Monday, May 15, 2006
DUP to refuse to share power with UUP
The DUP has taken what many seem to consider the open goal offered them by the UUP’s decision to approach PUP leader David Ervine about joining the party within the Assembly.
DUP leader Ian Paisley said at Stormont that his party will not enter any power-sharing arrangement with the UUP due to the PUP and Ervine’s links to the Ulster Volunteer Force, which is not on ceasefire and which the report points out is deeply involved in drugs, extortion and violence.
“If people want to be aligned with any form of terrorism, whether it be Protestant or Roman Catholic, they have no right in the government here,” he said.
George @ 12:55 PM
Will they also insist that the UUP and its influence/links with the UVF are accounted for in future IMC reports?
Posted by on May 15, 2006 @ 01:08 PMThat’s a cracker of a headline.
Posted by on May 15, 2006 @ 01:12 PMI hope Empey is happy - he’s managed at a stroke to destroy the unionist consensus that existed in relation to the presence of paramilitary-aligned parties in governemnt, and for what? An extra grubby ministry?
Where are the decent people in the UUP? (And I’m not taking the piss out of their election slogan when I ask this). Does Lady Hermon agree with this? What about Alex Kane or Esmond Birnie - two honourable people - what do they think about their leaders actions?
This is utterly disgusting - Empey needs to be forced out now before he does any more damage.
Posted by on May 15, 2006 @ 01:18 PMDUP sits on the Policing Board with the PUP
DUP votes elected Hugh Smyth as Lord Mayor way back in 1997
DUP had no problem with Tommy Kirkham supporting its group on Newtownabbey Borough Council
DUP set up Ulster Resistance
DUP set up the Third Force
DUP MP Willie McCrea supported Billy Wright, Sammy Wilson too…
DUP were closely associated with Harryville until it became too hairy even for them!What this is really about is that somehow this moves balls up whatever plans or choreography was afoot. 3 Ministerial seats for the UUP gives them a veto in any future executive, and that’s what really pissing them off. So much so that they ran to Hain this morning at Hillsborough.
Posted by on May 15, 2006 @ 01:21 PMStupid by the UUP - how can they ever be taken seriously when they insist on SF obeying the law now when they accept a man linked to murderers and drug dealers into their grouping at Stormont?
Posted by on May 15, 2006 @ 01:23 PMThis is brilliant.
So if the Shinners sign up to policing the DUP will go into government with them but not the uup.
They will walk off the policing board if the shinners join but stay on with Dawn Purvis Chairperson of the PUP.
They had 4 ministerial posts but lost one due to their homophobic reaction to Paul Berry and are upset because the UUP is trying to restore the unionist majority in any future assembly.
Given that under Robinson Adams the assembly rules were to be changed so that the DUP didnt have to vote for SF ministers I believe they also gave up the right to vote against UUP ministers.
Given Willie McCrea’s support for Billy Wright does that mean Willie aint getting a Minsterial position. Will all his recording sessions in the States of late be in vain no DCAL logo on his cd covers.
What about the DUPs support for Hugh Smyth and Frank McCoubrey in the past.
The list gets endless dont it or shall we go into the third force, ulster resistance or start discussing the former uvf prisoners who hold elected office for the dup.
Posted by on May 15, 2006 @ 01:29 PMUnionist - isn’t this sort of hypocrisy just what nationalists having been trying to point out for years?
Posted by on May 15, 2006 @ 01:32 PMI just posted a comment - where did it go?????????
Posted by on May 15, 2006 @ 01:33 PMThe UUP have also not “taken a seat from SF” but could take the Ministerial seat from the DUP.
All that just to get into bed with the UVF. Not only that but I wonder why they have bothered doing it. There’s no prospect of there being an Executive being formed in the immediate future, plus the fact that they would only have needed Ervine to have signed on for them on whatever day d’Hondt is run for allocating Ministries. They have taken all this grief and the chances are that they will get absolutely no ‘benefit’ from it.
Also after seeing the Stormont Live coverage, someone tell Reg Empey that double-breasted suits are out - maybe we should allow the fashion police to comment in similar terms as the IMC.
Posted by on May 15, 2006 @ 01:33 PMboshank--are you just plain stupid?
Your defence of the UUP’s disgusting tactic is to fingerpoint at the DUP. A pathetic response.
There is a fundamental moral dimension here regarding the UUP’s cosying up to the UVF. Ervine remains leader of the PUP. The PUP retains its links to an active terrorist group. Ervine is now a member of the UUP’s Assembly Group. Therefore, the UUP is directly linked to a terrorist organisation.
This is going to become truly awful for the UUP.
BVG
Posted by on May 15, 2006 @ 01:39 PMConspiracy theory No. 836645.
Obviously the DUP knew of this Ervine UUP move some time ago. That is why they no longer refer to Sinn Féin as Sinn Féin - IRA.
Because now, in order to be consistent and avoid the blackest sin of all - hypocrisy - they would have to call the UUP the UUP - UVF.
