“There is no opt-out from Brexit. And I will never allow divisive nationalists to undermine the precious Union between the four nations of our United Kingdom.” Theresa May has Scotland in mind here of course but the uncompromising “no opt out” applies equally to Northern Ireland. The “consultation” that is promised is therefore to be more…
As noted by Paul at some length here, Referendums are turning out to be something of a game of Russian Roulette for ruling political elites (and in the case of Colombia, political insurgents). Colombia has by the narrowest of margins voted to reject a peace deal ratified by the President and the leader of the FARC more…
Today’s announcement by the Prime Minister Theresa May that Article 50 of the Treaty of Lisbon will be triggered in March 2017 has brought into sharp focus the potential impact that a hard Brexit could have on the Northern Ireland economy. Should the UK leave the European Union without any form of free trade deal more…
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 more…
“It’s an example of fiddling while Rome burns” was Naomi Long’s rather direct and caustic response on The View last night (about 29.40) to the latest controversy to emerge between Sinn Fein and the DUP over, wait for it, the naming of a boat. The more serious matter, however, concerns the current state of the more…
From the Times’ The Brief Post-Brexit rush for qualification in Ireland gathers pace Slaughter and May – arguably the most pukka of English law firms – is leading a pack of City of London practices in rushing to Dublin to qualify its lawyers in the republic. It is understood that the blue blood firm has more…
There is a lot fanciful nonsense being talked about what will happen to the Irish border post Brexit. Newton Emerson leads with one of the more fanciful ideas in the deployment of drones (which in terms of security are already here) to regulate customs. But he uses that to make a critically important point about more…
The Electoral Commission today published the expenditure returns for the Assembly elections in May 2016. They make for interesting reading. Topping the poll in terms of spend was the Ulster Unionist Party with a declared spend of £95,855. Not surprising perhaps that a party led by a former television presenter and PR person would spend more…
As if the never-ending US Presidential election campaign was not surreal enough, yesterday Donald Trump issued a statement attacking Hillary Clinton, entitled: Follow The Money: Denis O’Brien – Another Corrupt Clinton Friend. And it’s only ‘semi-exact‘ to call it a statement. It’s actually a set of news clippings all studiously referenced and hyperlinked back to their original more…
The Institute for Government is a think tank that works closely with government. It reports that turf wars are already costing tens of millions. Its expert on devolution Akash Paun blogs that Holyrood, Cardiff Bay and Stormont should get their act together to pool their influence at the centre. Following exchanges over an Irish “conversation,” more…
The Carnegie United Kingdom Trust (CUKT) convened a high-level Conference at the Girdwood Community Hub in Belfast Wednesday to take stock of the Trust’s joint work with QUB School of Law on advancing the case for a wellbeing outcomes framework in the Programme for Government. A feature of the conversation at the packed venue was the more…
Another legal case, this time it’s the granting of a judicial review of Lord Maurice Morrow’s private members bill criminalising payment for sex. As our own Siobhan Fenton (writing here for the London Independent) notes: In an unprecedented case, a sex worker has taken launched a legal challenge against the laws, saying they expose sex more…
Now, I don’t have a strong view on this issue. But the latest proposal for to build a four-lane dual carriageway, linking the main Derry to Belfast road at Toome with the M2, will cut close to Lough Beg and Mossbawn near the late poet’s former home. Arguably the link between Derry and Belfast, left more…
Enda Kenny is surely right to be cautious about setting up an “all-Ireland forum” Better to have a “conversation” at least to start with in November. Even so its ability to speak for all Ireland would be seriously weakened by the absence of unionists, just as it would be counter- productive for the unionists not more…
“Trashing our record is not the way to enhance our brand. We won’t elections like that, and we need to win elections” @tom_watson pic.twitter.com/d6OkXKqYm4 — DailySunday Politics (@daily_politics) September 27, 2016 He reminded his Conference audience that the single-minded denunciation of its own government record (for the last six years, ie it is not simply more…
At Leaders’ Questions in the Dail, Gerry Adams used his time to bring up the Taoiseach’s ‘plan’ to “bring forward about an all-Ireland forum”. An unfortunate term to use at the time since it was interpreted as a formal political proposition and easily repelled by the DUP. But Kenny’s response today indicates that he has been doing more…
UUP leader Mike Nesbitt’s charge that a briefing paper on the negative implications of Brexit apparently withheld from the former multiparty Executive by the FM and dFM in May 2015 may have been in breach of the ministerial code, is a neat move by a party now in formal opposition. It is also a small more…
Strong piece from Polly Toynbee at the Labour Party conference today, where she’s been fielding puzzled inquiries from fervent Corbyn-ites as to why she’s anti-Jeremy Corbyn when both she and he stand for roughly the same things. It’s more than a decent and comprehensive response. Corbyn could apply a little balm to the great gash in his more…
The originator of LAD John-Paul Whearty, has outed himself, just in time to publicise his upcoming production Adventures in Ulster… He comments to the Irish News… “I would describe LAD as like being in a band. We have had a really successful first album and now it’s time to go from there. I see myself more…
