Parties – Page 85 – Slugger O'Toole

“I now go forward with the full backing of my local members.”

Pete Baker on January 30, 2010, 4:23 am

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According to a BBC report, the independently minded MP for North Down, Lady Sylvia Hermon, secured the “unanimous support” of her local Ulster Unionist Association at that “key constituency meeting” yesterday. From the BBC report. On 28 January, Lady Hermon met with the North Down UUP Association at it’s AGM, she said it was a very “good-natured meeting”. “After such a turbulent time since making known my strong opposition to the Tory link, I was greatly encouraged and deeply appreciative …

Will ‘private’ talks with DUP scupper Conservative-UUP pact?

Pete Baker on January 29, 2010, 7:55 pm

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The Conservative Party’s Northern Ireland spokesman, Owen Paterson, is reportedly seeking a meeting with UUP leader Reg Empey about those private talks with the DUP that the Conservatives were unaware of… And someone has been talking to the BBC’s Michael Crick “Some in Belfast think that the Conservative-UUP pact is now effectively dead, and that Conservative leader David Cameron will be forced to announce its demise within the next few days.” Update Mick has Owen Paterson’s response. Pete Baker

“…republicans are in a rather worse position than the SDLP”

Mick Fealty on January 29, 2010, 1:49 pm

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A very interesting piece from Christopher Montgomery at Comment is Free on the current atavistic state of nationalism. It went down like the proverbial breaking of wind in space suit over on Comment is Free, and Politics.ie: …republicans are in a rather worse position than the SDLP. The settlement in Northern Ireland is essentially Hume-ite. It accepts the province’s place in the union as the consequence of majority sentiment freely expressed, but it doesn’t let that majority actually do anything …

Policing Board HQ to be bomb-proofed?

Pete Baker on January 29, 2010, 2:38 am

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The BBC are reporting that the Northern Ireland Policing Board have been told that they must improve security at their Belfast headquarters. Presumably on the advice of MI5… There was an attempted car-bomb attack on the building in November last year. From the BBC report The PSNI believe there is a substantial risk of another attack on the building. They have warned that security needs to be improved. At a special private meeting of the Policing Board on Thursday, members …

“They’re unprofessional with what they’re doing.”

Pete Baker on January 28, 2010, 8:15 pm

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Have Community Restorative Justice schemes made any progress in dealing with their actual remit since being accredited and publicly funded? That remit doesn’t include scaring away extortionists by the way… Nor does it cover a proxy battle over the “name of Irish republicanism” – mandate or no mandate. And how is their “pattern of work” these days? With another suspected paramilitary shooting in Londonderry, this from a BBC Radio report Harry Maguire is an ex-IRA prisoner who was convicted of …

TUV public meeting in East Belfast tomorrow night…

Mick Fealty on January 28, 2010, 6:06 pm

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Got this notice a few days ago from David Vance who is on the panel of a TUV public meeting in Albertbridge Road Orange Hall tomorrow night (29th January)… Speakers will include the Party President, William Ross, Party Leader Jim Allister and political commentator David Vance. Don’t know about Willie Ross, but Allister and David will no doubt put on good show… Could be good steam.. I am presuming all are welcome.. Mick FealtyMick is founding editor of Slugger. He …

“enhance the framework governing parades and related public assemblies”

Pete Baker on January 28, 2010, 5:37 pm

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As Brian said, both the DUP and Sinn Féin are protesting “good faith”, but giving nothing away. And remember, “nothing is agreed until everything is agreed”. So, what’s everything this time? From Gordon Brown and Brian Cowen’s joint statement yesterday [pdf file] We believe there is now a firm basis for the parties to: • set an early date for the completion of the final stage of devolution. We agree it would be practicable to set a date in early …

“The Committee has been advised that the PSNI is to investigate matters arising..”

Pete Baker on January 28, 2010, 4:22 am

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As expected, the news that the police are to investigate “whether any criminal offence has been committed by Iris Robinson, MP, MLA and by any other person referred to in the [BBC NI Spotlight] programme” has resulted in the suspension of the NI Assembly’s Standards and Privileges Committee’s investigation – as the BBC reports. And as Mick said, “As ever be careful not step over the legal line here…” Pete Baker

New political party due in South

Jason Walsh on January 28, 2010, 1:44 am

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OK, so it’s single sourced and unattributed… but I know who the guy is and I never said forth was a newspaper anyway. New Irish political party seeks to make impact before 2012 Socially and economically liberal political group to launch before election hopes to avoid making the PDs’ errors all over again Here’s the interesting question, though: is there room for such a party? Clearly there are large sections of social and economic thought that are unserved in Ireland, …

“neither honest nor transparent”

Pete Baker on January 28, 2010, 12:59 am

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In addition to the interview with Áine Tyrell in the Sunday Tribune, Suzanne Breen spelt out the detail of something I mentioned in the Liam Adams Timeline. Despite Gerry Adams’ claims of consistency and his party’s vice-President’s claimed commitment to revealing the “full facts”. From the Sunday Tribune article Gerry Adams appeared on [UTV’s Insight Special] saying he had believed Áine from the moment in 1987 that she told him what his brother had done. He had always supported her, …

“in truth there’s the whiff of failure around Hillsborough Castle”

