蜜芽传媒

Northern Ireland First Minister Peter Robinson has stepped aside and other DUP ministers are to resign as a result of the political crisis at Stormont.

"I wish that the DUP had been able to find a different way to deal with this situation", said Theresa Villiers, secretary of state for Northern Ireland.

Ms Villiers acknowledged the IRA still exists, saying "there are some organisational structures, but they are for a radically different purpose than in the past."

"The IRA is not involved in terrorism", she said.