Republic – Page 64 – Slugger O'Toole

Junior partners tread carefully..

Pete Baker on January 15, 2008, 9:22 pm

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With Taoiseach Bertie Ahern trading trans-continental insults with the leaders of Fine Gael and the Labour Party his junior partners in government have been getting jumpy. The PD’s Noel Grealish might have thought he was doing the Taoiseach a favour by criticising the Mahon Tribunal – and, after all, he was just repeating what Ahern had said himself – but the Mahon Tribunal is the departmental responsibility of another junior partner, and the Green Party’s John Gormley, as Minister for …

Bertie, the Commissioners and the truth about tax…

Mick Fealty on January 15, 2008, 7:34 pm

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There is a major ruck going on in the Republic over the rather convoluted and, frankly, highly dodgy account the Taoiseach has given the Mahon Tribunal concerning his tax affairs. Cian has the Enda Kenny statement that the Irish Times re-published in full in yesterday’s paper. Mr Ahern responded by calling the opposition leader a ‘bare-faced liar’. Mr Kenny responded by stating that “…inside and outside the Dáil, we will relentlessly pursue this Government for its deceit in what it …

United archipelago – redux

Pete Baker on January 14, 2008, 7:08 pm

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In the absence of a public debate on the implications of UK immigration controls on the Common Travel Area, the UK government is pressing ahead with those new border controls. The 10 key changes announced today include fingerprint checks on anyone applying for a visa.. which, interestingly, the Republic of Ireland has already announced will apply to non-EU nationals.The BBC report lists the 10 key changes BORDER CONTROLS ACTION PLAN Check fingerprints before a visa is issued. To be brought …

Nuclear NIMBYism – redux

Pete Baker on January 10, 2008, 9:04 pm

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I’ve mentioned the hypocrisy of Nuclear NIMBYism in an archipelagic-wide energy grid previously [and it’s as alive and well as ever – Ed], so it’s good to see the Republic of Ireland’s Energy Minister, Eamon Ryan, calling for a reasoned debate on the issue, “so that the real science and the energy policy issues can be debated in detail”, at the same time that the UK government published a white paper on proposals to support the building of new nuclear …

Murphy sent for trial in Special Criminal Court

Pete Baker on January 10, 2008, 6:13 pm

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Confirmation today that, as requested, Thomas Murphy, the “good republican” previously named as both the UK’s richest smuggler and a former Provisional IRA Chief of Staff, is to be tried in the Republic of Ireland’s Special Criminal Court on charges of “failing to furnish a return of his income, profits or gains or the sources of his income, profits or gains to the Collector General or the Inspector of Taxes for the tax years from 1996/97 to 2004.” The RTÉ …

“no question of introducing fixed immigration controls on either side of the land border..”

Pete Baker on January 9, 2008, 4:31 pm

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In an Irish Times front page article [no subs] Frank Millar reports Prime Minister Gordon Brown’s response to the DUP leader Ian Paisley’s query on border controls and includes a statement from the DUP leader – who said he was pleased Mr Brown had “so robustly defended the integrity of the United Kingdom’s border”. But it’s worth pointing out that the Prime Minister’s response also indicates that proof of identity will be required – if that “data”, on domestic and …

Towards a modern Honours system?

Mick Fealty on January 8, 2008, 4:15 pm

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Father Des Wilson reckons that an Irish Honours system would be fine, but not if it gets trapped in the archaism of the British model: There are two movements afoot: one in Britain to get rid of out-of-date honours and invent something honourably new, the other in Ireland where some politicians want to have an honours system of our own. Fine, provided the honours system resulting in either case does not mean people descending from vanity into silliness, with out-of-date …

Competition, the law and the ‘class interest’…

Mick Fealty on January 3, 2008, 8:02 pm

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Here’s an interesting piece from Thomas Byrne, a newly elected Fianna Fail TD for Meath East. It’s hardly surprising there’s a bit of bad blood between him and the Labour benches since he nipped comfortably in front of much fancied Dominic Hannigan to take the seat. Byrne gently and methodically deconstructs Labour frontbencher Joan Burton’s accusation that he is a Neo Con for voting against Michael D Higgins’ proposed amendment to the Competition Act: …the main problem with this law …

Sinn Fein, their faltering game and one big European chance for glory…

Mick Fealty on December 28, 2007, 8:19 pm

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Catriona Ruane probably has the stiffest test of all Sinn Fein’s new ministers. For that reason, I’m not sure that Frank’s analysis suggesting she’s performed poorly alongside her colleagues Conor Murphy and Michelle Gildernew, even if that was the impression given by northern delegates at a recent ‘closed door’ meeting in Dublin. Neither have faced the challenge she does in carrying forward actionable reforms in an area that is both prominent and which splits neatly down the Nationalist /Unionist divide. …

Bertie draws the border back in…

Mick Fealty on December 28, 2007, 6:45 pm

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Last time I was stopped at the border would have been by a single Garda around 1990, probably after a major attack somewhere in Northern Ireland. He was stopping most cars just before the Carrickdale hotel creating a tailback that went right back across the actual boarder. When we eventually got up to him he engaged my Derby born English colleague in a long conversation about the mixed fortunes of Derby County (the Guard’s favourite team), and after a decent …

Second man charged in Mullingar abduction case

Pete Baker on December 20, 2007, 8:11 pm

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Marvin Canning, brother-in-law of Northern Ireland’s deputy First Minister, Sinn Fein’s Martin McGuinness, continues to be held on remand, as far as I’m aware, on charges of causing grievous bodily harm, false imprisonment and possessing a gun with intent – on the grounds that the court was “satisfied there are substantial grounds for believing there is a risk of interference with witnesses”. And today RTÉ reports that a second man has been charged in connection to the adbuction of a …

“no information is available to me from the Garda Commissioner..”

