Negotiations – Page 24 – Slugger O'Toole

“It is like a terminal illness…”

Eamonn Mallie on November 20, 2009, 5:01 am

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“The days of sitting at the back of the bus are over.” The defiant words of a senior republican who fears the DUP and its leader Peter Robinson are determined to wreck the architecture of the Good Friday Agreement and the principle of power sharing. The source added: “They are wilfully corrupting power sharing. Slowing everything down to make it look as if the structures aren’t working. The DUP have disengaged with us from last December. The Euro election changed …

“I never thought the Sinn Fein-IRA family and the DUP family would ever accommodate each other…”

Mick Fealty on November 16, 2009, 4:30 pm

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Niall O’Dowd gleefully notes Kevin Myers’ mea culpa on Friday over the way he refused to believe (or his dogged determination to ‘future’ on the matter) a shift in attitudes amongst the DUP and Sinn Fein would ever be possible. Though as is often the case with Myers, the substantive secondary point he makes is worth noting: I confess that I never thought the Sinn Fein-IRA family and the DUP family would ever accommodate one another, not least because I …

How much more will Sinn Fein take from the DUP?

Eamonn Mallie on November 15, 2009, 2:50 pm

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Last week I brought you a DUP ‘ insider’s ‘ view. On Monday — A Republican ‘insider’s’ view. Don’t miss it.. Eamonn Mallie

Reservists can join the police but only through the front door…

Eamonn Mallie on November 13, 2009, 6:11 am

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Chief Constable Matt Baggott has told Slugger O’Toole there will be no change in his decision to phase out “FTR” or full time reserves. Jim Allister says about three dozen reserves have moved to protection of judges. According to Mr Baggott two hundred and twenty former full time police reserves who left the service returned to the police as full timers through the normal channels. That approach is a constant. Those having to leave under Patten by 2011, where eligible, …

Baggott tells Policing Board there is no turning back on Reserves…

Eamonn Mallie on November 12, 2009, 10:27 pm

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Northern Ireland Chief Constable Matt Baggott says there is no turning back on the fate of the full time police reserves. According to a Board member who listened to Mr Baggott this afternoon at a committee meeting of the Board he made it clear there will be no U turn. The source said he is satisfied with the Chief Constable’s explanation on how he plans to deal with the current dissident threat. The same Board member told Slugger O’Toole Mr …

McGuinness: if Policing and Justice slips past Christmas we are in deep trouble…

Eamonn Mallie on November 11, 2009, 8:32 pm

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Martin McGuinness has thrown down the gauntlet for Peter Robinson on the return of policing and justice powers. The deputy first minister said: “What we have to do is lead. It is not easy leading. Leadership is a lonely post. We need to confront those people who would wish to hold us back.” The deputy First Minster went on to say: “What is absolutely an imperative is to have an agreement on the transfer of power and a date for …

DUP and the cross border bodies…

Eamonn Mallie on November 11, 2009, 4:09 pm

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With a meeting taking place today of the North South Ministerial council there is increasing contempt for these meetings in DUP circles. Sources close to the DUP ministerial team ‘snigger’ at the cross-border bodies. They view them as an unnecessary expense which is not giving money for value. No one has said that the existence of these cross-border bodies served by a dedicated secretariat in Armagh will become another precondition for the transfer of policing and justice powers. The sense …

“Present collapsing shambles is leading to fresh negotiations; sooner we have elections the bet

Mick Fealty on November 10, 2009, 4:40 pm

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Normally, the printing of press releases without comment would be considered lazy churnalism. In this case I’m declaring upfront that that is what I’m doing with the last two Pressers we’ve received from Jim Allister’s office, largely be cause it has a certain journalistic merit all of its own. It maps the shift in Jeffrey Donaldson’s stance yesterday, when he first went hard and then soft on the issue of the PSNI Reserve:First this from late last night: “This morning …

‘Do you do it all at once or do you do in bite size chunks given the leverage we have?’

Eamonn Mallie on November 10, 2009, 1:37 pm

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Northern Ireland Secretary of State Shaun Woodward has told local church and civic leaders to bring this message to politicians in Parliament Buildings: “Get on and seal the deal.” He clearly has the DUP in mind as that part continues to block the devolution of policing and justice. Already Peter Robinson and his colleagues have made the abolition of the Parades Commission and the retention of the Full Time police reserve as two preconditions for allowing the devolution of policing …

Get on and seal the deal…

Eamonn Mallie on November 10, 2009, 4:04 am

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That is the message to civic and religious leaders from Secretary of State Shaun Woodward. Mr Woodward has been speaking to key decision-makers in the community at a reception in Hillsborough Castle. He wants influential voices in the community to tell politicians devolution must be completed. Mr Woodward reminded the DUP of the dangers of delaying the transfer of policing and justice powers. More to follow. Eamonn Mallie

