EU – Page 54 – Slugger O'Toole

Ireland & Europe; Political leaders need to start thinking outside the box

David McCann on October 27, 2014, 10:33 am

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As we are all consumed with the Adams/Cahill story, it is hard for some other pieces of news to gain traction. One big story that was missed in the media was the revelation that due to the revision in how the European Union calculates the contributions of member states to the coffers of the Union that Ireland will now be required to pay an additional €157 million. Before you start coming at me with a “but Ireland, got huge amounts …

Live: Hogan being interviewed for post of Agriculture Commissioner…

Mick Fealty on October 2, 2014, 8:53 am

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Best followed in line with the Twitter stream… Live Blog Phil Hogan’s Commissioner designate hearing 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

Spanish court blocks Catalan Independence Referendum #indyref

David McCann on September 30, 2014, 1:32 pm

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A few days ago the Catalan President, Artur Mas signed a decree for a independence vote to be held on November 9th 2014. Speaking about holding the vote Mas said; Our roots are deep, as is the strength of our feelings and our will to survive in the future. We want to decide, we want to decide our future for ourselves, and we now have the legal framework and are at the right moment to do it. Obviously given heart …

The UN Secretary General’s Climate Summit

Peter Doran on September 26, 2014, 3:11 am

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Where does the Climate Change Summit sit in the context of a Post-2015 Climate Agreement? When the Secretary-General of the United Nations, Ban Ki-Moon, took to the streets of New York with 300,000 climate change demonstrators – in parallel with one hundred protest actions around the world – he was signalling a decisive new phase in the world’s movement towards a post-2015 agreement. This analysis will show how the Secretary-General’s actions on the streets of a global city – one …

#IndyRef: Dublin silent, an insouciant NI and an abrupt resumption of British constitutional history

Mick Fealty on September 10, 2014, 2:40 pm

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So this morning I joined an Irish Times Inside Politics panel to talk about the implications of a decision next week in favour of Scottish independence for Ireland and Northern Ireland… Some of the highlights include… – ‘Neo unionist’ silence of Dublin and the unspoken fear of unintended consequences, particularly within Europe… – The dream versus Ireland’s lived reality of a currency union in the first fifty years of the state’s history… – No show of Ireland as an exemplary …

Minister green lights ‘Irish Beef’ label just as southern beef farmers lunge into crisis…

Mick Fealty on August 20, 2014, 1:50 pm

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Unfortunate timing for the Agriculture Minister’s new labelling ‘concession’ for so-called ‘nomadic beef’. In Michelle O’Neill’s own terms, here’s the ‘problem’… #168316801 / gettyimages.com I am of the strong view that the term ‘nomad cattle’ has no place on this island and following discussions with industry stakeholders and Minister Coveney in the south, I am hopeful that this issue can be resolved. “This has been a problem for some time because cattle imported from the south and slaughtered in the …

Labour’s difficulty pulling ahead

Turgon on August 18, 2014, 8:16 am

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The latest opinion polls show Labour’s small lead seems fairly consistent but it remains too small for them to have any confidence in achieving a majority. Ironically despite their currently pathetic level of support the most likely scenario remains the Liberal Democrats holding the balance of power. At one level this failure of the Labour Party to be further ahead is surprising. David Cameron has never captured the public imagination and both he and his government continue to be seen …

Ukrainian crisis: it hasn’t gone away

Turgon on August 3, 2014, 10:02 pm

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The conflict in Gaza seems to have largely pushed that in Ukraine off international consciousness. The Guardian, however, reports that the Ukrainian government have been making steady gains against the pro-Russian separatists in the east of the country. The west has become somewhat quieter about the downing of the Malaysian airliner MH 17 over the last couple of weeks and the Americans seem to have accepted that it was a mistake. The internet is still awash with conspiracy theories about …

So what can Northern Ireland offer Israel/Palestine by way of a positive example?

Mick Fealty on July 30, 2014, 6:05 pm

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So Seanad Eireann is be recalled for the second summer in a row. It’s tempting to see it only in domestic terms of the battle for supremacy on the opposition benches with Sinn Fein calling for debate in the Dail (the Irish lower house) and failing, and Fianna Fail calling for it in the upper house (and succeeding). The debate itself, or the Gaza end of it will likely focus on the Irish government’s abstention (along with all eight other …

Murdo Fraser: A Federal Future? #indyref

David McCann on July 28, 2014, 5:00 pm

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There is nothing new about the idea of federalism in Britain. Early last century a Cabinet sub-committee was tasked with drafting a Bill for a federal UK, in an attempt to deal with the Irish question. Federalism has long been a Liberal, then Liberal Democrat, objective. In recent months the idea has attracted more interest, as a possible way forward should Scotland vote No in September’s independence referendum. At its core, federalism is the belief that sovereignty is entrenched at …

