Conor Murphy – Slugger O'Toole

Why Conor Murphy’s Budget is failing our people

Soapbox on May 26, 2021, 9:54 am

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Sinéad McLaughlin is an SDLP MLA for Foyle and is the SDLP spokesperson for the economy For the last 14 years, Northern Ireland has been led by joint first ministers from Sinn Fein and the DUP. This leadership was supposed to deliver prosperity after the peace that was delivered by the leadership of John Hume and the SDLP. But instead of prosperity, the North continues to have some of the worst economic outcomes anywhere in Western Europe. My city of Derry …

Highest RHI uptake came after Conor Murphy fought to keep the scheme open…

Mick Fealty on February 20, 2017, 6:02 pm

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To begin, last December, Mr Murphy said: … the devolved institutions have been “badly damaged” by the scandal which could cost the public well over £400m. He also said his party would support a public enquiry into the workings of the scheme. What we need to do is to get to the truth and have a full exposure of what happened. But it turns out he (along with Arlene’s SpAds) had pushed the then DETI Minister Jonathan Bell to keep …

Karen McKevitt moves to Newry and Armagh for the next election.

David McCann on December 6, 2015, 10:16 pm

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MOVING THE FURNITURE: In a slight shock the current MLA for South Down Karen McKevitt has been selected along with Justin McNulty to run for the SDLP in the upcoming Assembly election.

Gerry Adams: “It is no skin off my nose not to meet the [US] State Department.”

Pete Baker on March 16, 2015, 4:58 pm

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Did the US State Department cancel a planned meeting by a “high-level US state department official” with the Sinn Féin President, Gerry Adams, TD, after Sinn Féin withdrew support for the welfare reform bill, as the BBC, and others, have been reporting? Gerry Adams’ latest statement would tend to suggest that they did. Here’s what the Sinn Féin press release says [Gerry Adams]: “The State Department’s handling of the issue of a meeting with me is bizarre. It serves no purpose other than …

Sinn Féin’s Peadar Tóibín: “I have no doubt that in the IRA modus operandi of the time that people were moved…”

Pete Baker on October 24, 2014, 5:25 pm

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With the out-going MP for Newry and Armagh, Sinn Fein’s Conor Murphy, declaring his ignorance of alleged abusers in the republican movement being moved out of Northern Ireland – BBC report “I’ve never heard that in all my life as a republican,” [Conor Murphy] said. …it’s worth extracting from the Fireman’s post some quotes from the interview on Newstalk Breakfast with Sinn Féin TD Peadar Tóibín – who, according to the SF website, is a “current member of the Sinn Féin Ard Comhairle.” Here’s …

#uniref: what are mechanics of a border poll?

John Ó Néill on September 29, 2014, 11:54 am

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In today’s Belfast Telegraph, Liam Clarke is reporting on an opinion poll that says that a majority of people want a referendum on a border called. David has already sketched out some ideas of what a Yes campaign might look like, but what are the actual mechanics of holding such a referendum? The calling of a referendum is described in Annex A of the Belfast Agreement text (usually called the Good Friday Agreement). In reality, the Belfast Agreement is two …

Sinn Fein’s habit of defection in government and the ravelling of uncivic values…

Mick Fealty on July 24, 2014, 1:24 pm

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Most criticism of Sinn Fein in the south is misplaced. Jude Collins has a point when he argues that the ambush of a British army column at Kilmichael in west Cork has an equivalent to the IRA’s actions in the north. People do die (often needlessly) in war, but once there’s been a discernable commitment to peace, the lines of conflict ought naturally shift to new battlegrounds. Not least, how you’re likely to run the county, the region or the …

“This gang thought they could exploit rules for genuine British filmmakers and thieve from the public purse for their own gain”

Pete Baker on March 26, 2013, 4:21 pm

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When the BBC report notes that the actress/producer sentenced to 5 years 5 months, reduced to 4 years 8 months, for her part in a £2.8million VAT and film tax credits scam, was “from London”, what they mean is that she was from Newry, with an address in London – as UTV correctly reported. [I blame the PA copy – Ed] Perhaps… What neither mentioned, but both the Irish Times and the Irish News do report today, is that the actress involved, Aoife …

Sinn Fein’s defence borrowing a page from the Scientology play book?

Mick Fealty on December 18, 2012, 2:15 pm

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I’d treat with caution any attempt to estimate the Sinn Fein’s costs, not least because they don’t seem to have gone in to the trial with anything much resembling a case. In disclosure, they offered only copies of the press releases, with one defendant confessing he was a inveterate re-cycler. And as Sam McBride notes in the News Letter today: Amid a series of disputes about the conduct of the protracted trial — which was listed to last five days …

“the outcome of the tribunal had effectively branded him as “sectarian” and “a liar”…”

Mick Fealty on July 31, 2012, 5:10 pm

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So no surprise that Sinn Fein are training some big guns on Conor Murphy’s successor at DRD, Danny Kennedy for deciding not to appeal the Equality Commission’s Fair Employment Tribunal’s ruling against the South Armagh MP… As Mr Murphy told the BBC, it leaves him in an invidious position: The Sinn Fein representative told the BBC that the outcome of the tribunal had effectively branded him as “sectarian” and “a liar” and said he did not intend to let the …

