Britain – Page 8 – Slugger O'Toole

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 …

David McNarry on the cost of double jobbing MPs…

Mick Fealty on December 16, 2009, 6:42 pm

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In practical terms, Westminster is by far the most stable job in Northern Irish politics. Councils are still waiting on the horse trading to finish over the RPA and who knows what’s to happen with the Assembly when the incumbents of semi detached polit-bureau (aka OFMdFM) have dealt with all their domestic row over policing and justice. But it is interesting to hear someone from inside the Ulster Unionist unambiguously lay out the absences of Northern Irish MPs from the …

“ultimately this must be a matter for them”

Pete Baker on December 9, 2009, 4:16 am

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Northern Ireland Secretary of State, Shaun Woodward, MP, after meeting with Irish Foreign Minister Micheál Martin in Dublin, tries again to defuse the perplexing rhetoric around the issue of the devolution of policing and justice powers. From the BBC report Mr Woodward and Irish Foreign Minister Micheal Martin discussed the current hiatus in Stormont politics in Dublin. They played down the possibility of a St Andrews-style “hothouse” talks session to try to resolve the outstanding issues and said they hoped …

“I will study closely what happens before I make any decision”

Pete Baker on December 8, 2009, 8:35 pm

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Mick’s post on the Irish government budget announcement at 3.45pm tomorrow reminded me of something Finance Minister Brian Lenihan said at the start of November Speaking about his plans to react appropriately to Britain’s upcoming budget, he said: “We didn’t know last year that the British were bringing down their vat rate, but at least this year the British budget is first, so I will study closely what happens before I make any decision.” The UK’s Chancellor of the Exchequer, …

The civil servants’ revenge, or a very British coup…

Mick Fealty on December 7, 2009, 2:38 pm

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Following the theme of class war and and the private conduct of various elites, I just got the latest Brit blog round up, and in it there is a post that demonstrates the real power of the blogosphere, in which the sharpest insights are not to be found in the highest profile blogs but the ones just bubbling underneath. Charles has an excellent piece on how the inner inner ring of the British establishment is now punishing Tony Blair and …

Tories should counter with who they really are…

Mick Fealty on December 7, 2009, 2:30 pm

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Brian offers a figure from the past Alan Watkins as the epitome of great British journalism (by and large no argument from me on that score). But for me no one in the British MSM scales the gap between the left and right as seamlessly as Guardian leader writer Julian Glover (long term partner of former Tory MP Matthew Parris)… He argues that the class war schick may just be enough to wake up Labour’s core vote, but that the …

Bogged down in the sectarian mire of British politics…

Mick Fealty on December 4, 2009, 3:10 pm

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I long ago scrubbed BBC’s Question Time off my regular viewing schedule, but last night I switched it on about half way through whilst waiting patiently for the late edition of Hearts and Minds (thanks once again that lone assassin who put an end to our YouTubing of NI’s flagship current affairs programme)… But it turned out to be surprisingly good… Two things from an NI point of view… One was Vincent Cable on Afghanistan when he suggested that since …

“I know that sometimes the rhetoric can be perplexing..”

Pete Baker on December 2, 2009, 10:43 pm

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The NIO has helpfully provided Northern Ireland Secretary of State Shaun Woodward’s address to an audience at Harvard University’s School of Government. “It is about a partnership. It is about creating a climate of stability and the will to succeed and politics is succeeding. “Our partnership with the Irish Government has never been stronger. At Downing Street this week, the two Prime Ministers reviewed the enormous progress made by the Executive. “The road to completing Devolution, despite the occasional loud …

Climategate: An unscientific response to unscientific arguments…

Mick Fealty on December 2, 2009, 6:05 pm

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Climategate is a term coined by my brilliantly louche former colleague at the Daily Telegraph, James Delingpole. Everyone, it seems, is talking about it. Guido thinks he has a local link at Queens, when he points to a mathematician who has been trying to get tree ring data from Queens but claims he has been consistently blocked in his FOI requests, of which more below the fold. On the general thrust of the argument I picked this link up from …

Cameron’s LIsbon U Turn underlies his downturn in the polls…

Mick Fealty on December 2, 2009, 4:13 am

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Another reason for the DUP to be cheerful? The Cameron effect is weakening. Or rather his U turn over the Lisbon referendum is cooling the ardour of some of his supporters. How will that affect the typically Eurosceptic hearts and minds of the unionist voter (if at all)? 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 …

“to overcome the remaining obstacles..”

