Paul Murphy has said he is "disappointed" at the current impasse in Northern Ireland but has insisted that progress has been achieved.

Speaking in the Commons, the Northern Ireland secretary said the British and Irish governments would continue to push for a deal over the coming days.

Murphy said direct talks between Ulster Unionist leader David Trimble and Sinn Fein president Gerry Adams had "brought us a good deal further than the position we reached in April".

He said there had been "substantial progress but not complete progress".

But he added that it was "a matter of great disappointment" that the international decommissioning body had not been able to say enough about the IRA's latest move to gain the confidence of the Ulster Unionists.

Murphy said arms should be put beyond use in a way that is "conducive" to public confidence.

"This has not so far been achieved," he conceded. "I cannot hide my disappointment at yesterday's turn of events but I hope and believe that agreement can be reached so that the comprehensive acts of completion...can be achieved and we can also move to a stable and devolved government for Northern Ireland.".

Shadow Ulster secretary Quentin Davies said the government had made mistakes in the handling of Monday's events.

He argued that "one of the many, many tactical errors made on this occasion was to leave out of the agreement the SDLP or any of the smaller parties".

"The government took their eye off the essential details and the people of Northern Ireland have been disappointed on what should have been a very good day," Davies told MPs.

The latest statement came amid continuing talks to overcome the latest setback in the search for peace.

Hopes of a deal were dealt a blow on Tuesday after the latest act of IRA decommissioning failed to persuade David Trimble to back moves to re-establish devolution in Northern Ireland

In a late night statement the prime minister expressed his hope that a deal could be salvaged. "As always with Northern Ireland, we will try, try and try again," said Tony Blair.

Signalling that the elections would still go ahead on November 26, Blair said the IRA's latest act of decommissioning should be enough to bring unionists on board.

"I believe that if people knew the information that we have been told, yes they would be satisfied," he said.

Despite his anger, David Trimble said that he hoped a deal could be "retrievable".

But he warned there had to be greater transparency in the decommissioning process.

The Sinn Fein chief, however, said he had not received "a satisfactory answer" for why the deal had failed to deliver full agreement between the parties.

"This was not a question of presentation," Adams told a West Belfast press conference.

And he warned of the danger that the latest progress could be "diminished" by the latest difficulties. "That is something at all costs that must be avoided," he said.