Queen's visit sparks political row

The Queen has been marking Maundy Thursday in Northern Ireland as a political row brews.

The centuries-old tradition involves the distribution of Maundy money as a symbol of the giving of alms and Christ's washing of the apostles' feet on Holy Thursday. It is the first time the Queen has carried out the ceremony outside England and Wales.

A cross-community ceremony is being held in Armagh's Anglican Cathedral, St Patrick's.

A total of 164 pensioners - 82 men and 82 women, reflecting the Queen's age of 82 - will receive £5.50 in a red purse and 82 pence in a white purse.

The specially-minted money is highly sought after by collectors and recipients have been chosen after consultation with the local community.

Meanwhile, unionists have demanded an apology from the Irish President for linking the visit to the transfer of policing and justice powers to the Stormont power-sharing executive.

After meeting the Queen in Belfast on Wednesday, Mrs Mary McAleese said: "I think the day (of the first visit by a Monarch) is significantly closer.

"We know that it is dependent on the completion of devolution, which hopefully will not be too far away. That means the return of policing and criminal justice responsibility to the Executive in Northern Ireland.

"We had hoped that would be May. Now we are not entirely sure what the timescale is. We hope it will keep closely to the timetable.

"When that is done, when devolution is completed, I think then anything is possible."

But her comments have been jumped on by Democratic Unionist MP Gregory Campbell, whose party is resisting the transfer of policing and justice powers to the Stormont Executive by the British Government's deadline in May.

"Up until now no-one to my knowledge has linked a possible visit by Her Majesty to the Irish Republic to the devolution of policing and justice," the East Londonderry MP said.

"It is highly inappropriate for her to play politics with the Queen's visit. She has been prone to gaffes in the past.

"However this has gone down very badly and all this does is make unionists in favour of transferring powers respond that they will not be bounced into doing what she and Sinn Fein are demanding. She really ought to clarify her position."

With dissident republicans remaining a threat, security is tight in Armagh for the royal visit.

Police checkpoints were set up 20 miles away from the city, and airport-style security filtered hundreds of guests, media and their processions through the nearby Drumadd army barracks from where they were transported to the Anglican cathedral by bus.

The Queen is being accompanied by the Duke of Edinburgh during her three day visit to the province.

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