GAWA does St Patrick’s Day
The London NISC became the latest addition to this year’s St Patrick’s Day parade in London. Lee Reynolds
Lee Reynolds
And now the end is near…
The Labour NEC is expected to agree the timetable for Blair’s exit as Labour Leader and consequently Prime Minister in the coming week. Lee Reynolds
Nationalist Council breached equality protections
The Equality Commission has ruled that nationalist controlled Omagh District Council breached its equality scheme for failing to act against an unauthorised Hunger Strike Memorial on its land in Dromore and the Council’s subsequent plans to sell the land to the group responsible. Full report here (word document) and Council’s response here. (Hat-tip to Beano) Please comment here, apologies Mick et al, been away all day. Lee Reynolds
Australian expert to head up Bill of Rights Forum
Chris Sidoti has been appointed as Chairperson of the Bill of Rights Forum (a fuller bio here). He has held a number of official human rights positions in Australia as well as NGO’s. He presently heads the International Service for Human Rights based in Geneva. Although it seems the NIO has played some pathetic game over Mr Sidoti’s past work (see below the fold). The biographical description of Chris Sidoti in the NIO statement is as follows Since 2003 Chris …
An inside track?
The Belfast Telegraph has polled 27 of the 36 DUP Assembly members (I presume the non-MP ones). The answer to the power-sharing question is yes (only one MLA rejects the notion) but to the 26th March seems to be a No. Lee Reynolds
It’s a Protestant thing?
EU head Jose Manuel Barroso has been facing tough questions over his choice of a petrol guzzler in light of the EU’s new found commitment to tackling CO2 emissions. However, an aide close to Barroso apparently tried to explain such questions to the BBC’s Mark Mardell as ‘It’s a Protestant thing’. Allegedly ‘Protestant’ nations in Europe are less tolerant of hypocrisy among its leaders than ‘Catholic’ nations. However, Juha Sihvola, in Europe 2050, argues both positions are ‘a Greek thing’. …
Murders linked – possible dissident connection
The PSNI are now linking the murders of two men whose bodies were found in North and West Belfast on Monday morning. The victims have been named as Edward Burns from Ardoyne and Joe Jones from Poleglass. The murders may be linked to internal tensions within CIRA. Police describe local co-operation with the investigation as “excellent”. Lee Reynolds
Hain waves a shillelagh
The government is to publish the draft legislation for the Irish Language Act, only a week after the consultation closed. Lee Reynolds
Mandelson takes the shine off
In a new Guardian feature series on the Northern Ireland peace process, Peter Mandelson has criticised Blair’s handling of the peace process, that his commitment to keep it going meant he “conceded and capitulated” to republicans. He says Blair: “In order to keep the process in motion [Tony] would be sort of dangling carrots and possibilities in front of the republicans which I thought could never be delivered, that it was unreasonable and irresponsible to intimate that you could when …
Meanwhile on the streets
There have renewed sectarian clashes in the Ardoyne area over the past four days. It seems to have begun on Friday with an attack on a house in Glenbryn that then grew into street disturbances. On Saturday night, a nationalist youth was assaulted in Alliance Avenue by three men wielding an iron bar and a sectarian motive is suspected. Last night, it appears to have been stone and petrol bomb attacks on Glenbryn and Twaddell followed by rival gangs clashing. …
Rise and Fall
A personal insight into the rise and fall of the UKUP and the man it was built around, Bob McCartney. Lee Reynolds
Virtual Ministers
An executive with 4 DUP, 3 SF, 2 UUP and 1 SDLP minister is likely. Order of selection is – DUP, SF, DUP, UUP, SDLP, SF, DUP, SF, DUP, UUP. What are the sluggerites’ predictions for which ministries the parties will take if power is restored? The DUP is committed to taking out Finance and Personnel but the rest are open. The other ministries are: Education Health Social Development Regional Development Agriculture Cultural Arts and Leisure Employment and Learning Environment …
What route back for the UUP?
