91Èȱ¬

I've just finished a short report for tonight's Radio 4 1800 bulletin on Senator Ted Kennedy's contribution to the Northern Ireland process. He's certainly a man who provokes strong responses, as a quick visit to the 91Èȱ¬'s forum proves.

There have been heartfelt tributes from nationalists and more guarded responses from unionists. Sir Reg Empey who spoke to me this morning before boarding a plane for a trade mission to Canada argued that the Senator's views had developed over time, becoming more balanced so far as unionists were concerned.

One claim made on a lot of the bulletin boards has been that the Senator was an IRA supporter, but the SDLP's John Hume, who worked so closely with him, argued that this perception was entirely wrong. Ted Kennedy he said stood simply for peace, justice and civil rights.

Even in demolition jobs like this piece by in the Daily Mail back in March, I can't find a direct quote from the Senator supporting the IRA.

Backing "troops out" was not the same as directly supporting IRA violence. The furthest Andrew Roberts goes is to accuse Ted Kennedy of condemning violence with "weasel words" and blaming the hunger strikes on British inflexibility rather than IRA intransigence.

Back in the spring, as this blog reported, some DUP MPs signed a Commons motion criticising Gordon Brown for awarding Senator Kennedy an honorary knighthood. Sammy Wilson, Jeffrey Donaldson, David Simpson and others reckoned it was in "poor taste" given Chappaquidick, the Senator's backing for a US arms boycott of the RUC and what they claimed was his support for the IRA's political wing.

With today's news, the party faced a dillemma: should they speak ill of the dead? They haven't been rushing towards our TV cameras, but instead put out a statement from the North Down MLA Peter Weir. He argued that whilst in the past Senator Kennedy's role had been "far from positive" his contribution to US political life had been immense and in more recent times he had recognised the "validity of the Unionist argument".

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The former Vice Chair of the local Conservatives, Jeffrey Peel, is wearing his today asking whether the new Chief Constable should be so upfront about his Christianity.

It's a fair debating point, although given the level of church attendance here I can't see too many people rushing to the barricades on this one. Next time I am stopped at a road block by seven heavily armed men, I shall ask them their view on the matter.

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In the wake of the compassionate release of the Lockerbie bomber we have heard more about the campaign by IRA victims to persuade Colonel Gaddaffi to pay compensation because of his supply of semtex and other weaponry to the Provisionals. Colin Parry voiced his support this morning, whilst not sounding optimistic about the chances of success. Jeffrey Donaldson hopes to travel to Tripoli - previously Nigel Dodds and the Labour MP Andrew Mackinlay have talked of being part of such a delegation.

Perhaps given the latest moves towards normalising relations with Libya they may stand some chance of success. But I can't help thinking that it has been not only the government but also our local politicians who have been slow off the mark on this one.

Six years ago I wrote about to pursue such compensation during the 1990s - a time when unionists enjoyed more pulling power with both Washington and London because they hadn't signed on the bottom line with the Good Friday Agreement.

In contrast to the stance of the French and US authorities, Britain settled for detailed information from Libyan intelligence officials about the millions of pounds in cash and 120 tonnes of weaponry which Tripoli had given the IRA.

Have the politicians left it too late to ask for more?

UPDATE: I see that Willie Fraser whose is trying to bring a legal action against Libya has insisted that "momentum is growing" as three legal firms have offered to represent them, and taken Colin Parry to task for his pessimism about their chances of success.

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I'm back from leave. Many thanks to Martina for her expert and entertaining blog sitting. For some strange reason, the eyes of the world weren't on Belfast today where the but rather on the Scottish parliament at Holyrood, where the Justice Secretary Kenneth MacAskill has been defending his decision to release the Lockerbie bomber on compassionate grounds.

A few thoughts. The performance of the MSPs seemed generally of a higher calibre than that of our MLAs (I didn't notice anyone reading hesitantly from a piece of paper).

Although it's hard to think of any direct comparison, given that the Scottish justice Secretary is in the eye of an international storm, the session gave a sense of just how impassioned and difficult matters can get when crime and punishment issues are involved. Could a future Stormont Justice Minister find themselves lambasted over a controversial prisoner release? Or have the early releases sanctioned by the Good Friday Agreement drawn the political sting from such decisions?

