OFMdFM – Page 4 – Slugger O'Toole

Theresa Villiers: “That’s the kind of Northern Ireland we’re determined to build…”

Pete Baker on September 9, 2013, 5:28 pm

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Louth TD, and Sinn Féin president, Gerry Adams has taken exception to a recent speech by the Northern Ireland Secretary of State, Theresa Villiers at the British-Irish Association’s 2013 conference – describing it as “an unacceptable intervention” ahead of those talks with Richard Haass. Although, I don’t think the speech was delivered “yesterday”… [And what’s he going to do about it?! – Ed] ANYhoo… Let’s see if we can identify what might have ruffled his feathers. From the NI Secretary of State’s draft speech. Moving on …

Haass “asked the parties for confidentiality and to put forward their best team of negotiators…”

Pete Baker on September 4, 2013, 6:42 pm

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The BBC reports that “it has emerged” Richard Haass has written to the Northern Ireland Executive parties ahead of the up-coming talks on parades, and other matters. Dr Haass, who is due to chair talks later this month, sent the letter after his mid-July visit to Belfast. He asked the parties for confidentiality and to put forward their best team of negotiators. Dr Haass also requested the parties answer a series of questions around the issues. The negotiations are to …

OFMdFM: “All decisions go into a hat where they sit until there is a breakthrough…”

Mick Fealty on September 3, 2013, 1:00 pm

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With yesterday’s post at the Compromise After Conflict blog at QUB in mind, via Steven McCaffrey at The Detail a useful description from on of the major political players in Northern Irish politics, the Louth TD and President of Sinn Fein Gerry Adams: “Negotiations are ongoing. Negotiations are now part of life. There isn’t a day goes past that Martin McGuinness and Peter Robinson – even though they might never use the word negotiation – aren’t talking about something and …

NI Assembly Commissioner for Standards: “In these circumstances some might have concerns as to my impartiality to consider your complaint…”

Pete Baker on August 31, 2013, 6:24 pm

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I’m not entirely convinced by the reason given by the Northern Ireland Assembly Commissioner for Standards, Douglas Bain, for his decision to recommend that the NI Assembly Committee on Standards and Privileges appoint an Acting Commissioner to consider the DUP and TUV complaints about Sinn Féin MLA Gerry Kelly’s attendance and speech at the recent controversial Castlederg parade. Here’s what the Commissioner told the TUV leader Jim Allister, MLA. Thank you for your letter of 12 August 2013 making a …

“that’s why Richard Haass needs proof – right from the start – that the will to construct a deal really does exist”

Pete Baker on August 26, 2013, 4:32 pm

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Having abandoned their first, draconian, attempt to control regulate Public Assemblies, Parades and Protests, Sinn Féin and the DUP may now face a wider variety of emboldened dissenting voices in seeking compromise on the issue. Alex Kane has some advice for the incoming chair of the new, improved, working group on parades. From the News Letter article If I were Mr Haass I would gather all of the parties and assorted hangers-on around the table at 9am on the first Monday morning and …

“giddy zephyrs of the purest conjecture…”

Pete Baker on August 25, 2013, 5:55 pm

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In yesterday’s Irish News Newton Emerson poured cold water on some recent idle speculation – as noted by Alan. From the Irish News Speculation is mounting that Peter Robinson plans to step down as DUP leader. It cannot be stressed enough that this is based on giddy zephyrs of the purest conjecture. An attempt by nationalism to convince itself the Maze U-turn indicated weak leadership was debunked by a mild response from Sinn Féin, which sees exactly how Robinson has launched …

NI’s new political establishment continues to drift from meaningful engagement with the wider citizenry…

Mick Fealty on August 19, 2013, 5:40 pm

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So Sinn Fein will not be recalling the Assembly [aw come on lads, everyone else has done this summer! – Ed] over the now apparently wrecked peace centre plan. Speculation has been rife over how long Peter Robinson will stay leader of the DUP. By Saturday Sammy Wilson had finally denied reports of substantial disagreement with his party leader, after Nolan had publicly discussed said row on Friday morning… As Brian notes, most of what’s passing for news at the …

