In the Belfast Telegraph, Brian Walker is less than impressed with the lack of detail in yesterday’s joint statement from Taoiseach Bertie Ahern and Prime Minister Tony Blair, arguing that “the ‘stick’ of green-tinged direct rule would seem to hold few terrors for the DUP and the ‘carrot’ of committees by itself is far too unappetising to tempt anybody else”.
It’s difficult to detect anything, threat [or] promise, in the PMs’ framework that creates a dynamic for breaking the deadlock. Without the Assembly, the DUP keeps direct rule, and Sinn Fein achieves a modest shift towards Dublin involvement. Enough for both of them to keep their support, but far from enough to achieve a breakthrough.
We are reader supported. Donate to keep Slugger lit!
For over 20 years, Slugger has been an independent place for debate and new ideas. We have published over 40,000 posts and over one and a half million comments on the site. Each month we have over 70,000 readers. All this we have accomplished with only volunteers we have never had any paid staff.
Slugger does not receive any funding, and we respect our readers, so we will never run intrusive ads or sponsored posts. Instead, we are reader-supported. Help us keep Slugger independent by becoming a friend of Slugger. While we run a tight ship and no one gets paid to write, we need money to help us cover our costs.
If you like what we do, we are asking you to consider giving a monthly donation of any amount, or you can give a one-off donation. Any amount is appreciated.