When those early releases were being negotiated, Bill Clinton picked up the phone to urge David Trimble et al to do the deal in the wider interests of the peace. Eleven years on the FBI Director Robert Mueller resorted to an open letter to express his view that the Lockerbie release was By the time Mr Mueller's letter became public the release was a done deal.

That brings me to something today's Edinburgh session had in common with many of our Stormont sittings. We are well used to debates which concentrate on the past and change nothing so far as future policy is concerned. Abdelbaset Ali al-Megrahi is now in Libya for the next three months, or however long he has left to live, and no matter what the continuing political fall out is in Holyrood, London and Washington nothing is going to change that reality.

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A contact of mine was at Stormont the other when he found a business card on the ground. The card had the Down District Council logo on it with the name "Jim Wells SDLP Down District Councillor."

The source naturally passed it to the 91Èȱ¬.

Had I missed something? The only Jim Wells from Down Council belonged to the DUP and was also an MLA. Cllr Wells is on the green wing of the DUP - but only environmentally speaking!

Turns out there was a council printing error and Cllr Wells was under the impression that all the cards had been destroyed (I'm sure he meant recycled). Happily not. I now have another item for my political collection.

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Eyebrows were raised when the assembly weekly written answer's book revealed the travel and other costs for the plethora of public bodies/quangos in Northern Ireland.

SF MLA Martina Anderson had sought a breakdown of costs which revealed that the Northern Ireland Transport Holding Company's annual travel bill was the highest at £3.1 million. Naturally I made inquiries about how this figure came about. And days (and I mean days later) was told by the press office that it was all an error. It seems the actual bill for last year was £144,600. A spokesman explained it was a "clerical error." The DRD has phoned to say the mistake was its fault.

Oh and let's not go there about Northern Ireland Water whose travel bill was £1.3 million. Can I get an answer out of those people?????

Now I know NIW has a history of math trouble, what with over-charging and under-charging customers, but why am I still waiting for a comment on their bill from Monday when after waiting HOURS was told I'd have their response first thing in morning.

Still waiting....Is anyone going to sign off that response? It is called news for a reason you know!

A statement finally dropped into my email from NIW at 4.09 today August 20 (The query was lodged Monday the 17th in the morning. Along with an apology for inconvenience and a pledge to answer other Freedom of Information questions in due course, a spokesperson for NI Water commented:

"The vast majority of NI Water's travel costs are incurred to enable its 1,447 employees to carry out their day to day duties right across all of Northern Ireland.

"As NI Water does not provide company cars or a car allowances, all staff who do not have access to maintenance vans use their own personal vehicles as they travel between our 5,191 operational sites and dispersed office network. The NI Water mileage allowance paid to staff is the Automobile Association's approved rate for employees using their own private cars for business purposes.

"NI Water is focused on delivering value for money and we are satisfied that our travel costs benchmark very well against other similar Northern Ireland utilities."

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Controversy over last weekend's Sinn Fein Hunger Strike Commemoration continues to rage - with the Sports minister Nelson McCausland criticising the fact that the event was held on GAA property. (Of course the TUV has issued a statement insisting it was upset first.)

Little is known however about Gerry Adams' remark at the event in relation to one Martin McGuinness, the Deputy First Minister.

The Sinn Fein leader declared in an attempt to lighten his rather heavy speech....

"The Republican struggle was not and is not about bums on Executive seats - even a bum as delectable as Martin McGuinness's."

I'm afraid my colleague Gareth Gordon has kept the recording.....

****
FYI to the commentator re: use of the term Sports minister. This is release issued by minister's Department
DCAL PRESS RELEASE

19 August 2009

SPORTS MINISTER CALLS FOR FULL INVESTIGATION INTO GALBALLY EVENTS

Sports Minister Nelson McCausland has expressed serious concerns about images currently being circulated on the internet depicting scenes of paramilitary display at the hunger strike commemoration event held at Galbally on Sunday 16 August.

The Minister commented: "I understand that the GAA grounds were used for part of this event and I am sure that many senior figures in the GAA will be as horrified as I am that a sports ground was used for this type of activity.

"I would encourage the GAA to carry out a full investigation into the activities of
16 August at Galbally and to make a full statement as soon as possible.

"Sport has tremendous potential to bring communities together and to contribute to a shared and better future. This is an aspiration to which the vast majority of the population here subscribe. The events in Galbally have been deeply divisive and do nothing to promote harmony in our community."

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The Deputy First Minister has given an extensive interview to Belfast Telegraph today which is memorable on several counts.

