Paul Gosling – Page 5 – Slugger O'Toole

‘Social integration begins with integrated education and integrated housing’

Paul Gosling on June 28, 2019, 7:00 am

| Readers 816

For Northern Ireland to become more integrated, there has to be a greater focus on integrated schools and integrated housing, argues the chief executive of the Integrated Education Fund, Tina Merron. She was interviewed for the latest Forward Together podcast. “I think the majority of people in Northern Ireland want a shared future and a united community,” says Tina. “We need to give civil society more of a say. We need to encourage people to speak up and especially young …

‘A stronger role for civic society must be central to getting government back’

Paul Gosling on June 24, 2019, 7:00 am

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International peace negotiator John McKinney has urged the political parties to include a stronger role for civic society in a reformed structure of governance for Northern Ireland. John – a former chief executive of the Special EU Programmes Body and of Omagh District Council – was speaking in the latest Forward Together podcast. Asked how civil society in Northern Ireland should be strengthened, John says: “I don’t think we have a framework adequate to do it. I think we had …

How Brexit changes a unionist to a united Irelander

Paul Gosling on June 21, 2019, 7:00 am

| Readers 13240

Brexit is making some unionists re-evaluate their allegiance to the UK – and consider support for a united Ireland, says Philip Gilliland, a commercial lawyer and former president of the Londonderry Chamber of Commerce. “We’ve been given a gift which is called Brexit, because it’s allowed those of us who are from a Protestant background to be able to talk about the heresy of the united Ireland in a way that is not heresy,” says Philip in the latest Forward …

‘Stephen Nolan needs to find the right balance – and not make angry people angrier’

Paul Gosling on June 17, 2019, 7:00 am

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Stephen Nolan needs to find the right balance between allowing people to express their emotions, without making angry people even angrier. The plea was made in the latest Forward Together podcast by Sinn Fein MLA and former finance minister Máirtín Ó Muilleoir. “In this often divided society, I think the tone and timbre of the debate has to be respectful,” says Máirtín. “We have to find ways of not feeding the ratings monster, not sectarianising a discussion, which has huge sectarian …

‘Let’s not repeat the mistakes of the past! (But we are.)’

Paul Gosling on June 14, 2019, 7:00 am

| Readers 1950

Northern Ireland is “a society that is still emerging from conflict”, warns Conal McFeely, chief executive of one of Northern Ireland’s largest and most successful not-for-profit businesses, the Ráth Mór Centre[i] in Derry. He was interviewed in the latest Forward Together podcast. “We must collectively not allow ourselves to make the same political mistakes – and the failure of governance – that we’ve done in the past,” Conal says, before adding “but sadly I believe that we are at the moment”. …

‘We have lost ground in the past 20 years’, claims PUP’s John Kyle

Paul Gosling on June 10, 2019, 7:00 am

| Readers 1896

Society in Northern Ireland has gone backwards since the signing of the Good Friday Agreement, argues the former leader of the Progressive Unionist Party John Kyle, who is also a GP in Belfast. “In my view we have lost ground in the past 20 years,” he says in the latest Forward Together podcast. John believes that we need to review the progress that was achieved and consider why it has lost momentum. He suggests three factors enabled the conflict to …

‘If we tell people the cost of segregation, they will support greater integration’

Paul Gosling on June 7, 2019, 7:00 am

| Readers 2697

If people are told the financial cost of segregation and service duplication, there will be much greater support for social integration, says community worker Maureen Hetherington. Maureen is director of The Junction community and peace-building centre in Derry-Londonderry and was interviewed in the latest ‘Forward Together’ podcast. “I have no doubt that integrated education is absolutely fundamental to getting people to know each other, to engage with each other,” stresses Maureen. “The difficulty there is that we don’t have the …

‘Citizens’ Assembly could help progress with health reform’, suggests Simon Hamilton

Paul Gosling on June 3, 2019, 7:00 am

| Readers 967

The adoption of a citizens’ assembly could assist with making progress with reform of the health service in Northern Ireland, says Simon Hamilton – a DUP MLA and former health and finance minister. He was interviewed in the latest ‘Forward Together’ podcast. Speaking about the use of citizens’ assemblies in the Republic of Ireland, Simon explains: “They shouldn’t be dismissed instantly just because you didn’t like what some other jurisdiction was doing with them.” He adds: “I know from my …

‘Let’s create an all-island, integrated, health service, and let’s begin now’

Paul Gosling on May 31, 2019, 7:00 am

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There needs to be an all-island, integrated, health service, and its creation should not be dependent upon the agreement or timing of a united Ireland, argues Professor Jim Dornan – one of the architects of existing cross-border co-operation in health services. Jim was interviewed in the latest Forward Together podcast. “In many ways Ireland is a Goldilocks sized country for health provision,” he explains. “We can cherry pick the best of health provision throughout the world and let’s introduce it …

“Justice for victims is giving them a society that works”

Paul Gosling on May 27, 2019, 7:00 am

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Justice for victims is achieved by “giving them a society that works”, says Fergus O’Dowd TD of Fine Gael. He is a member of the Oireachtas Good Friday Implementation Committee and was appointed earlier this year by Taoiseach Leo Varadkar to lead a new Fine Gael group to develop links with Northern Ireland. He is interviewed in the latest Forward Together podcast. Discussing how to deal with events of the past, Fergus stresses that victims and their relatives must be …