OFMdFM’s little domestic tiff over the Maze ‘Reconciliation Centre’ goes embarrassingly public…

Mick Fealty on August 15, 2013, 1:06 pm

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And so the Tweedledum/Tweedledee dialogue of the deaf between the only two political parties in Northern Ireland that have substantial political power continues after the First Minister’s ‘address’ to his own senior politicians. First of all, Raymond McCartney for Sinn Fein: “Peter Robinson, who has himself of course been totally absent over recent weeks, talks about difficulties around issues like parades and emblems. Surely then this should be all more reason why a Centre for Peace and Reconciliation should be built. …

Inability of OFMdFM to compromise has allowed the “No Go” politics of the street to re-occupy a central space

Mick Fealty on August 12, 2013, 3:57 pm

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It’s no go your maidenheads, it’s no go your culture, All we want is a Dunlop tyre and the devil mend the puncture. Louis MacNeice – Bagpipe Music One of the optical illusions of Northern Ireland’s now regular summers of trouble is that it has nothing whatsoever to do with the power sharing executive on Stormont hill. This was an actual feature of the politics that developed from the early sixties through to the outbreak of serious public disorder in …

Ask not what the NI Executive can do for regional and minority languages…

Mick Fealty on August 7, 2013, 2:45 pm

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Aha, it’s that time of year again. You know, when the Culture Minister is asked to compile a report for the UK’s submission to the European Charter for Regional and Minority Languages, s/he does, and then nothing comes back… It happened to Gregory Campbell’s report three years ago (which sank without trace with the deputy First Minister), and last year it happened to Minister Carál Ní Chuilín. Inside Ireland reports.. The UK government’s submission to the Council of Europe was …

Did US St Patrick’s day concerns about OFMdFM’s inability to co-ordinate prompt Hass intervention?

Mick Fealty on August 5, 2013, 4:17 pm

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After his interview with a former US Consul to Belfast, Steven McCaffrey wonders if OFMdFM suggestions that the engagement of Richard Haas was largely on their own initiative, are somewhat exaggerated: The fact that Mrs Stephenson appears to track recent political progress as having started after Northern Ireland leaders met President Barack Obama in Washington on St Patrick’s Day makes it tempting to wonder – rightly or wrongly – who we really have to thank for the positive new policies …

NI Affairs Committee: “We understand the sensitivities of this issue for some members of the Executive…”

Pete Baker on July 17, 2013, 5:27 pm

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As the BBC reports, the UK House of Commons Northern Ireland Affairs Committee has published their report on the Implementation of the Armed Forces Covenant in Northern Ireland. Among the recommendations noted by the BBC The committee chair, MP Laurence Robertson, said the report highlighted the need for those who serve the country not being disadvantaged because of that. He said while the special political and legal situation in Northern Ireland made the situation potentially contentious, that should not mean …

“this Assembly notes the lawful but illogical determination issued by the Parades Commission…”

Pete Baker on July 16, 2013, 3:44 pm

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As the BBC reports, the Northern Ireland Assembly has rejected a tabled Sinn Féin amendment, and supported the DUP’s original motion on the recent north Belfast determination of the Parades Commission by 43 votes to 42 – here’s the Commission’s earlier defence of that decision. And here’s the resolved text from the NI Assembly That this Assembly notes the lawful but illogical determination issued by the Parades Commission on 9 July 2013 in relation to the application by the three Ligoniel Orange Lodges for …

“Adding more weapons to this volatile situation could destabilise the entire region…”

