Ulster Unionist leader David Trimble has given the British and Irish governments until the end of the month to produce proposals on how to deal with paramilitary violence.

Emerging from an hour-long meeting with the Irish Prime Minister Bertie Ahern and Prime Minister Tony Blair at Hillsborough Castle, he said they needed to be "active" not "passive".

Mr Trimble wants swift action

Mr Trimble requested the talks amid concerns over ongoing sectarian conflict in Belfast and allegations of continuing IRA activity at home and abroad.

Unionists say it is eroding support for the Good Friday Agreement among their supporters.

The first minister said: "There is a very, very, serious loss of confidence in the unionist community."

He said there had to be clearer consequences for paramilitaries who crossed the "red line", or there would be a "very serious problem indeed".

Mr Blair and his Irish counterpart are trying to avert a crisis in the peace process by meeting with all Northern Ireland's pro-Agreement political parties.

Following a round of bi-lateral meetings, Mr Blair said it was important to recognise the peace process was a transition but the process must be kept moving.

"Transition means transition - full transition from violence to democracy," he said.

"We've got to look at the ways we make that clear, that we lay down principles for people to abide by and what happens of they don't abide by them.

There have been outbreaks of violence in recent weeks

"In the short term what we have to do is deal with this issue of street violence."

The prime minister said all of the parties he had spoken to agreed to do everything they could to resolve the situation.

And he insisted Sinn Fein was serious about making the peace process work.

Sinn Fein maintains the allegations about the IRA are unproven and that the violence on the streets in recent weeks has been provoked by loyalists not republicans.

Arriving for the talks, Sinn Fein president Gerry Adams, said political difficulties could be resolved and urged the government not to give in to unionist pressure.

"The issue of course of armed groups has to be tackled. How do we do that? We do that by coming together and working together, by setting an example by implementing the Agreement," he said.

Armed groups

SDLP leader Mark Durkan called on the British and Irish governments to be "less in denial" about paramilitary activity.

He said: "Paramilitaries continue to be active.

"Where there is activity in the dark recesses of this process we have to shine a light into those activities and expose them - not put the lights out."

Mr Blair has acknowledged the paramilitary ceasefires are imperfect and said there needs to be clearer evidence of a move away from violence.

He told parliament on Wednesday that a half-way house "where paramilitaries of whatever description believe there is a tolerated level of violence" was not acceptable.

After the prime ministers met the smaller Protestant parties and other executive groups, they held multi-party talks that are still continuing.

However, Mr Blair's official spokesman said he did not expect the sessions "to produce any instant initiatives".