Britain – Page 7 – Slugger O'Toole

The Tories: “It’s their strategy that’s failing… half-baked renewal…”

Mick Fealty on February 25, 2010, 5:50 pm

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Okay, so things aren’t going so well. As a result of the Westminster tie up with the Tories, the Ulster Unionists are now down to no seats going into June’s election. And as noted yesterday, the polls are looking bad for the Tories in Britain. As The Dissenter notes that’s a nice wee opportunity for the DUP to big up their potential in a hung parliament. James Forsyth has yet another acute take on the apparent decline of “the Cameron …

Warning for the Tories: Political roller coasters go down as well as up…

Mick Fealty on February 24, 2010, 11:18 pm

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Julian Glover is not given to glib or easy judgements on how the two main UK parties are faring. But his newspaper’s poll is showing the same trend as other recent polls: that there appears to be a slow (and I would guess almost reluctant) rally to Gordon Brown. More worrying from a Tory perspective is that that rock solid 40%+ is looking decidedly soft. Although Cameron was his usual aggressive self in the Commons today, it was the Labour …

Londonderry makes shortlist for UK City of Culture 2013

Pete Baker on February 24, 2010, 9:20 pm

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The BBC notes that Londonderry has made the shortlist in its bid to become the UK’s first City of Culture in 2013. Also in the running are Birmingham, Norwich and Sheffield. [Brian will be pleased – Ed] Perhaps… According to the BBC report It is expected that the successful city would see economic and social benefits which could leave a lasting legacy. The winner could host events such as the Turner Prize, BBC Sports Personality of the Year and the …

Would you vote Woolas if you were/are called Pratt?

Mick Fealty on February 23, 2010, 11:57 pm

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Phil Woolas may be a good party foot soldier, but he’s clearly not ministerial material. Yesterday he not only showed a supreme lack of class when he called Christine Pratt a, erm, prat but, clearly, he has not calculated the unintended impact on any voter possessed of the same surname. It’s unlikely to come up to the 3,590 votes he beat his Lib Dem rival by last time. Mr Woolas is likely to be in severe need of friends come …

“even to an atheist it was clear this was third-rate religious programming”

Pete Baker on February 22, 2010, 6:49 pm

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BBC NI’s “What the papers say” quotes from some of the reviews of last night’s The Bible: A History as presented by Gerry Adams [£10,000 appearance fee duly registered with the House of Commons]. The Times’ short review notes that “Adams was equally unflinchingly cosy with himself and his faith, responding to challenges with “my own lights”-style vagaries and evango- jargon on “the Jesus message”, coming across more as a smiling member of a Songs of Praise congregation than a …

“Irish society is no longer a homogenous, one-coloured, one-cultured nation.”

Pete Baker on February 8, 2010, 5:29 am

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The Sunday Times has a report detailing the background to the abandonment of George’s Dock as the preferred site for a new Abbey Theatre. Apparently conditions imposed by the Dublin Docklands Development Authority (DDDA) to the free site they offered proved too restrictive for the planned development. The report also states that “The Office of Public Works says the Department of Communications and An Post have now become involved in the process of assessing the GPO” on O’Connell Street as …

House of Comments Podcast: (Mostly) on Northern Ireland…

Mick Fealty on February 5, 2010, 1:29 pm

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Recorded on Tuesday night, some of it may already be out of date. It was recorded with Mark of Mark Reckons and Stuart of Sharpe’s Opinion… It starts with a slightly breathless account from me as to how the Robinson affair ‘flipped’ the fortunes of Sinn Fein and the DUP… talks about the complications for Cameron and the Tories and Mark and I have a sharp (but very civil) difference of opinion on the STV PR system… Mick FealtyMick is …

“but come what may, we are switching in 2012”

Pete Baker on February 2, 2010, 11:15 pm

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Both RTÉ and the BBC report the signing of a memorandum of understanding between the UK and Irish governments “which provides a framework for continuing co-operation on broadcasting issues on the island of Ireland.” Specifically, on what will happen after the digital switchover in 2012. The memorandum is available here [pdf file]. From the RTÉ report [Irish Minister for Communications Eamon Ryan] said: “At a time when there’s a lot of attention on North-South negotiations, it’s important for people to …

Nuclear options

Jason Walsh on January 27, 2010, 11:56 pm

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We’re not at this point yet – not even close, truth be told- but shall we have a natter about the nuclear options?Previously unionists have been threatened with Joint Authority, effectively co-rule by London and Dublin. It’s extremely unlikely that Gordon Brown would pursue such a strategy so close to a general election. If it happened David “Call-me-prime-minister” Cameron would make a lot of Labour-destroyed-the-union hay and the SNP would, presumably, be cook-a-hoop. Still, it’s worth talking about, isn’t it? …

Now just a quick question for those at that meeting last Sunday…

Mick Fealty on January 21, 2010, 6:06 pm

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Well, we have it from the Tories… and we have it from my esteemed colleague Owen Polley that the meeting in London on Sunday (when the DUP members left their Sinn Fein colleagues dangling in the P&J talks on basis of taking a break for the Sabbath) that there was nothing to the meeting other than the policing and justice negotiations and the further stability of the institutions… Well, that’s good to hear… And if that’s so, will we be …

