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Mr. John D. Taylor: Get the name right.
Ms Mowlam: I am sorry--the Ulster Unionist party. I apologise profusely to the right hon. Gentleman for making such a serious error.
The reality is that we are on the road to talks by the method that has been proposed, so it is common sense for us to go down that road. Many pitfalls remain, not the least of which is the danger that the parties will use the election to become entrenched in their positions and to undermine the spirit of compromise and accommodation on which rests the eventual success of the negotiations. That would be regrettable, and the people of Northern Ireland would not thank anyone if the parties took such a stance. We appeal to the parties to think of the future and to embrace this opportunity in the spirit in which it has been presented.
We have supported the Government on Northern Ireland--not only on this Bill--because their approach, as the Bill shows, is based on agreements with the Irish Government: the Downing street declaration and the joint framework document. Our established policy of unity by consent is one option in those documents, and it provides a firm basis on which to build a consensus for a balanced settlement that can command the support and allegiance of both communities. We would try to build that consensus, just as the British and Irish Governments are attempting to do.
There are many anxieties about the influence of the House's political arithmetic. In some senses, those fears are understandable because political arithmetic has so often affected the politics of the island of Ireland and we must do all that we can to stop it happening again. I do not share the view that promises have been made--
as many people have suggested in the past 24 hours--but it would perhaps be helpful to the House if the Government and parties made it clear that no deals or pacts have been made.
Bipartisan support means putting peace above party interests, but it does not mean simple acquiesence to whatever the Government say or do. We have had our differences with the Government over the past 18 months. We would have made progress differently in different spheres. Our approach would have included protecting the basic rights of both traditions, a different strategy for training and economic development and having fair employment and fair treatment guarantees in the public and private sectors.
We have also argued for the transfer of prisoners to Ireland--north and south--to ease problems of family contact. In particular, we are aware of the continuing controversy over the case of Patrick Kelly. We know of no reason why he cannot be transferred immediately.
We have proposed changes to improve community identification, which we think could operate in parallel with the Bill. Those changes would be important in building cross-cultural communication and support between the communities. My hon. Friend the Member for Clydebank and Milngavie (Mr. Worthington) has put together a consultation paper on policing, but we have yet to see the Government's contribution to that debate.
Our concrete proposals have greatly helped the process forward and we shall continue that help with constructive yet critical support for the Bill.
Had we shouted some of the differences in approach a little more openly--from the roof-tops, so to speak--it would have signalled to the parties that it might be worth holding back or procrastinating and hoping for a change in Government, although I know that not all the parties would have reacted in such a manner. I believe that such a stance would have been irresponsible, dishonest and in some senses damaging to the peace process. In future, however, as the general election nears, it will obviously be necessary for us to make our views clear in public more often than before.
The proposals in the Bill, and the Command Paper to which it refers, are the product of a long and tortuous process. As the Secretary of State said, we have gone through the Downing street declaration, the joint framework document, the decommissioning issue, the twin-track approach and Senator Mitchell's report. We can go back to the communique of 28 February and see how we have arrived at the position that we are in today.
It is clear that at times the Opposition would not have chosen to proceed in precisely the same way as the Government have done, but we are acutely aware of the difficulties that we face. We are equally aware that the only game in town is one that seeks to bring about meaningful negotiations which have a hope of success and to bring a new future based on peace and justice for Northern Ireland, the island of Ireland and these islands as a whole. That is what we want to see and that is why we shall support the Bill today.
At times in this arduous process, the stress has been on bringing the parties in from the fringes; at other times, it has been on building up the centre ground in Northern Ireland. In a sense, the processes that the Bill sets in train will offer an opportunity to do both. However, if Sinn Fein wants to be in the talks to represent its community, the restoration of
the IRA ceasefire of August 1994 is essential. The British and Irish Governments are clear on that, and they have our full support. There is no excuse. A meaningful, inclusive process of negotiations is being offered and a date for the talks to begin has now been set.
Mr. William Ross (East Londonderry):
I thought I heard the hon. Lady say a moment ago that the Labour party would require the restoration of the ceasefire of August 1994. The Secretary of State said that he would require the Mitchell principles to be applied. Those are two very different things. Can we be assured that when the hon. Lady referred to the ceasefire of 1994 it was merely a slip of the tongue and that she will not allow Sinn Fein to come into the talks so long as it continues crucifying teenagers on wooden fences?
Ms Mowlam:
I thank the hon. Gentleman for that question. My understanding of what the Secretary of State said this afternoon was that he would require a return to the ceasefire of August 1994. He went on to discuss in some detail the six principles and the proposals of the Mitchell commission. Let me make it clear that we agree with the ground rules for negotiations, which state clearly not only that there must be a return to the August 1994 ceasefire but that the Mitchell principles are an essential part of the process of participation in the negotiations of 10 June.
Mr. Robert McCartney:
Much emphasis has been placed both by the hon. Lady and by the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland on a return to the ceasefire of August 1994, but that ceasefire was patently vulnerable and it failed. So without something much more solid than a failed ceasefire, there can be no prospect of success.
Ms Mowlam:
Thank you very much. We have said clearly that the August 1994 ceasefire has to be reinstated and that the Mitchell six principles are an essential part of the development of the negotiations of 10 June. So it is clear that a process is being set in train of which the Mitchell six principles form part. I hope that that answers the hon. and learned Gentleman's question.
Rev. Ian Paisley:
The six principles include decommissioning. Is the hon. Lady saying now that as well as accepting the six principles, the IRA must move immediately to decommissioning?
Ms Mowlam:
I agree with the Secretary of State's analysis of the statement of August 1994 at the time of the ceasefire and of the Mitchell six principles as the procedure that we follow, as outlined in the ground rules. The statement said that decommissioning had to be addressed. Questions were put to him by hon. Members on both sides of the House who sought to find out the detail and when it would be addressed. He made it clear, and I agree that it is the only way in which we can move forward in any rational way, that the way to proceed was to get to 10 June, put the ground rules document on the table and see where the elected representatives of the Northern Ireland parties can move forward to.
Mr. Wilshire:
Would the hon. Lady like to have a go at answering the question that I asked my right hon. and
Ms Mowlam:
Members of Parliament, the Government and the Opposition have tried with the Bill and the ground rules document to put in place a mechanism to give the process momentum. Having sat through numerous statements to the House by the Secretary of State and the Prime Minister, the hon. Gentleman knows the difficulties that we have faced in the past 18 months in keeping the peace together and putting momentum back into the peace process. We went through definitions of "permanent" and a host of options. In the August 1994 ceasefire statement, in the ground rules document and in the Mitchell six principles, we have a mechanism and a process by which it is possible to move forward in the negotiations. I have clarified to Unionist Members that it will be for the parties in Northern Ireland to find a mechanism to move forward in negotiations. We think that that is a constructive way forward.
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