Bertie fears for the future of the North’s top politicians

FORMER taoiseach Bertie Ahern fears there could be resignations over the current political crisis in the North.

Intensive political negotiations announced by the British and Irish governments are due to begin at Stormont this week.

It follows the shooting dead of ex-IRA man Kevin McGuigan in Belfast last month by individual members of the Provisional IRA.

Police said he was one of a number of suspects in the murder of another former IRA man Gerard Jock Davison, who was shot dead in May.

The revelation that the organisation still exists has rocked the political establishment.

Foreign Affairs Minister Charlie Flanagan insisted there is a ‘steely resolve’ to save the power-sharing institutions in the North.

And speaking on Claire Byrne Live last night Mr Ahern – one of the key architects of the Good Friday Agreement – gave his views on the situation.

Asked was he concerned he replied: ‘Yes, because I think if you read between the lines, Peter Robinson went further than I thought, that if a way is not found on this very quickly there’ll be resignations.

‘And that means that for the first time in nine years the institutions would be down and I know better than most how hard it is to pull them back up again and that creates a huge hiatus, which will be unhelpful to everybody and I think the men and women of Northern Ireland do not want that.’

Mr Ahern said he did not believe that Sinn Féin would break ties with the IRA or its members.

Asked what would happen if Sinn Féin disowned the IRA and current members, he replied: ‘Well, it will not because firstly Sinn Féin will not do that and because they invested...

‘Gerry Adams and Martin McGuinness had to hold as many members of the former Provisional IRA or present Provisional IRA on board so that they would make the peace work and I think they have been successful in that, to their credit.

‘But the difficulty is that if some of these people then, either without sanction, and I reckon it is without any sanction, go off and do things, and then it creates a crisis, and it is a crisis. So, they must find a method.’