devolution

Queen’s standards or keep fees down? To govern is to choose

Brian Walker on December 10, 2010, 9:22 pm

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Northern Ireland MPs were united in their comfort zone yesterday to oppose the big rise in university tuition fees, a position said to be endorsed by leading business woman Joanna Stuart conducting a review into the local scene. But what about Queen’s which is committed to keeping its place in the elite Russell Group as a leading research and teaching university? While Peter Gregson the Queen’s vice chancellor has stayed mum as far as I can see, Russell Group reaction to yesterday’s vote …

Very rare joke from Gordon Brown

Brian Walker on December 5, 2010, 9:00 pm

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Just caught from Michael Crick’s blog. Mindful of Tony Blair’s much derided remark about “soundbites” and the “hand of history”, Brown suggested saying instead: “I don’t feel the hand of history on my shoulders, but I do feel Peter Robinson’s hand in my pocket, and Gerry Adams’ hand on my balls.” Brian WalkerFormer BBC journalist and manager in Belfast, Manchester and London, Editor Spolight; Political Editor BBC NI; Current Affairs Commissioning editor BBC Radio 4; Editor Political and Parliamentary Programmes, …

UK splits over university fees and taxation

Brian Walker on December 1, 2010, 11:47 am

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This is turning out to be quite a week for the fissiparous tendency in the British body politic. As students demonstrated against the prospect of 80% cuts in tuition funding throughout the nation, it was the Welsh Assembly government which stole the march on the others by promising to pay the difference between the present fees and the £6 to 9,000 a year universities will soon be able to charge. What’s more, the subsidy will extend to Welsh students studying anywhere in …

Corporation tax 2. They’re flying blind. Confusion reigns

Brian Walker on November 10, 2010, 6:37 pm

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The debate over what lower corporation tax for NI only would do for the local economy is in total confusion. That’s my verdict after listening to a couple of hours of frankly embarrassing evidence before the NI Select Committee. I’d got such a different impression from the chairman of Belfast Harbour Board Len O’Hagan yesterday. It was all so very “Ulster.” What you’d expect for such a fundamental shift of policy is for the Executive to commission an authoritative report …

Do you want the assembly now to be able to make laws on all matters in the 20 subject areas it has powers for?

Dewi on November 10, 2010, 12:13 pm

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That’s the question in the Welsh referendum planned for March 3rd 2011. It, actually, isn’t as badly phrased as many suggestions….although the Electoral Commission’s preamble is a little ..well..long? PREAMBLE The National Assembly for Wales – what happens at the moment The Assembly has powers to make laws on 20 subject areas, such as: · agriculture · education · the environment · health · housing · local government In each subject area, the Assembly can make laws on some matters, …

Clash looms with Westminster over welfare to work

Brian Walker on November 8, 2010, 9:00 pm

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This could be a very thorny issue for the Assembly and Executive. Nearly all the local parties will hate the coalition’s welfare to work policies. Politically they wouldn’t dare do otherwise. But this pushes them right up against their limitations. Alex Attwood the SDLP’s Social Development minister has branded as “Thatcherite” the coalition’s plans to cut welfare payments for at least three months if voluntary work is not accepted. The Scots are also up in arms. But the Scots appear to …

The cuts: another straw in the wind?

Brian Walker on October 8, 2010, 1:10 pm

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The Guardian’s most centrist commentator Martin Kettle argues that the First Minsters’ case for leniency is one of the signs that the cuts mightn’t live up to their fierce billing. Or is being panglossian, as he himself wonders? Extracts Might it not instead be time for the long expected political hurricane to be cautiously downgraded to a tropical storm? Here are three very current reasons for thinking the answer is yes. The first is this week’s report in the Financial Times that …

Whitehall ” too busy ” to deal with First Ministers – claim

Brian Walker on October 7, 2010, 9:25 pm

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The fairly dismissive Verdict of my colleague, devolution expert Alan Trench, on the rainbow coalition of FMs’ call to scale down the cuts. But note the flier in the FT that the phasing may be changed in a direction they favour. Adds Friday. Warm words from deputy PM Nick Clegg about the likely impact of the cuts on a familiarisation visit. Extracts: The First Minister and Deputy First Minister raised with me in very clear terms their concerns about the …

Tony Blair: “I took horrendous chances in what I was telling each the other had agreed to…”

Pete Baker on September 1, 2010, 10:58 am

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From Mick’s linked chapter on Northern Ireland in Tony Blair’s memoirs [pdf file] Such tactical manoeuvres were the warp and woof of the Northern Ireland peace process. Again at the last minute, after the negotiation over the St Andrews declaration of October 2006, up popped the issue of what oath would be sworn by those taking office in the reconstructed Assembly and Executive. All manner of permutations were gone through to find a mutually acceptable formula. Naturally the DUP wanted …

The Assembly is not even in the debate over public funding

Brian Walker on July 7, 2010, 12:22 pm

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In GB, devolution is moving on to another stage. Northern Ireland is being left behind. Today the call has gone out for the Welsh Assembly to take on tax varying powers of 3 %. It comes on foot of a request for law-making powers. Wales is bidding to follow Scotland, where the coalition government is legislating to award the Scottish government new income tax varying powers of 10%, as recommended by the Calman commission. The Welsh report, by economists Gerald Holtham and David Miles, …

Let`s keep Northern Ireland moving forward

Kilsally on May 8, 2010, 11:03 am

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Despite the goings on in East Belfast the election results have seen the DUP claw back voters. The 2009 Euro elections saw the DUP achieve 88,346 first preference votes (18.2%) whilst the election to Westminster has seen the percentage go up to 25% of the vote (168,216). Now this is still down 8.7% on the previous Westminster election but in overall terms considering the recent DUP `annus horribilis` I would think the DUP should be pretty happy with the result. …

The prospects of voluntary coalition

Kilsally on May 5, 2010, 2:16 pm

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Video: Peter Robinson on improving devolution Voluntary coalition seems to be a shibboleth connected with Jim Allister and TUV but in reality all three Unionist parties would prefer voluntary coalition with some form of qualified majority voting put in place to enable a more normal form of Assembly inline with Wales & Scotland which would include a formal opposition, compared to the mandatory coalition we currently operate where nearly all the parties are in government and will remain in government …