Firstly, Martin McGuinness insists he is unconcerned about a picture of him from the 1970s brandishing a gun. The picture has been brandished of late by William Frazer of Fair. Mr McGuinness said he was focussed on building a better future. "The past is the past," he declared.

Secondly, he has high praise for the Conservative Shadow Secretary of State Owen Paterson who is in town today by the way. Mr Mcguinness describes the Conservative MP as a "straight talker" and suggests that his talks with Mr Paterson have left him with the impression there is considerable dismay within the Conservative Party about the UUP attitude to the transfer of policing and justice powers (a recent policy document suggested a five year timeframe for the transfer.)

Thirdly he says he's still friendly with Ian Paisley and they talk occasionally.

But he adds that one or two members of the SDLP don't talk to him. I wonder whooooooooooooooo?

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More symptons of illness in the battle between UUP and DUP....

The DUP MP and MLA David Simpson has written to the News Letter today protesting remarks an Ulster Unionist made about his salary. Mr Simpson, who represents Upper Bann, said he decided when he took up his post in the assembly that he would not profit from the job. Instead, he said he would donate that money to groups/individuals in his constituency. He went on to say he had "not paraded this as a virtue or sought publicity."

But he writes that he was "genuinely sickened" to read UUP councillor Ross Hussey's "truly disgusting" letter of August 14 which "insinuates doubt as to the accuracy of comments I prevously made regarding my assembly salary." Mr Simpson says he pays the party levy from his own income and that "every solitary penny" of his Assembly salary, after government deductions, goes to individuals/groups in Upper Bann.

He also takes Cllr Hussey to task about regarding his remarks about Peter Robinson's assertion that he also donates his First Minister's salary to the DUP.

It's just that some Ulster Unionists, among others, are puzzled as to why Mr Robinson didn't reveal his salary donation when he was being attacked in April by the London tabloids, among others, with headlines such as "Swish Family Robinson?" This revelation was not made until an extensive interview the First Minister did with the News Letter on June 22.

**
FYI... Cllr Hussey has sent me his latest response ....
David Simpson's recent letter in response to my letter on MP's expenses leaves me flabbergasted to say the least. I repeat the comment I made 'Whilst on the subject of expenses can the DUP now confirm that they have introduced the system where they claim the double salary element from their MPs salaries directly to the party. I ask because following Peter Robinson's recent statement clearly no-one had told David Simpson when he stated he gave his extra salary to charity groups in his constituency.' Clearly I am indicating Mr Simpson uses his additional payment to fund payments to groups in his Upper Bann constituency and for that he is to be commended. However his party Leader Mr Peter Robinson in an article published before Mr Simpson made his statement said ''politicians won't get paid more for double jobbing' and stated that the additional payments would go to the party this is a matter of public record at the same time to quote directly from the Newsletter 'Mr Simpson also reluctantly revealed that he does not benefit from his salary as an MLA, he said the £250 a week he receives is donated to local organisations and people in need within the local community'. A question could be asked what do the other DUP double jobbers do with their additional salary - is it now paid to the DUP as instructed by Peter Robinson? I certainly did not impune Mr Simpson's character or throw dirt at him I asked a simple question that seems to have caused a major problem for Mr Simpson with his unwarranted attack on me and my character which I now ask him to withdraw.

Councillor Ross M Hussey

Ulster Unionist Omagh

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The DUP will be glad to know that the TUV has finally updated its website and no longer features the title "MEP" after Jim Allister's name. The fact that it was still up after Diane Dodds claimed her seat was something of a talking point. Of course, Mr Allister is still featuring his rather lively speech from the count centre when he took almost 70,000 votes.

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The DUP and UUP are at it again today. The DUP aren't impressed a statement from UUP MLA John McCallister. Mr McCallister has criticised the DUP for its "cheap attack" re: NHS and boasted it was an Ulster Unionist government which first brought the NHS to Northern Ireland. But in a text to me a DUP source declared: "Lord Brookeborough and his party opposed the introduction of the NHS in 1948 because they were taking the Tory whip at Westminster."

****

The UUP have since added (a day later):

"Our MPs did indeed vote against the NHS legislation, because we believed that it should have given more local control - something that reform (by both Labour and Conservative administrations) over subsequent decades has recognised and sought to address.

And, of course, it doesn't detract from the fact that it was our Party which introduced the NHS to NI.

