asked the Taoiseach if he has at any time made direct contact, not including invitations issued by way of speeches or through interviews with the media, with leaders of the Unionist community in the last 12 months.

2.

asked the Taoiseach whether he envisages any talks taking place with Unionist leaders in 1989.

I propose to take Questions Nos. 1 and 2 together.

I will be glad to inform the House as soon as I have anything further to report on this matter.

I do not wish to press the Taoiseach overly on this, but I would like him to confirm that I can take from his reply that something is going on in the background.

Yes. As the Deputy knows, this is a delicate and sensitive area but there is a fair amount of contact.

I will leave it at that.

Could the Taoiseach give the House any information about the nature of what is happening? I understand, likewise, that there are certain difficulties, but could he be a little more forthcoming than in the very brief response he made to the questions?

I would rather not say too much, except that it is disappointing that there has not been something more positive and concrete to report before now. However, it is a difficult situation and, as the Deputy probably knows from his own experience, there is a number of avenues which are open and it is important to keep them all open in the hope that something positive will emerge.

Will the Taoiseach bear in mind the fact that there will be two elections later this year? I presume he will agree that these things should not be issues in those elections; they should be disposed of before then.

Yes.

Has the Taoiseach some reason for confidence now that the Unionists can be involved in some way in the parameters of the review of the Anglo-Irish Agreement before the end of February?

Within the parameters?

No, around the parameters, within the dateline set for the review by the end of February.

As the Deputy knows, the suggestion put forward by John Hume was that discussion should take place, not necessarily with me, parallel to or outside the Anglo-Irish Agreement, but so far that has met with no response.