Paul Bew is one of the striking number of old sectarian Leftists who are now Crossbench Peers, and a Henry Jackson Society signatory. But never mind, he writes:
So is it business as usual in Ulster politics? Not quite. The DUP visibly fears the prospect of a Cameron predominance in British politics to the point of actually demonstrating against him on his visit to Ballymena. The party privately hopes that somehow New Labour will survive and leave the tramlines of local politics — the protracted fractious community psychotherapy process at Stormont — undisturbed.
Increasingly, the DUP makes it clear that they do not want to see Sinn Fein have to face any possible inconvenience or challenge arising from a conservative victory and, therefore, from an alleged London partiality for any local faction in the province. But the status quo in Northern Ireland means a cocooned political class in Stormont — underwritten ad infinitum by the British taxpayer, the great unsung hero of the Troubles, and playing no role in shaping, or being shaped by, the wider UK debate on public policy.
This already feels like a somewhat nostalgic vision. But there are strong local interests involved in maintaining it. It is, however, now bound to be challenged, because Northern Ireland is, after all, part of the United Kingdom.
Any incoming Cameron government requires the stability of the Agreement and its devolved institutions, but it needs to be able to move on from it in certain respects. The prospects are reasonable. Since the Anglo-Irish Agreement of 1985, Irish nationalism has been addicted to the idea that it could progress by doing deals with London which could then be imposed on local unionists. David Cameron has emotionally distanced himself from that part of the Thatcher legacy. Nationalists, as a result, will be compelled to return to the position famously endorsed by Eamon de Valera in the Irish Senate debate of 1939, that of seeking an accommodation with unionists rather than decisive British intervention against them.
The removal of the spectre of an imposed Anglo-Irish Joint Authority, which is effectively what Cameron has done, means that the local parties have no choice but to work within the existing devolved compromise. But it also means that there will be no excuse for a Little Ulsterist failure to engage in the wider public debates of the Westminster parliament.
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I am glad that I did not choose Lord "Call Me Paul" Bew to supervise my Dissertation and even more grateful that he was not the "second marker" as I had feared.
ReplyDeleteWell actually I am at an age when I dont fear anything.
But he was oft my tutor in the past four years. As 50% of the discussion was in fact Bew speaking and 49% was me disagreeing.......the other students could happily doze off and deal with their hangovers.
Bew of course ex public schoolboy at Campbell College who fancied himself as "danny the Red" locally in 1968 and dabbled a little with the usual Workers Party suspects before ditching WP/socialism in favour of advising David Trimble.
Good to see him write the usual garbage in British rags.
Oh incidently Ian Parsley (sic) the Alliance Party candidate in Euro elections ...Parsley ex public schoolboy also with North East England connexions has now resigned from the AP and joined the Conservatives.
Of course I DID state three months ago that his standing was all about raising his profile in North Down.
He will be guaranteed the Tory nomination for North Down rejected by "Lady" Hermon who hates the Tories
She's Northern Ireland's only New Labour MP. But a great friend of Trimble's. Like Bew. The wider nexus in microcosm, if that makes any sense.
ReplyDeleteIf Cameron wins, then it will certainly change Northern Ireland politics to have a Prime Minister whose own party contests elections there.
Well no it will not be any change at all. The Ulster Unionist Party had 12 (out of 12) Conservative and Unionist Party MPs until 1966.
ReplyDeleteAnd retained the Tory Whip for several years afterwards.
Part of the rise of the DUP was due to the detachment of the Westminster contingent....Robin Chichester Clark, Stratton Mills, Rafton Pounder, Sir Phelim O'Neill, Richard Ferguson and the like.
And while Cameron might well be a PM who has a Party that stands in Norn Iron its highly unlikely that he will actually have a MP in Norn Iron.
North Down of course (ex MPS include Kilfedder and McCartney) has a maverick streak but even North Down wont elect a Tory.
Lord Trimble of course is now a Tory having successfully ruined the UUP on MI5 instruction??) and yes WAS a friend of Sylvia.
This of course is no longer true.
Sylvia is actually closer to Sinn Féin than the unionist bloc. I suppose its the hormones. SF always impressed her by actually asking after the health of her ailing hubby "Sir jack".
Rather oddly DUP/UUP types were indifferent to him despite the fact that he had served their cause so faithfully.
She will keep her seat at Westminster.
"The Ulster Unionist Party had 12 (out of 12) Conservative and Unionist Party MPs until 1966."
ReplyDeleteA long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away.
And it will be in a galaxy even further away that they will get another "Conservative and Unionist" MP.
ReplyDeleteNorth Down is known locally as the Gold Coast being traditionally the richest constituency. Although there are large numbers of working class areas in Bangor and the usual anti Catholic reformed types.
Nevertheless it considers itself semi detached from the rest of Norn Iron and its gharssstly Troubles.
It tends to THINK it has more in common with the Fylde Coast than Newtownards or the Ards Peninsula.
But not actually so much in common as to vote Tory.
Incidently according to my own Dissertation (which MUST be true) the Unionist MP in 1959 got 98% (sic) of the vote
"And it will be in a galaxy even further away that they will get another "Conservative and Unionist" MP"
ReplyDeleteThey don't need one. They might get no MPs in Scotland again (they probably won't, but they might). But they will still have contested seats there, and now be in government. That is what matters.