SINN Féin last night vowed to focus its efforts on ousting Ian Paisley from his North Antrim seat after MPs backed his suspension from Westminster.
The unprecedented sanction of 30 sitting days means the shamed DUP representative will be forced to resign if 7,500 of his constituents sign a petition.
It is the first time in UK parliamentary history that the ‘recall petition’ legislation has been applied.
A public process that will see up to 10 venues opened in North Antrim to collect signatures over a six-week period is expected to be triggered in the coming days.
A Sinn Féin spokesman told The Irish News last night that the party’s immediate focus was on unseating the incumbent.
“In the coming days we’ll be supporting the effort to oust Ian Paisley from his seat though we believe the onus to act should be on the DUP,” the spokesman said.
The DUP said yesterday it had suspended Mr Paisley while it carries out “further investigation into his conduc
The first British-Irish Intergovernmental Conference in 11 years has been held today in London.
After the meeting, the two governments issued a joint communique setting out the topics of discussion. Below is the statement in full…
A meeting of the British-Irish Intergovernmental Conference (BIIGC) took place at the Cabinet Office in London on 25 July 2018.
The Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland was represented by the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, Rt Hon David Lidington MP, and the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Rt Hon Karen Bradley MP. The Government of Ireland was represented by Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, Mr Simon Coveney TD, and the Minister for Justice and Equality, Mr Charles Flanagan TD.
The Conference was established under Strand Three of the 1998 Belfast/Good Friday Agreement “to promote bilateral co-operation at all levels on all matters of mutual interest within the competence of both Governments”.
The Conference discussed the following:
Legacy
The Conference reviewed the overall progress towards implementation of the Stormont House Agreement legacy framework.
Both the Irish and UK Governments re-asserted their commitment to the legacy bodies set out in the 2014 Stormont House Agreement as the best means of addressing the legacy of Northern Ireland’s past. The UK Government updated the Conference on the consultation currently being held on the Stormont House institutions which runs to 10 September. The Irish Government updated the Conference on the legislative measures being brought forward within its jurisdiction to implement and support the Stormont House Agreement legacy framework and raised other legacy issues.
Security Co-Operation
The Conference reviewed the current security situation, and discussed the continuing threat posed by Northern Ireland Related Terrorism in the United Kingdom and in Ireland.
The Conference expressed its rejection of all paramilitary violence and all other forms of paramilitary activity. The Conference reiterated its strong support for the efforts of the Police Service of Northern Ireland and An Garda Síochána, along with other agencies, in keeping people safe and secure across both jurisdictions.
Both the UK and Irish Governments recalled commitments in the 2015 Fresh Start Agreement to ending paramilitarism and looked forward to the first report of the Independent Reporting Commission established under that Agreement.
East-West Matters
The Conference considered the strength of the bilateral relationship between the United Kingdom and Ireland and welcomed the high levels of bilateral cooperation across a range of important policy areas.
The Conference agreed that this level of bilateral co-operation needed to be maintained and, where possible, strengthened following the departure of the United Kingdom from the European Union.
Officials were asked to take forward work in this area with a view to coming forward with proposals for future East-West cooperation, including at Cabinet and Ministerial level, for consideration by the Irish and UK Governments at a future meeting of the Conference.
Political Stability
Both the UK and Irish Governments reiterated their strong support for the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement and subsequent agreements which have underpinned the progress made in Northern Ireland over the past two decades and which provide the framework for the political process in Northern Ireland.
The Irish and UK Governments re-affirmed their shared commitment to all of the political institutions established by the Agreement and to securing the effective operation of power-sharing, devolved government in Northern Ireland and the consequent resumption of the North/South Ministerial Council and Northern Ireland participation in the British Irish Council at the earliest opportunity.
Both the UK and Irish Governments agreed to continue working closely together in accordance with the three-stranded approach as set out in the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement.
Future meetings
It was agreed that the Conference would meet again in the autumn
Garden City Firefighters Local 1588 Urgent Request All Hands Needed to Speak Out Against the Elimination of Paid Firefighters
TJ Michon, President of Garden City FF’s Local 1588, is asking for all available members to come to the meeting this Wednesday night and speak out against the elimination of professional firefighters.
The Garden City Village trustees will be voting on eliminating all professional firefighters. This is then subject to a referendum vote by the residents, but they need to alert them to the plan.
When:
Wednesday, July 25, 2018 8:00 PM
Where:
Garden City Village Hall
351 Stewart Ave
Garden City, NY 11530
Former UFA President and current IAFF 1st District Vice President Jim Slevin, along with UFA Staten Island Trustee Eric Bischoff, will be in attendance and available to speak to anyone with questions or concerns.
Please spread the word ASAP to all Garden City family and friends for turn out!
PLAQUE DEDICATION
Tomorrow, Wednesday, July 25, 2018, at 1100 hours, a Plaque Dedication will be held honoring the memory of Firefighter Thomas J. Farrell, L-41, who died on March 25, 2016. The dedication will take place in the quarters of E-90/L-41, 1843 White Plains Road, Bronx, NY. All off-duty members and their families are invited to attend. Members are requested to attend in dress uniform.
