Republic – Page 17 – Slugger O'Toole

FT recommends staying in the customs union to help solve the Irish problem

Brian Walker on December 14, 2016, 8:34 am

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Irish Finance minister Michael Noonan was too hasty in slapping down “a special deal on the side ” between the UK and Ireland in response to the report on Ireland and Brexit from the Lords EU committee. He spoke even as it was admitted that Ireland would probably be worse affected than Britain. This is no time to reject any well-intentioned idea for resolving what is probably the single most difficult problem of Brexit. The committee was also right to …

Brexit requires a special deal for Ireland say the Lords, and the Executive cannot stay aloof. That means you, Arlene

Brian Walker on December 12, 2016, 3:51 pm

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In the first of six reports on Brexit the House of Lords committee on the EU recommend that the British and Irish governments should negotiate a new bilateral agreement to minimise the impact of Brexit on British-Irish and North-South relations. This will be welcomed as the first serious attempt by British legislators to cut through the thicket of thorny problems particular to both parts of Ireland. As the Guardian reports, the Lords EU Committee “touches lightly” on the Good Friday agreement. It …

While the Supreme Court continues the agenda moves on. A hard Brexit looks more and more likely and the future of the Irish border is in the balance.

Brian Walker on December 8, 2016, 11:31 am

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The Financial Times (£) says it all in the editorial quoted at some length below – or most of it. If Theresa May had introduced a simple bill granting MPs a vote on Article 50, the November High Court case and the appeal to the Supreme Court would not have happened. What it doesn’t say is that the UK government look like triggering Article 50 before the end of March to leave the single market and the customs union. They …

Sinn Fein’s attempts to confront the chaos of Brexit are still too hung up on the dubious appeal of constitutional change

Brian Walker on December 2, 2016, 12:27 pm

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Two cheers for Sinn Fein for at least having a go where others fear to tread, in exposing their ideas in progress to the deep uncertainties of Brexit. In this document, if responding to the confusion of Brexit were not enough, the party is delivering a mixed revisionist message that is caught between its roots and its avowed direction of travel. To start with, the basic premise of the paper in the foreword is debatable. It is indeed hard to …

There is no threat to the Union. Irish bickering north and south over the reality of Brexit has to be replaced with practical cooperation, fast.

Brian Walker on November 17, 2016, 11:30 am

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Newton’s latest observations on the “curmudgeonly” Arlene can be counterpointed with an incredibly wise article in the Indo by Brendan Keenan, Belfast born and bred but long anchored in Dublin and with a strong sense of reality for the interests of both. Arlene’s dour comments can be contrasted unfavourably with the regal visionary style of Nicola Sturgeon. But Arlene doesn’t have the field of government to herself. In practice they are both pragmatic and when it suits them, even cooperative …

Another few words of sense about dealing with the past that the politicians refuse to face.

Brian Walker on November 14, 2016, 12:32 pm

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Chris Ryder, veteran reporter and specialist on police matters, is given space in the Irish Times to repeat the case for halting all pre- Troubles cases and leaving them to historians. Although he is known as a critical friend of the police, he makes a fair and balanced case which should be considered entirely on its merits. This was an approach I ran with to support Arkiv, a group of historians who wanted to take it on, initially encouraged by the …

Nationalists and unionists need to discard their illusions about Brexit. The gap is dangerously wide.

Brian Walker on November 6, 2016, 5:02 pm

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We begin with two different views of the impact of Brexit in Northern Ireland; from first, the historian and Irish Times columnist Diarmaid Ferriter, contrasted later with DUP MP Nigel Dodds. In 1998, at the time of the endorsement of the Belfast Agreement, Fintan O’Toole observed that “Northern Ireland is now a place that is arguably unique – a place that nobody claims and nobody owns, a place that is free to become whatever its people can agree that they …

After a quiet day in Dublin, drama in the English High Court. But don’t get too excited…

Brian Walker on November 3, 2016, 11:33 am

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It would be as well not to get over excited about this morning’s rejection in the English High Court of the UK government’s case that it can trigger Article 50 without the consent of Parliament. The show isn’t over yet; the denouement was always likely to be played out at the top. The government will appeal to the Supreme Court which is also expected to deal with the equivalent Northern Ireland appeal at the same time, after the Belfast High Court …

The complexities of Brexit could overwhelm the British political system. For all Ireland, a bigger role needed for the GFA structures

Brian Walker on November 2, 2016, 11:02 am

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.As the “all island ” civic forum meets in Dublin bereft of unionists, a high powered think tank The UK in a changing Europe warns: “Brexit has the potential to test the UK’s constitutional settlement, legal framework, political process and bureaucratic capacities to their limits – and possibly beyond.. And they suggest the repatriation of decision-making in key policy areas including agriculture, the environment and higher education to Britain from Brussels could affect the balance of power between Westminster and the …

Arlene defends Brexit, trusts Theresa and appears to see no need for solidarity with the Republic.

Brian Walker on October 28, 2016, 8:51 pm

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First Minister Arlene Foster has burst into print in the Guardian to explain how Leave is compatible with Northern Ireland’s interests. If nothing else, it marks her out as the first person of any prominence to do so. If Martin McGuinness and Colum Eastwood are alarmist, she is almost complacent and takes a lot for granted. Yet read carefully she is still asking for special treatment for Northern Ireland and assumes she’ll get it. Her message is “stick with Theresa …

Pressure on Theresa May is mounting.. and this is only the start..

