Alex Attwood
Attwood announces a new Windsor Park…
Tweet At £25m, it’s one of the more modest projects, but no doubt none the less welcome for that.. Perhaps the weekend’s evidence of some rapprochement between rival supporters under unreasonable and external sectarian pressure, may herald a better future for NI soccer generally [no sniggering at the back!]. more »
“the looming legal row, which is due to commence on 9 January, could become a defining event for Northern Ireland…”
Tweet Well, perhaps. At the very least it might provide the basis for some actual politics, for a while… ANYhoo… The Observer’s Jamie Doward with a reminder of the upcoming legal battle over planning permission for the Bushmills Dunnes development - a 18-hole golf course, clubhouse, golf academy, 120-room hotel and 75 golf lodges complex, plus associated [...] more »
WHC requests UK Government “to halt the proposed development of a golf resort at the World Heritage property ‘Giant’s Causeway and Causeway Coast’”
Tweet The BBC reports that the World Heritage Committee (WHC) of Unesco has agreed to request “the state party of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland to halt the proposed development of a golf resort at the World Heritage property ‘Giant’s Causeway and Causeway Coast’ until its potential impact on the outstanding universal [...] more »
“Northern Ireland is the only part of these islands that does not have National Parks”
Tweet The Northern Ireland Environment Minister, the SDLP’s Alex Attwood, may have a shortlist of potential National Parks - the Mournes, the Causeway Coast and Antrim Glens, and the Fermanagh Lakelands – but he doesn’t have the required legislation in place. As the BBC report notes The minister said he hopes to designate two of the [...] more »
Belfast’s built heritage: under threat, or hindering progress?
Tweet The fate of the Swanston Linen Warehouse (aka the Athletic Stores) in Queen Street now very much hangs in the balance as Belfast City Council has signalled it’s approval of the decision to demolish the building and replace it with a mixed use developement of apartments and retail space. The Belfast Telegraph is reporting that [...] more »
The SDLP leadership candidates, ranked on internet use and internal organisation
Tweet The SDLP elects its fifth leader this coming weekend, with four male candidates in the running (the deputy leadership has been filled, without contest, by a woman). Since 1998, when the party topped the first preference tallies for the first Assembly election, the SDLP has lost votes and seats at almost every election cycle [...] more »
Green Party conference: nuclear power, environmental governance, and a visit from Minister Attwood
Tweet Update – post covering the content of the Green Party conference now published, including audio of the speeches and debates. Environmental governance and nuclear power … these nearly seem like clichéd themes for the Green Party NI to discuss at their annual conference next weekend. While the two leaders’ speeches will no doubt cover [...] more »
Minister responsible for Council reform told by Castle time is over for debate…
Tweet None of us should take for granted the benefits of having our politicians work together after years of bloody violence on Belfast streets. But here’s a good example of what happens when someone wants to get something done. If it is a Sinn Fein Education Minister who wants to abolish selection in schools, s/he [...] more »
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Books
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Manchán Magan’s ‘Oddballs: A Novel of Affections’: Book Review
Tweet A skilled chronicler in travel narratives and documentaries of those who wander the fringes, Manchán Magan’s debut novel follows four characters on the fringe. Two of them, teenaged Rachel and her quasi-aunt Charlotte, collide after a long estrangement in New Hampshire, and take off on Charlotte’s Wiccan pilgrimage to ye olde England of, as [...] read our review » -
Have we Learned our own Lessons? Book Review of John Brewer’s Peace Processes
Tweet Northern Ireland’s peace process has been promoted as an international success story. The Republic’s Department of Foreign Affairs has its Conflict Resolution Unit, which aims to disseminate the ‘lessons’ of the Northern Ireland peace process. And some of the prominent players in our peace process have travelled abroad to other troubled spots to share [...] read our review »
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Children of the Revolution (Bill Rolston)
Tweet What was life like for children of political activists during the Troubles? A new book by Bill Rolston and published by Guildhall Press during the summer has collected together the stories of twenty Children of the Revolution whose parents’ activities – and in many cases, imprisonment – had a significant affect on childhoods and [...] read our review »
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