Gerry, ‘warm weather payments’, and cleaning up the south’s political act

Sam McBride of the News Letter, has been listening to Gerry Adams on RTE’s This Week programme (interview starts 6.44 in):

Quizzed about Sinn Fein implementing cuts in Belfast while opposing them in Dublin, Mr Adams told RTE Radio 1’s This Week programme yesterday afternoon: “Now, what did we establish in the last (Stormont) budget?

“For example, we made sure that those who are most vulnerable are protected. We brought in warm weather payments, we brought in a social fund to assist those most in need, we refused to bring in water charges, we brought in free prescription charges.

“So even in the unique form of government that we have in the six counties, we protected those who are most vulnerable from the worst excesses of British Tory cuts.”

Except, as Sam points out,  “no such payment exists in Northern Ireland”. That said the whole interview is a more ballsy than previous outings. But, still no word on where the money is coming from to keep the state’s current account running after ‘burning the bondholders (sometimes known as ‘lenders of last resort’)’ .

Mick Fealty

Mick is founding editor of Slugger. He has written papers on the impacts of the Internet on politics and the wider media and is a regular guest and speaking events across Ireland, the UK and Europe. Twitter: @MickFealty