Disciplinary proceedings against the three rebel Ulster Unionist MPs were yesterday put on hold as the UUP determines its approach to new behind-the-scenes negotiations aimed at restoring devolution.
The UUP's officer board decided yesterday to postpone further discussion of possible disciplinary action against MPs Mr Jeffrey Donaldson, Mr David Burnside and the Rev Martin Smyth until the next officers' meeting early next month.
Instead, the UUP focus is now shifting to the resurrected political negotiations, and the Joint Declaration and the International Monitoring Commission (IMC).
The UUP's 110-member executive will today hear reports from internal working groups on how the party should approach the declaration and the IMC.
Earlier this week, party leader Mr David Trimble proposed that the UUP adopt a "hostile but nuanced" position on the declaration while supporting the IMC.
Mr Donaldson, who with Mr Burnside and Mr Smyth faces censure for resigning the party whip at Westminster over their opposition to the declaration, would not be drawn yesterday on whether such a hardened stance on the declaration might persuade him to rally behind Mr Trimble as leader.
"I am waiting to hear what the working groups propose before deciding on my position," he said.
Mr Trimble will today provide the UUP executive with some detail of his discussions earlier this week with Mr Gerry Adams, while the Sinn Féin president will brief his ardchomhairle in Dublin on the same talks, and on the prospects of elections being called.
The political focus is now centring on whether it will be possible to call Assembly elections for November or early December.
The next four weeks will involve confidential negotiations chiefly involving the British and Irish governments, Sinn Féin and the UUP.
Today's Chequers summit between the Taoiseach and the British Prime Minister, Mr Tony Blair, is expected to inject fresh momentum to the stalled attempts to call elections, leading, it is hoped, to a restored Assembly and executive.
There is general consensus between Dublin, London and the parties that if elections are to be called significant progress must be achieved over the next four weeks.
The former DUP Assembly minister Mr Gregory Campbell, meanwhile, said an election was required to give politicians "the authority to act and the responsibility to get things sorted out".
He repeated his party's opposition to the Belfast Agreement at the British-Irish Association in Cambridge last night, and said if the DUP had enough seats it would block the election of a first and deputy first minister.
After the election it would no longer be an option to ignore the people of Northern Ireland. It would be clear that the Belfast Agreement had been rejected.
