Tony Blair flew to Dublin on Thursday for talks aimed at finding new impetus in Northern Ireland's peace process.

The prime minister met Irish taoiseach Bertie Ahern against a backdrop of continued crisis in the peace process.

Blair used the talks with his Irish counterpart Bertie Ahern to warn that there is "no halfway house to democracy".

The Ulster Unionist Party has walked out of the review of the Good Friday agreement following the attempted kidnapping of a leading republican opponent of Sinn Fein - which the government has again condemned.

"The prime minister's views on paramilitary activity were made crystal clear. The government does have concerns about paramilitary activity," said the official Downing Street spokesman.

The two men were expected to review the current problems and wider Northern Ireland issues.

They were also expected to discuss EU matters ahead of the next summit which Ireland will chair as current holders of the presidency.

Focus

But the focus was on the stalled peace process.

Issues were brought to a head after a republican opponent of Sinn Fein was abducted and Northern Ireland's chief constable blamed the IRA.

The IRA leadership has denied it authorised the attempted kidnapping.

As a result, Ulster Unionist leader David Trimble demanded that the government exclude Sinn Fein from the review, which has now begun.

Though the Unionist walkout has not helped, the other parties have not followed, offering some optimism.

SDLP leader Mark Durkan said the parties should be looking to implement the agreement rather than focusing on alternatives.

"The best possible thing is not to be looking for a fall back at all, but it is to be looking to a new improved plan A, with no ambivalence from any party on the question of paramilitarism or the institutions and with no ambiguity," he said.

Halt considered

The talks followed Tuesday's meeting between Northern Ireland secretary Paul Murphy and the Irish foreign minister, Brian Cowen, at Stormont.

The two men considered halting the current review of the agreement but have decided to press on.

Murphy told MPs on Wednesday that paramilitarism must be prevented from paralysing the peace process.

"Each corrosive act of paramilitary crime or violence eats into the hope to which the agreement gave rise," he said.

"But I remain confident that the vision set out in the agreement, which all those who were party to the agreement signed up to nearly six years ago, will be realised."

He also claimed that massive progress had been made in the province on issues such as human rights.

"Towns and cities are vibrant and we are no longer exporting our young people," he said.

"We have the lowest level of troops since 1970 and while every violent death is a dreadful tragedy, not so long ago we measured the toll in hundreds and now they are counted in single figures."