Economy
“Enda sounded like Fr Ted trying to explain to a baffled Fr Dougal the difference between “small” and “far away”.”
In the Irish Times, the peerless Miriam Lord on the latest shenanigans in the Dáil Meanwhile, the saga of the Promiscuous Notes rumbles on. It was Gerry Adams’s turn this time to wave them provocatively at the Taoiseach. The Spanish have the right idea, said the Sinn Féin leader. They took the toro pos los [...] more »
“I have decided to issue licences to those netsmen who have provided undertakings to the Department not to fish…”
Evidently all those 161 publicly funded press officers were busy elsewhere… No press release to accompany the Northern Ireland Fisheries Minster Sinn Féin’s Carál Ní Chuilín’s statement to the NI Assembly yesterday. It was an update on departmental salmon conservation measures and, in particular, the Minister’s latest position on the issuing of commercial licences to net salmon. Here’s [...] more »
Euro crisis: “by the fifth instalment producers have to ramp up the violence and special effects.”
There have been some choice quotes flying around as the Greek government neared the 8pm deadline for securing sufficient private sector creditor involvement in their bond swap deal [and convincing Frau Bundeskanzlerin - Ed]. Like this quote from the Guardian live-blog at 6.59pm “if it closes at more than 90% its a triumph,” one well-briefed government [...] more »
Euro crisis: “The expectation, however, must be for a fudge.”
When 25 of 27 EU leaders signed the “fiscal compact” [pdf file] designed to enforce budget discipline within the eurozone there was a rare, and unexpected, mood of optimism in the corridors of Frankfurt Brussels. An enthusiastic editorial in the Irish Times today calls for widespread political debate about the required new economic and political architecture. …the [...] more »
“One step forward. Two steps back. Very awkward.”
In the Irish Times, the peerless Miriam Lord with a useful corrective to more enthusiastic witnesses of the Fianna Fáil Ard Fheis at the weekend. From the Irish Times article. IT WAS all terribly awkward. An excruciating comedy of manners where the anxious principals were petrified they might say the wrong thing and upset the whole [...] more »
“I am delighted to hear that the people of Northern Ireland are the happiest in the United Kingdom”
Some good news! [Peter Robinson will be pleased - Ed] Possibly… According to the Office of National Statistics’ analysis of experimental subjective well-being data from the Annual Population Survey, April to September 2011, the people of Northern Ireland are the happiest in the United Kingdom. In fact the, admittedly subjective, data reveals that the people [...] more »
“a good test of how Irish culture is changing…”
In the Irish Times, Fintan O’Toole considers a recent discussion document from the GAA’s director general, Páraic Duffy – on “GAA amateur status and payment to team managers” [pdf file]. From the Irish Times article The GAA is arguably closer than any other body to being, for both good and ill, the archetypal Irish organisation. [...] more »
“the relentlessly negative portrayal of our economy by some economists & media commentators”
At last night’s NI Assembly Business Trust event, Peter Robinson took aim at Occupy Belfast protesters before moving on to the media: At times like this, when society is struggling to break the grip of the worst recession for two generations, there is far more to be gained by contributing intelligent opinion to informed thinking [...] more »
Euro crisis: “It might be something which would allow Greece also to at least, to some extent, get a new start.”