‘Women lose out in Northern Ireland’

Paul Gosling on May 24, 2019, 7:00 am

| Readers 939

More must be done in Northern Ireland to make society open for women and for minorities, argues Alexandra De La Torre, the co-ordinator for NICVA of the Next Chapter, which has the objective of strengthening women’s engagement in civic society and participation in society. Alexandra is interviewed in the latest Forward Together podcast. “I think it is fundamental for civil society to create spaces where there is room for everyone,” she says. “Spaces that are inclusive for women, inclusive for …

‘We have a political process instead of a peace process’

Paul Gosling on May 20, 2019, 7:00 am

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Northern Ireland has “had a political process at the cost of a peace process”, believes Clare Bailey MLA, the leader of the Green Party in Northern Ireland. She is highly critical of the limited progress since the Good Friday Agreement 21 years ago and the lack of real social integration. She was speaking in the latest Forward Together podcast. Clare questions who has benefited since the signing of the Good Friday Agreement. “Certainly within the working class and the most …

In praise of Citizens’ Assemblies – Peter Sheridan believes they can provide solutions to some of Northern Ireland’s most intractable problems

Paul Gosling on May 17, 2019, 7:00 am

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Citizens’ assemblies should be widely used to address the problems faced by communities across Northern Ireland, argues Peter Sheridan, the chief executive of Co-operation Ireland. He was interviewed in the latest Forward Together podcast. “It works in Canada, it works in Iceland: there are examples all around the world.” Speaking before the murder of Lyra McKee, Peter continues: “You pick an area and pick a problem, you randomly select a group of people from the electoral register and depending on …

‘Political leadership is key to making progress’

Paul Gosling on May 13, 2019, 7:00 am

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Developing mutual respect, strengthening relationships and building proper political leadership are the basis for making progress in Northern Ireland, believes independent unionist MLA – and former justice minister – Claire Sugden. She is interviewed in the latest Forward Together podcast. Talking before the announcement of renewed political talks, Claire expressed her frustration at the lack of a functioning Assembly and Executive. “We’ve had a situation here at Stormont where we haven’t had a sitting assembly for two years. And I …

“A leadership vacuum” that must be filled

Paul Gosling on May 10, 2019, 7:00 am

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A leadership vacuum is causing harm across Northern Ireland, including in loyalist areas, and contributes to the lure of paramilitaries, warns victims’ campaigner Alan McBride in the latest Forward Together podcast. “I think we probably need to put a lot of investment into areas like East Belfast and the Shankill and other areas to try and improve the leadership potential,” he argues. Alan adds: “As a grassroots working class Protestant loyalist myself, I have a real feel for that community. …

‘Let’s look again at the Eames-Bradley approach to the past’

Paul Gosling on May 6, 2019, 7:00 am

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The Eames-Bradley report was the best approach yet to how Northern Ireland should deal with Troubles legacy issues, argues Mark Durkan. The former SDLP leader and deputy first minister was interviewed for the ‘Forward Together’ podcast series immediately before declaring his candidacy for Fine Gael for the Dublin constituency in the European Parliament elections. Mark argues that the proposals tabled for the 2013 talks mediated by US envoy Richard Haass were “not as good as Eames-Bradley”. The challenge is also …

‘Reaching across the divide’

Paul Gosling on May 3, 2019, 7:00 am

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Linda Ervine is a community worker in loyalist east Belfast, who is also an Irish language activist. Her classes have attracted literally hundreds of people to study Irish at the Skainos Centre on Newtownards Road – proof that Northern Ireland must not be seen merely as a narrow concept of two communities. “We’ve got to reach across the divide,” says Linda in the latest of the ‘Forward Together’ podcast interviews. “Sadly 20 years after the Good Friday Agreement we are …

‘The suicide rates are huge’ – Podcast interview with Senator Frances Black…

Paul Gosling on April 29, 2019, 7:00 am

| Readers 1843

Senator Frances Black is an independent senator in Ireland’s Oireachtas and a member of its Good Friday Agreement Implementation Committee. She has family roots in Rathlin Island and a strong commitment to addressing mental health challenges. Frances is also a very modest person. “I’m first and foremost a singer you know,” she says. “And I left school when I was very young. I don’t have a great language. But I do know that people understand the language of the heart. …

‘Strengthen and value civil society’

Paul Gosling on April 26, 2019, 7:00 am

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“Civil society needs to be strengthened to do more than just provide services,” argues Avila Kilmurray, one of the founders of the Women’s Coalition. “Civil society in many ways was the backbone of society in the 70s, 80s, 90s in Northern Ireland, whenever we were in the midst of The Troubles.” The call for a strong civic society was made in the third interview in the series of more than 30 Forward Together podcasts. These were recorded with leading figures …

‘A threat to the union’

Paul Gosling on April 22, 2019, 7:00 am

| Readers 2907

“Unionism needs to look and recognise that the environment around us is changing,” says former Ulster Unionist Party leader Mike Nesbitt MLA. He adds: “I would like to see civic unionism becoming more active… Perhaps we need to build civic society that goes beyond the division and the politics of unionism and nationalism”. The call for a strong civic society was made in the second interview in the series of more than 30 Forward Together podcasts. These were recorded with …