Your friendly neighbourhood Ninja

I just love the idea of a police force full of ninjas patrolling our streets. It might actually reduce crime.

Well in Somerset they already have one.

Lucky beggars!

Department of Justice is 'virtually' here now.

And as if to finish off a run of explosions like the 1812 overture, the Department of Policing and Justice has just had its website launched.

On the site it says that;

The Department of Justice (DOJ) is a new Northern Ireland Department which came into existence on 12 April 2010 and was established by the Department of Justice Act (Northern Ireland) 2010. It has a range of devolved policing and justice functions, set out in the Northern Ireland Act 1998 (Devolution of Policing and Justice Functions) Order 2010.  The role of the Department is to support the Minister for Justice to help keep the people of Northern Ireland safe.  In addition to its statutory functions, the department provides resources and a legislative framework for its agencies and arms length bodies (which together constitute most of the justice system in Northern Ireland). Together with these organisations the department is responsible for ensuring there is a fair and effective justice system in Northern Ireland and for increasing public confidence in that system.

This should be an interesting start to its brand new existence.  Bomb goes off, policing and justice website goes live.  What irony!

Wonder will the prats who planted the Palace Barracks bomb be amongst the first to go through the new devolved justice system?

Policing and Justice welcomed by numpties with bombs

Don't think its that secret now, thanks for pointing it out.

I have just been hearing on the twitter stream that a large explosion has happened at Palace Barracks, on the very eve of the devolution of policing and Justice.

Apparently bombs have been going off at Palace Barracks and on Loughshore, in Belfast.

The device at Palace Barracks went off at 12.24.  Thankfully no reports of serious injuries yet.

This will no doubt be an attempt to destabilise the progress of Northern Ireland towards a normal, peaceful existence. 

I think, if they have attacked Palace Barracks, they were going for maximum impact as the MI5 base is also in Palace Barracks.

Once again i reiterate my sentiment expressed in a previous blog post 

These people, if i can call them that, have no place in our society.  They have no mandate. They have no political goals. They are continuing to fight a lost war.   

Please, if anyone has any information call the confidential Crimestoppers line on 0800 555 111

The fall and rise of David Ford

First 'Minister for Justice'?

Well, it is the night before devolution of policing and justice and all is quiet.  And I am sure David Ford is getting ready for his crowning ceremony tomorrow.

In the Northern Ireland Assembly chamber tomorrow the Minister for Justice will be appointed

In the picture is David Ford MLA, leader of the Alliance Party, and Alban Maginniss MLA, SDLP.

While Alban has a legal background and practised law, it will most likely be David Ford that will attain the lofty position of Minister for Justice.  He is the least divisive candidate, at least in the eyes of Sinn Fein and the DUP.  A similar precedent had been set in the first sessions of the NI Assembly with both Lord Alderdice and Eileen Bell of the Alliance party being the Speakers - a role that did do them a lot of credit.

Sounds like the usual fudgey type substance of a deal, which most of us just shrug our shoulders at.  However, there is an added twist. Read the press release below.

Ford says Alliance will not take Policing and Justice Ministry

1.00.00pm BST (GMT +0100) Mon 4th Aug 2008

Alliance Leader David Ford has said his party will not take the proposed Policing and Justice Ministry following speculation on the issue in recent times. The Alliance Assembly Group met this morning at Stormont and discussed the matter.

David Ford said: "The Alliance Party will not be taking the Policing and Justice Ministry. This Executive is failing in its duties, so Northern Ireland needs a strong and coherent opposition. We are providing that opposition and we will continue to do so.

"The Executive is in crisis over planning, the environment, the 11-plus, Irish language, and the multi-sports stadium issue. Do the Executive parties expect us to take the Environment, Education and Culture Ministries to save their bacon on these matters?

"The Executive has not met since mid-June. It is in a crisis of its own making. It is up to the Executive parties to resolve this crisis as they are the government. They must start by actually meeting again as an Executive to discuss the outstanding issues. We are the opposition and we will remain so because this Executive is so poor that Northern Ireland needs a strong group to keep the pressure on it."

Then on 25 February 2010 David announced

Ford says Alliance can now nominate for Justice Ministry


11.35.06am GMT Thu 25th Feb 2010

Alliance Party Council last night recommended that Leader David Ford can now nominate a candidate for Justice Minister. Party Council agreed that the two conditions which Alliance raised have now been met. Sinn Fein and the DUP have agreed on the community relations strategy and genuine progress has been made on agreeing a Justice Department policy programme.

David Ford said: "There is now agreement on the community relations strategy and real progress on agreeing a justice policy programme. This has not been an easy decision to make but a decision has finally been reached. We have had much discussion within our party on this and now that our two conditions have been met, we can nominate for the post of Justice Minister.

"On Tuesday, the DUP and Sinn Fein announced that they had agreed the Cohesion, Sharing and Integration policy after a two and a half year delay. This is the first ever community relations strategy agreed in any period of devolution we have had in Northern Ireland. This did not happen when the UUP and SDLP were in charge. I believe that progress this week is due to Alliance pressure.

