Elections to the 11 new councils won't take place until 2011.
NIO minister Shaun Woodward has announced that the local government elections due to take place in Northern Ireland in 2009 have been put back to 2011 at the request of executive ministers.
Effectively the councillors who were elected for 4 year terms in 2005 are getting the length of their contracts extended by 50%. The official reason is something to do with the local government reform that will see the reshaping of the council boundaries and the reduction in the number of councils from 26 to 11.
What I want to know is which executive ministers, and why? I have my suspicions about certain currently dominant parties being worried about losing vote share with voters quickly realising that this wonderful new dispensation...
It comes as no surprise to this blogger that our illustrious education minister, one Caitriona Ruane, has once again come under fire this week. Grammar schools have struck another blow against her policy of abolishing academic selection and this morning I hear that primary school headmasters have joined in the criticism and accused the under-fire education minister of reneging on a promise to level out the funding gap between primary and secondary schools.
I was pleased to see that my former school was among the 32 post-primary schools (out of the 229 in the country) that have so far committed to continuing with academic selection via an entrance exam. Lumen Christi has already indicated it will set its own entrance exam and yesterday the Association for Quality Education announced that...
Everyone’s favourite unelected legislator has had an idea.
I can't drive. I've just never bothered to learn. So lets say I get my licence next month and I drive to my girlfriend's parents in south Down. Alastair Ross will be very upset if I leave for Belfast much after 8pm. Who is he to have an opinion on what time I drive home at? What right does the state have to extend the fairly reasonable restrictions on driving to such an extent? He also wants to ban me from driving my girlfriends sister anywhere for the first year. Total ban on alcohol, perhaps, but the reason zero tolerance on this doesn't work, is that small amounts of blood alcohol are (as far as I remember) naturally occurring!
Lisburn man/Larne MLA Alastair Ross really has let it go to his head. If he wants a...
I was recently required to do an analysis of an academic research paper. A colleague I was working with chose this one, which I hadn't read before. There are some fascinating things in the responses.
Page 6 of the PDF shows the huge swing in support for the agreement before finally resting where it started. I'm a bit dubious about the unexplained sharp rises towards the end of the campaign, but maybe I'm just forgetting something. Page 8 highlights the fact that the republic had a vote one third larger than in the north, but 10 times more spoilt ballots.
On page 11 we get into the really interesting stuff. Only half of Protestant no voters objected to power sharing. Two thirds of them supported the establishment of an assembly. 86% of catholic nationalists supported NI remaining...
OK, so Peter Robinson is going to be confirmed as the new leader of the DUP on Thursday after being selected by the party's MLAs yesterday. Nothing unexpected there. I've been waiting for the day when Paisley would finally step down and I suppose what happens next should, in theory, be interesting. So why am I so bored by it?
Peter Robinson impressed me (a little) at Finance and I've always thought he came across as much more pragmatic and sensible than his former sensei. He has a reputation as a good strategist, and it's his brains that many credit with the DUP's surpassing of the Ulster Unionists as the most popular party among unionist voters (that and keeping Paisley out of the way anyway).
He's also spoken a lot about cutting down on waste and absenteeism and sickness in the civil...
You'd scarcely credit it but Sinn Fein's Alex Maskey is fuming with Chief Constable Sir Hugh Orde and is demanding an apology after the chief of police allegedly claimed the policing board had "gone a bit tribal".
Supposedly Orde accused the elected members of being more interested in political debate than policing issues. Frankly, I suspect describing the debate as "political" was being generous.
Read more »Full post & comments at...
Colm Bradley has outlined some ways he thinks the GAA can remove the barriers to Unionists joining. Just over a year ago I outlined that the GAA has a de facto ban in Unionists joining. Unfortunately Google hasn't cached it, so some of the substantive points are below the fold. The main contention I have though, is that the GAA is excplicitly a political orginisation, and should not be treated as a sporting orginisation unless and until it sheds the vestiges of a political pressure group.
Read more »Full post & comments at...
11 "Super Councils" - the changing face of local government in Northern Ireland
Things have been a bit slow at EU here over the last couple of days. It's awful when real life gets in the way of blogging. Anyway, apparently a "deal" has been done on the councils. We've been spared the silly idea of a reduction to 7 super councils (which Sinn Fein alone wanted) and instead we're getting 11 councils which, as far as I can tell, nobody wanted (except maybe the DUP).
