Benefit for Good Shepherd School
Posted by Jim on January 31, 2020
Orange Order chief Mervyn Gibson: Community ‘frustrated and angry’ over Stormont deal
Posted by Jim on
January 31 2020 11:02 AM
The grand secretary of the Orange Order has said there is “a lot of frustration and anger from the community at large” over the New Decade, New Approach deal which brought about the restoration of Northern Ireland’s power-sharing institutions.
Mervyn Gibson made the comments following a meeting of Orange Order members in Co Tyrone on Thursday night.
He said members strongly opposed Irish language legislation and certain legacy provisions contained in the agreement.
The agreement provides official recognition for the Irish language and will also see an Irish language commissioner appointed, as well as an Ulster Scots commissioner.
Sinn Fein described the comments as “unhelpful and contrary to the direction our society needs to travel”.
Mr Gibson said members feel more detail is needed on some aspects of the deal.
“We discussed various aspects of the deal, we reiterated our opposition to the Irish language legislation. We also said there was a lot of ambiguity around it – we indeed repeated our previous statement,” he told the BBC following the meeting.
“There was a lot of frustration and anger expressed from the community at large that has emerged about what happened, particularly the ambiguity.
“Of course nobody is going to condemn or say that it was wrong to give nurses pay parity or extra police officers – there are things in the deal that are good for the whole community – but there are things in the deal that aren’t explained yet or fully understood.
“There are legacy issues there that we would have problems with and we had a frank and open debate around that and we decided unanimously to continue to oppose the Irish language legislation in any way we can.”
The Orange Order chief said once the language is legislated for it can be judicially reviewed – and therefore alter the existing laws. Mr Gibson said that was an option some individuals have already said they would pursue.
He said the organisation fears the Irish language will “continue to be used as a weapon against the unionist community”.
On legacy issues, Mr Gibson said the Orange Order is opposed to the New Decade, New Approach deal’s commitment to bring forward Stormont House Agreement proposals.
“We would want to see, not only further discussions, but changes to that. We think their needs to be time given to that, people need to lobby and consult widely so as there is no difference in treatment for those in this part of the United Kingdom here in Northern Ireland and particularly those who maybe didn’t serve in the Crown Forces,” he said.
Mr Gibson said the Orange Order has had meetings with all the unionist parties to voice their concerns, and will continue to “seek clarity” on parts of the deal.
“All parties listen to what we say, how they act sometimes remains to be seen,” he added.
Stormont House legacy proposals, agreed in 2014, include the creation of an Historical Investigations Unit to examine unsolved murders committed during the Troubles and an Independent Commission on Information Retrieval for families to learn more about the fate of their loved ones.
Sinn Fein MLA John O’Dowd challenged the Orange Order to outline clearly if it sees itself as a cultural or political organisation.
He said the comments “undermine the basis on which the political institutions have been restored”.
“The Orange Order must decide whether its role is cultural or if it is a political organisation and, if so, it should, like the rest of us, submit itself to the electorate.”
Belfast Telegraph
No signs of Brexit unity in Northern Ireland as new era dawns
Posted by Jim on
By David Hughes
January 30 2020 23:00 PM
Boris Johnson will promise to heal the divides opened by Brexit as the UK leaves the European Union at 11pm on Friday.
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The Belfast Telegraph’s latest Brexit briefing, plus opinion and analysis
But signs of unity over the way forward for Northern Ireland at the head of the Stormont government appeared distant.
The pro-Leave DUP First Minister Arlene Foster admitted that the Brexit “rhetoric from all sides of the debate has been divisive and common ground has not always been easily found”.
But she said the debate is now over, and with a new power-sharing government in place, “our economic wellbeing must be one of those issues upon which we can all unite”.
She called for those who supported frictionless cross-border trade to now “step up and use their voices in support of ensuring Northern Ireland has the access it needs within the United Kingdom’s single market”.
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Sinn Fein Deputy First Minister Michelle O’Neill said Brexit was “absolutely unacceptable”, and there was “a real risk” of UK talks with the EU failing over the next year.
“If this happens, it is absolutely vital that the provisions to prevent a hard border come into effect and the Good Friday Agreement is protected in all of its parts,” she said.
Mrs O’Neill said she saw “no contradiction” between sitting in government with the DUP at Stormont, while using Brexit as a vehicle for Irish unity.
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Meanwhile, the Prime Minister will hail the “dawn of a new era”.
At 11pm on Friday, bonds stretching back to 1973 when the UK joined the European Economic Community will be broken, but the Prime Minister insisted that Brexit will mark “not an end, but a beginning”. Very little will change at the moment of Brexit as a result of the deal which Mr Johnson agreed with Brussels and the 27 remaining member states. But the UK faces further uncertainty as both sides seek to strike a trade deal by the end of the year.
In a symbolic move, Mr Johnson will chair a meeting of his Cabinet in Sunderland, the city which was the first to back Brexit when results were announced after the 2016 referendum.
And in what Number 10 billed as an “address to the nation” released an hour before the moment the UK leaves the EU, Mr Johnson will attempt to sound an optimistic note about the future and divisions which have been caused in the bitter Brexit battles.
He will say: “Our job as the government – my job – is to bring this country together and take us forward.”
He will call Brexit “the moment when the dawn breaks and the curtain goes up on a new act”.
“It is a moment of real national renewal and change.
“This is the dawn of a new era in which we no longer accept that your life chances – your family’s life chances – should depend on which part of the country you grow up in.”
As 11pm arrives, Big Ben will remain silent, despite a high-profile campaign fuelled by Mr Johnson for repair works to be halted to allow Parliament’s bell to ring.
But on Parliament Square, Brexiteers will gather for a party led by Nigel Farage, while Union flags are already flying around Westminster.
In official events, Downing Street will be illuminated with a light show and a new 50p coin will enter circulation.
In Brussels, the UK flag will be removed from the EU institutions, with one Union flag expected to be consigned to a museum.