For Sinn Fein it’s the show that matters rather than the politics…

Mick Fealty on July 4, 2012, 12:33 pm

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Fionnuala O’Connor is well worth reading in the Irish News today yesterday (she was last week too, but we got run off our feet keeping up with the celebrity story of the week, and all that tiocfaidh-ar-lamh-amatazz). She’s one of three women who haved nailed a few home truths about the abiding problem with Sinn Fein’s penchant for self narration… Apparently Martin was back at his old ‘Nelson Mandela’ routine on Miriam O’Callaghan’s new Saturday night sofa gig on RTE… …

Sinn Fein discrimination: Granting any institution immunity from public scrutiny can easily become a habit

Mick Fealty on June 28, 2012, 10:22 am

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It’s not entirely fair to say the whole of the southern press went to sleep on the Conor Murphy discrimination case, but Davy Adams has a point that in allowing itself to get spun into near hysteria over the “Tiocfaidh ár Lámh” PR campaign the Irish press took its eye run over yet another controversial story. And one they knew to be fit to print since most of their northern counterparts were, indeed, printing it. It’s not good enough, Adams …

“If the party was serious about fairness and equality…”

Pete Baker on June 27, 2012, 6:23 pm

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In today’s Irish News Brian Feeney addresses the Fair Employment Tribunal’s finding that, as Northern Ireland Regional Development Minister, Sinn Féin’s Conor Murphy, MP, MLA, discriminated against a candidate for the post of chairman of NI Water on religious grounds. That he had appointed Sean Hogan to the post “because he was not from a Protestant background and because he was known to the Minister and his ministerial colleagues”. That he had added three factors to the job specification criteria …

“the tribunal finds the minister’s evidence is implausible and lacks credibility” [Updated]

Pete Baker on June 20, 2012, 7:40 pm

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If you thought the controversy around NI Water and the then NI Regional Development Minister, Conor Murphy, MP, MLA, had gone away, think again. The BBC reports that an industrial tribunal has found that Alan Lennon, a Protestant overlooked for the post of chairman of NI Water in March 2011, was discriminated against on religious grounds. From the BBC report In March 2011, Mr Murphy appointed a Catholic as chairman, Sean Hogan, ahead of four others shortlisted after interview, all …

Spirit of St Patrick deserts Armagh for Rio de Janeiro?

Mick Fealty on March 20, 2012, 2:26 pm

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In the digital start up, Newry Times there’s a good quote from Conor Murphy on Saturday’s Band Parade on Inside Politics… in which he points to the economic cost of the band parade… Although this seems to have been largely attributable to the bomb hoax left on College Street in the city by person or persons unknown on the band parade route itself presumably facilitating the evacuation and closure of several business that the parade alone would not have effected… …

NI Water: Murphy’s department “undermined confidence in the integrity of the public sector”

Mick Fealty on March 5, 2011, 7:47 am

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Just clicking through the journalism associated with Super Thursday’s report release day. That was the day the PAC’s report came out, and the regulator’s report. Two remain outstanding: the Executive’s conflicted interest report; and Sir Jon Shortidge’s report into the conduct of Mr Murphy’s suspended Permanent Secretary. Of these the PAC’s is the more substantial, but guessing from this BBC report, few professional journalists seem to have actually read it. Interestingly the meaty stuff, which examines the serious misconduct of Permanent …

NI Water crisis: “once this information is in the public domain, it may undermine your perceived independence…”

Pete Baker on March 1, 2011, 6:49 pm

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Following an FOI request, BBC NI’s Stephen Walker reports that the NI Commissioner for Public Appointments, Felicity Houston, has raised concerns about the OFMDFM appointments to the latest ‘independent’ review of NI Water with the head of the NI Civil Service. That’s in addition to the Commissioner’s previously expressed concern about the NI Regional Development Minister, Sinn Féin’s Conor Murphy’s appointments to the interim NI Water Board. From the BBC report In a bizarre twist, staff assisting Phil Holder and Heather Moorhead’s …

£16 million wasted, Hidden cost of A5.

Drumlins Rock on February 15, 2011, 12:22 pm

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As reported on the BBC this morning, and hi-light by Roy Beggs East Antrim MLA two weeks ago, Conor Murphy has written off £16 million spent on a scheme up-grading the A2 at Greenisland, in order to fund his politically motivated A5 white elephant in Tyrone. It is a bit strange for a Tyrone man like myself to be putting the case for an infrastructure development in Greater Belfast in preference to one in Tyrone, but the Scot’s ancestry in …

NI Commissioner for Public Appointments: “We couldn’t find out how people had ended up being interviewed…”

Pete Baker on February 9, 2011, 4:50 pm

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It’s worth highlighting the comments by the NI Commissioner for Public Appointments, Felicity Huston, to the BBC NI Spotlight programme last night on the NI Water saga. From the BBC report Felicity Huston said: “I was a bit shocked about how chaotic it was considering the importance.” Mr Murphy said he had full confidence in the process. However, Ms Huston said it was one of several conducted by DRD she had found to be unsatisfactory. The chairman of NI Water, Chris Mellor, …

“OFMDFM are aware of the issues raised…”

Pete Baker on January 31, 2011, 12:02 pm

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On Friday [evening? – Ed] the Northern Ireland First and deputy First Ministers issued a statement in response to concerns about their appointment of an individual to an ‘independent’ review who “could be perceived as having a conflict of interest.” In particular, the appointment of Philip Holder to the second layer of the investigation into the role and responsibilities of the NI Regional Development Minister, and the Department, in the NI Water saga. From the OFMDFM statement OFMDFM are aware of the issues raised …