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North Ireland to get policing, justice powers in April

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown has announced that Northern Ireland will take over its own policing and justice powers on 12 April. The deal came after two weeks of negotiations between the Democratic Unionist Party and the Republican Sinn Fein, ending a threatened collapse of the government in which the two parties share power. The devolution of policing and justice satisfies a key republican goal, while new arrangements for overseeing loyal order parades meets the demands of unionists. The talks, which took place at Hillsborough Castle, Co Down, are the longest set of continuous negotiations held in the near 20-year peace process.