Brian Walker on October 21, 2016, 12:18 pm

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Theresa May’s little pitch over coffee at the EU summit last night seems to have backfired. The Guardian and the Daily Telegraph although divided over a hard and a soft Brexit are united in reporting that she ” created a lot of anger.” This from the bête noire. Asked how talks had gone with Mrs May last night, Jean-Claude Juncker shrugged his shoulders and spluttered “Pfff”. The European Commission president said: “We had no special event with Theresa May yesterday. “She …

At home the ” running commentary” defence is under pressure. But at the EU summit, Theresa is limited to pitching ” over coffee” tonight.

Brian Walker on October 20, 2016, 11:06 am

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With the leak of Brexit cabinet committee documents and the Chancellor’s admission of tensions within the committee itself, the UK government’s refusal to give “a running commentary” is under heavy pressure already. This morning in Commons questions, the Brexit Secretary still stalled on the details but insisted in general : Davis says the government will publish “much information” about its Brexit plans The SDLP were given a little outing… Mark Durkan, the SDLP MP, says employment law is a devolved …

The drip feed over Brexit strategy is hardly encouraging and requires wholesale review in Northern Ireland

Brian Walker on October 19, 2016, 10:06 am

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We inch forward in a long struggle for clarity.. The legal challenge in the English High Court to triggering Article 50 without parliamentary approval drew this insouciant admission from a barrister in reply to a sharp question from the Lord Chief Justice. But how meaningful would a take –it-or-leave-it vote be? James Eadie QC, defending the Government over claims Mrs May should seek Parliamentary approval before triggering Article 50, told the high court: “The Government view at the moment it …

So the DUP are leaving it all up to Theresa May to sort out our Brexit deal are they?

Brian Walker on October 18, 2016, 1:58 pm

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At last! Only two months later, a reply from Theresa May to the joint concerns of FM and DFM on the impact of Brexit. Searching for detail in the Nolan “scoop” I can only find this on the BBC website. In her letter, Mrs May says the future of the border is “an important priority for the UK as a whole.” She also says she recognises the “unique issues” raised by the Single Electricity Market and that resolving these will …

The Irish Times and the Guardian combine to ramp up pressure on May and in support of the “all-island Civic Dialogue”

Brian Walker on October 16, 2016, 11:21 pm

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“At this delicate moment, the Guardian and the Irish Times are collaborating on a week-long series exploring the predicament facing Ireland and the UK. Kenny told the Irish Times that he would summon all political players to an unprecedented All Island Civic Dialogue on 2 November. “ In support of the Guardian’s announcement the Irish Times has published a gloomy analysis of the effects of Brexit on both countries. The rough guide is that every 1 per cut in UK growth …

Theresa May is risking the future of the British Union if she fails to recognise that Westminster is no longer “in control”

Brian Walker on October 11, 2016, 9:16 am

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Scottish nationalism is on the defensive for the first time in over a decade. On the other hand, English nationalism could give it second wind if it thinks it can a score an easy victory without acknowledging its enduring power. At this juncture, it’s true that one early outcome of the Brexit confusion leaning towards a hard Brexit is that Nicola Sturgeon’s calculations have become more complicated. On the eve of the SNP annual conference former Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill …

High tech can soften the prospect of a hard border, but it’s no Trojan horse.

Brian Walker on October 10, 2016, 12:23 am

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The Guardian has posted an early lead from its Ireland correspondent Henry McDonald quoting NI Secretary James Brokenshire saying that: London and Dublin will work to strengthen Ireland’s external borders in order to combat illegal migration into the UK once it leaves the European Union. “There was now a high level of collaboration on a joint programme of work” between the two states to control immigration. We have put in place a range of measures to further combat illegal migration …

The Irish in GB are offered Brexit reassurances. Do they really need them?

Brian Walker on October 6, 2016, 10:11 am

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The Times (£) is carrying a story ” Irish NHS staff reassured over hard Brexit” reporting that Irish nurses and doctors will remain a key part of the NHS in England, ” despite plans to make the “British” ( sic – they mean English) health service self sufficient within ten years.” This is typical of stories in the London press which are confused about devolution and lump together Irish immigrants with others as foreign. Much of officialdom is ignorant about …

Ireland will have to spell out what they mean by special status for the North – assuming they know what it is.

Brian Walker on October 4, 2016, 10:58 am

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Reactions have been predictable in Ireland to the“hard Brexit” tone of Theresa May’s brief conference speech in Sunday and her rejection of the idea of giving a Brexit veto to Scotland or Northern Ireland . The Irish government are as worried as they are ignorant of British intentions. The DUP remain defiantly pro-Leave and opposed to all – Ireland consultation at this stage. The Dail as a whole is now gloomier about prospects for an open border. Poor Ireland, bursting with goodwill …

Theresa May’s new assurances on the border and consultation raise more questions than provide answers

Brian Walker on September 30, 2016, 6:13 pm

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In advance of the Conservative party conference and with speculation running about a hard Brexit, Theresa May has given an interview to BBC Scotland and BBC Northern Ireland to try to assure their governments that they won’t be ignored in formulating the UK Brexit strategy. This is in spite of the UK government’s insistence in court that Brexit is a matter reserved to Westminster and there is no legal requirement to consult them. Politics however is a different matter. I …