Martin McGuinness

“this sort of thing is not helpful…”

| Readers 3

In his political review of the year, focusing on the new interventionist Northern Ireland Secretary of State, Owen Paterson, the News Letter‘s Sam McBride includes this intriging cameo from the corridors of power Stormont. Three weeks ago, when this newspaper reported Owen Paterson’s strongly pro-Union Steinberg Lecture, Martin McGuinness caught up with the secretary of state in a corridor, held up a copy of the News Letter front page, and chided him that “this sort of thing is not helpful”. Given Mr Paterson’s …

Read more…

MI5 make conditional offer on Finucane – WikiLeaks

| Readers 103

Unless Iran is your patch, this is probably the most interesting Wikileaks outing to date. The Security Service’s offer is revealed in a cable from June 2005, written by the US ambassador to Dublin, James C Kenny, which reported on a meeting between the head of MI5 and Mitchell Reiss, the US special envoy to Northern Ireland. In an account of the meeting between Reiss and Ahern, the ambassador wrote: “Reiss briefed him on his talks in London, including with …

Read more…

“I do think it would be seen as a failure of the assembly…”

| Readers 4

The BBC reports the concerns of Northern Ireland Finance Minister, the DUP’s Sammy Wilson, about the potential need for an emergency budget if the NI Executive fails to agree a draft budget.  From the BBC report Mr Wilson said some ministers had been co-operating with his department. “It would be wrong to blame everybody and I hope everyone doesn’t get tarred with the one brush,” he said. “I do think it would be seen as a failure of the assembly …

Read more…

“It is irresponsible to make ill-informed comments about areas which are not your responsibility.”

| Readers 10

As DC noted in the comments zone of Brian’s post on our special little pleaders, the Northern Ireland Secretary of State Owen Paterson made an interesting pitch during the Conservative Conference fringe event on NI today. With a number of NI Executive ministers present, Owen Paterson argued that the “British taxpayer should not continue to subsidise segregation” in NI, and he highlighted segregated education here as a particular example of “a criminal waste of public money”. Speaking to UTV in Birmingham after the event NI …

Read more…

FMdFM: “It was important that we were there and right that we were there…”

| Readers 24

The First and deputy First Ministers continue their evasive response to criticism of their failure to accept their invitation to attend Pope Benedict XVI’s official welcome on the first-ever papal state visit to the UK. One’s clinging to his political psychosis/comfort blanket, the other’s claiming they were double-booked.  That’s why you have junior ministers, guys. As for the Northern Ireland deputy First Minister’s claim that he “also [has] some grounds for believing [a Papal visit to Ireland] could happen as soon as 2012”.  What grounds would …

Read more…

“The more that is out in the open, the more the chances of success are reduced.”

| Readers 6

Northern Ireland deputy First Minister, Sinn Féin’s Martin McGuinness, refused to elaborate on his claim this week that “some of these dissident [republican] groups, I know for a fact, have been involved in discussions with both the Irish and the British government in recent times.”  As Martina Purdy noted, he’s off on “his August holidays” after dropping the “verbal grenade” – or “black propaganda” as Des Dalton of Republican Sinn Féin called it. The Sunday Times journalist who last weekend reported …

Read more…

Unionism 2010: Does it really matter who gets to be ‘titular head’?

| Readers 13

I have a piece coming out in the News Letter’s series on Unionism 2021, although I am not sure when. All contributors have five questions to answer, the final one asking whether Martin McGuinness would be acceptable as a First Minister. Perhaps surprisingly Paisley senior accepts the prospect with some equinimity, but not without a little dig at his successor, “Sinn Fein didn’t become the majority party on my watch.” Without giving too much away, my own take is that …

Read more…

Robinson slates ACC Finlay

| Readers 11

First Minister Peter Robinson has launched a stinging attack on ACC Alistair Finlay who challenged him and Martin Mc Guinness to show a united front against the rioting in recent days. As I noted this morning, Mr Finlay said on the Nolan Show this morning that neither the First or deputy first minister had been in touch with him in the run up to the Twelfth. This afternoon Peter Robinson and Matin Mc Guinness issued a statement. Mr Robinson roundly condemned …

Read more…

“when trying to reconstruct history, dip your bucket as close to the source as possible”

| Readers 13

Former Sunday Times Insight journalist, Peter Pringle, savoured the publication of the Saville Inquiry report.  And he had some interesting thoughts on Saville’s methodology But questions about Saville’s report on Bloody Sunday remain to be addressed: how did they sift the evidence? What evidence did they leave in, or out? What did the secret services redact? Why did he take so long? Here’s a suggestion of how to start reading beyond the headlines: look at Saville’s methods for reconstructing history. Mark …

Read more…

Has McGuinness’s reputation been enhanced or diminished by Saville?

| Readers 25

There has been considerable emphasis on the back of the Saville report on Martin McGuinness’ role on the day… much of which focuses on page 46 para 3.119 of the summary document: Before the soldiers of support company went into the Bogside he was probably armed with a Thompson sub-machinegun, and though it is possible that he fired this weapon, there is insufficient evidence to make any finding on this, save that we are sure that he did not engage …

Read more…

Canning trial gets underway

| Readers 103

Yesterday’s Irish News reported the opening remarks at the Belfast Crown Court trial of Marvin Canning – the brother-in-law of Northern Ireland deputy First Minister, Sinn Féin’s Martin McGuinness.  Canning, who has been out on bail since March 2008, faces seven charges relating to the abduction and assault of a businessman and his partner from their home in Mullingar, County Westmeath, in April 2007.  The couple were later found in the High Park area of Creggan, Londonderry.  The man had been shot in both ankles and subsequently lost …

Read more…

“Martin McGuinness was more likely than not to have been in possession of a Thompson sub-machine gun”

| Readers 152

Saville made no finding on whether Martin McGuinness had “fired a Thompson sub-machine gun from the Rossville Flats”.  But, despite Eamonn’s ‘not proven’ claim, it’s more a case of ‘not [fully] tested’.  From the Saville Inquiry’s Consideration of the evidence relating to Martin McGuinness [scroll down] 147.349 We were unable to obtain a written statement from Infliction, or call him to give oral evidence. Nor was Martin McGuinness able to question him or even be told who he was. The same applies to the …

Read more…

McGuinness: Archbishop Martin is providing a way forward..

| Readers 22

Deputy First Minister Martin Mc Guinness looks to Dublin’s Archbishop Diarmuid Martin to lead the catholic church out of the grip of child abuse scandals. Mr Mc Guinness has spoken for the first time since Cardinal Sean Brady said he is not quitting. Northern Ireland’s deputy First Minister has thrown his weight behind the Archbishop of Dublin as the row over child abuse by some priests rages on. When the story broke in March that Cardinal Sean Brady committed two …

Read more…

McGuinness on Brady tomorrow…

| Readers 5

Northern Ireland’s Deputy First minister Martin Mc Guinness called upon Cardinal Brady ‘to consider his position’ when his link to the Fr Brendan Smyth affair broke. Cardinal Brady has “considered his position” and has chosen to remain in office. What does Martin Mc Guinness think now? Coming up tomorrow morning on Slugger an exclusive one to one interview with Mr Mc Guinness. Eamonn Mallie