The ‘In’ and ‘Out’ campaign groups launched their programmes on October 12 2015 ahead of the referendum on EU membership. Meanwhile the DUP is still undecided on whether to be In or Out of Stormont. Brian SpencerBrian is a writer, artist, political cartoonist and legal blogger. Actively tweeting from @brianjohnspencr. More information here: http://www.brianjohnspencer.com/ www.brianjohnspencer.com/
A poll conducted by Danske Bank has found that a majority of people here wish to stay within the EU. Conducted in June 2015, surveying 1,009 people sought to gage the attitudes of people in Northern Ireland towards EU membership. (Note there is 3% margin of error on the poll). The survey found 58% of those surveyed were content to remain within the EU, compared to 16% against, 26% were undecided. Breaking down the attitudes of those who are in …
Clever move, if it works out. Kate Hoey is not only a Labour MP (albeit a near permanently off message on), but she was one of the earliest members of the Civil Rights movement in Northern Ireland when she was a student PE teacher and worked closely with Michael Farrell in People’s Democracy. British rights for British citizens was her prime motivation. Kate Hoey, the former Home Office minister under Tony Blair who is one of the most prominent Eurosceptics …
Shrewd argument from Lord Ashcroft on Milliband’s speech on not calling an EU referendum: My polling has found that Tory voters are twice as likely as Labour voters, and UKIP voters three times as likely, to say that defending Britain’s interests in Europe is one of the most important issues facing the country. Among the reservations that potential Labour voters have about the party – economic competence, opposition to welfare reform, the leader himself – opposition to an EU referendum …
David Cameron’s just given in his long awaited speech on Europe. Not much in the way of surprises. He wants a referendum to sort out the democratic deficit at home (code for getting the UKIP monkey off his back on the way into the next general election), and to open negotiation with a Europe that is already wracked by terminal indecision over the far deeper problem of the Euro mess. Public negotiations to try to squeeze Labour are taking place …
In Scotland the Better Together campaign has deservedly come in for some stick. The pro-Union cause has so far failed to agree on devo-more, the alternative to independence many politically aware Scots seem to want. (Incidentally if it ever comes to an NI referendum, their website is not the model to follow: remarkably for a Save the Union umbrella organisation it’s trite and one dimensional. They key critique is made by my friend Alan Trench whose Devolution Matters blog is the …
Appropriately enough, caution greeted Alistair Darling’s launch of Better Together, the pro Union multiparty campaign to counter the SNP and challenge the notion that extends well beyond the pro- independence ranks, that Alex Salmond is head and shoulders above all possible rivals. So far, not too bad. “Better Together” sounds more positive than “No Independence” – (even though the title unfortunately clashes with a Scottish NHS monitoring website.) Alan Cochrane, the Union’s greatest champion in the London press agreed the …