"Yesterday, we received assurances on the proposals that Alliance has put forward for the devolution of Justice. It is important that when devolution takes place there is agreement on policies, so that devolution is seen to deliver for the people of Northern Ireland.

"Alliance Party Council has recommended that we are now in a position to nominate a candidate for Justice Minister. We will be meeting with the First and Deputy First Ministers and a further announcement regarding the identity of the Minister will be made in the near future."

Yet throughout all Alliance Party press releases on Justice, nothing has since been mentioned about a dysfunctional NI Executive, nor about all those issues (that have remained unresolved) that made Alliance so agitated in August 2008.

Indeed, David stated that 

The Alliance Party will not be taking the Policing and Justice Ministry. This Executive is failing in its duties, so Northern Ireland needs a strong and coherent opposition. We are providing that opposition and we will continue to do so.

and 

We are the opposition and we will remain so because this Executive is so poor that Northern Ireland needs a strong group to keep the pressure on it.

So what is the legitimate claim for the Alliance Party now? It, if it takes the Ministerial position, will no longer be the 'opposition'.  How can Alliance now say they are in opposition when they are now part of the 'Executive in crisis'?  What credibility does Alliance now have with its voters when it has done such a U-turn on its principle of being, as best as possible, an Opposition to the Government of Northern Ireland?  

David may come to rue the day his Party tasted this poisoned apple, and its moral high ground fell asleep. 

How government polls are really done!

Genius insight into opinion polls from Yes Prime Minister.

Funny how it still seems to fit with modern times, seeing as we have had two of the blighters recently regarding Policing and Justice.  One from our own erstwhile Northern Ireland Office and one from the Office of the First Minister and deputy First Minister.

Cynical? Moi?

A General or a Specific election??

What about 'none of the above'?

I am putting my money on 6th May 2010 for the wonderful General Election.

I know there are lots rumours doing the rounds.  Indeed today Gordon is supposed to be announcing that the General Election will be taking place on 25th March.  All I would say is, if you are as sad as I am, have a wee gander over to General Election Timetables.

There you will see an illustrative timetable of potential election dates and when the 'Proclamation of Dissolution' has to happen.  The 'Proclamation of Dissolution' is basically when the Prime Minster goes to the Queen and asks her to dissolve her Parliament, and she  agrees.

You will see from the timetable that today (Monday 1 March 2010) is the day for the 'Proclamation of Dissolution' for the 25th Match to be the election day, when you and I get to once again drudge down to the local polling stations to vote for people we are not quite sure off.

The rumours for 25th March are now fading big time.  And as you can see below, we will have a few more rumour filled weekends to go through.  Right up to the timings for a June 3 election.

So why do I still stick to 6th May?

1. Its been the longest persisting rumour.
2. A number of Labour Grandees have let it slip now and again.
3. It is the date of the Local Elections in England
4. Its a nice time of the year to have it.
5. Its not the holiday season, so more people will be at home.
6. And, from the Northern Ireland perspective, the date for the 'Proclamation of Dissolution' is 12 April.

Hold on, I have heard that date before, I hear you say (for the pedants, I do not mean this literally! Unless people who read this actually do track me down and do actually speak to me.)

Yes, you have heard this before.  In the Hillsborough Agreement. On page 4.  First Section.

It is the date that Policing and Justice powers will be devolved from Westminster to Northern Ireland.

So what? Its not going to win anyone an election to Westminster.  Well, no it isn't.  But the powers can not be devolved by a dissolved Westminster.  It still has to be in session for the legislation for devolving the powers to be enacted.

A dissolved Westminster does not have any MPs, nor does it debate, nor does it pass legislation.

Ergo, (using latin makes me feel so superior) the Prime Minister will not be announcing dissolution before the 12th April 2010, as he agreed to the timings for devolution at the Hillsborough negotiations.

Now all I need is for Gordon Brown to read this and then call  a snap election, just to spite me.

Groundhog Day 2: Policing & Justice in NI

You may or may not realise it but Tuesday, 2nd February 2010 is in fact Groundhog Day.

At least according to the ever accurate and academically sound Wikipedia.

We are in the last run of the talks at Hillsborough which is supposed to give us the finalisation of Devolution to Northern Ireland.  Gregory Campbell (DUP MLA and MP) is suggesting the possibility of a referendum to quantify public confidence in the process.  Gerry Adams thought the idea was 'cool' as it would involve the likes of the Garvaghy Road residents telling the DUP that they can go ahead and devolve P&J. Ooooh, saucer of milk?

I think the real issue underlying Groundhog Day at Hillsborough is electoral cover for DUP & Sinn Fein.  They can not be seen to be giving in to each other too soon.  Though i think the hardest discussions have already happened before Christmas.  A referendum would give them all the cover they need to progress.  However, one thing to keep in mind is the number of people who voted for the Agreement in the referendum in 1998 and slipped back to mow their gardens like horticultural ninjas when it came to actually voting for the parties.

We await with a bit more baited breath to see what happens on Groundhog Day.  

