PA reports: “Newry and Mourne councillor Henry Reilly, who defected this week from the Ulster Unionists to UKIP, announced plans to run in the March 7 Assembly Election in South Down”. Mr Reilly is thought to have some substantial financial backing. He is also a former Mayor of Newry and Mourne. He came second in the Mournes area last time out, and may help put a squeeze on the Unionist vote in the area, providing he can get the UKIP …
A welcome addition to the election coverage, is NI Election 2007, politics from a Christian perspective… 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
Gesture politics has a way coming back and biting you,particularly if gesture is all it turns out to be. Martin McGuinness has taken exception to Tom Kelly’s piece in the Irish News the other day. In today’s version of the paper he fights back, mostly at the expense of Kelly’s acceptance of the OBE. Tom Kelly is a political opponent of Sinn Fein. His column (February 5) is one long, ill-thought-out and incoherent attack on the Sinn Fein leadership and …
Frank Luntz makes for fascinating television, which may not be the most reliable indicator for the Republic’s general election, not least because of the editor’s cut. Check out Vincent Browne for a critical view of this kind of TV punditry. But it looks like in the very south of the country, Sinn Fein scares people more than they trust them. Nevertheless, Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin’s segment got him in major approval on health. Things change… Mick FealtyMick is founding editor of …
Sinn Fein, as ever, have been the early birds in terms of hitting the streets for the March election. But it looks like they are going to cut their scheduled three day annual conference to two, with Gerry Adams making his leader’s address live on RTE on Saturday, 3rd March… 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 …
The Newsletter has some more detail on that ‘fine’ story. The official party line is that exists, but it is not £20,000. “the figure was ‘paltry’ in comparison, and not five figures”. (BTW, Guido’s thoughts: We need less party discipline and more free thinking from our politicians). It had been reported that an internal revolt had been sparked among DUP candidates, due to the contract and, in particular, the resignation letter, which is to be signed and can be triggered …
Martina Purdey says goodbye to an old guard that is quietly slipping out of politics… Interestingly the weightiest names are in the UUP… Though it is not absolutely clear who is going to take the places of Lords Trimble and Taylor… 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
Great new design for the local Tories blog… and they are canvassing for their new online policy survey… 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
One of the things we want to kick around in our second blogtalkradio session tomorrow night (8.30 start, if you can make it). It’s also a theme for Roy Garland’s column in yesterday’s Irish News. He states: The election is primarily a morale boost for the two biggest parties who can present themselves as the only shows in town. Changes to St Andrews mean the old requirement that First Minister be nominated by the largest party within the largest designation …
Tom Kelly is not impressed with some of Sinn Fein’s more flamboyant PR recently. Not least the idea of ‘putting manners on the civil service‘… As pointed out before in this column the Sinn Féin leadership deserve considerable credit for the political journey they have travelled – however belatedly. Yet that credit is lost when they attempt to crudely use intemperate language to attack ordinary workers, whether those workers are in the PSNI or any part of the public sector. …
It has to be said that internal cohesion has not historically been a great specialism of Northern Ireland’s party system. Sinn Fein has long since been famous for its command and control structures, and often been unfairly judged against wider standards that look almost laissez faire in comparison. But they are no longer the only ones looking to assert control from the ‘centre’ over the ‘edge’. The DUP’s central party headquarters is now demanding their MLAs sign a two page …
Suzanne Breen’s been adding up the figures on the gender cuts in the four main parties. Tthe SDLP is ahead of Sinn Fein on the selection of women candidates. The two Unionist party’s trail badly, with four (though three are actually sitting MLAs). The UUs come bottom of the league, where, in North Down, one older woman candidate (early blogger, Marion Smith) replaces the previous, younger one (Diane Peacock): …the gender deficit remains, particularly in unionist politics. The UUP has …
Suzanne Breen captures a central dilemma of the nationalist fight for votes between the SDLP and Sinn Fein: “Endorsement of the PSNI has lost Sinn Féin dozens of election foot-soldiers: the people who worked all hours bringing out the party vote. It will also shed hardline support but this could be balanced by new first-time voters and some traditional SDLP supporters now at ease with a more law-abiding Sinn Féin. Gerry Adams huge personal appeal is Sinn Féin’s greatest asset.”[emphasis …
So, that Irish Times Poll. The core vote for the parties when the undecided voters are included is: Fianna Fáil 35 per cent (down three points); Fine Gael 19 per cent (down one point); Labour 8 per cent (no change); Sinn Féin 7 per cent (up two points); Green Party 6 per cent (up three points); PDs 1 per cent (down one point); Independents/others 6 per cent (down one point); undecided 18 per cent (up one point). From a Sinn …
There’s a lot of material in today’s Irish Times poll. Apart from the obvious Northern Irish interest in the fate of Sinn Fein (up 2 points btw), the most striking detail is the rating of the government parties: and especially the Progressive Democrats at 1%. Even allowing for a three per cent margin of error, that would be cataclysmic if repeated in the June poll. Mary Harney will need some serious results to show from her health reforms in the …
Damien notes that the guys behind blogorrah are looking at setting up the Irish version of the Huffington Post in time for the election. There is certainly space in the blog market, for now at least… 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
Interesting to note that after a few days of offering a market on restoration of the Assembly, Eastwoods have pulled it due to ‘fluctuations in the market’. They assure us they will be offering odds again in the next few days… Nothing from Paddy Power either… 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 …
Well Sinn Fein have been in their Ard Comhairle huddle (apparently trying to define more narrowly just what kind of policing they are actually going to sign up to). And the taoiseach’s been in Downing Street. Result, we are going to provisionally get an election, we think. Fat lady and British PM have yet to sing. We hope to announce our own provisional arrangements for live blogging the election in the next few days. Mick FealtyMick is founding editor of …
It’s hard to gauge just how serious a threat the dissident Republicans pose to Sinn Fein, not least because the party’s capacity to muster support when it needs it most. Even allowing for a bit of tried and tested oldtime chicanery, the estimated 2,500 attendance at Dublin’s RDS was impressive. Yet dissidents also point to the record attendance at the Bloody Sunday parade on the same day, where few Sinn Fein faces were in evidence. Sammy Morse has a break …
Well the outflow of DUP personnel hardly matches that of Sinn Fein, but the front page of the Newtownards Chronicle last week carried the resignation of DUP councillor Terry Willams. He has resigned in protest at the deselection of George Ennis in the Stranford constituency. He will now sit as an independent on the council. Slugger understands that Ennis may himself be considering his position in the party… Mick FealtyMick is founding editor of Slugger. He has written papers on …