Conservatives in talks over unionist unity with UUP, AND the DUP…

Eamonn Mallie on January 20, 2010, 1:06 am

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The Conservatives and the leaderships of the Ulster Unionists and the Democratic Unionist Party held secret talks in England over the weekend, aimed at realeising unionist unity and copper fastening maximum unionist support for a future Conservative government, should there be a hung parliament. Speaking tonight a Conservaitve spokesperson said Mr Paterson held private talks with a number of senior unionist politicians in England. The purpose of which to help greater political stability.It is already known that the Conservatives had …

Controversial terrorism law used to arrest British man for ill-advised joke

Jason Walsh on January 18, 2010, 6:57 am

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I became aware of this story on Wednesday but have been unable to mention it until today due to some promises: Doncaster man Paul Chambers, 26, was arrested by police under the provisions of the Terrorism Act (2006) ֠for making a joke on the social networking site Twitter. Chambers, who has no connections to any extremist organisations, made an ill-advised remark after flights being grounded by recent icy conditions. Some days later he was arrested in his workplace. Now suspended …

“You have simply made this up in a desperate attempt to explain the obvious.”

Pete Baker on January 8, 2010, 8:47 pm

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The Belfast Telegraph has an update on the re-trial of Nick Mullen, 61, from Acton, west London, and Máirtín’s “mate”, Ronald McCartney, 56, from Belfast, in the Provisional IRA extortion case. As noted previously McCartney’s early release licence was revoked by Shaun Woodward in May 2008. From the Belfast Telegraph report [McCartney] claimed that he had been attempting to patch up a dispute between a bankrupt businessman called Declan O’Hara and one of the alleged victims. McCartney told Southwark Crown …

PMS administrator applies for five year extension to current term

Pete Baker on January 7, 2010, 10:09 pm

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Over the Christmas period the DUP’s Jeffrey Donaldson was keen to suggest that a local bank was interested in taking over the illegally operating Presbyterian Mutual Society – the NI First Minister stated in Oct 2009 that “Initial discussions at official level with some local banks have already begun”, and the deputy First Minister in Nov 2009 “One of the options being explored involves the participation of a financial institution in a funding package.” Today the BBC reports that Arthur …

Another suicide note from Labour…

Mick Fealty on January 6, 2010, 6:33 pm

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Great scoop from Guido, closing out Nick Robinson on the One O’Clock News by 20 mins… The time for a Labour was last summer or the summer before last… Now all that’s going to be in Labour MPs’ minds between now and D-Day is, is this the leader we really want leading us… Copy below the fold.. Maybe Brown giving Mandelson the gun (the last senior Labour bod who actually understands’ Middle England’) was the last last straw for the …

“it’s for them, the parties, to work out.”

Pete Baker on January 6, 2010, 4:04 am

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With Sinn Féin’s latest artificial “deadline” behind us approaching anew, there’s an interesting quote in the Belfast Telegraph report following the meeting between Northern Ireland Secretary of State, Shaun Woodward, and Irish Foreign Minister Micheal Martin. From the Belfast Telegraph report. Mr Woodward said he and Mr Martin were sure the parties could find a way forward. “We are both confident that there is no issue on the table that the political parties and political leaders can’t find a way …

British Council looking for 2 young people to join transatlantic network…

Mick Fealty on January 4, 2010, 8:24 pm

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This might suit someone… The British Council is looking for people to join its TN2020 network… According to the blurb… “Accepted applicants will become full members of TN2020, which includes participation in the upcoming TN2020 Summit to be held in Chicago, USA in June 2010.” Mick FealtyMick 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 …

“The history of aeroplaning in this country will date from 31st December 1909”

Pete Baker on December 31, 2009, 7:05 pm

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The Irish Times reports that the Royal Irish Automobile Club (RIAC) are commemorating the centenary of “the first powered flight of an Irish aircraft” – the National Aero Club are to take to the skies at Weston Airport, Dublin. The event they’re celebrating, as the Belfast Telegraph notes, is Harry Ferguson’s maiden flight on New Year’s Eve 1909 in Hillsborough, Co Down, in the monoplane pictured above – Ferguson is to the left of the propeller. The BBC report adds …

Raging against the machine is a ‘Protestant thing’…

Mick Fealty on December 21, 2009, 6:31 pm

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Nice riff from His Grace on how Joe McElderry was knocked off the Christmas Number One slot… But, he concludes… For the supreme irony is that both Joe McElderry and Rage Against the Machine are signed to Epic Records, which is part of Sony BMG. As far as the recording colossus is concerned, they win either way. So if your motive in downloading Rage Against The Machine was to humble the Sony behemoth, you have failed. And seeking to wipe …

Cameron’s difficulty; Alliance’s opportunity?

Mick Fealty on December 17, 2009, 2:24 pm

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We should see the colour of the UCU-NF money locally by the end of January, but, in the meantime, Lord Ashcroft’s untaxed marginal millions are coming in for a bit of unwanted scrutiny. And yet, although there are some within the DUP who are looking to maximise their advantage in a hung parliament, the spreads are still giving the Tories a good 50 seat majority, even if it is moving downward. But Henry McDonald explores another possible scenario which would …