Pete Baker on December 2, 2009, 12:25 am

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Given Sinn Féin’s Martin McGuinness’s co-opting of the Taoiseach when grandstanding at Tullamore, it’s worth noting this line from the joint statement by Gordon Brown and Brian Cowen yesterday. The Prime Minister and Taoiseach agreed to work closely together, and with the parties, in the next few weeks to overcome the remaining obstacles to finding an agreed basis on which the devolution of justice and policing powers can take place at an early date. [added emphasis] Adds “Peter Robinson makes …

“the court concludes that it should order the withdrawal of the Guidance”

Pete Baker on November 30, 2009, 11:28 pm

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The Northern Ireland Health Department’s guidance to health professionals on termination of pregnancy, the law and clinical practice in Northern Ireland [pdf file], only emerged after a tortuous process. Firstly the Department, after a lengthy court battle, had to be instructed by a High Court ruling to produce the guidance. Then, after taking three years to produce, the NI Assembly rejected the guidelines leaving the Department to redraft them. New draft guidelines emerged for consultation in July 2008 and were …

What happens when you shop too much and save too little…

Mick Fealty on November 30, 2009, 10:27 pm

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Okay, in news from elsewhere… Willem Buiter with what we should and should learn from Dubai… In comparing Ireland the UK in a basket of other countries he identifies the greater independence of the ECB from Irish government control as a positive factor in favour of Ireland’s chances of a credible recovery: From Dubai to Iceland, Ireland, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Portugal, Spain, Japan, France, the UK and the USA, the sovereign debt burdens have been at current levels during peacetime …

NI Bill of Rights – the next steps

Pete Baker on November 30, 2009, 7:11 pm

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Northern Ireland Secretary of State, Shaun Woodward, MP, has announced the launch of a public consultation document on the troubled NI Bill of Rights. Consultation period to end March 1, 2010. From the summary of proposals in the document [pdf file] there seems to be a [sensible] distinction between what is proposed to be included in the Bill and what is proposed to be “considered” for inclusion – either by himself, with the Irish Government, or with the Executive… Good …

Provisional IRA extortion re-trial begins

Pete Baker on November 28, 2009, 4:38 am

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The first attempt earlier this year ended when the jury failed to agree verdicts. The re-trial, apparently of only two of the three original defendants, Nick Mullen, 60, from Acton, west London, and Máirtín’s “mate” Ronald McCartney, 55, from Belfast, whose early release licence was revoked by Shaun Woodward in May 2008, has now gotten underway. The alleged victims cannot be named for legal reasons. In a threatening phone call, one of the businessmen, who once provided security for Sinn …

When Gordon beat David (by an Irish Mile)…

Mick Fealty on November 27, 2009, 7:29 pm

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It may be advertorial, but this is the best thing I’ve seen in a while in British politics… 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 and Europe. Twitter: @MickFealty

“agreement between the political parties (as you well know) remains the key determinant”

Pete Baker on November 26, 2009, 5:41 pm

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As Eamonn recorded last night, Sinn Féin are apparently in Downing St urging the British (and Irish) governments to interfere in the “indigenous” deal [“Let no-one interfere with that”! – Ed] Indeed. That would be a “constitutional nonsense”. Meanwhile, keeping up that “maximum pressure”, Seumas Milne in the Guardian helpfully [To some – Ed] warns of those still-violent republicans. Of course, if Sinn Féin hadn’t lied about misrepresented what they actually negotiated those they lied to might not feel so …

Simon cuts Northern Ireland out of the IFNC loop…

Mick Fealty on November 20, 2009, 5:28 pm

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The Labour Minister with responsibility for broadcasting, Sion Simon faced a Commons committee (NI Affairs) for the first time on Wednesday. He did not exactly come over as a man who was on top of his brief. And he got gently chided by the chair for having read the material that the committee gathered in Northern Ireland last week (a basic requirement, I would have thought). He ended up admitting at the beginning of the session that Digital Britain was …

Waiting for Reg to make up his mind on the big push…

Mick Fealty on November 19, 2009, 9:53 pm

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We’ve been picking up a fair amount of frustration in and around the UCU – NF, that new force that seems reluctant to speak its name. Chekov gave pretty gentle vent to some of the frustrations being felt inside the party at Reg Empey’s reluctance to actually make a decision. So far the Tories have committed money and are building capacity at the Central Office end, with the addition of heavy weight Jonathan Cainer to Owen Paterson’s NI team. But …

Simon cuts Northern Ireland out of the IFNC loop…

Mick Fealty on November 18, 2009, 10:41 pm

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The Labour Minister with responsibility for broadcasting, Sion Simon faced a Commons committee (NI Affairs) for the first time yesterday. He did not exactly come over as a man whose on top of his brief. And he’s been gently chided by the chair for having read the material that the committee gathered in Northern Ireland last week (a basic requirement, I would have thought). The latter admitted at the beginning of the session that Digital Britain was a deficient title …