General John de Chastelain, head of Northern Ireland's decommissioning body said last night that he would resign if he had to disclose how many weapons the IRA had given up.

"With regards to confidentiality, if the commissioners were forced to disclose the inventory without the IRA agreeing to it, they would judge their position to be untenable," a spokesman said.

The Democratic Unionist Party in Ulster has condemned the latest decommissioning act by the IRA.

The party quizzed de Chastelain who admitted the IRA still holds weapons on a large scale.