predictions

7 NI political hot potatoes for early 2015

Alan Meban (Alan in Belfast) on December 31, 2014, 9:05 am | Readers 2498

1. Expect Mitchel McLaughlin to be finally elected as Speaker of the NI Assembly. If the Welfare Reform Bill passes its Consideration Stage by the end of February (as the financial package requires), will the DUP withdraw their objection and allow Sinn Féin’s Mitchel McLaughlin to be elected as Speaker? They’ll surely not wait until the Bill receives Royal Assent? Mitchel’s elevation will create a vacancy for a Deputy Speaker. Who will the DUP nominate from within their ranks? Realistically …

Your Predictions for Northern Ireland Politics in 2013?

Mick Fealty on January 2, 2013, 4:01 pm | Readers 80

The thing about Northern Irish Politics is that it is both easier to predict than southern politics and more difficult. Who really, hand on heart, saw the flag protest coming? Perhaps we should have, since every year the Ardoyne troubles seem, if not to get worse, then to have no visible or political solution. Jason O’Mahony gives the next year south some caustic treatment, and comes up with a list of suitably pessimistic (and therefore plausible) bullet points… But, with …

#ae11 Reveal your Assembly predictions

Blank on May 4, 2011, 7:29 pm | Readers 16

Mick has noted two prediction competitions for the Assembly election but didn’t make a call for Slugger’s friends, contributors and readers to risk their credibility and reveal their predictions publicly in advance. So folks lets be having you, your chance to be revealed as genius or the global village idiot…. Here are mine: DUP 36 SF 30 UUP 16 SDLP 14 Alliance 7 Green 1 TUV 1 PBPA 1 – McCann Purvis McFarland Blank

Do not mourn the octopus

Blank on October 27, 2010, 6:16 pm | Readers 22

In news Slugger predicted last year, Alliance’s Sean Neeson has announced his retirement. You won’t have long to wait to check if the 2nd half of the prediction is correct and Gerry Lynch is selected to run in his place. Blank