Time for the DUP press office to go back to the history books ..."

***
Posted by DUP in response (one day later) "It is good that the UUP has admitted that they opposed the introduction of the NHS in the House of Commons. A bit less boasting about introducing something that they actually voted against is called for.

Whatever the reasons they are offering now, 60 years after the event, the key point is that they were whipped by the Tories into voting against something which almost everyone, with the exception of senior Tories like their Euro-colleague Dan Hannan, now accepts was a good thing.

The DUP is well aware of Unionist history, that's why we can spot the re-emergence of Big House Unionism in UCUNF wih its anti-NHS agenda"

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DUP MLA Peter Weir has issued a press statement entitled "Why the Silence from UUP and the Tories?" Mr Weir claims that the UUP and their "Tory bosses" are at odds over policing and justice issues. The said the two parties refsused to answer questions put to them by journalists concerning the UUP policy paper published this week.

He went on:

"The policy paper published this week by the UUP demonstrates that they do not trust their Tory bosses. The refusal to comment confirms my suspicion that the Tory Party does not agree with the proposed five-year delay in the full devolution of policing and justice powers. Are they trying to spare Reg Empey's blushes by maintaining a silence?"

I just spoke to a Conservative spokesman and he hit back saying this was a "typical DUP press release trying to goad us." He said ther was no "silence" and that the party's position that policing and justice should be devolved when all the parties agree. He said it's for local politicians to decide the issue.

Oh and just as I was posting this a new UUP press release dropped into my in e-mail. Tom Elliot accuses the DUP of remaining silent and refusing to answer questions on "the vital question on the future of the UK economy - do they want public spending and our massive budget deficit brought under control and do they want taxes raised?"

Ah, the sounds of silence....

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It seems it's not just ministers such as Sir Reg Empey who are worried about the late circulation of some Executive papers. When the Permananet Secretaries Group met recently at Stormont, there was an update on the Executive and Assembly. And several permanent secretaries raised concerns about the late circulation of some papers. I wonder who? It seems however that permanent secretaries Stephen Peover and Stephen Quinn and the head of the civil service Bruce Robinson weren't at that meeting and sent their apologies. So does that narrow the field?

No word though on whether Sir Reg Empey's colourful description of Huckster Shop was raised....

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So Sinn Fein has decided to rid itself of its London rental properties following review. MP Conor Murphy said the party's MPs would be using London hotels in future when there on constituency business. He's promised they will be reasonably priced - whatever they cost they couldn't cost as much as the £500,000 chalked up in rent over several years. Especially when Sinn Fein's MPs were hardly ever in London as they don't attend Parliament.

One thing the statement didn't say - what's going to happen to the furnishings which include venetian blinds, and tv sets purchased by the taxpayer?

Any ideas?

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It's Martina Purdy back on the blog (after being locked out temporarily) as Mark D is on holiday.

Sadly most of our politicians are on leave giving me more time to ponder the future.

When policing and justice is finally devolved, and the Alliance party gets the minister's job (under a new rule which sets aside D'hondt) how will the justice committee be selected?

Will the scrutiny committee come about through d'Hondt?

Now that's a good question said one MLA I spoke to - who claimed it hadn't come up in the Assembly's review committee.

I feel a row coming on...

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I'm away for the next fortnight. I'm not off to the Costa Del Sol but if I was I'd breathe a sigh of relief that Spain is not in the throes of a constitutional crisis. I am not referring here to the resurgence in ETA violence, but the fraught question of whether a Catholic or a Protestant might ever succeed King Juan Carlos the First.

Okay, I haven't been wasting a lot of time worrying about whether the Prince of Asturias will one day be thwarted from his destiny of becoming his Catholic majesty. But I am glad to see that the Imperial Orange Council has been pondering the matter on my behalf.

In a statement just released the Council says "we believe that if the Act of Settlement was changed to allow a monarch who was from the Roman Catholic tradition, it could provoke a constitutional crisis. They would be effectively serving two masters, as the head of the Roman Catholic Church is also a head of another state and the relationship between Church and State is not clearly defined."

They are referring, of course, to the UK but later the Council makes a few international comparisons. "The UK is not the only country in Europe where religious matters inform Royalty. In Spain in 2001 a precondition of marriage into the Royal Family was that the person had to change their religion to be Roman Catholic before she was allowed to do so. Each country will have its own reasons for such situations."

