Alan Meban (Alan in Belfast) 
METRIC SPEED LIMITS – As of this morning it’s now Sinn Féin policy to introduce the metric system for all road signage and to create an all-Ireland body to standardise speed limits and road traffic signs.
The centenary of 1916 loomed large in the Friday night speeches to the Sinn Féin delegates assembled in the Convention Centre Dublin. Party chairperson Declan Kearney and deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness both spoke about reconciliation, outreach and dialogue.
ZERO WASTE manifesto launched by Green Party to “bring about an end to the waste of money, time and opportunities at Stormont”.
BROAD AGREEMENT between wide range of parties on need to tackle NI housing shortage and deal with the wider issues around homelessness at this afternoon’s Housing & Homelessness Hustings in North Belfast.
Tonight’s EU Your Choice debate began with ten minute presentations from the four GB political panellists before moving into a Q&A. The full event was live-streamed and should soon be available to replay. Kate Hoey (Labour MP) – leave Vernon Coaker (Labour MP) – remain Owen Paterson (Conservative MP) – leave John Stevens (former Conservative MEP) – remain The panel was co-chaired by Quadriga Consulting’s Jeffrey Peel and Danske Bank Economist Angela McGowan, making it an interesting format given their …
After the release of the Committee for Standards and Privileges’ report earlier in March, Basil McCrea said he would fight the Assembly election as NI21’s sole candidate. Now the Lagan Valley MLA has done a U-turn and told the Belfast Telegraph that he is to quit Stormont, disillusioned with the political process.
HANDS ON workshop to run a polling station, verify the ballots, and work through a multi-stage count to elect six mouth-watering candidate desserts using STV as part of the Imagine Festival of Ideas on Monday 14 March.
Truth doesn’t necessarily follow from honest testimony. Justice and healing don’t necessarily follow on from truth. Closure doesn’t require truth. This film adaptation of David Park’s novel The Truth Commissioner examines the oft-suggested process using a fictional case of someone who ‘disappeared’.
LOW ENERGY conference in Derry as smaller than expected numbers of SDLP delegates gathered to hear their new leader and be enthused on the eve of the Assembly election campaign.
LEADER RATINGS – Back in October, Mike Nesbitt had the highest rating of the five party leaders. Peter Robinson languished behind, only ahead of Alasdair McDonnell. Fast forward five months and two leadership changes later, Arlene Foster is top of the polls. Though much less of a bounce for Colum Eastwood who should be worried that he’s rated alongside Arlene Foster in the eyes of nationalists and barely ahead of David Ford.
VETERAN RETURNS – Former Alliance (and independent) councillor and former Green Party leader Brian Wilson is stepping back into politics and standing as an independent candidate in North Down in a move that will disappoint both the Green Party and Alliance.
Introducing the fourth in a short series of EUDebateNI events this morning in Derry~Londonderry, Conor Houston explained that while the Centre for Democracy and Peace Building takes a neutral on the decision of whether the UK remains or leaves EU, it does want to encourage debate. Business journalist Naomi McMullan hosted the debate said there was a lot of information about the EU referendum but very little clarity. She characterised the debate as “a clash of visions”. Danske Bank’s economist …
NEGATIVE CAMPAIGNING has started with DUP leader Arlene Foster’s appeal to unionist voters to support the DUP so that Martin McGuinness doesn’t become First Minister. In the speech she also outlines 5 parts to the DUP’s vision for the next Assembly term.
SUBDUED & LIBERAL – Today’s Alliance Party conference was subdued compared with last year’s ‘Long election rally’. Delegate numbers were stable, but the palpable passion of 2015 was muted. Liberal values were emphasised as much as sharing and reconciliation, with several speeches mentioning the party’s support for LGBT rights and limited reform of abortion.
DOCTORED PHOTOGRAPHS were ignored in last night’s uncomfortable interview between Mark Carruthers and Basil McCrea on The View. It should have been the Lagan Valley MLA’s opportunity to quickly draw a line under the last two years of allegations, accept that he could be more patient with staff and pivot the narrative back onto the electoral hopes for himself and his party.
TELL ME when it’s time to go says Alliance leader David Ford. In this interview with Slugger he talks about Alliance’s electoral appeal, new parties in NI, switching to use council areas for Assembly constituencies, taking Executive meetings out on the road, the balance of funding between prison and community/probation services, joined up working across the Executive, Alliance’s approach to the Justice Ministry after May’s election, public and political support for refugees and asylum seekers in NI, and his thoughts on the Irish election and the impact of the EU referendum on the Assembly campaign.
Over the last four or five years that I’ve been covering Green Party conferences, the number of exhibitors, the number of delegates and the confidence of the delegates has been increasing. There were a lot of new faces this year, many but not all of them young. As Green Party activists south of the border nervously awaited results from the Irish General Election, the conference agenda in the Clayton Hotel in Belfast included encouraging video messages from the Green Party …
Lawyers from across Ireland gathered in Belfast for a conference examining the Legal Implications of Brexit. The complexities of unpicking the UK from the EU were unearthed and discussed, including smuggling, extradition, and the impact on human rights protects. (The Attorney General reckons that Brexit would enhance the protection of fundamental rights and freedoms.)
Eight speakers deliver their pitch for the leaving or remaining in the European Union in QUB Student’s Union – Leslie Budd (OU), Hugo MacNeill (British/Irish Assoc), David Phinnemore (QUB), David McNarry (UKIP), Duncan Morrow (APNI), Declan Kearney (SF), Christopher Stalford (DUP) & Claire Hanna (SDLP)
Johnny McCarthy – at one stage NI21’s only councillor and the party’s deputy leader before he resigned from the party in late 2015 – has joined the SDLP.