FIREHOUSE KITCHEN TALK AT FRIENDS OF FIREFIGHTERS: MOVING UP THE LADDER WITH A HIGHER EDUCATION DEGREE
Interested in converting your college credits and putting it towards a degree? Does the idea of enrolling in an institution of higher learning both excite and overwhelm you? Having trouble mapping out a degree completion program? Questions about tuition reimbursement? Join Friends of Firefighters tomorrow, Wednesday, July 25th, from 6-9 PM, at 199 Van Brunt Street, Brooklyn, NY 11231, for a firefighter-prepared dinner followed by an in-depth presentation on the application and admissions process for FDNY firefighters curious to learn more about pursuing a higher education degree. Hear from Fire Marshal Matt Donnelly, UFA Fire Marshal Rep Steven Tagliani, and Chuck Frank, Director of Emergency Management and Business Continuity at Metropolitan College, all of whom will be on hand to help gather your resources, establish your plan, and answer any questions you may have. FREE for FDNY firefighters, no RSVP necessary, and in the words of retired firefighter Tony Cat, “Bring a friend.”
40TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE WALDBAUM’S FIRE
On Thursday, August 2, 2018, at 1000 hours, E-276/L-156, E-254/L-153, B-33 and B-42 will hold a Memorial Mass commemorating the 40th anniversary of the Waldbaum’s Fire at St. Brendan’s Church located at 1202 Avenue O, Brooklyn, NY. All off-duty members and their families are invited to attend. Members are requested to attend in dress uniform.
PLAQUE DEDICATION
On Tuesday, August 14, 2018, at 1100 hours, a WTC Plaque Dedication Ceremony will be held honoring the memory of Marine Engineer Robert W. Alexander, Marine 1. The dedication will take place in the quarters of Marine 1, North River & Bloomfield Street, New York, NY. All off-duty members and their families are invited to attend. Members are requested to attend in dress uniform.
A senior member of Sinn Féin has revealed details of a secret meeting with loyalists before a deadly UVF unit called a halt to its murder campaign.
Mid Ulster MP Francie Molloy said it took place a hotel car park near Dungannon in the early 1990s.
It is believed the meeting was called after a senior figure in the gang was killed by the IRA.
Mr Molloy said it was held in a car outside the Glengannon Hotel, which has since closed, and was attended by himself, two loyalists and a Protestant clergyman.
The Irish News understands the meeting was monitored at a distance by other republicans.
While the existence of the meeting was revealed by the Irish News last year, details of what took place can now be made public for the first time.
The UVF unit is suspected by some of being involved in the murder of several Catholics in the Mid-Ulster area during the late 1980s and early ’90s.
It was one of two loyalist gangs operating in the area at the time whose members were based in a rural part of east Tyrone.
The majority of those involved in the gang are also believed to have been members of the UDR.
Republican sources say that after the meeting there was a decrease in the activity of the UVF gang.
The Irish News understands it was arranged after the Protestant minister contacted a republican sympathiser in east Tyrone.
Mr Molloy said he attended the meeting, which sources say may have taken place in the summer of June 1993, after receiving a telephone call.
“I got a phone call asking would I go and meet these people and didn’t know who I was meeting or the extent of the meeting,” he said.
“At that stage I would have been getting calls to go to the Glengannon to sort out some sort of row.”
UDR members on patrolMr Molloy said he was not aware of the identities of the two loyalists present.
“It was quiet clear we were dealing with loyalists,” he said.
“They did identify themselves as UVF and they were speaking on behalf of the UVF.”
He said he approached the meeting with an open mind.
“I was open to discussion and an opportunity to meet with loyalists and said that there was no need for conflict between nationalists and unionist communities and that we needed to find a way through it and manage the change within it,” he said.
Around the time of the meeting there was strong speculation that the IRA was preparing to call a ceasefire – which was eventually called in in 1994.
Members of a UVF gang in east Tyrone are believed to have ended their campaign after a meeting with republicans in the early 1990sMr Molloy said the loyalist delegation was concerned about what the future held for them.
“They more or less said that loyalists in Mid Ulster would not be sold out by whatever decisions were made in Belfast and they would make their own decisions,” he said.
“No matter what decisions they were taking in Belfast from a republican or loyalist point of view, they had their own agenda in Mid Ulster.”
He said it was clear from what those present said that the UVF unit was considering ending its activities.
“The message I was taking from it was there had been a number of killings in the area of loyalists and UDR and what these people were saying was ‘we want this to stop – we want to reassure republicans we will not be retaliating and we want it to stop on both sides’,” he said.
“The message coming to me as a Sinn Féin representative was that this loyalist group was saying they were stopping.
“I don’t think there were any other attacks in that area – there was an understanding that things were moving on.”
The MP recalled that when he first got into the car the atmosphere was tense.
“People were a bit apprehensive but there was a calmness and no real aggressiveness and people knew what they were doing and what the purpose of it was,” he said.
Mr Molloy said he remained cautious about the meeting.
“At the time I was thinking ‘how did I get myself into this?’”
“In these circumstances you don’t know if tempers are going to be raised.
“I have to say it was calm and collected and they wanted to deliver a message and talk to republicans.”
He added: “The meeting was an opportunity for people to say what they wanted to say and other people to understand where they were coming from.”
Mr Molloy said the encounter ended “amicably” after around 30 minutes and those present thanked each other for the exchange.
There was no further contact.
“It was a good meeting with the clearing of air and better understanding and it was one of those early stages of outreach between loyalists and republican communities in the area.”
The senior republican said his role was as a “Sinn Féin representative and point of contact”.
“We did that with loyalists and unionists and were always trying to make contact with unionist representatives and Protestant clergymen.
“We would have met other Protestant clergymen to allay fears and talk things over.”
He added that he often acted as a mediator during this period.
“You were meeting families and people trying to mediate and trying to accommodate,” he said.
“Particularly for Sinn Féin councillors at the time you were fighting the case for republicans.
“For a good number of years we had been following coffin after coffin and now saw a light at the end of the tunnel.
“Any chance to relieve pressure and exchange ideas – all of that was important.”
