Proposals include a scheme to convert the Dome into a technology-based theme park and another to reinvent it as an indoor sporting arena. “It must remain in Greenwich forever and become one of the biggest tourist attractions in the country,” he said.The proposed developers have tried hard to show they are “on-message” about the Dome’s future but the strain is already telling. The Millennium Dome’s future as a long-term London landmark now looks in doubt. Six private groups who are bidding to develop the site from the end of the year are paying lip service to the merits of the controversial structure, but it is clear that for most of the consortia, it is the surrounding land that really interests them.
Last week a shortlist of the proposals by six private consortia, who are bidding to buy the site at the end of the year, was unveiled by Lord Falconer, the minister who oversees the New Millennium Experience Company running the Dome.Close scrutiny of the six proposals show that four consortia are after an additional 120 acres of land, which given the Dome site’s 999-year lease, and its proximity to Canary Wharf, makes it one of the hottest pieces of real estate in Britain.When Mr Blair took the decision to back the project in 1997, he decreed that after its central role in the millennium celebrations it would be a permanent legacy to the nation. The Millennium Dome’s future as a long-term London landmark now looks in doubt.

Six private groups who are bidding to develop the site from the end of the year are paying lip service to the merits of the controversial structure, but it is clear that for most of the consortia, it is the surrounding land that really interests them. “Experience, just common sense, tells us the IRA are not going to respond to deadlines set by the Unionists.”. What more can we do? There is not a single thing that we are obligated to do under the Good Friday Agreement that wehave not done.”The Sinn Fein chairman, Mitchel McLaughlin, said they were dealing with an artificial crisis because of the 12 February deadline imposed by the Ulster Unionists. One other loyalist group has already handed over some weapons, though this proved to be a cynical manoeuvre since the group went on to kill a number of people.In terms of blame, the indications are that most of the elements in the Northern Ireland equation regard the onus for movement as being on republicans rather than Unionists.John Hume, leader of the nationalist SDLP, said he hoped republicans would take the necessary steps, adding: “A gesture now on decommissioning would be a very valuable step in improving the overall atmosphere and making further progress.”The Ulster Unionist minister Sir Reg Empey said: “Our patience is completely exhausted in this matter.

Since Mr Mandelson would resort to suspension only with great reluctance, the coming days are likely to see a spirited effort by him to hammer out a last-minute accommodationcapable of keeping the show on the road.Yesterday there were signs that some elements within the loyalist paramilitaries might be contemplating a tactical move on decommissioning. John White, of the political wing of the Ulster Freedom Fighters, also known as the Ulster Defence Association, announced he was calling on the group to take the initiative and decommission some weapons.Such a move would be music to the ears of Unionist politicians, since it would produce pressure on the IRA to follow suit. But it will intensify the decommissioning debate in the run-up to the crucial 12 February meeting of David Trimble’s Ulster Unionist Party. Although decommissioning will be debated in the Belfast Assembly next week, some believe the issue will go right down to the wire.Suspension of the Assembly would to some extent protect the new institution by placing it on ice, but would create a political vacuum.