It seems like the areas proposed under the deal would see Newtownabbey and Carrick spared the indignity of joining up with Lisburn (as well as the massive potential expense of funding Lagan Valley's white elephant), although they look like being split from each other too, which is odd considering it's nearly impossible to spot...
I was glad when Michael posted the news of Paisley's stepping down/being pushed from the positions of First Minister and leader of the DUP. OK, it was sidetracked more or less from the start into the history of Ulster Unionist leaders/NI Prime Ministers, but I really couldn't be arsed commenting.
I'd come home from work and turned on Newsline when I first heard. I then heard nothing else for the remainder of the show but different people's rehashing of the news, their speculation and their commentary. Within 15 minutes or so I was sick hearing about it. Was there nobody prepared to say "No comment"? IIRC there was no sports coverage at all that night either. Surely something else must have happened that day.
The worst of it all was listening to Martin McGuinness and Gerry Adams make...
The Assembly Commission, which runs the estate at Stormont, has drawn up new rules that mean events held in the Long Gallery now require "cross-community backing of three MLAs" (I'm guessing this means three from each community?).
This effectively means that Sinn Fein's murderer commemoration day at Stormont will not be allowed to go ahead in the Long Gallery. Sinn Fein are to hold the event in their ministerial offices instead, though the commission has said TV cameras will not be allowed in.
Sinn Fein's Jennifer McCann, organising the event, said the decision was "unfair and undemocratic". What a laugh; the DUP, UUP, Alliance and SDLP all support the decision . That's 74% of voters represented there; I think you'll find that's quite democratic. It's a bit late now for the Sinners...
It really is time to put a stop to the nonsense going on at the Bill of Rights Forum. This bunch of professional do-gooders, whose job seems to be to advise those who will advise the govermnent on a Bill of Rights, seem to want to allow anyone under the age of 18 to escape prosecution when they commit a crime.
I'm sure you're all familiar with stories about violent and disruptive yongsters who proudly proclaim "I know my rights" when teachers attempt to discipline them. They must be having a good laugh at this. This is not what a Bill of Rights is supposed to be about!
There is an age under which children aren't held criminally responsible for their actions because they aren't mature enough to understand right and wrong. At the moment, that age is set as 10. The UN Committee on the...
Given Sinn Fein's serious, and not at all opportunistic, commitment to creating "neutral working environments" I'm shocked, nay stunned, to find them taking advantage of International Women's Day to celebrate a convicted bomber, Mairead Farrell. Surely the Equality Commission would have something to say on this, no?
"We have a right to hold the celebration there. I would never, ever say to unionists or loyalists that they should or should not be doing something."
Jennifer McCann MLA, organiser of the event
It's lucky then, Jennifer, that Unionist politicians wouldn't be so sick as to arrange an event dedicated to the Shankill Butchers right under your noses (actually I'd be disgusted if they organised one at all, but that's neither here nor there at the moment). There are plenty of...
Caution: Massive vent ahead!
Sorry, this is not going to be an in-depth political analysis like some of Michael's posts (though in-depth it will be - be warned), but I had to laugh at this. Peter Robinson has announced that the Northern Ireland administration "are introducing a single number for accessing government services in Northern Ireland" to "make it easier for the public to contact government and obtain a better service".
Don't get me wrong, I'm all for the idea of making government services accessible. It's just that sticking an automated operator ("Press 1 for DoE" etc.) won't do much. You see, the main thing preventing easy access to government services is not having to look up a phone number in the phone book or online, it's the fact that the places are never bloody open!...
Finally, he jumps. Take a look at his (graceless) resignation statement on the BBC website. He states that more important than the government, is his party's reputation. I don't like that much. Guido points out the obvious point. Nothing screams "he's innocent!" like a resignation.Powered by...
http://www.everythingulster.com/blogs/index.php/2008/02/18/jnr_goneFinally, he jumps. Take a look at his resignation statement on the BBC website. He states that more important than the government, is his party's reputation. I don't like that much. Guido points out the obvious point. Nothing screams "he's innocent!" like a...
http://www.everythingulster.com/blogs/index.php/2008/02/14/inaccessible_governmentCaution: Massive vent ahead!
Sorry, this is not going to be an in-depth political analysis like some of Michael's posts (though in-depth it will be - be warned), but I had to laugh at this. Peter Robinson has announced that the Northern Ireland administration "are introducing a single number for accessing government services in Northern Ireland" to "make it easier for the public to contact government and obtain a better service".
