Will the Taoiseach tell us what his hopes are for the talks tomorrow at Hillsborough that will involve both Governments and the political parties in the north of Ireland? Does the Taoiseach agree that we must see definite progress towards the full implementation of the Good Friday Agreement and the re-establishment of the institutions? Does he also agree that this must include progress on demilitarisation and policing?

Does he recognise that the majority of Nationalist opinion will not endorse the PSNI as representative of a new start in policing while it continues to fall extremely short of the recommendations contained in the Patten report? Does the Taoiseach accept that this is not a minor issue? It is an extremely important matter and is not simply a question of Sinn Féin becoming involved in the policing boards, as it is sometimes reflected in a facile manner in the media. Does the Taoiseach agree that for the situation to move forward we must have a truly new beginning to policing in the North and that this is a vital issue at the heart of the current difficulties?

It is hoped that the discussions tomorrow afternoon and tomorrow evening will be about the restoration of the institutions and finding a way of restoring devolved government to Northern Ireland and that they will deal with all the important aspects which have been broached in the discussions that have been going on since November. There are a number of important issues and Deputy Ó Caoláin has mentioned some of them. Demilitarisation, the end of paramilitarism and the establishment of trust and confidence are important issues. Policing has to be dealt with. I agree with what the Deputy has stated and I said in reply to Deputy Rabbitte dur ing Question Time last week that policing is probably one of the most important issues because without trust and confidence by the community in the Police Service of Northern Ireland it will be difficult to make the progress we all want to make.

In Weston Park we had moved close to the Patten proposals and the legislation reflecting that position is going through the Houses of Parliament in Westminster at present. I know there are outstanding issues but I hope tomorrow's talks will give an opportunity to find conclusions to some of those very important issues.

I am sure Deputy Ó Caoláin will agree that the most important task tomorrow is to get a fair agreement, whatever the agenda of the various parties. That means we must reach an agreement which deals with the end of paramilitary activity, targeting, punishment beatings and arms procurement and equally deals with demilitarisation and the question of towers and other army infrastructure in areas where there have not been problems for several years. We will be dealing with the bill of rights and other human rights issues. All these issues will be discussed tomorrow, and starting tomorrow and continuing for the next few weeks I hope we can find resolutions to them.

Does the Taoiseach agree that there can be no single focus in this process and that the singular focus on the IRA's role, very important though that be, is unhelpful and counter-productive? Does he agree that it is the responsibility of all parties to the Agreement, including the British Government, to play their part? The British Government is not a neutral arbiter in this situation but has clear bounden responsibilities which it has failed to fulfil, as the Prime Minister acknowledged at the end of last year. The Government also has responsibilities in all this. Not least of those is to press—

The Deputy is making a statement.

I am asking the Taoiseach whether he accept that not least of the responsibilities of the Taoiseach and his Cabinet colleagues is to press the British Government to fulfil its role and responsibilities, particularly in the areas of demilitarisation and policing.

As I have continually said throughout these discussions, we are endeavouring to achieve full implementation of the Good Friday Agreement. I accept my responsibilities in these matters and I ask everyone else to accept theirs. There are issues for everyone to deal with. We must move on the issues we failed to resolve during the last period. They are the ending of paramilitary activities and problems relating to that; demilitarisation and policing; and human rights and other issues. I assure the Deputy that I do not see this process as a single agenda but I realise that everyone else has a point to make. I try to include all the issues that have been referred to. People on the other side tend to leave out the issue which is their own party's responsibility, as Deputy Ó Caoláin did today. However, I take a fair view and try to give all points equal importance. I recognise that all issues must be surmounted and we will do our best to do so. We will take our own responsibilities seriously.