Northern Ireland: No Agreement At Haass Talks

Sky sources close to the Haass talks have indicated that Northern Ireland's main political parties will not reach agreement today.

The chairman of the talks, US diplomat Richard Haass, had set a deadline of noon on Monday for agreement on flags, parades and the legacy of the past.

But Sky's Ireland Correspondent David Blevins said the talks appear to be "close to collapse".

He told Sky News: "We've had a marathon session of talks. The political parties in Northern Ireland have been engaged in these discussions since about 10 o'clock yesterday morning.

"Within the last few minutes we've heard from sources very close to the main Unionist party, the Democratic Unionist Party, that they are not ready to sign up to the proposals which are on the table at this stage.

"It looks like the talks are close to collapse.

"However, Sinn Fein, also within the last few minutes, has issued a statement describing the paper between them as providing the basis for agreement, and they are appealing for all of the parties to do the deal even at this late stage."

Dr Haass and his vice-chair Meghan O'Sullivan - America's former deputy national security advisor on Iraq and Afghanistan - returned to Belfast on Saturday.

The talks were suspended in the early hours of Christmas Eve, but Dr Haass said the proposals on the table were "extraordinarily close" to gaining support.

Northern Ireland's First Minister Peter Robinson and Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness invited Dr Haass after weeks of unrest over flags and marches.

There were serious disturbances last December and January when Belfast City Council voted to limit the number of days the Union flag is flown on City Hall.

Rioting flared during the summer marching season too when the Parades Commission prohibited an Orange Order return march at Ardoyne in north Belfast.

Agreement on when flags should be flown has proven most elusive and the parties may decide to defer that issue to another process after the next election.

:: Watch Sky News live on television, on Sky channel 501, Virgin Media channel 602, Freeview channel 82 and Freesat channel 202.

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