A tie-up between the Conservative Party and Ulster Unionists could forge a new political force in Northern Ireland, Tory leader David Cameron has said.
The Conservative Party revealed it has been in talks for several months with the Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) about joining forces and the party leaders have said agreement on a joint future could influence politics across the UK.
UUP leader Sir Reg Empey said the discussions offered unionists an opportunity to strengthen the Union, but the Democratic Unionists said the move showed the UUP had no faith in its own electoral future in Northern Ireland.
A working group made up of Tory Party and UUP members will discuss whether a merger should take place or whether the two parties should work together in an alliance, with a report to be presented to the party leaders by the autumn.
Mr Cameron said: "The Conservative Party stands in every part of the United Kingdom. We're the only party that does. In a lot of elections we have shrunk back to rather an English base but what I want us to explore with the Ulster Unionists is not really some 'let's have joint candidates or work together'. I want to be much more ambitious than that.
"I'd like to see us establish a new political force in Northern Ireland that is both Conservative and Unionist, that can say to people, look, get beyond the old politics of constitution or orange or green."
The Conservatives already have a presence in Northern Ireland but have never polled well, though any close tie-up with the Ulster Unionists would give it a large platform to work on.
Ulster Unionists hope the move could help it regain ground lost to the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP).
The talks comes as the nationalist SDLP is already in discussions with parties in the Irish Republic, including the main government party Fianna Fail, aimed at creating an all-Ireland axis to match the cross-border presence of Sinn Fein, which has four seats in the Irish parliament.
UUP leader Sir Reg said: "We want the opportunity to explore whether we can play a meaningful role in national politics as well as local politics."
