Northern Ireland’s infrastructure has drawn the prize ticket from the £1bn of new money in the Conservative-DUP deal – securing £400m, or 40% of the entire fund. This has been greeted with criticism elsewhere in the UK, but can be justified on two grounds. Firstly – Northern Ireland arguably has the worst infrastructure of any more…
With the Scottish First Minister, the SNP’s Nicola Sturgeon, backing down, for now, from her previous strident position on indyref2 the BBC’s Scotland editor, Brian Taylor, detects the “scunner factor” at work. Voters in Scotland have thrilled to seven electoral tests in three years. They are already anxious over the uncertainty attendant upon Brexit. Are more…
When you’re all quite finished laughing at the mendacious cartoon stereotyping of “the oul Orange deal”, here’s a more sobering analysis of why that money is needed, Michael Hugh Walker: The idea that our peace is so fragile diminishes the losses the generation before me suffered and disregards the investment in a terror-free existence that more…
It always happens, doesn’t it, that when political deadlock becomes tighter, legalistic arguments become more obsessive. It’s a hoot to claim that the once great hero of the GFA and now the great scapegoat for all that’s gone wrong anywhere, anytime Tony Blair, conned the poor innocent parties to the St Andrew’s Agreement over an more…
Good conversation with Paul Ross on TalkRadio yesterday morning, in which we discussed the nature of the deal (is it grubby money?), whether the DUP are (as the Daily Mirror accuses them of being) ‘Crackpots’, will it hurt the peace process and lastly will the hung parliament deal stick: My answer to each is conditional more…
To those still buying into the Major/Powell idea that the British government is always a neutral player in negotiations, try this account from Peter Robinson on how Blair set Sinn Fein up with a promise for an Irish Language Act he had no intention of asking the DUP to deliver: “It was Ian’s assessment – more…
With the focus having switched from Westminster to Stormont, speculation will continue to grow about the nature and likelihood of any deal to deliver a return of devolved government. Yet many continue to miss one key factor which is likely to mitigate against a quick return to Stormont. The republican leaders now in the spotlight more…
And we’re back in Belfast with the main parties and their negotiations. The final deadline is Thursday, but substantial agreement is expected today. The DUP have obtained a deal that is extremely good for infrastructure, bringing things into the possible that were recently all but pipe dreams, although you may excuse my cynicism that the money more…
This month we celebrated our 15th Birthday. Over 36,000 posts and nearly a million comments later Slugger is stronger than ever. In the last month alone we have had over 150,000 readers! For those of you who love a bit of sexy data visualisation, we have this funky interactive report for our June traffic. You more…
The DUP deal at Westminster is reasonably secure. The prospects for a Stormont deal seem up in the air and due for postponement until the autumn. The best hope for today is that Sinn Fein may feel they’ve got just enough to continue the negotiations back in the Assembly pending the creation of an Executive more…
ULTRAFAST BROADBAND? If the £150 money from Conservative/DUP deal is solely targeted at Ultrafast broadband, it is unlikely to benefit ordinary homes in rural areas which today still have poor broadband. (Update – apparently yes, using Fibre to the Remote Node technology in rural areas … if the price [subsidy] is right for customers.)
When it’s the amount of the deal done by the Conservative Party with the DUP, that’s when. Today the parties announced the terms of reference and the financial package that will underpin their confidence and supply agreement. There’s been widespread shock and anger amongst Parliamentarians and the great British public that these upstarts from Ulster more…
With thanks to my good friend Wesley Johnston, whose inestimable website is the source for any intelligible figure I can find to help me write this article… I was at the official opening of the A26 two weeks ago, and I think that there is definitely an appetite to get York Street Interchange sorted out more…
Here’s a revealing exchange between LBC’s liberal shock jock James O’Brien and ex-Northern Ireland Secretary of State, Theresa Villiers: James O’Brien (JOB): How can Westminister observe rigorous impartiality to the political traditions in Northern Ireland when it is writing a seven-figure cheque for one side. Theresa Villiers (TV): The package of financial support is for more…
The payout could be higher as a result of studies of the impact of lower corporation tax and scrapping air passenger duty. In its financial analysis the FT points out that Costs will be higher if the renewed commitment to allow Northern Ireland to set its own lower corporation tax rate and air passenger duty more…
In his analysis of where the £1.5 billion, over a number years, from the Conservative/DUP arrangement will be spent, the BBC’s John Campbell makes a couple of interesting points about some of the new money, and all of the old money. There is also £100m to be spent on deprived communities over five years. It more…
So the deal is done! (Thanks, Andy.) Welcome to confidence and supply politics, mam… As anticipated, the DUP’s end of the bargain seems pretty watertight in terms of granting the government some stability over the medium to long term… So what are they getting for this? Well, outside these conditions, a free hand to fall out more…
Handing over the money is not contingent on restoring the Executive – at least in print. but it is clearly intended to put pressure on Sinn Fein. If there is no Executive what happens with the new £1 billion and even the already promised £500 million? A budget has to be passed next month by more…
Very briefly… source for all information is the Guardian as that was the first place I could find with the detailed documents! The agreement The short version is that the DUP will vote with the Government on the Queen’s Speech, the budget, all finance and money bills, supply and appropriation legislation and Estimates. In return, more…
Living in London, I miss a lot of stuff from the substrata; that’s only to be expected . But today I read something from the superstructure that left me gobsmacked. You might find it unremarkable when you’ve far more exciting things to attract your attention like the doings of Emma Little Pengelly. It’s been too more…
