Press briefing from the Prime Minister’s Official Spokesman on: Northern Ireland, Prison Sentences, Zimbabwe and Police Inquiry
Northern Ireland
Asked if the Prime Minister would be seeing Ian Paisley this week to talk about power sharing, the Prime Minister’s Official Spokesman (PMOS) said that it was likely that there would be a meeting. What was important was that the message from the election was very clear; people wanted to see devolution and they wanted to see it by next Monday. What we now had to see was whether politicians would listen to that voice.
Put that there was some speculation today about emergency bills next week, the PMOS replied that he would not go down that road. The basis on which the election was held was very clearly set out at the time when the two Prime Minister announced the election. All the evidence we had suggested that the public well understood that basis, and overwhelmingly, wanted their politicians to restore devolution next Monday. It was in legislation that the 26th March was the deadline, and therefore, people had to make their minds up by then.
Put that there was no prospect of the legislation being changed after 26th, the PMOS said that the legislation was there, and it was clearly there before the election, and it was the basis on which the election was held. People had understood that, and the electorate showed very clearly what they wanted their politicians to do.
Prison Sentences
Asked if the Prime Minister agreed with what Lord Falconer had said recently about geriatric "lifers", the PMOS replied that what Lord Falconer was doing was setting out Government policy. Government policy was that those who posed a serious risk to the public should stay in prison.
Zimbabwe
Asked if there had been any diplomatic moves regarding Zimbabwe, the PMOS replied that the important thing regarding Zimbabwe was that Africans led the process, and the African leaders had been bolder in a reaction to recent events than before. The Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete visited President Mugabe yesterday, and President Kikwete and President Mbeke had launched a new initiative to address the crisis. The PMOS said that there was a summit of southern African leaders coming up soon, and that would help set out the next steps. For our part, we were keeping the pressure up, which included EU sanctions in the form of freezing assets and banning travel for over 100 of the top leadership in Zimbabwe. We would do everything we could to maintain the pressure, but the important thing in influencing events on the ground was that this was seen as being with the Africans in the lead, rather than us. However, we could fulfil a part in pushing it from behind.
Asked if the Prime Minister agreed with Peter Hain who had said that President Mugabe should "go now", the PMOS said that the Prime Minister had made his view very clear, both in terms of President Mugabe and regarding what had happened. What was important, however, was that we did not go for things that were just statements, but rather, that we actioned them.
Police Inquiry
No.
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