Don't get me wrong, I'm all for the idea of making government services accessible. It's just that sticking an automated operator ("Press 1 for DoE" etc.) won't do much. You see, the main thing preventing easy access to government services is not having to look up a phone number...
I've been having an argument with Seamus here over legislators and who is qualified to be a lawmaker. I firmly believe that the salary of a legislator must be sufficient to attract those with sufficient expertise to be in a position to make good laws. Jim Allister, no matter that I disagree with him fundamentally on many key issues, is a good legislator, and the fact that he is probably taking a substantial pay cut to be in politics is not inconsequential. Many of his erstwhile colleagues in the DUP, are not doing my argument any favors.
One of the most effective and most civicly useful Acts on the statute book is the Freedom of Information Act 2000. I love it, I use it from time to time, and found it particularly useful during a dispute I had with a public body (who insisted they...
http://www.everythingulster.com/blogs/index.php/2008/02/08/mlas_to_consider_16_pay_riseA review of Northern Ireland's MLA's pay is expected to recommend a 16% pay-rise, taking the MLA's basic salary to £52,000. MLAs will themselves then vote on whether or not to accept the recommendation.
That's clearly not going to do much to help reduce the cost of Stormont, and is completely unjustifiable in the current economic conditions and comes at a time when the Prime Minister is urging MPs to show restraint on their own pay.
A Sinn Fein MLA has already said her party will oppose the pay-rise as out-of-line with both inflation and the pay-awards other public-sector workers are being asked and/or forced to accept. Well done them. Let's see if anyone else follows suit (all the parties'...
http://www.everythingulster.com/blogs/index.php/2008/02/06/another_mythbusterAfter a period away from regular blogging of the style I don't like putting on Slugger, I'm glad to now be contributing to Everything Ulster. I'm looking forward to getting back into the habit of regular blogging.
When I met up with Beano, we were chatting about a few things, and the conversation came around to the common habit of utterly misrepresented Sir James Craig on one specific matter. I have to say I'm not his biggest fan, indeed I think that he caused a lot of the problems Unionism was subsequently to have, but his decision in 1922 to abolish PR for Stormont Elections from the 1929 election was not one that was intended to screw the nationalists as it is commonly believed, and commonly reported....
http://www.everythingulster.com/blogs/index.php/2008/02/04/slimming_down_the_health_serviceHealth Minister Michael McGimpsey has announced that the 4 regional health-boards will be merged into a single Northern Ireland health board as part of plans to save "more than £53 million by April 2011" and reduce the number of staff by about 1,700, including reductions in the Minister's department.
The HSS trusts have already been merged following recommendations in the Review of Public Administration, resulting in a reduction in number from 18 to 5 and McGimpsey has gone further than the RPA recommended on Local Commissioning Groups; the RPA recommended 7 (co-terminus with the new super councils). Instead there will be 5, mapping onto the boundaries of the health trusts.
There's no doubt...
http://www.everythingulster.com/blogs/index.php/2008/02/01/yesterdays_men_how_times_changeA heart-warming act of friendship in Ballymena today as Northern Ireland's First Minister Ian Paisley and the prime minister of the Republic Bertie Ahern got all cozy and loved-up during a visit by the latter to the former's constituency.
Paisley described it as a "Good day for the whole of Ireland" as the two men met at the Galgorm Hotel to discuss the promotion of tourism, an area on which there is a large degree of North-South co-operation.
Former DUP man Roy Gillespie (yes, that Roy Gillespie) wasn't so pleased. He unfurled a Union Jack outside (err.. why?) and sent his wife in apparently to confront Paisley's wife, Eileen.
I'm disappointed in Jim Allister. The man seems to be a useful...
http://www.everythingulster.com/blogs/index.php/2008/01/23/calling_ruanes_bluffIt's a busy day on the Caitriona Ruane front today. I'd just like to issue a quick thank you to Jim Allister for confirming that I was right when I said that Ms Ruane was talking out her arse when she said she wanted to change the law to prevent Northern Ireland schools, shockingly, giving preference to children living in Northern Ireland because it "may" breach EU equality rules (and thanks also to Nevin for mentioning it in his comment on this Slugger post).