Pete Baker on January 27, 2010, 10:13 pm

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BBC NI political editor Mark Devenport queries the direction of the governments’ “pathway” and relates a “brief comic interlude” ahead of the press conference at Hillsborough. [Do we have the video? – Ed] Not yet… Adds It’s below the fold. We were summoned into a room inside the castle not far from where Tony Blair once talked about the hand of history on his shoulder. But this was not to be a repeat performance. There was a brief comic interlude …

SWOTing the parties: Strengths of the DUP…

Mick Fealty on January 27, 2010, 3:57 pm

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It is not clear to me that anyone inside politics never mind inside the media really has a clue what’s happening in Northern Irish politics, nor what is going to happen for the foreseeable future, never mind inside Hillsborough Castle over the next day or two. So we’re asking you to help us construct a swot analysis, ie to enumerate the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats for all the major political parties. Today we start with the DUP, for no …

Questions that need to be answered. Maybe.

Jason Walsh on January 27, 2010, 3:05 am

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– Will there be a last minute deal on the devolution of policing and justice? – Aren’t the Tories unionists anyway? – Will the Assembly fall again? – Do I care? Don’t know. Yes. Maybe. No. My vote for the It-Really-is-of-No-Consequence party, over at the Guardian’s CIF. Jason WalshJason Walsh is a journalist. jasonwalsh.ie

“part of the political fabric”

Pete Baker on January 27, 2010, 2:42 am

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The US Secretary of State is heading to London. Not to save The Process™ here, but to attend two conferences. Tomorrow it’s Yemen. And on Thursday, Afghanistan, where a familiar strategy is being discussed – as an short Irish Times report noted on Saturday On a 24-hour visit to Pakistan, [US defence secretary Robert] Gates emphasised that US strategy consisted of turning the tide in the Afghan war so as to convince Taliban leaders to sit down and negotiate. “We …

“I am not a Tory and I shall not be taking the Tory whip.”

Pete Baker on January 26, 2010, 7:16 pm

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The Irish News‘ Diana Rusk has been speaking to the independently minded MP for North Down, Lady Sylvia Hermon. The North Down MP said she would make a final decision over her political future following a key constituency meeting scheduled for Thursday. “Once I hear the views from my friends and colleagues in the North Down UUP Association I will be much better placed to decide the best way forward in terms of the Westminster election.” Lady Hermon said. “I …

Hillsborough to provide Sinn Fein with a plausible escape from their own dismal Ministerial record?

Mick Fealty on January 26, 2010, 5:08 pm

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Excellent piece by Malachi O’Doherty on the latest extravaganza from Peace Process™ Productions: Hillsborough Castle: the sequel to countless other sequels… The republicans sold the acceptance of the police to their rank and file on the argument that control would shift to Stormont, and this was a hard step for them to take. But further than that, Sinn Féin needs a victory in this assembly, having lost face on several other fronts. They wanted an Irish Language Act and didn’t …

Sir Reg Empey: “I am actively working for a brand of unionism that encompasses the entire community”

Mick Fealty on January 26, 2010, 4:01 pm

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It’s a while since we had a platform piece from a senior politician, and this one comes from the leader of the Ulster Unionist party for the specific purposes of responding to Brian Walker’s blog on Sunday, blaming Sir Reg for the loss of three Conservative candidates, two of them Catholic and two women. Though it was the implication that he had somehow sought to rid his party of Catholics that Sir Reg strongly refutes below, not least because, he …

“because politicians here aren’t grown up enough to take their own decisions”

Pete Baker on January 26, 2010, 5:05 am

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As Mick mentioned, the DUP’s Sammy Wilson has identified the “contrived” nature of the current “crisis”. Which anything more than a cursory glance at the St Andrews agreement confirms. The Northern Ireland deputy First Minister, apparently, still believes that “commitments” were given then. Was it Ian junior again, Martin? Even you know that’s nonsense. But haven’t Sinn Féin demonstrated their bona fides? Apart from that mis-understanding over those good friends of NI Executive Minister, Sinn Féin’s Conor Murphy, and Soca …

“There was a Chinese wall and people were quite happy with it.”

Pete Baker on January 25, 2010, 10:12 pm

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When the UK Treasury Committee met in the Senate Chamber at Stormont on 18th January to hear evidence on the illegally-operating Presbyterian Mutual Society, I mentioned that there had been some sharp questioning of the witnesses. The uncorrected transcript of that evidence is now online. Note that the transcript is not yet an approved formal record of these proceedings. Extract below the fold.Here’s the exchange I had in mind. From the uncorrected transcript Q40 Mr Fallon: My apologies to everybody …

Unionist unity is an opportunity to shift baggage in BOTH parties…

Eamonn Mallie on January 25, 2010, 3:29 pm

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Inter party talks involving the Conservative Party in Britain, the Ulster Unionist Party and the Democratic Unionist Party are set to escalate in the next week to ten days. This follows the disclosure that last Sunday, Northern Ireland’s likely next Secretary of State, Owen Paterson, held secret talks with Peter Robinson, Nigel Dodds, Sammy Wilson and Ulster Unionist deputy party leader Danny Kennedy, Tom Elliott, David Campbell and Mark Cosgrove. The discussions took place at Hatfield House in Hertfordshire.In an …