Léargas

Sinn Féin’s objectives throughout the recent negotiations, which led to the Stormont House Agreement were very clear. These were to agree a comprehensive deal to protect the most vulnerable in society, to safeguard the rights and entitlements of citizens, to deliver on outstanding agreements, to grow the economy and to enhance the working of the institutions. It wasn’t an easy negotiation. The ability of the five Executive parties to defend front-line public services, including health and education, to defend the poor, people with disabilities, the elderly and disadvantaged, and to create jobs, was being significantly undermined by British Tory demands for welfare cuts, as well as by the £1.5 billion cut to the block grant since 2011.This Austerity policy is similar to Dublin’s and was actively endorsed by the Taoiseach and the Minister of Foreign Affairs. Sinn Féin was steadfast in our opposition to this agenda. The British government’s failure to honour its commitments made...

As regular readers of this column will know I have been known to ‘tweet’ – occasionally. It’s an enjoyable and relaxing process made all the more pleasurable because I can escape the Sinn Féin thought police – those esteemed colleagues who want to scrutinise every word, mull over every nuance and ensure that anything written falls within party policy. I understand and appreciate their concerns. My tweets have been the subject of hilarious and occasionally bizarre reflection by newspaper and broadcasting columnists, commentators and serious political analysts. Some believe my tweets are the work of a special committee; others are less kind. The Minister for Foreign Affairs in Dublin was on the receiving end of this type of scrutiny on New Year’s Day when he seemed to suggest that he favoured the use of the ‘c’ word in describing Sinn Féin politics. He felt it necessary to issue a public apology and to express regret if he had caused offence. As someone who recently apologised ...

With President Abbas   For those who doubt the imperative of dialogue in advancing negotiations the two historic international decisions in respect of Cuba and Palestine just before Christmas are clear evidence of its importance. At the beginning of December I met President Abbas of the Palestinian government in Ramallah. He and others in the Palestinian leadership explained the importance of their strategy to achieve international recognition of Palestinian statehood and its potential to stimulate renewed momentum into the stalled peace process in that region. Some of their key negotiators and senior Ambassadors have been travelling in recent months to European capitals and lobbying European political parties and Parliaments to pass motions of support and solidarity in favour of a Palestinian state. The Palestinian focus has been on securing two key votes. The first was in the European Parliament – which they achieved on December 17 th .   The second wa...