Displaying items by tag: Northern Ireland

Plans are being put in place to impose a budget for regional government departments in Northern Ireland, the secretary of state has revealed. But James Brokenshire stressed this did not mean a return to direct rule from London over the province. The Northern Ireland secretary vowed on 1 November that he would shelve his budget preparations if the two main parties in the Stormont assembly, (Sinn Féin and the Democratic Unionists) quickly secured a deal to restore power-sharing to Belfast. However, Sinn Féin said that imposing a budget from Westminster was tantamount to direct rule and would derail the negotiations between the two parties. In return, Brokenshire emphasised that if he failed to act in the next few weeks, the regional government ministries in Belfast would simply run out of money. So he is planning to enable a budget bill to be introduced at Westminster when appropriate, to protect the delivery of Northern Ireland’s public services.

Northern Ireland's’ supreme court judges are considering whether abortion laws breach human rights. Currently abortion is illegal unless a woman's life is in danger or if continuing the pregnancy would cause mental or physical harm. On 25 and 26 October a number of contributors explained why they believe the law is incompatible with human rights, while others explained their opposition to any law changes. Ireland's attorney general and lawyers for the department of justice argued for the status quo. Christian politician Jim Shannon said democratic values must be upheld, amid supreme court scrutiny of the abortion laws; and the majority of people in Northern Ireland support current laws. See also the next article.

There are reports of a change of tone between the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) and Sinn Féin; however, at present the prospect of a Northern Ireland executive and assembly being re-established remains elusive. The secretary of state has warned that Northern Ireland is on a glide path to the British government stepping in. While ‘stepping in’ remains vague enough to hold off direct rule by British ministers for now, options are running out. Further rounds of budgets will need to be signed off, and key decisions around health, education and capital investment cannot be postponed indefinitely. It is nearly nine months since the executive was brought down.

Northern Ireland secretary James Brokenshire has made a fresh appeal for political parties to restore the devolved government at Stormont. At the Tory conference he said that while the DUP and the Tories were separate parties, they were working together at Westminster, ‘standing firm against Jeremy Corbyn’. He promised the Government would ‘provide the necessary political stability and governance’ if no deal is reached, including setting a budget for the province later this month. In the past, he said, the political parties had resolved issues and displayed the leadership to create stability. ‘So my message to you is: now is the time to reach agreement. Now is the time to look beyond the issues that divide you. Show the resolve you have demonstrated in the past.’

The impact of Brexit on Northern Ireland - and its border with the Republic of Ireland - is one of the key issues being discussed in the early stages of UK-EU negotiations. Some feared a return to border checks that could undermine the Good Friday peace agreement and damage the economy. On 7 September the BBC reported that the EU wants Northern Ireland to have a different Brexit deal from the rest of the UK. The document says the UK should take responsibility for finding a ‘unique solution’ so that people can work, go to school or get medical treatment either side of the Irish border. The EU's chief negotiator Michel Barnier will publish details later. He said ‘a lot more substantive work’ is needed on the border issue.

West Yorkshire fire service received 23 flood-related calls on Wednesday, the day after over a hundred people had been rescued in Northern Ireland (NI) after being trapped by overnight flooding. In Londonderry and Tyrone 93 people were trapped in cars or homes by floods. At one point the NI fire service received emergency calls every 45 seconds. 63% of the average August rainfall fell in nine hours. The coastguard rescued over thirty people, with helicopters brought in from Scotland, Wales and Sligo. Three thousand homes were without power after lightning struck transformers, bridges collapsed, and Derry Airport was flooded. The NI department for infrastructure said the Red Cross and Western Trust had organised temporary accommodation centres. Emergency financial assistance, administered by councils, will help residents significantly affected by flooding within their homes.

The UK Government has said it does not want any border posts between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland after Brexit. Northern Ireland secretary James Brokenshire insists the proposals are realistic because of the trade involved for all sides. The UK stresses there should be no physical infrastructure, such as customs posts, at the border, which has almost 300 crossing points. Instead, the Government is arguing for a wide-ranging exemption under which small- and medium-sized businesses will not have to comply with any new customs tariffs. If the proposals are accepted, customs officials envisage using a mix of technology and physical checks to monitor the compliance of bigger businesses engaged in international trade. Critics are concerned that an open border might prove to be a ‘back door’ for EU citizens who wish to enter the UK without proper checks.

Adult mental health hospitals in Northern Ireland currently have a target of discharging patients within 7 days of their being declared medically fit. However, one mental health patient spent 1,235 days stranded in an acute unit awaiting discharge in the Southern Health and Social Care Trust. Over the past two years, 16 patients waited more than 100 days for discharge and five were delayed for more than a year. Discharged mental health patients are often placed in supported accommodation and a lack of these facilities can lead to delays. A spokesperson said, ‘Trust policy ensures community-based care and treatment is put in place as soon as possible for patients who can be safely discharged. But they can only be safely discharged when appropriate accommodation is available’.

On 15 June the five main Stormont parties (DUP, Sinn Féin, UUP, Alliance and SDLP) met individually with Theresa May. These talks are attempting to restore devolution at Stormont before the 29 June deadline. There is little time left to reach a deal, as local parties attempt to take control of their future. Sinn Féin MP Elisha McCallion is concerned about the Government's neutrality, saying Mrs May and DUP leader Arlene Foster are ‘two sides of the same coin’. Mrs May had previously talked with the DUP about its support for her minority government. In a Government reshuffle, Damian Green has become the first secretary of state, and is expected to play a crucial role in the Brexit negotiations. He favours a soft Brexit, as does Mrs Foster. See also the Europe article on German media, and

Northern Ireland bakery Ashers has refused to make an engagement cake with a same-sex marriage slogan for a man and his partner. Joe Palmer, who is to wed long-term love Andy Wong this summer, says he’s hurt by the refusal to bake the cake ordered. This has happened just weeks after a landmark Court of Appeal ruling against Ashers, a bakery run by the McArthurs, a Christian family. The ruling was that Ashers had discriminated against a customer due to his sexuality when they refused his order for a cake with a pro-gay marriage motto. This time a friend, Grainne McCann, ordered and paid for the cake online, only to have the order rejected the next day. The wording requested for the cake was ‘Gay marriage rocks! Happy engagement Andy and Joe! Lots of love xxx’. Grainne said, ‘The cake was refused because it celebrated gay marriage.’