Sinn Fein tops Irish exit poll, but coalition parties look set for re-election
Dublin, Ireland Reuters Ireland’s main opposition party Sinn Fein looked on course to narrowly win the most votes at a general election on Friday, but its two main centre-right rivals will likely have enough seats to govern again without it, an exit poll showed. The exit poll put the left wing Sinn Fein on 21.1 […]
Ireland’s tradition of welcoming migrants under strain in election
Ballaghaderreen, Ireland Reuters In the small Irish market town of Ballaghaderreen, a long-standing welcome to immigrants is fraying badly ahead of a general election this week, the first to see the country’s main political parties competing to be toughest on migrants. A country that has long prided itself on being welcoming to migrants, Ireland has […]
Essay: Gaza war – a ceasefire depends on a leap of faith from both sides. Northern Ireland showed us how
In an article first published on The Conversation, COLIN JOHN IRWIN looks at the lessons that can be learned from the Northern Ireland peace process…
Northern Ireland has “brighter future” with power sharing return, Sunak says
Belfast, Northern Ireland Reuters Northern Ireland faces a “brighter future” with the restoration of devolved government after two years of deadlock, Britain’s Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said on a visit to Belfast on Sunday. Sinn Fein’s Michelle O’Neill was appointed first minister on Saturday, a first for an Irish nationalist in a historical milestone for […]
Northern Ireland to restore government after UK parliament approves deal
London/Belfast, UK Reuters Northern Ireland is set to elect a government on Saturday for the first time in two years after the British parliament agreed to revamp post-Brexit trade rules to break a political stalemate. In a historic first, Irish nationalists Sinn Fein are set to take the First Minister role after securing the most […]
After two years of deadlock, Northern Irish Government could return in days
Belfast, Northern Ireland Reuters Northern Irish and British politicians voiced optimism on Tuesday that the regional power-sharing government could be restored quickly following a breakthrough overnight, ending a near two-year crisis that threatened a key part of the 1998 peace deal. After months of negotiations, the leader of the Democratic Unionist Party said the party […]
Essay: Good Friday Agreement – the early 1990s back-channel between the IRA and British Government that made peace possible
In an article published on The Conversation, NIALL Ó DOCHARTAIGH, professor of political science at the University of Galway, looks at the role a back-channel of communication played in the peace process…
Northern Ireland has more Catholics than Protestants for first time
Belfast, Northern Ireland Reuters Northern Ireland has more Catholics than Protestants for the first time, census results showed on Thursday, a historic shift that some see as likely to help drive support for the region to split from Britain and join a united Ireland. The shift comes a century after the Northern Ireland state was […]
Belfast takes Sinn Fein’s historic election win in its stride
Belfast, Northern Ireland, UK Reuters Irish nationalists in Belfast toasted Sinn Fein’s historic election victory on Sunday while pro-British neighbours quietly fumed, but there was little sign the weekend’s political earthquake was about to rock this once-troubled city. In a victory that would have been unimaginable a few decades ago, the former political wing of […]
Essay: Bloody Sunday – as former British soldier faces murder charges, Northern Ireland is still divided by a legacy of violence
In an article first published on The Conversation, CONNAL PARR, of Northumbria University in Newcastle in the UK, looks how Northern Ireland is facing its past…