DUP – Page 40 – Slugger O'Toole

McDonnell “they don’t want a taig about the place. I’m sorry, it’s as brutal as that.” (updated with audio)

David McCann on September 25, 2015, 8:52 am

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Great scoop from the North Belfast News who have recorded comments from the SDLP leader, Alasdair McDonnell who was speaking at the opening of an office in Glengormley, North Belfast. The paper reports the SDLP making comments about the DUP and their attitudes to Nationalists where he said; The DUP don’t want partnership – they don’t want a taig about the place. I’m sorry, it’s as brutal as that. I’m not divisive, I don’t like to be like that but …

The DUP ministerial merry-go-round continues……

David McCann on September 16, 2015, 6:35 pm

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DUP GROUNDHOG DAY: Up at Stormont the DUP’s Ministers were briefly re-appointed as Ministers of DETI, DSD & DHSSPS. Shortly afterwards they resigned triggering another 7 days before they have to re-appointed in order not to trigger an election.

Reeling in the years: Collapse of devolution throughout the years

David McCann on September 10, 2015, 8:10 pm

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The collapse of devolution has happened before in Northern Ireland and whilst we await the pending demise of the current Executive I thought it’d be interesting courtesy of AP to take a trip down memory lane to see other collapses in the past. Direct rule introduced in March 1972. Here is the outgoing Prime Minister, Brian Faulkner protesting the British governments security policies. Brian Faulkner following the UWC Strike in May 1974. The first power-sharing coalition between the Official Unionists, …

Robinson: “I am therefore standing aside as First Minister and other DUP Ministers will resign with immediate effect’

David McCann on September 10, 2015, 5:49 pm

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Peter Robinson pulls the plug on the Executive (We think); As someone who invested many hours trying to bring devolution to Northern Ireland, and to maintain it, I have tried to create space to allow these critical unresolved matters to be dealt with in a structured manner. Local Ministers making local decisions is best for Northern Ireland. The failure of the SDLP and Sinn Fein to implement the Stormont House Agreement together with the assessment from the Chief Constable of …

Beginning of the end? DUP won’t attend Executive meetings & Sinn Fein won’t be distracted

David McCann on September 7, 2015, 8:57 pm

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Peter Robinson set out his plan today that seems to indicate the beginning of the end for the Executive. Flanked by his parliamentary party, he told reporters; For our part we will take steps to ensure that pending a satisfactory resolution of the outstanding issues business will not be as usual. As a first step there will be no further meetings of the Northern Ireland Executive unless we deem there are exceptional circumstances. In addition there will be no North …

A Little Perspective on the Spat at Stormont

Patricia MacBride on September 3, 2015, 10:29 pm

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On a day when the front page of most of the newspapers on these islands carried a heart-wrenching photograph of a little boy drowned on a Turkish beach, we really need to catch ourselves on and make sure our politicians do likewise. Like Jude Collins, I heard PSNI Chief Constable George Hamilton on the news setting out that the IRA does not exist as a paramilitary organisation and that its members are pursuing their goals through exclusively peaceful means. You …

Who is responsible and what’s at stake in the Assembly standoff

Brian Walker on September 3, 2015, 12:00 pm

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David McKittrick emerges from retirement to pass a magisterial verdict on the Assembly in the Newsletter, while the paper has just run a long and fascinating interview with David Trimble by Alex Kane. His view of the history since 1998 is not a million miles from the familiar saying that Sinn Fein were clever enough to play their weaknesses to advantage while unionists were too stupid and bigoted to realise that they’d won. Presumably recorded before the latest developments in …

34 bills in four and a half years; Example of a “Do Nothing” Executive?

David McCann on August 31, 2015, 2:14 pm

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It is now pretty much seen as very likely that our government will fall at some point in the next few months. In this fit of pessimism I thought I would take a look back at the record of this Assembly since it was elected back in May 2011. I must confess the Irish News political correspondent, John Manley back in March 2013 did take a look at this and found that the Assembly had passed just 11 bills in …

Nesbitt: “This is not about wrecking things or pulling things down.”

David McCann on August 29, 2015, 11:10 pm

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The UUP Executive met in the Park Ave Hotel in East Belfast to formally decide whether to pull out of the Northern Ireland Executive. Around 90 delegates debated the issue for over an hour and unanimously voted to leave. The sole UUP minister, Danny Kennedy will tender his resignation on Tuesday and Mike Nesbitt will refuse to nominate a successor. The post will then fall to the DUP to fill the vacancy. For such an important decision there was a …

Nesbitt: “That decision is to withdraw from the Northern Ireland Executive, to form an Opposition and offer people an alternative, as is the way in any proper democracy.”

