SF and DUP must sort their own mess
ONE of the few bright points in the last several days has been the clear statement by Shaun Woodward that the British and Irish governments are not planning inter-party talks to end the current stalemate at Stormont.
There was an argument for holding such talks over the summer after Peter Robinson's election as first minister, but at this stage it is Sinn Fein and the DUP's mess. They make it worse with every passing day and it would be a reward for bad behaviour if anyone else tries to clear it up for them.
The extent of the mess is revealed by the fact that, in the midst of a world economic crisis which is now openly compared to the 30s, our local Executive doesn't even meet to discuss it. While governments across the world are taking hard decisions, our leaders are locked in a blame game over such momentous issues as when policing and justice powers can be devolved.
At the weekend, Martin McGuinness got stuck into the DUP, accusing a section of the party of not wanting enforced power sharing, and wanting to hollow out the Good Friday agreement.
"Well hello-oh" as my 14-year-old daughter would say. This is the DUP we are talking about. They said no to the Good Friday Agreement and, for all his chuckling, Ian Paisley never shook hands with Martin McGuinness and made it clear that he wouldn't have accepted mandatory power sharing with republicans if he had any choice.
It's no great revelation that his party sees the present coalition as second best. Most coalitions, even voluntary ones, are like this. Every party, including Sinn Fein, would like to rule alone if they got the votes. Saying that is no more of a revelation than saying that Sinn Fein are trying to achieve a united Ireland and don't want a Brit about the place.
However, in politics, as in life, you seldom get what you really, really want. Despite their misgivings, the best either Sinn Fein or the DUP can achieve at this point is the current arrangement. "Life is like a game of cards. The hand you are dealt is determinism; the way you play it is free will," Nehru remarked when reflecting on the partition of India.
In this case, the hand both parties hold was dealt by the electorate. Last year the people of Northern Ireland collectively preferred Sinn Fein and the DUP in such overwhelming numbers that it became impossible for either party to hold power without the other. This was the basis of the St Andrews Agreement, and nobody in the DUP or Sinn Fein seriously questioned that aspect of the deal.
So Mr McGuinness was stating the obvious, but why is he saying it now? It is precisely the language he used about David Trimble and the Ulster Unionists when he prepared for the dissolution of the last power-sharing arrangement. It is the sort of language you use when you are preparing for breakdown and an election and are trying to get nationalists to rally behind you. It is also the sort of language a child uses when trying to appeal to a parent for help.
Gerry Adams has been saying much the same in the US, where he called some in the DUP "bigots; who really don't want to have a Catholic about the place. They are opposed to power-sharing in any form,” Adams told a Cleveland audience last week. He is under pressure and he may be attempting to wring funds out of his Irish-American audience and to prepare them to blame the DUP if things break down.
The DUP can’t afford to sit on their hands either. They now have an embryo deal on policing and justice. They need to start selling it to their supporters and signalling that, all being well, they’d ideally like to see it implemented next spring.
If governments intervene at this point, it will dissipate any pressure on either party to get on with the business of government. The best message London can send to both parties is “if you sort this out between you, then talk to us about money. If not we’ll work something out with Dublin”.
Email to a friend
Print this page
Looking for...
Featured advertisers
Jobs
Search for a job
Motors
Search for a car
Property
Search for a house
Weather for Belfast
Thursday 24 May 2012
Today
Sunny
Temperature: 12 C to 23 C
Wind Speed: 7 mph
Wind direction: South east
Tomorrow
Sunny
Temperature: 12 C to 22 C
Wind Speed: 18 mph
Wind direction: East
