HL Deb 19 June 2003 vol 649 cc131-2WA
Lord Laird

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Further to the Answer by the Prime Minister on 30 April (Official Report, Commons, col. 298), what was meant by a "period of transition" for terrorists in Northern Ireland to change to democracy; who set the period; whether it has ended; and, if not, when it will end. [HL3012]

The Lord President of the Council (Lord Williams of Mostyn)

The Prime Minister explained on 30 April that some had understood there might be such a period; but that it must now be over and, as he had explained in his speech in Belfast in October last year, if the political system in Northern Ireland was to operate effectively, there must be confidence that parties were committed to exclusively peaceful means.