Have the Greek coalition partners in Government, led by the technocratic former Greek and European central banker, Lucas Papademos, done enough to meet the demands of Germany their eurozone partners? Maybe… and maybe not. As the Guardian’s live-blog noted today Jean-Claude Juncker, who is also prime minister of Luxembourg, says the Eurogroup was still missing information from [...] more »
Euro crisis: You have six days to comply…
That’s the message to Greece from Germany the EU finance ministers. Despite initial reports, prompted by the Greeks themselves, what was agreed yesterday between the party leaders there fell short of what was required – by some €300-odd million. From the Irish Times report The ministers imposed a six-day deadline on Greek authorities to comply [...] more »
Bill Clinton to host “Invest in Ireland” event in New York
As the BBC reports Former US president Bill Clinton is to host an “Invest in Ireland” discussion in New York on Thursday. Well, he’ll ”attend for the beginning of the event where he will make some opening remarks”. You get the point. *sniff* He used to have such big [economic] ideas for here… The Merrion Street [...] more »
Euro crisis: “We are not fully in control of the sequence of events…”
Having watched as yesterday’s ‘deadline’ went whooshing past their heads, Greek party leaders are due to meet later tonight to consider another draft bail-out deal – once it’s been translated into Greek… You can follow events as they unfold at the Guardian’s live-blog. Meanwhile, as promised, Frau Bundeskanzlerin has joined Nicolas Sarkozy on the campaign trail [...] more »
Contested Space Programme: “What’s strange is that we haven’t heard anything about this until now…”
On 22 January, after the International Fund for Ireland (IFI) announced their £2million Peace Walls Programme, I asked about the absence of OFMdFM’s £4million Contested Space Programme – announced in March last year. On 27 January the Northern Ireland Executive Junior Minister, Sinn Féin’s Martina Anderson, launched the Early Years Faces and Spaces – Children’s Shared [...] more »
Sarkozy: “I did not know she voted in France…”
At the Guardian’s Politics Blog, Michael White has some fun with reports that Nicolas Sarkozy has enlisted Frau Bundeskanzlerin in his French presidential re-election campaign. Although this post’s title quote, from the Wall Street Journal blogs, suggests he may already be having second thoughts… ANYhoo… From Michael White’s post We can assume that pollsters have advised [...] more »
Irish DPP to consider Garland case
Having dismissed, in December last year, the US application for the extradition of former Irish Workers’ Party president, Seán Garland, in the long-running saga of the counterfeit ‘super-dollars’, Dublin High Court has now referred the case to the Director of Public Prosecutions to examine whether he should be charged in Ireland. From the BBC report Giving his reasons [...] more »
“Recently the two Governments agreed to address issues relating to both Lough Foyle and Carlingford Lough in the round”
Here’s something that could develop into something quite interesting. It follows on from the “Memorandum of Understanding reached by the two Governments with the support of the Northern Ireland Executive… on marine jurisdictional issues.” As I said then If you were wondering why the lines stop at the entrances to the respective Loughs, that would be [...] more »
Strangford Lough: “It is not as if the two departments did not know what needed to be done.”
It’s worth stating at the beginning that the European Commission haven’t, yet, imposed a fine for the Northern Ireland Executive’s failure to protect and restore a special habitat, of [protected species] horse mussel beds, in Strangford Lough – a designated Special Area of Conservation, an Area of Special Scientific Interest and a Ramsar (protected wetland) site. But, BBC [...] more »
“local communities need help – particularly funding and local political leadership”
In June last year The Detail’s John Breslin was asking questions of the International Fund for Ireland (IFI), and the “significant amount of money under its control, or on the way, that has not yet been either allocated, or is in the hands of, particular projects.” On Thursday last week the IFI announced a Peace Walls Programme with [...] more »
Sean Quinn Declared Bankrupt in Ireland
Having succeeded in having Sean Quinn’s bankruptcy status in the UK annulled, the Irish Bank Resolution Corporation (IBCR), formerly Anglo Irish Bank, today applied to have Mr Quinn declared bankrupt in Dublin High Court. Mr Quinn did not oppose the application. On Friday evening there was another attack on Mr Quinn’s former business headquarters. That occurred just [...] more »
Belfast High Court Annuls Sean Quinn Bankruptcy
As the BBC reports, in the latest instalment of the continuing complicated legal battle between Sean Quinn and the Irish Bank Resolution Corporation (IBRC), formerly Anglo Irish Bank, Belfast High Court has ruled that Mr Quinn is not entitled to declare himself bankrupt in the UK. He can, however, apply for bankruptcy in Ireland. From the BBC report At the [...] more »
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Ulsters Last Stand?: Can Unionism Move Beyond Insurance Policy Politics?
How has Ulster unionism arrived at where it is today – fractured and uncertain, yet dominated electorally by the DUP, a party that tells us it offers unionists sure footing in uncertain times? In his latest book, Ulster’s Last Stand? Reconstructing Unionism after the Peace Process (Irish Academic Press, 2010), Prof. James McAuley from the [...] read our review »
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Round up of Tuesday’s Political Studies Association conference
If you want to get a flavour of the proceedings at the Political Studies Association conference on its opening day, then the Storify collation below will bring you some of the images, tweets and sounds of the day. Particular highlights included: the Opening Plenary with David Blunkett, Peter Riddell and Matthew Flinders; and the late [...] read our review »
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Propaganda of Peace: Media and culture during the peace process
Extract from Greg McLaughlin and Stephen Baker: The Propaganda of Peace: The Role of Media and Culture in the Northern Ireland Peace Process. Bristol: Intellect Books. 2010. Political opponents Ian Paisley and Martin McGuiness were confirmed as First Minister and Deputy First Minister of a new executive in May 2007, closing yet another chapter in [...] read our review »
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