 December to help on the demilitarisation front. He felt satisfied and so did the Chief of Staff of the British Army to make those moves. Other activities by the Provisional IRA had increased but these efforts and other issues were still continuing. Our effort was to bring that to an end. We failed to do so in the talks on 8 December and we also had a disagreement on the issue of transparency. This was followed by events such as several punishment shootings both this month and last month. That is the current position. The obligation on us, in spite of where we are, is to try to implement the Good Friday Agreement in all its aspects.

In answer to Deputy Rabbitte's final question, much now depends on what Sinn Féin's reply will be about how it views the two issues of criminality and decommissioning. There is no possibility of being able to go to the other parties — I would not do so anyway — unless we can achieve something major in that area. As I said yesterday, that does not rest with me; it is an issue which rests with the Sinn Féin leadership and the opposite side of the coin, the Provisional IRA.

See this speech in context