And also Paul Berry was in pole position to join the Assembly grouping until he heard he wouldn’t be officially whipped. He balked at this bad news, and this gave Ervine his chance
Posted by on May 15, 2006 @ 01:45 PM[Copy of a post on another thread]
This was a masterly piece of political sabotage.
In one move, they have;
- Presented their principal unionist rival, the DUP, with a massive problem. As Ian Paisley himself put it today: The North Antrim MP said: “Let me make it very clear to you that this party will not have any association in government with any party that is linked to terrorism, linked to murderers and linked also to crime and will not support the police”. Oops, thats the end of DUP-UUP cooperation in the Executive (if ever ... ) then.
- Put one of their minor rivals, the PUP, out of business. No loss, of course.
- Robbed SF of one of its possible Ministries.
- Oh, and buggered their own credibility too. “No guns, no government”, remember. The PUP’s friends are not on the side of the angels here. So now we have a new party with paramilitary links - the UUP!
Masterful work here .... well, if you’re an SDLP or Alliance supporter. I cannot think of aanyone else it serves.
Posted by on May 15, 2006 @ 01:46 PMBVG, Yeah plain stupid, took a bad punishment beating there recently and it’s left my head a bit away with it. Actually the topicf of this thread is about the DUP attacking us.
And there’s one thing i’ll never do and that’s take lectures from jokers like them about ‘principle’!
Posted by on May 15, 2006 @ 01:47 PMBefore people get too far ahead of themselves lets not forget that the UVF have been moving towards total disbandment and any move to support them should be welcomed.
Lets also not forget that Dawn Purvis’s support for policing was unequivocable.
If as some suspect there is no prospect of an executive why is the DUP so worked up.
Posted by on May 15, 2006 @ 01:53 PMunionist
I defy you to produce on single shred of evidence to show the UVF is moving towards total disbandment,
Posted by on May 15, 2006 @ 01:58 PM“why is the DUP so worked up.”
So they can attract the UUP supporters angered by the decision?
An opportunity to respond to the nationalist criticism of double standards on paramilitarism by applyinmg the same standard to the UUP and Sinn Fein perhaps?
Because the UUP has shattered the common position towards paramilitarism and the Executive maybe?Posted by on May 15, 2006 @ 02:00 PMThere was validity in the aspiration to the type of Unionist Party that Alex Cane and others proposed, one with clear integrity that could appeal outside the narrow confines of Unionism. That project which in the long run could have increased the possibility of maintaining the Union is dead for now. With the demise of the Women’s Coalition and now this there is real opportunity now for Alliance.
The DUP attacks are brilliant, they will not gain all the UUP support but what they are doing is twisting the knife and rubbing salt into the wounds of an already divided and demoralised party. The Alliance may gain a few votes but more importantly the UUP will loose both direct support and transfers and because of this will loose further seats. So the DUP don’t have to gain direct voter support to benefit.
Posted by on May 15, 2006 @ 02:03 PMDon’t wish to intrude too much on private grief, but let’s be serious here. The only reason the DUP are doing/saying this is because it gives them additional cover for their rejectionist politics. Nothing more, nothing less.
As for the PUP, this is surely a step towards it ceasing to exist. Ervine knows the military route is blocked - just as Adams discovered before him. The UVF are poison, but Ervine’s move seems like a borderline positive one to me.
Posted by on May 15, 2006 @ 02:04 PMI would like to hear from Alex Kane on this. Alex, where are you?
Posted by on May 15, 2006 @ 02:06 PMWhat would happen if the UVF immediately declared ceasefire and total decommisioning?
Posted by on May 15, 2006 @ 02:08 PMfair deal...the common position??? does that maen the hokey cokey approach by the DUP? Rotating Ministries for the boys?
Posted by on May 15, 2006 @ 02:08 PMboshank
No you pathetic little nark. The common position being that those associated with or supporting the use of paramilitary violence should have no place in the government of Northern Ireland. Whatever the differences of the last ten years, both parties at least claimed to believe that. Clearly the idea of an extra ministry tempted Reg to ditch what little prinicple he had.
Posted by on May 15, 2006 @ 02:13 PMloyalist, now now put the handbag down...you’re still pretty no matter what anyone says.
The extra ministry deprives Sinn Fein of one, it’s pragmatic and when taken with points that i listed earlier that BVG took me task for which points to the abject ridiculousness of the DUPs position, personally i think it’s a good move.
Posted by on May 15, 2006 @ 02:16 PM“Whatever the differences of the last ten years, both parties at least claimed to believe that.”
Although the claim from either party never really matched the facts, did it! (hmmm gun-running? ‘Love Ulster’? OO influence/membership and parade marshalling? etc. etc.)
Posted by on May 15, 2006 @ 02:20 PMThe DUP talk and get involved with paramilitries when its suits them, so they need to stop leading the unionist people a merry dance with all the lies such as they dont talk to S/F. I think Sir Reg is trying to move the unionist people forward by bringing David Ervine on board in the assembly group its good to see to unionist parties standing together.
Posted by on May 15, 2006 @ 02:24 PM