David McCann on August 26, 2015, 3:36 pm

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A confident Mike Nesbitt walked down the staircase of the Great Hall in Stormont with his parliamentary colleagues to make a significant announcement about the future of the UUP’s involvement in the Executive. Nesbitt began by speaking of the risks and political pain that his party had taken in the past to secure devolution in Northern Ireland saying; In 1998, the Ulster Unionist Party stretched itself very close to breaking point to secure the return of Devolution, because it was …

Threatening the existence of the Assembly is a victory for terrorism

Brian Walker on August 25, 2015, 1:38 pm

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Oh God, not another fundamental breakpoint founded on the highest principles, whether they’re about welfare or the IRA! Come on, get real. This kerfuffle over “IRA structures” will pass. For all their simulated outrage over the IRA or welfare, no politician – none of the leaders anyway – want to close Stormont down. Electoral politics are also in play on both sides of the border. We should discount it. No clear advantage can be gained by any party threatening to …

Finance Ministers from the devolved administrations issue a warning on cuts

David McCann on August 23, 2015, 12:49 pm

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Interesting article that caught my eye on Politics Home today was a joint letter issued by the Scottish Finance Secretary, John Swinney, Welsh Finance Minister, Jane Hutt and our own Finance Minister, Arlene Foster, to the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Greg Hands about the pace of spending cuts coming from Westminster. The letter warns that the current pace of cuts are going “too fast and too far” and warn about the dangers to public services. The three ministers wants …

Adams: ‘Those who threaten to take action against Sinn Féin in the Assembly and Executive have no basis whatsoever for this.’

David McCann on August 21, 2015, 11:58 pm

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Continuing the round of statements from party leaders, the Sinn Fein President Gerry Adams has spoken about the recent developments in the McGuigan murder. Here are his comments; The killing of Kevin McGuigan was wrong and those who were involved in it are criminals who do not represent republicanism. The so-called group Action against Drugs is a criminal gang. It is a mix of criminals and former republicans who have engaged in intimidation and violence in pursuit of their criminal …

Robinson: ‘We will have discussions with other parties about tabling the necessary exclusion motion in the Assembly’

David McCann on August 20, 2015, 8:45 pm

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Interesting statement in from Peter Robinson over the PSNI’s comments about the murder of Kevin McGuigan; Last week I indicated that the Police Service of Northern Ireland must be free to fully investigate the murder of Kevin McGuigan without regard to any potential political consequences. I have had an initial discussion with the Chief Constable who has indicated the direction of travel of his investigation as it relates to the involvement of Provisional IRA members. The PSNI has asked for …

Robinson: “Nobody goes on forever and I had a timely warning on that in terms of having a heart attack”

David McCann on August 14, 2015, 4:32 pm

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Good scoop by Liam Clarke in the Belfast Telegraph with his interview with First Minister, Peter Robinson. The interview covered areas of welfare reform, Stormont collapsing but the most interesting bit was in Robinson’s future. Asking him about the issue he said; Nobody goes on forever and I had a timely warning on that in terms of having a heart attack, but I do want to hand over at the right time and I want to hand over in the …

Under the current institutions, political conflict is here to stay

Soapbox on August 13, 2015, 2:50 pm

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Craig Harrison writes for us on the current political instutions and the inability of policy-makers to find solutions to key problems The continuing impasse over welfare reform perhaps provides the most recent example of what ethnic politics can descend to, but it is by no means the first demonstration of this, and will certainly not be the last. What we should consider is the role the overarching political institutions in Northern Ireland play in producing these kind of disputes, and …

Allister on why we need further reform of SpAds at Stormont

Soapbox on August 11, 2015, 10:52 am

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The leader of the TUV, Jim Allister MLA is proposing a private members bills to reduce the number of SpAds at Stormont. Writing for Slugger, he sets out his case for reform of the current system After successfully piloted a Special Advisers Bill through the Assembly to remove convicts as SpAds, I have now drafted a further Bill to do three things – (i) reduce the number of SpAds, (ii) cut their salaries and (iii) ensure they are subject to …

Sammy Wilson steps down from the Assembly

David McCann on August 3, 2015, 9:23 pm

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One of our most colourful MLAs has stepped down from the Assembly. Former Finance Minister, Sammy Wilson has resigned as an MLA for East Antrim in order to concentrate on Westminster. Speaking about his decision he said; Having served as Finance Minister for four years it is deeply disappointing that I leave the Assembly at a time of such uncertainty caused because of the economic illiteracy of both Sinn Fein and the SDLP. Their refusal to live up to the …

The continuing welfare impasse shows that peace will survive the suspension of the Assembly

Brian Walker on July 29, 2015, 11:45 am

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On the surface at least, few outside the place are noticing. The public seem to be ignoring it, as if in a dream. Civil society stays generally schtum, like jobsworths in the old Soviet society. The parties are crying for attention. Gerry Adams has been polishing up his narrative of entitlement “By slashing hundreds of millions of pounds from the finances of the North’s Executive, the British government has attacked the ability of the political institutions to deliver for citizens.” …

The welfare crisis deepens. The DUP are making common cause with Sinn Fein over George Osborne’s cuts

Brian Walker on July 21, 2015, 11:43 am

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The Guardian’s Politics Live feature reports an analysis of the impact of the Welfare Reform and Work Bill on the working poor. Read across locally, it has the effect of adding the DUP’s opposition to the UK’s government’s budget strategy to Sinn Fein’s, albeit on more limited grounds. The analysis was made by the highly reputable, unbiased House of Commons library and commissioned by Frank Field, the veteran free thinking Labour MP who is a leading authority on welfare and social policy. …