Last week President Michael D Higgins made a historic first visit to the UK by an Irish head of state.  I was delighted to be present in Westminster when he addressed both Houses of Parliament.

He made a thoughtful and well delivered speech that touched on the history between both countries, but also wove in some of his own personal story. The trip went very well and generated a lot of positive coverage that I believe can only add to the good relations that currently exists between our Countries.

“On the BBC, Dr. Richard Haass quite rightly expressed his frustration about the failure to reach agreement despite six months of talks. Dr. Haass was correct in his assessment that the failure to reach agreement is unfair to victims and survivors.”

“The SDLP have been clear about the next steps. Action is now required by the two governments and the five parties. The two governments have made it clear for example that they accept Haass /O’Sullivan on the past. This should be an impetus for the two governments and five parties together to decisively take forward addressing the past.

“A five party working group must be established and must focus on implementation and legislation and work to tight timelines in order to create certainty, remove doubt, and build hope”