The assembly election is next Thursday, May 5. The Queen’s speech at Westminster is five days later, on May 10. If it includes a bill to let ministers unilaterally switch off parts of the Brexit protocol, as expected, that would be perfectly timed for the formation of a Stormont executive. The first attempt at nominations might see a placated DUP join Sinn Féin in office. After that, whether an executive is formed or not, things become complicated. The Queen’s speech sets the government’s legislative priorities for the parliamentary term but there is no requirement for any of it to be delivered. So how long does the DUP wait for the bill to be commenced? Does Sinn Féin threaten to walk out if the bill is commenced? The last attempt at such legislation, the 2020 Single Market Act, had its “limited and specific” powers to breach the protocol removed after an international outcry. A further outcry is guaranteed. But perhaps the DUP leadership is not that concerned. Perhaps it just needs an excuse to get its feet under the executive table.
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Earlier this month, the EU unilaterally changed its laws to remove most of the sea border for medicines. Some unionists and Conservative MPs have likened this to the government’s planned legislation but the comparison is legally incorrect. The EU was switching off part of its single market in Northern Ireland, not part of the protocol, although of course only Brussels has that unilateral option.
Unionists and Tories do have a point that the EU action conceded large parts of the protocol are unworkable. The UK would have more luck developing that point through patience and negotiation than by threatening to break international law.
Whatever London’s mistakes, Brussels should be careful believing its own publicity. ‘Senior European diplomatic sources’ have been quoted saying: “Putin will be delighted that the West is split... and any leadership capital that Johnson has built up over Ukraine will disappear instantly.”
The West will not split over inspecting packets of ham at Larne, nor will Putin’s conduct worsen, nor will Johnson miss his leadership capital among senior European diplomatic sources.
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To lose one engine on a ferry is unfortunate. To lose all four, plus two auxiliary generators, looks like carelessness. The Maritime and Coastguard Agency says it had no concern for passenger safety after the P&O European Causeway ended up adrift and without power for over an hour in the North Channel. The experience could have been dramatically different for those onboard had it not occurred in perfect weather and broad daylight five miles offshore. An empty cruise liner, en route for repairs in Belfast, was even available to wait nearby in case of evacuation. The incident comes weeks after 31 safety failings were found on the vessel, which was cleared to sail on April 8. Larne to Cairnryan is the only P&O Ferries route entirely within UK waters and the only one overseen by both national and devolved governments - two devolved governments, in fact - with a mix of responsibilities for transport, safety and employment. How much more has to go wrong before somebody gets a grip on this company?
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It would be excitable to accuse Stormont parties of bribery with their manifestos but there is certainly bidding for votes. The DUP is offering “an energy support payment for hard-pressed families,” without specifying how much or who counts as hard-pressed. The SDLP is offering every household £200 plus a further £100 for families on income support. Sinn Féin has topped this with £230 for every household. People Before Profit proposes £1,000, means-tested to exclude the top quarter of earners. Alliance would introduce “a home heating support grant voucher scheme targeted at low-income households,” although this sounds like a permanent commitment rather than a one-off payment.
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In 1932, a mass trespass by ramblers on Kinder Scout hill in the Peak District helped establish the public’s right to access the English countryside. Last weekend, a mass trespass of swimmers was organised in the nearby Kinder Reservoir to campaign for public access to waterways. It is clearly going to take something similar to gain access to Greenisland beach, one of the best beaches on Belfast Lough. Two of its public rights of way have been blocked for some time by landowners and the third is blocked by a gate maintained with inexplicable enthusiasm by Northern Ireland Water. Campaigns by residents have secured the attention of councillors, MLAs ministers and the press but the state-owned utility will not budge, citing only bizarre fears of someone slipping on a slipway.
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Media outlets in the Republic are expressing concern that Sinn Féin is using libel law to silence critics and opponents, following an increase in legal actions by the party. There seems to be no awareness that this is the southward expansion of a Northern Ireland tradition with impeccable cross-community credentials: the DUP is just as bad, maybe even a bit worse. Although the general chill effect of libel cases may be considered politically useful, an under-appreciated factor is that both parties are just full of the sort of people who love threatening to call their solicitor.
