North Down

North Down Constituency Profile – Assembly Elections 2022…

Michael Hehir on April 28, 2022, 8:01 am | Readers 2582

Looking out over a calm Irish Sea from Helen's Bay (Jun., 2013).

The obvious tactical voting for Independent Unionist Lady Hermon in North Down Westminster elections cannot hide the strong decline in Unionist vote share over the last decade. In the 2011 elections, unionist votes were worth 4.1 and 4.2 quotas. Eight years later that had dropped to 3.4 and 3.3. If they can hold on to that next month it should guarantee them 3 seats, but the leakage of transfers from UUP and Conservatives could leave them closer to the tipping …

Bangor SF agent has car destroyed in a petrol bomb attack…

Mick Fealty on February 21, 2017, 12:45 pm | Readers 4187

This time, Sinn Fein in Bangor has got some local resource and something of a party presence. We know that in part because of the wilder elements of loyalism have been issuing threats for the party daring to show its democratic face in the town. Now they’ve gone a step further and have petrol bombed their election agents car: Around 10.30pm on Monday a petrol bomb was thrown through a smashed window of a black Citroen C4 Picasso in Towerview …

#SluggerReport: Trump and grown up politics, and #AE17 in South Belfast and North Down

Mick Fealty on February 1, 2017, 6:45 am | Readers 2237

So yesterday’s #SluggerReport featured commentary on the Trump issue (and should Kenny and/or May protest, in the former’s case not go to the Whitehouse for March 17th). Kevin Meagher on Labour Uncut nails it for me: We need to properly accept that Brexit means we are living in an age of realpolitik. Idealists who want to wag their fingers at Donald Trump are free to do so; but they should not pretend this is anything other than idle posturing. Britain is …

#AE16 North Down: UUP’s co-option of Chambers could be the deciding factor

Mick Fealty on April 12, 2016, 1:19 pm | Readers 3041

Candidates: [DUP] Alex Easton, Gordon Dunne, Peter Weir. [UUP] Alan Chambers, Chris Eisenstadt, Carl McClean. [Alliance] Stephen Farry, Andrew Muir. [Greens] Steven Agnew. [SDLP] Conal Browne. [UKIP] Bill Piper. [TUV] John Brennan. [NI Conservatives] Frank Shivers; [Sinn Fein] Therese McCartney. [Independent] Brian Wilson. This largely middle class, and largely Protestant constituency hugs the southern shoreline of the Belfast Lough and around Orlock Point to Donaghadee. At 11.83%, it has the highest number designating as no religion. Male life expectancy is 78.5, rising to 82.2 in women. In …

#AE11 Open Thread: North Down (#ndo11)

Mick Fealty on April 5, 2011, 9:11 am | Readers 12

Every year, North Down is a lottery. It has in the deep past been a bit of a no go for the DUP. That broke with the defection of Peter Weir from the UUP. The party now have two MLAs going into this election with a third candidate who has a chance of picking up a third. But this IS North Down, so nothing is certain. Brian Wilson’s Green seat looks hard for Stephen Agnew to hang on to, despite …

Brian Wilson running as independent against Green candidate in Bangor West

Alan Meban (Alan in Belfast) on February 18, 2011, 8:55 am | Readers 262

A couple of weeks ago, the (Bangor) Spectator ran a story about UUP councillor Roberta Dunlop’s resignation from the party after not being reselected to stand for her Abbey Ward seat. Her husband and fellow North Down councillor Harry Dunlop had defected from the UUP to the DUP in January, But the other half of the short article is much more intriguing. Brian Wilson, the Green Party’s only MLA, is standing down from the Assembly in May, and new NI …

Can’t keep water from leaking into the news – this time it’s a late pool

Alan Meban (Alan in Belfast) on August 19, 2010, 12:00 pm | Readers 87

Artist's impression of interior of Bangor's planned Olympic-sized swimming pool

At long last, construction is due to start on the beleaguered plan to build an Olympic sized swimming pool in Bangor, providing a training facility the right length for talented and ambitious local swimmers. News outlets this morning were awash with details that Farrans had won the £38m contract, which includes £15m from the water-themed Executive. The BBC report that “construction on the new facility is due to begin before the end of August. It is expected to open by …