Tony Blair could be close to announcing progress on the stalled Northern Ireland peace process.

A leading member of Sinn Fein claimed on Friday that the prime minister will soon reveal that a date will be set for the Northern Ireland Assembly elections.

Sinn Fein's party chairman Mitchel McLaughlin said a poll in the autumn is very likely following a round of intense negotiations.

"It is our judgement, at this time, that there is now a probability... that there will be an autumn election," he said.

"We are dealing with the British government on an ongoing basis and, as I speak, we have reason to believe, in terms of our engagement, that we have won that argument with Tony Blair."

Speculation in the province is that the most likely date would be November 13.

"We have listened to the arguments, we have had face to face meetings. We have invited Tony Blair to explain why there should not be elections," said McLaughlin.

"We have set out our reasons why there should, and, on that objective basis, we have come to the conclusion there is a real possibility.

"We can't say when, we can't say in definitive terms, because he hasn't told us when.

"Nor has he told us that he is prepared to announce it but we have to make a judgement here.

The assembly was suspended last October after claims that the IRA was operating a spy ring at Stormont.

Efforts to restore government were put on hold in May when the prime minister called for full decommissioning by Ulster's paramilitaries.

McLaughlin said the IRA was still committed to the peace process and called for all sides to "stretch themselves" to break the deadlock.

"We are attempting to create - and this is a mighty task and it's one that we can't complete on our own - to achieve a situation where all of the guns are taken out of the equation," he said.

The response from Unionist leader David Trimble will now prove crucial - and London is unlikely to drop the demand of decommissioning.

A key issue for unionists is the proposed amnesty for IRA prisoners who are currently on the run.

The news came as the three rebel Ulster Unionist MPs announced they would be offering to take the party whip again.

But in a letter Jeffrey Donaldson, Martin Smyth and David Burnside said they would continue to fight the joint declaration of the British and Irish government.

"If people are going to mess around and put hurdles in our way they must realise the damage bickering will cause," said Donaldson.

A UUP spokesman warned their return was not a foregone conclusion even though the party's disciplinary procedures had been successfully challenged in the High Court.

But there was a signal that a date for a poll would speed their return.

"If an election is called I would say Jeffrey, Martin and David will be back in quick," he said.