I am looking forward to the Order's "Save Spain From Protestantism" campaign.

By the time I get back from leave it should almost be hedge cutting time. I know this because whilst Ian Paisley Junior, in Policing Board mode, expressed his disappointment about the closure of 26 police stations, he was also, in Agriculture Committee chair mode, sending out an e-mail voicing his dismay over the discrepancy in hedge cutting dates between Northern Ireland and Scotland and England.

Ian Jr. is not convinced that the or need as much protection as the Agriculture Minister Michelle Gildernew thinks they do. He reckons we should be chopping hedges right now instead of waiting until the end of August.

Of course this isn't the only dispute over dates between republicans and unionists. In my imagination I can picture a complex autumn negotiation between the DUP and Sinn Fein, which could see a concession on the timing of devolution of justice in return for a reciprocal move on the Bull Finch or the Song Thrush. I am obviously in need of a break. In my absence Martina Purdy will be blogging here and I trust her comments will be far more sensible than mine.

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I'm just back from Stormont where Sammy Wilson emerged from a meeting with local bankers to defend his latest controversial comments about the local "racism industry". He has clashed with Patrick Yu of the NI Council on Ethnic Minorities who complained that remarks made by Sammy on the 91Èȱ¬'s Politics Show back in January could enable the incitement of racial hatred (the then Envoronment Minister had told my colleague Kevin Sharkey that local workers should be given preference in filling job vacancies).

Sammy hit back in typically trenchant form anti-racism campaigners of having a "vested interest" in sustaining the impression that racism is rife here in order to bolster their demand for government grants.

As was the case when he spoke out about climate change, Sammy's critics have once again risen to his latest challenge. Alliance's Anna Lo accuses him of using whilst the Greens' Steven Agnew says the DUP have shown a lack of concern about how ethnic minorities can be better included in society. He claims the DUP "are part of the cause of racism, not the solution" and concludes that "Mr. Wilson uses controversy to justify his own existence. Mr. Wilson's philosophy appears to be 'I offend therefore I am'".

No doubt Sammy would strenuously disagree - indeed when we were talking at Stormont he pointed out various people from other ethnic backgrounds whose causes he has personally championed. But his tone on these matters is strikingly different from others - whilst the Belfast Mayor Naomi Long for example has been hailingthe return of Roma families to Belfast as a good news story for the city, the Finance Minister has been expressing his concern, suggesting that they are only coming back to be exploited by "gangmasters".

UPDATE: I have now interviewed Patrick Yu at the Council for Ethnic Minorities, who points out that 75% of the groups in this sector get no government funding. He is scornful about the description of such groups as an "industry".

Patrick was keen to point out the way in which the continuing hold up in the Executive agreeing a Cohesion, Sharing and Integration policy is delaying an overall anti-racist strategy. The obstacles over CSI Belfast (as Channel 5 might call it) are more concerned with our home grown division and differences between unionists and nationalists over issues such as the "shared future" policy and equality, but its delay is having a knock on impact.

If the Executive had agreed such an anti-racist strategy would it have had any practical impact in tackling or averting the kind of problems we have seen in and around the Village area of Belfast? Or would it have just contributed to the mountain of paper work at Stormont?

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This morning Mervyn Storey and Jim Allister graced our airwaves to outline how they had decided to set their TUV DUP differences aside in order to avoid costing the ratepayers £25,000 by triggering a by-election in Ballymoney and the same again with a repeat performance in Craigavon. The deal as outlined meant the DUP could co-opt a replacement for Roy Wilson in Ballymoney and the TUV could do the same for their councillor Mark Russell in Craigavon.

However this afternoon Sinn Fein weighed in telling both unionist parties "not so fast". They have accused the DUP and TUV of "breathtaking arrogance". Sinn Fein's threat of a by-election is tied to the TUV's opposition to republicans co-opting a replacement for John O'Dowd.

According to SF Councillor Mairead O'Dowd "The facts of the matter are that Sinn Féin has been seeking to co-opt a replacement for Councillor John O'Dowd MLA for a considerable time in line with our policy of ending dual mandates between the Council and the Assembly. Throughout that time we have been reliably informed that the only Councillor who would object to such a co-option would be Mark Russell and that he would force a by-election in such circumstances at a cost of £25,000 to the ratepayer. The same Mark Russell now tells us that he will himself be co-opted off the Council because the DUP and the TUV have a cosy deal which, quite frankly, is worthless."