Jim Allister has contacted the European Commission who have confirmed that this is nonsense. Allister's blog contains the long, wordy response, but in short the child from the Republic would only have a right to equal treatment in terms of admission to...
http://www.everythingulster.com/blogs/index.php/2008/01/23/ruane_has_no_answers_on_post_primary_refMinister for Education Caitriona Ruane has refused to answer a list of questions submitted to her by the Assembly's education committee. These questions were agreed by the committee and included how much her plans would cost, what provision would be made to avoid selection by post code and what methods would be used to decide who got a place in over-subscribed schools.
Ms Ruane's Sinn Fein colleague Paul Butler defender her saying "I would like to see the committee playing a more constructive role and working with the Minister to get through this period."
Translation for those of you who don't speak Sinnerese "I would like to see the committee sitting back quietly, letting the Minister...
http://www.everythingulster.com/blogs/index.php/2008/01/23/50_000_empty_housesJust stumbled across this: apparently house prices in Northern Ireland have fallen by 10% recently and there are thought to be nearly 50,000 Ulster dwellings lying empty.
Plans are now being made to charge rates on empty dwellings (long overdue if you ask me) which will hopefully have a significant impact on the number of developers holding on to empty properties in the hope they increase in value, at the same time artificially limiting supply and inflating prices.
It does make you wonder if all that headline-grabbing extra money for "social housing" wasn't a bit premature, but as someone who's hopefully going to be buying in the next couple of years I'll not complain too much. What'll have more of an impact,...
http://www.everythingulster.com/blogs/index.php/2008/01/10/fundamental_failure_understand_unionistsActually, Brian Feeney's fundamental failure might be understanding anything, but I was feeling charitable when I wrote that title. The Irish News is generally the best of a bad bunch when it comes to local news papers, which makes the fact that they give regular space to an idiot like Feeney all the more puzzling. I guess it must be a marketing decision; there are enough people out there who enjoy nothing more than reading material that reinforces their own prejudices, even if it is rubbish.
Over at 3,000 Versts Chekov does a wonderful job of tearing apart Feeney's latest diatribe against unionists, which comes disguised as a rant about Human Rights (nice to see the Irish News finally...
http://www.everythingulster.com/blogs/index.php/2007/12/07/emporer_ruane_missing_her_garmentsNow that's a disturbing thought, apologies to anyone who's eating as they read this. Anyway, Bob Wilson of the local Tories has criticised the response of unionist politicians and the media to Caitriona Ruane's non-announcement on the abolition of grammar schools.
Let us be unequivocal about this. To introduce a transfer procedure along the lines suggested by Ms Ruane would require secondary legislation – a Regulation or Statutory Rule. Such a Rule could be rejected by the Education Committee... 6 of whom are unionists.
Bob Wilson, NI...
http://www.everythingulster.com/blogs/index.php/2007/12/05/ruane_confirms_grammar_abolition_planMy favourite politician is making headlines again although, as Big Ulsterman points out, she hasn't really done anything except release a rather vague (and badly constructed) statement confirming her intention to end academic selection.
Long-time readers will know I have a major gripe with her sabotage of our education system. While the 11+ exam procedure might not be the best way to achieve it, academic selection works. Northern Ireland sends more children from "less well-off" backgrounds to university than anywhere else in the UK. Why? Because places in the top schools are awarded on the basis of merit, not money: something you'd expect a socialist to support, no?
Read more!...
It's past time the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission was abolished. It was a waste of time when it was set up and it's a waste of time now.
The Human Rights Commissioner Monica McWilliams helpfully demonstrated this point for me when she asked the Northern Ireland Office of the government to go over the heads of our oh so wonderful democratically [sic] elected executive and assembly at Stormont and implement legislation on the Irish [sic] language on the spurious basis of a little-known piece of decidedly dodgy European Union bureaucracy called the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities.
Assuming we accept that Irish constitutes a "national minority" in Northern Ireland (or, more likely, the United Kingdom) they (we) are not disadvantaged by not having...
Forget logic and arguments; government ministers are trying their best to push Northern Ireland's new national stadium out to the Maze.
[Image: Patrick McAleer]
The DUP members of the executive have gone into overdrive trying to bully the populace of Northern Ireland into an unsuitable out-of-town stadium this week, just as a report (the first piece of independent work on this issue that was based on hard evidence) is released and advises them to locate it in a city-centre.
The University of Ulster report was carried out by experts in the fields of the built environment, economics and marketing, who were supported by a network of expert advisers from across the university. Of course, being based on hard evidence meant that it concluded that the stadium (like the proposals for Belfast,...