The downing of MH 17 shifts spotlight back to Ukraine

Turgon on July 20, 2014, 3:41 pm

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The downing of Malaysian Airlines flight 17 over Ukraine has been one of the major events of last week. Most of the fingers of blame have been pointed at the pro-Russian separatists who have previously shot down Ukrainian military aircraft with sophisticated Russian surface to air missiles (though both sides have access to such weaponry). The photographs are quite harrowing – personally I find the ones of toys and books etc. to keep children happy during the flight the most …

Martina Anderson MEP: “and if the British government lifts its ban on Executive access to the EIB…”

Pete Baker on July 17, 2014, 7:49 pm

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No update yet from Sinn Féin on the meeting they chose to trail a couple of days ago between three of their MEPs, led by the Derry Northern Ireland representative, Martina Anderson, and “the Vice-Chairman of the European Investment Bank (EIB) Jonathan Taylor”. But let’s hope they were better briefed than the 15 July press release suggests, otherwise the only reaction is likely to be a rolling of eyes by Jonathan Taylor, Vice-President of the EIB, formerly Director General for Financial Services at …

Cameron’s EU defeat: maybe De Gaulle was right all along

Turgon on June 29, 2014, 5:58 pm

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David Cameron’s failure to defeat the candidature of Jean-Claude Juncker has been variously described as a humiliation, a catastrophe for Britain, and an example of Cameron’s principle and European leaders cowardice. The Guardian’s Toby Helm has possibly the best analysis of what actually happened, why and how. It seems relatively few EU leaders were keen on Mr. Juncker’s appointment and that there was annoyance at a minor political coup by the EU parliament claiming that the result of the elections …

Cameron and the EU: What’s good for business versus the democratic deficit?

Mick Fealty on June 27, 2014, 11:33 am

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So the EU leaders meet today, and it surely has to say something Jean Claude Juncker seems already confident of getting the job of President of the European Commission. For those who don’t know, Jean Claude is that Luxembourger geezer with the dodgy line in what happens when things get serious. And that’s not even mentioning his past “entanglement in Luxembourg intelligence affairs”. The odd thing is not just Cameron’s obvious distain for playing the European game (given this has been …

Fianna Fail’s only MEP Brian Crowley jumps EP political groups…

Mick Fealty on June 23, 2014, 11:36 am

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Oh, and here’s some more bad news for Micheal Martin (this time it is actually real bad news)… BREAKING: Fianna Fail MEP Brian Crowley is to leave ALDE + join the ECR, home of the British Tory MEPs, Danish Peoples’ Party + True Finns — Tony Connelly (@tconnellyRTE) June 23, 2014 So, his only MEP has gone rogue and swung back to the right [with the British Tories? – Ed] to join the ECR group and leaving the much diminished …

D Day and Europe’s Long Peace

Turgon on June 7, 2014, 8:28 pm

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Yesterday was the 70th anniversary of D Day. I am always humbled to hear the stories of those men who went ashore that day. They speak of the horror, not of any glory of war, but what that generation was forced to achieve and did so was truly heroic. The first big commemoration I remember was the 40th when I remember the BBC announcer being corrected that all were in their 60s now (some were 58 or 59). Now all …

After the election… NI21…

Mick Fealty on June 3, 2014, 2:50 pm

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So, before I get to finish off with the big boys and girls of Northern Ireland (Sinn Fein and the DUP tomorrow and Thursday), lets go briefly to the smallest of all the challengers, NI21. I suppose it helps prove one of FitzJamesHorse’s most persistent contentions about NI politics, that just because the media say they love you doesn’t mean they actually do, or that the voters will. To look at the hard figures, Tina McKenzie lifted 10,553 or 1.7% …

After the election… The UKIP…

Mick Fealty on May 30, 2014, 7:30 am

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For all its detractors (and I don’t count myself as the greatest fan of its ‘Brixit’ policy) UKIP does something most mainstream parties in Britain are struggling with. They connect with the ordinary man (and I suspect it is mostly men, to be honest) in the street, and they speak in a language they understand. They may get dismissed as saloon bar politicians, but in England they know how to put on a show with a sense of drama that …

After the election… Fianna Fail…

Mick Fealty on May 29, 2014, 7:57 pm

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After Sinn Fein, Fianna Fail is the longest continuously operating party in the Republic. Their long ongoing argument with big rival Fine Gael is often characterised as a continuation of civil war politics. Yet such reasoning is largely academic. These historic if unresolved issues have barely featured in southern political life in thirty years. Class is probably a more significant factor, with Fianna Fail traditionally drawing more support from the lower end of Ireland’s social scale. Yet even that is …

After the election… The Green Party…

Mick Fealty on May 29, 2014, 12:38 pm

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One of the few consistent dynamics in the elections north and south was the success of the Green party. In the south the party’s Euro candidate, and former minister of environment Eamon Ryan, is probably kicking himself that he didn’t also run for a seat in Dublin city council. That a minister from the last very unpopular administration was so close to becoming an MEP is testimony to two things: one, the change in the general mood; and two the …