Sinn Fein wants any arrangement to include them, but the TUV has responded that if republicans force a by-election in Craigavon "we'll happily fight and beat them". the TUV says it won't seek or give any favours to Sinn Fein.

So potentially the TUV could find its deal drops apart and the ratepayers are still stung for £25,000.

Having said that it won't be the only thing ratepayers and taxpayers have to fork out for in the coming months. Clearing my desk I found the consultation paper for the severance arrangements for councillors losing their posts as part of the move from 26 to 11 councils. At a rate of £1,000 per year per councillor up to a maximum of 36 years' service the paper estimates the cost of these pay offs as anything between £5,247,000 and £4,196,000. How much depends on whether a councillor is eligible for a pay off after serving two terms or three terms.

The legislation which will provide for the severance package was introduced into the Assembly at the end of June. The consultation on the pay offs closed at the end of May but we won't know the precise details of what the Environment department intends to implement until later this year.

On the department's website you can read a It says that 27 of those who responded were in favour of a pay off, and all but 3 of them were councils, councillors or local government organisations. The 4 members of the public who wrote in were all against, as was one councillor who argued that "there was no justification for the scheme and that it was likely to be unpopular given the current criticism about MPs' use of expenses".

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Having been responsible for quite a few typos on this blog, I felt sympathy for the SDLP press officer who e-mailed out a Declan O'Loan news release responding to Martin McGuinness's visit to Rathlin Island but forgot to delete the North Antrim MLA's preparatory notes.

The text has been reproduced by and I suppose it could have been worse. However phrases like "any thoughts on a not too begrudgery response to McGuinness", "avoid the anorak language if possible" and "include some nice words about Rathlin" shed light on the thought processes which probably go on behind 99.9% of such party press releases.

Notes

1. Write two quick pars about Declan O'Loan story
2. Log off and get cup of tea
3. Mention it to colleagues in case they're interested
4. Add supposedly witty pay off line later if can think of one....

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Apologies for not blogging in a few days, but I have been spending a lot of time on the road, sampling opinions on Sinn Fein south of the border, then struggling with a variety of computers in order to get the material I gathered into broadcastable form for this morning's Good Morning Ulster and tonight's 91Èȱ¬ Newsline at 6.30pm.

I didn't manage to talk to Louise Minihan, whose defection to Eirigi was reported in Saturday's but found former Sinn Fein councillor John Dwyer more than happy to talk about the reasons for his disenchantment.

John lost his seat on Wexford County Council but still sits on New Ross town council. New Ross was a port of departure for people escaping the famine 150 years ago and the scene of a bloody battle between the United Irishmen and British forces 210 years ago. These days it looks stable and contented, but like the rest of the Republic it has been hit hard by the economic downturn.

Whilst his constituents were suffering under the credit crunch Cllr. Dwyer felt his naturally left wing style was being cramped by what he regarded as his party's unwillingness to take on Fianna Fail. He thinks the Sinn Fein leadership were so anxious to get into power on both sides of the border that they morphed into a Fianna Fail lite.

Although John is not joining Eirigi, he predicts that the republican group will do Sinn Fein damage in future council elections on both sides of the border.

Questioned about Eirigi's intention to contest the council elections, Gerry Adams says he would welcome such a move. The Sinn Fein President professes to be unconcerned about the challenge. Both he and his Justice Spokesman Aengus O'Snodaigh point out that whilst the party lost seats in Dublin it made up for those losses with gains elsewhere.

With an Ard Comhairle meeting due in Navan on August 10th, Mr Adams insists that the Sinn Fein project remains on track. Asked about his own leadership Gerry Adams sighs and tells me (as he has done in the past) that he still has work to do and not to believe what is written in the papers by "columnists who were writing the same thing ten years ago".

At the same time Sinn Fein do have a problem - Mary Lou McDonald was promoted as a face who might appeak to southern voters, but has now twice missed out on getting elected, first to the Dail, then to the European parliament. The Sunday Tribune's Conor McMorrow told me that one of his Sinn Fein sources had confessed that maybe there is an aura of failure around Mary Lou and the party might have to look elsewhere for a southern standard bearer.

Over on his blog, Sinn Fein councillor seems particularly upset about Cllr. Minihan's defection because she was his daughter's godmother. It makes a change from the days when the media was always talking about republican godfathers.

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