The BBC is reporting that David Burnside thinks the UUP should not take its Executive seats and go into opposition. Lee Reynolds
Fair Deal predicts…
I’ll stick my neck out and say it looks like a Unionist majority Executive. My prediction on the 1st preference vote is: 1 PUP 1 Green 38 DUP 17 UUP 28 SF 16 SDLP 7 Alliance This would give a 6/4 executive split. 4/2 Unionist split and 3/1 Nationalist split. DUP to have 1st and 3rd choice. Prediction of: DUP gains in East Londonderry, West Tyrone, Strangford, East Belfast, North Belfast and South Antrim (all at the UUP’s expense) but …
Armagh and Down Constituencies
The Armagh and Down constituencies (No results yet, just getting the page ready)Upper Bann Calvert (Ind) Corry (Green) Fry (Cons) Gardiner (UUP) Hatch (UUP) Kelly (SDLP) McAleenan (SDLP) McCrum (DUP) McQuaid (All) Moutray (DUP) O’Dowd (SF) Peeples (Ind) Savage (UUP) Simpson (DUP) Toman (Ind) Ward (SF) DUP UUP SDLP SF Newry & Armagh Berry (Ind) Boylan (SF) Bradley (SDLP) Brady (SF) Frazer (Ind) Haughey (SDLP) Hendron (All) Hyland (Ind) Irwin (DUP) Kennedy (UUP) Morgan (Green) Murphy (SF) DUP UUP SDLP …
The Western constituencies
The Londonderry, Tyrone and Fermanagh constituency results. (No results yet just getting the page ready)East Londonderry Beattie (SDLP) Brolly (SF) Campbell (DUP) Christie (Ind) Cubitt (UKUP) Dallat (SDLP) Fitzpatrick (All) Hillis (UUP) Leonard (SF) McClarty (UUP) McGonigle (Ind) McQuillan (DUP) Moison (Green) Stevenson (UUP) Robinson (DUP) DUP UUP SDLP SF Foyle Anderson (SF) Boyle (All) Bradley (SDLP) Corry (Green) Durkan (SDLP) Fleming (SF) Frazer (Ind) Hay (DUP) McCann (SEA) McCartney (SF) Munce (UUP) O’Hara (Ind) Quigley (SDLP) Ramsey (SDLP) DUP …
Claims from the Tallies
What party talliers are telling slugger and late night rumours. (UPDATED 1.30)Slugger is aiming to give full coverage of the actual results rather than tally and late election day rumours but here is what we have heard so far. In South Belfast there was apparently a heavy presence of West Belfast SF activists indicating a hard fight is on for the 6th seat. In North Antrim, some concern in the UUP that the turnout was down in areas where they …
The Belfast Seats
The results from the four Belfast constituencies. (No results yet just getting the pages ready)East Belfast Agnew (Green) Bell (WP) Black (SP) Browne (DUP) Chambers (Cons) Copeland (UUP) Empey (UUP) George (UUP) Long (All) Muldoon (SDLP) Newton (DUP) O’Donnghaile (SF) Purvis (PUP) Robinson (DUP) Rodgers (UUP) Alliance DUP UUP PUP North Belfast Cobain Convery Dodds Emerson George Humphrey Kelly Lavery Maginness McCartney McCausland McCord McCullough Ni Chuilin DUP UUP SF SDLP South Belfast Barbour Birnie Cooke George Hanna Hoey Lo …
The Antrim constituencies
The results from the three Antrim constituencies. (No results yet just getting the pages ready)East Antrim Anderson (Ind) Bailey (Green) Beggs (UUP) Dawson (DUP) Dickson (All) Dunn (UUP) Hilditch (DUP) Lewis (Conservative) McMullan (SF) Neeson (All) O’Connor (SDLP) Robinson (UUP) Robinson (UKUP) Wilson (DUP) ALL DUP UUP SDLP North Antrim Black (SDLP) Coulter (UUP) Cubitt (UKUP) Dunlop (All) Gregg (Ind) McGlinchey (Ind) McKay (SF) Nelson (DUP) O’Loan (SDLP) Paisley Jnr (DUP) Paisley (DUP) Storey (DUP) Swann (UUP) DUP UUP SF …
Final appeal to sluggerites
Slugger needs two more volunteers. Nine generous individuals have volunteered to pass on result details for our election day coverage however we still have no contact point at the Londonderry Count Centre (East Londonderry/Foyle) and Banbridge Count Centre (Upper Bann/Newry & Armagh). We need this contact point to provide us with the full detailed results of the 1st count and if possible subsequent counts. A mobile phone will be essential plus the contact point(s) must be willing to keep an …