Allister squeezes another precondition out of the DUP on P&J…

Eamonn Mallie on November 9, 2009, 6:19 pm

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Another score on the board for Jim Allister. In an on air debate on the Nolan Show the TUV leader challenged the DUP’s Jeffrey Donaldson to say there will be no devolution of policing and justice powers unless Chief Constable Matt Baggott rescinds his decision on full time police reserves. Jeffrey went for Jim’s bait and set another precondition in stone or so it appears. Firstly Peter Robinson made the death of the Parades Commission a precondition. Now Jeffrey has …

For or against the Parades Commission, in lieu of joint leadership it is likely to stay…

Mick Fealty on November 3, 2009, 9:21 pm

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Two interesting pieces in two different papers impinge upon the future fate of the Parades Commisson. So far as we know the Ashdown reports argues for its abolition, and replacement with a two tier mechanism putting dispute resolution in the hands of local councils, with appeals being run up to OFMdFM… Yep, that OFMdFM… The one that can’t make any decisions about what papers to put before the Executive… Given the stand off, Fionnuala O’Connor in today’s Irish News doesn’t …

Godot, Donald Rumsfelt and P&J

Turgon on November 3, 2009, 2:00 pm

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One of Portora Royal School’s most famous sons, Samuel Beckett wrote Waiting for Godot which has been called “the most significant English language play of the 20th century” (though it was originally written in French). To try to describe what a Beckett play is about is almost to miss the point but essentially it follows two characters Vladimir and Estragon who are waiting for Godot who never comes. Waiting for Policing and Justice devolution seems at times remarkably similar to …

OFMdFM: Collegiality, my eye…

Eamonn Mallie on November 2, 2009, 12:58 am

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When Peter Robinson refused to go to Downing Street to meet Gordon Brown, the Prime Minister jumped on a plane and came to Stormont House. It was something of a rebuke for the First Minister. Portraying himself as ‘a cool dude’ after the meeting with Mr Brown Peter Robinson asked “Do I look under pressure ?” He was under pressure. Sources close to Mr. Brown spoke of his ‘tetchiness’ at Mr. Robinson’s behaviour. Gordon Brown was genuinely concerned that the …

Nigel Dodds now looking for institutional reform as a precondition for Policing and Justice…

Mick Fealty on October 31, 2009, 12:30 am

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And here’s a little thing to think on for the weekend… It’s an extract from Good Morning Ulster earlier in the week in which Nigel Dodds appears to lay out another pre condition for the ‘downloading’ of Policing and Justice… Institutional reform… It’s a small detail (and Mr Dodds is not leader, Mr Robinson is), but it is worth noting that it eluded the entire Northern Irish press corps for the three days it took me to overcome various tech …

Gerry Kelly claims Peter Robinson got twenty million pounds for former part-time police officers…

Eamonn Mallie on October 30, 2009, 5:09 pm

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Gerry Kelly claims Gordon Brown slipped twenty million pounds to Peter Robinson for former part-time police officers. Shock horror! Another side deal involving government ? Surely not! Who was at the negotiating table? What has been going on? Eamonn Mallie

Parades: “political expediency would take precedence over valid human rights concerns…”

Mick Fealty on October 28, 2009, 8:51 pm

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Here’s an interesting response to this morning’s story on the new arrangements for the post Parades Commission era… Not least this “the Review Body by making those linkages, opened a doorway for those who wished to turn the marching issue into a major political football – where political expediency would take precedence over valid human rights concerns”, which raises a concern about a change in the dynamic in the debate around contentious parades that’s not immediately apparent from the announcement …

Parades: “political expediency would take precedence over valid human rights concerns…”

Mick Fealty on October 28, 2009, 8:51 pm

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Here’s an interesting response to this morning’s story on the new arrangements for the post Parades Commission era… Not least this “the Review Body by making those linkages, opened a doorway for those who wished to turn the marching issue into a major political football – where political expediency would take precedence over valid human rights concerns”, which raises a concern about a change in the dynamic in the debate around contentious parades that’s not immediately apparent from the announcement …

Woodward plans to hand parading disputes to local councils…

Eamonn Mallie on October 28, 2009, 2:22 pm

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Has Peter Robinson ambushed Sinn Fein on parading? Shaun Woodward sent two confidential letters to the Executive review committee on policing and justice more or less telling them the government is planning to buy into Paddy Ashdown’s plans to stand down the Parades’ Commission. This critical matter may now end up in the hands of local councils which, we are told, will facilitate dialogue with the Orders and local people. In the event of failure it is proposed the First …

No reprieve for full time reserve PSNI officers.

Eamonn Mallie on October 28, 2009, 12:06 pm

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Chief Constable Matt Baggot told the policing board last week he has no intention of retaining the full time reserves. The remaining three hundred plus reserves are being phased out under the Patten recommendations. Only about 100 of these are on the ground involved in security duties according to a PSNI source. Mr Baggot is not of the opinion that any appreciable expertise will be lost in the event of the reserves going. The police federation is legally active claiming …