Pete Baker on June 15, 2013, 6:42 pm

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The Northern Ireland First and deputy First Ministers were in a sunny Downing Street garden yesterday, welcoming that suspect package, and extolling the virtues of demonstrating “peacefully, positively, constructively” [Is that with, or without, a Thompson sub-machine gun? – Ed] Without, probably… ANYhoo, on the same day Sinn Féin released the text of what appears to be a different speech to that delivered in Downing Street by the Mid Ulster MP Northern Ireland deputy First Minister, Martin McGuinness – made at …

“still much to be done in those communities that have not previously, or only partially, engaged in peace building and reconciliation activities…”

Pete Baker on June 5, 2013, 2:57 pm

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The Irish Times reports on, what would appear to be, the International Fund for Ireland’s (IFI) response to the Northern Ireland First and deputy First Ministers bullshit distraction about “Building a United Community”. From the Irish Times report “The community transformation strategy recognises the new reality on the ground and looks to support communities that are still affected by the threat of violence,” said the IFI chairman Dr Adrian Johnston. “It is particularly focused on addressing the root causes of sectarianism and, in …

OFMdFM: “as open and transparent as possible”

Pete Baker on May 18, 2013, 7:40 pm

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After much foot-dragging, the Northern Ireland First and deputy First Ministers have released the cost [to date – Ed] of their 12-day March junket trip to Brazil and the USA to “Develop and promote political, investment, trade, university and tourism links” – an eye-watering £155,509. As Mark Devenport tweeted So were FM and DFM’s recent investment trips value for money? Costs breakdown published here tinyurl.com/c75mymq — Mark Devenport (@markdevenport) May 16, 2013 It’s difficult to answer the ‘value-for-money’ question in the …

OFMdFM panic move was “like a funding application where the Secretary of State had cracked the whip”

Mick Fealty on May 16, 2013, 1:52 pm

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Well, here’s a bit of a YouTube Smorgasbord of comment on OFMdFM’s Towards a United Community… It’s telling that the joint tactics of the representatives of the OFMdFM parties used a lot of shouting, jeering and intervention to smother what was in aggregate a decent three pointed challenge from Alliance, the UUP and the SDLP… First word to the two boys, starting with the history of this document going right back to Des Brown’s launch of the Shared Future consultation …

“creating consistency between each of the devolved institutions across the United Kingdom”

Pete Baker on May 13, 2013, 3:50 pm

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While the bullshit distraction that is the DUP/Sinn Féin “Building a United Community” paper [pdf file] was being paraded across the airwaves last week – Think of it as a revamped Contested Space Programme [Don’t tell the International Fund for Ireland – Ed], pre-empting consultation on area-based planning, and Girdwood times 10. [And another non-working working group? – Ed] With 3 representatives from the DUP, 3 from Sinn Féin and 2 each from the other 3 Executive parties… ANYhoo… The NI …

“during the Derry visit, Martin McGuinness and Peter Robinson were nowhere to be seen, surely mindful of their upcoming trade mission to China.”

Pete Baker on May 8, 2013, 6:27 pm

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According to an Irish News report today …OFMDFM has refuted any suggestion that the Stormont leaders snubbed the Dalai Lama when he visited Derry last month. A spokesperson for OFMDFM said the ministers were unable to attend “due to prior diary commitments”. Which is fine… After all, “diary pressures” was the same excuse Tony Blair gave in 2004 when he was accused of snubbing the Tibetan leader – although they had already met in 1999 in a “spiritual capacity”. And it appears …

OFMDFM spokeswoman: “The Defamation Bill was never considered by the Executive”

Pete Baker on May 5, 2013, 5:01 pm

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In the Belfast Telegraph, Liam Clarke has a glimpse behind the curtain at ministerial manoeuvring around the failure to consent to the UK Defamation Bill. From the Belfast Telegraph article UK-wide legislation like the Defamation Bill can be extended to here by a motion of ‘Legislative Consent’ passed at the Assembly. A minister, though, must submit proposals to the Executive. The Department of Finance and Personnel (DFP), which is headed by Sammy Wilson, is responsible in this case. On May 22 …