Pete Baker on December 20, 2007, 1:04 am

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As one “good republican” waits for 10 January, and the prospect of the Special Criminal Court, the parents of Paul Quinn have met with the Republic of Ireland’s Minster for Justice [new link] Brian Lenihan and, as requested in their meeting on Monday with the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Taoiseach Bertie Ahern joined them briefly. According to reports, Taoiseach Bertie reiterated what he had told the Dáil yesterday [subs req] “I am glad to state what the Minister told the …

DPP requests Special Criminal Court for Murphy tax evasion charges

Pete Baker on December 19, 2007, 7:37 pm

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As Mick noted at the time on Comment is Free, Thomas Murphy has previously been named as both the UK’s richest smuggler and a former Provisional IRA Chief of Staff – a claim which led to a failed libel action by Murphy against the Sunday Times in 1998, during which case Eamon Collins testified against him. At the beginning of 1999 Eamon Collins was murdered in South Armagh. Alongside, apparently, ongoing investigations, Murphy was arrested in November this year on …

Fee paying schools dominate fast track to Uni…

Mick Fealty on December 17, 2007, 3:25 pm

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Give much of our focus on education reform in Northern Ireland there’s a fascinating piece on the front page of the Irish Times today, which notes that whilst the private grind schools in the Republic no longer predominate at the top of the league table. Though it should be noted that the grind schools have an open enrolment policies. It’s the growing fee paying and Gaelscoil sectors that dominate the tracks into university: Today’s list also tracks students going to …

Sinn Fein and the Republic: aspirations but no support…

Mick Fealty on December 12, 2007, 6:08 pm

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At the weekend Sinn Fein announced a renewal of its efforts to expand its base into the Republic. But it’s a much hard uphill struggle that it seems prepared to admit. As Ahern dropped a massive 7% his party’s rate in the last Irish Times poll, Fine Gael and Labour seem to be the beneficiaries. It seems to have lost the ear of the electorate in the south, with few obvious means to get it back into listening mode. More …

“He’s covering up for them.. he knows them..”

Pete Baker on November 30, 2007, 4:39 am

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As well as the report on the aftermath of the killing of Paul Quinn on BBC’s Newsnight last night, journalists at RTÉ are also paying attention – despite the apparent blindness elsewhere. As the Prime Time webpage notes – “major technical difficulties” prevented the full programme going to air, but the clips which should have gone to air are now available online – although the second clip still seems to be truncated. Intro report by Claire Murphy here.. and an …

“I have noted the Judge’s careful scrutiny of a very complex collection of issues.”

Pete Baker on November 23, 2007, 8:06 pm

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The Department of Education has now supplemented the initial ‘duty to verify’ guidance to Primary Schools with guidance to Pre-Schools and Post-Primary Schools – in response to the court ruling on places at St Cecilia’s in Londonderry (full ruling available here [pdf file]). But the Irish News picks up [subs req] on an interim circular sent to schools this year on transfer arrangements from Primary to Post-Primary Schools. [pdf file] In particular the Minister’s declared “intention to review the current …

MPs sitting in Dail today…

Mick Fealty on November 22, 2007, 4:45 pm

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Well, not quite. The no representation without taxation argument won the day in the Dail, but today is the inaugural sitting of a committee that will include Northern Irish Parliamentarians in some form of oversight of the peace process. It will be interesting to see what precisely it is they are going to oversee. Mick FealtyMick is founding editor of Slugger. He has written papers on the impacts of the Internet on politics and the wider media and is a …

Is that everyone?..

Pete Baker on November 17, 2007, 4:24 am

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I have no wish to tempt fate.. but, despite the devices in Dublin and in Belfast today, the currently reported threats to various groups need some scepticism. While there have been repeated reports of threats to SF representatives, and now to Orange Order members, from non-mainstream republicans [and not members of Ógra Shinn Féin – No hatred, then? – Ed], the only people attacked to date have been serving police officers – and there is recent analysis to suggest there …

“just an attempt to, as they say on Wall Street, ‘put lipstick on that pig'”

Pete Baker on November 16, 2007, 5:10 pm

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While waiting to see what, if any, public converstaion takes place on those border issues there’s another, somewhat related, conversation trying to take shape. In the Irish Times, campaigner Frank Sharry, executive director of the US National Immigration Forum, reckons it could take up to 10 years before US immigration reform “becomes viable to have it back at the table” – and not just because of contradictions between Ministers of State. From the Irish Times article [subs req] Sharry believes …