Though it would have been more poignant for the deal to have been 'done' on Holocaust Day, as a significant move for continued peace, than Groundhog Day, which sums up our politics here quite well.

Policing & Justice: Three wheels on my wagon.

A song that could reflect our wonderful policing and justice negotiations!


Lets hope it doesn't go the way the song ends up!

Deal or no deal??

As the great Noel Edmunds puts it to the contestant after the Banker has given a financial offer,

'Deal or no deal'

Some cut their losses and take it if it is a reasonable offer. Others go right on to the bitter end. This has resulted in contestants going home with no more than 1p.

Is this how things are being played out in Hillsburough Castle?

Is Brian Cowan playing Noel Edmunds? Gordon Brown playing the banker (i expect lots of sniggers at this one)? Will the two big contestants say 'Deal' or 'No deal'?

Why have we come once more to crisis point in Northern Ireland politics? Are we, more particularly the political parties, addicted to the adrenaline rush of last minute crunch talks where once more 'The hand of history is upon our shoulders'?

Speculation is that there is a deal on the tables with a devolution date for policing and justice on the table. Every so often the prosaic politicians throw a few scraps of information to the hungry hacks huddled outside. The closeness of a deal is tangible, yet just out of full sight.

Both the DUP and Sinn Fein have to play the game just right in order to save both face and the institutions. I don't think either of the parties want a snap election. The DUP could be given a bloody nose by a unionist electorate who have decided to either give up on this voting thing, side with the UUP or side with the TUV. Sinn Fein have an opportunity surely? well there is the child abuse allegations that will not go away and the fig leaf of 'First Minister' as another chance to stick it to the unionist parties.

The big issue of any snap Assembly election then will not be the economy, education, health, social housing, or employment. it will again come down to the sad sectarian head count where the electorate is more motivated to vote someone in to keep the other out.

The DUP and Sinn Fein could both use this as a race to finish first leaving the race track strewn with parties tripped up under the aspect of 'you must vote for us to keep out/put in place Sinn Fein First Minister.

It is politics, i admit. It is a politics that constantly rejuvenates itself under age old threats.

No one said it was ever a nice thing and it has its own electoral strength. But it will place Northern Ireland on the world stage as a place that constantly naval gazes and is obsessed with itself.

Perhaps a deal is possible and Northern Ireland will see another new era.

We live in hope. Maybe, just maybe, our parties will play the game right and get the £800 million jackpot.

Sit down, down, down, sit down next to me.....

Lots has been happening on the Unionist front with much made of the 'Pan-Unionist Front', and while sounds slightly better than UCU-NF, it still has a ring of 'Monty Python's Life of Brian' about it.

There is a lot of debate on what this means, and has been linked to the three Conservative nominees stepping down (this has been covered on Bob Balls and very nicely on Ian Parsley's blogpost)

Eamonn Mallie in a slugger post has highlighted a possible Conservative attitude towards the DUP -

"They want blood from the DUP not handshakes".

Yet many others on slugger are reading many different aspects on the future of Unionism.

The whole 'Unionist unity' thing is becoming rather silly. It would necessitate major compromise between the UUP and DUP, and would not now send out a positive message to the growing number of the electorate just giving up on politics altogether. Maybe thisspeculation would have been very welcome 15 to 30 years ago, but the whole political environment has gone global and we seem to be left behind again.

Whatever happens next, I think the unionist electorate will punish Unionist parties in general if there is no 'product' (clichés haven't gone away you know!) for them to see. The 'grass roots' are trying to cope with lack of employment, rising costs and keeping a roof over their head.

Maybe if we were given the option of signing a promise not to break the law and dividing up the £800 Policing and Justice budget between us all (about £470,000 each). If we break the law, that money is taken away and divided up amongst the rest.

What do you think?

guns, bombs, policing and justice

Well, again we are on the cusp of a crisis. I am surprised more people have not keeled over because of the excitement.

As of now, the two premiers (that's Gordon and Brian, not Peter and Martin) are trying to help resolve the policing and justice catastrophe currently brewing like a country woman's cup of tea. Though there is definitely no way to read the tea leaves and what the future holds.

There are so many options, and really - how much more important do people think Northern Ireland is than a General Election that could see the current Prime Minister picking up his P45. Yeah, he is far more worried about us than running the whole of the UK.

All this with the back drop of rising dissident activity. There is a lot more going on than we hear about in the media. A policeman is still very ill in hospital after terrorists put a bomb under his car causing him to lose his right leg. Reason? PSNI Constable Peadar Heffron is a 33-year-old Catholic, an Irish language specialist and is also the captain of its GAA team.

Dissidents have been trying to blow up the Policing Board HQ, keep attacking police stations, creating disruption with bomb alerts. The BBC have a nice little timeline for 2009 on their activity.

What we need really is all of the parties to be involved in the discussion for policing and justice and a positive resolution as soon as possible. Or else the community confidence question won't be in relation to unionist confidence, but in relation to whether or not we have confidence in our politicians to be able to actually do the job at all.

Perhaps another referendum would be appropriate. Put it to the vote of the community to resolve the question of community confidence once and for all.