Belfast Gonzo ACCORDING to Guido, “Robert Philpot, director of Progress and editor of their magazine has just been appointed as the new SpAd [special advisor] to Peter Hain, replacing the departed cheating Phil Taylor“. Meanwhile, Guido has been recovering from his Newsnight appearance and run-in with the BBC’s Nick Robinson. Belfast Gonzosluggerotoole.com
PAISLEY’S unprecendented speech is below the fold, for those who wish to read it in full. Ahern’s and Blair’s statements are here, while Adams’ is here.Full text of Ian Paisley’s statement This is the full transcript of the statement delivered by the Reverend Ian Paisley at Stormont today: “In 2003 the DUP became the largest political party in Northern Ireland and the last three and a half years has seen our strategy deliver very significant advances for the unionist people. …
IT’S midnight, so that means devolution has just been re-established in Northern Ireland – though it seems certain the Assembly won’t have an Executive. If any of our politicians have a free moment before Saturday, it might serve them well to get down to the Ormeau Baths Gallery, where an exhibition of press photography from Northern Ireland – Out of the Darkness – is on show. The exhibition has been extended for a week thanks to its popularity, and after …
1. MPs say the Government could find the time for emergency legislation to extend or alter the March 26 deadline if they want. 2. The economic package for Northern Ireland announced by the Chancellor today represents only a “modest” improvement on his previously ridiculed proposals – most of the ‘new’ money in it was actually from the Republic’s national development plan. 3. Secretary of State Peter Hain, devoid of any credibility, is now talking about offering politicians a ‘breathing space’ …
SO no joy for first time buyers from Brown’s Budget. But – two weeks after Slugger highlighted how useless the Co-ownership Scheme was – David Hanson announced an increase in the value limits to more realistic levels. In summary, the situation still ain’t great if you’re trying to get your first mortgage, so hopefully a combination of water rates, higher interest rates, higher domestic rates and below-inflation wage increases will mean stretched homeowners having their homes repossessed, and then all …
SO no significant cut in corporation tax for Northern Ireland in the budget… and no more expected later today, for political, as much as financial, reasons. Any commission to review the tax is meaningless. What we are expecting is a new ‘innovation fund’, although the Chancellor has previewed it in terms of announcing “details of a new Northern Ireland innovation fund” – suggesting it might not be as new as we think. Given how easily the last so-called ‘£50 billion’ …
DAVY Adams thinks the UUP and SDLP should go into Opposition – as did a few Slugger readers. Newton Emerson satirises the UUP rejection of a request to join the new ‘United Community’ opposition group in the Assembly, pointing out that the party is “apparently unaware that next time around they might not be worth the bother of asking. Could the UUP now become the first political party in history to fail to get into opposition?” He also notes that …
AFTER reading some of your comments here – in my thread based on the UUP and SDLP never going into opposition – I remembered the following quote I read a while back in the Tele’s Insider: “The one basic fact about democracy, surely, is that you can get rid of your government if you don’t like them.” After today’s revelations, it won’t surprise you to find out who said it and why your bullshit-o-meter is in the red, so try …
THE two big losers in the election campaign – the UUP and SDLP – have ruled out serving a spell in Opposition. Despite the opportunities it could offer both parties to regroup, it appears the lure of the ministerial limo is too much to pass up – though you could fit both parties’ ministers in a Mini after this election. If the two minor partners in the Executive are to be largely bound by the decisions of the SF-DUP, my …
HAVEN’T time to do the sums, but could the UUP end up the fourth party? Could Alliance end up with a seat in the Executive? Belfast Gonzosluggerotoole.com
THE personable Kieran McCarthy was, I think, the last man elected in the last Assembly election. While he’s not home and dry in this one yet, the Alliance man has increased his party’s share of the vote more than any other in Strangford, which means he’s likely to see off the SDLP threat of Joe Boyle. Seems like this is going to be a pretty good election for Alliance, with the possibility of one gain in South Belfast in the …
SINN FEIN carpetbagger Mitchel McLaughlin has topped the poll in South Antrim, with Willie McCrea of the DUP is also over the quota. It looks like Alliance leader David Ford will be safe, but the combined total of the SDLP’s two candidates doesn’t even make a quota. Belfast Gonzosluggerotoole.com
INDEPENDENT Kieran Deeny is in big trouble in West Tyrone, with, I feel, his 3,776 first preferences unlikely to attract enough transfers to see him in. The hospital campaigner had previously topped the poll. Belfast Gonzosluggerotoole.com
IAN PAISLEY Snr just topped the poll in North Antrim – the future First Minister is home and laughing. And the DUP’s Peter Robinson (East Belfast), Nigel Dodds (North Belfast), Jimmy Spratt (South Belfast), Jeffrey Donaldson (Lagan Valley) and Gregory Campbell (East Londonderry) have all topped the polls in their constituencies. Could the DUP get three seats in East Londonderry? Belfast Gonzosluggerotoole.com
THE DUP deputy leader topped the poll in East Belfast and paid tribute to the Alliance deputy leader, Naomi Long, who came second, also above quota. Peter Robinson said those Alliance voters who had previously lent their vote to the UUP now had no reason to. Ironically, Robinson’s lower vote is good news for the DUP, pointing to good vote management in the constituency – bad news for the UUP’s Michael Copeland. Good news too for the new PUP leader, …
ANTI-Agreement unionist Bob McCartney is – according to sources – “toast”, with the ballots pouring out of the boxes showing apparently little for his efforts. Belfast Gonzosluggerotoole.com
A FEW tidbits from BBC Radio Ulster’s coverage over the past hour or so… Davy Hyland has conceded already in Newry & Armagh… Bradley is out taking his posters down… Turnout possibly up in Strangford… Esmond Birnie in potential trouble in South Belfast… And could Mitchel McLaughlin be taking a seat from the SDLP rather than Alliance in South Antrim? Belfast Gonzosluggerotoole.com
THE ‘Big Four’ banks here are basically a cartel of rip-off merchants, if the General Consumer Council is to be believed. Today, the GCC has been celebrating (perhaps prematurely) a “major victory” for customers after the Competition Commission published proposals “to sort out the anti-competitive and anti-consumer personal current account market here”. But what happens when the banks a) laugh in the face of these toothless recommendations, or b) withdraw free banking services and start charging instead (as happens elsewhere …
BOTH a caller to Talkback and Mick have already noted that the UUP has been canvassing in republican Ballymurphy – an encouraging sign of progress. Has anyone else had any ‘unexpected’ visitors? Did Sinn Fein’s unionist outreach officer – Martina Anderson – manage to do any unionist outreach in Foyle, for example (surely the least she could do)? Another topic on the Dunseith show was the fact that the election count stops overnight, and, as any politics junkie knows from …
I GOT a call from Virgin Media yesterday asking me if – for an extra two quid a month in addition to the broadband bill – I’d like 100 TV channels, including Sky. I almost said yes to what seemed like a bargain. Good job I hesitated – thousands of cable subscribers woke up this morning to discover the Sky channels had disappeared – overnight, thanks to Virgin and Sky
