Fermanagh/South Tyrone

UUP MP’s testimonal “crossed the line on the independence of the court”

Pete Baker on February 27, 2016, 4:46 pm

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A testimonal provided by former UUP leader, and current MP for Fermanagh & South Tyrone, Tom Elliot, in the case of a former soldier who was caught driving while disqualified, has been criticised by a Northern Ireland District Judge, John Meehan, for having “crossed the line on the independence of the court”. As the BBC reports [added emphasis throughout] District Judge John Meehan did not name Mr Elliott in court. However, the judge said the testimonial “crossed the line on the independence of …

Michelle Gildernew and Fermanagh/South Tyrone: “I am honoured to have been selected by South Tyrone.”

Pete Baker on February 20, 2016, 5:31 pm

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[But not Fermanagh and South Tyrone? – Ed] No. She tried that. It didn’t work. So the Sinn Féin Ard Chomhairle invented a constituency for her. Sinn Féin’s attempts to rewrite the past clearly have no time limit. Witness the party’s shenanigans over candidate selection in Fermanagh/South Tyrone for this year’s Northern Ireland Assembly election. The Ard Chomhairle was forced to re-run their selection convention in Fermanagh/South Tyrone following allegations of unaccounted-for votes which saw former-MP, former-MLA, and current Ard Chomhairle member, …

High Court awards Elliot £48,750 damages [plus costs] for Flanagan libel

Pete Baker on February 3, 2016, 12:24 pm

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Whilst waiting for the Sinn Féin Ard Chomhairle to ratify his re-selection as a candidate in Fermanagh/South Tyrone, at the second time of trying, notorious tweeter Phil Flanagan, MLA, has discovered the cost of his “grossly defamatory” libel against former UUP leader, Tom Elliot, then MLA, now MP for FST. As the BBC reports The High Court in Belfast has awarded almost £50k in damages to a former Ulster Unionist leader over a defamatory message posted on Twitter. Mr Justice Stephens …

Second Chance at Re-Selection for Sinn Féin’s Phil Flanagan – Updated

Pete Baker on January 30, 2016, 3:54 pm

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Sinn Féin’s other notorious tweeter, Phil Flanagan, MLA, may be facing a sizeable bill for libelling the UUP’s Tom Elliot, but the party’s central office has given him a second chance at continuing his political career. He was deselected by his party constituency organisation on 13 December last year, but earlier this month the party’s Ard Chomhairle decided to re-run the selection process in Fermanagh/South Tyrone. On 22 January, The Impartial Reporter noted Mr. Flanagan refused to comment when contacted by this newspaper, …