Category Archives: Northern Ireland

Lack of NI government puts net zero targets at risk, UK climate adviser warns

Posted on by

Climate Change Committee says little hope of getting on track if Stormont power sharing not restored soon

The prolonged lack of devolved government in Northern Ireland threatens to seriously hamper the country’s ability to hit the ambitious emissions reduction targets enshrined by law in its climate act, the chief executive of the UK’s Climate Change Committee (CCC) has said.

There has been no power-sharing government in place to advance work on meeting these commitments since Northern Ireland’s Climate Change Act, which includes a 2050 net zero target, was passed last spring.

Continue reading...

Royal College of Nursing rejects government pay offer and announces new strike – as it happened

Posted on by

This live blog has now closed, you can read more on this story here

Nurses in England are preparing to go on strike until Christmas after members of the country’s biggest nursing union voted against the government’s pay deal, the Guardian has learned.

The Royal College of Nursing will announce that members have rejected the government’s offer and will at the same time announce a new ballot for more aggressive strikes likely to last for the next six months.

The vote has closed and the figures are being verified. There is no result until that point. We will make an announcement later today and tell our members first.

Members of the GMB union at the company’s Coventry fulfilment centre will walk out on Sunday for three days.

Further strikes are planned from April 21 to 23.

Continue reading...

White House rejects claim that Biden ‘hates the UK’ as he prepares to meet Sunak – politics live

Posted on by

Latest updates: US president is not ‘anti-British’ as DUP has claimed, says White House

Joe Biden is “not anti-British,” one of his most senior aides has said in response to accusations by the former Democratic Unionist party leader Arlene Foster that the US president “hates the UK”. (See 10.37am.)

Just hours after he arrived in Belfast, the purpose of Biden’s short visit to Northern Ireland was being questioned by unionists who have been boycotting power-sharing arrangements in Northern Ireland for more than a year meaning the territory has no devolved government.

I think the track record of of the president shows that he is not anti-British. The president has been very actively engaged throughout his career dating back to when he was a senator in the peace process in Northern Ireland and that involved engagement with leaders of all of Northern Ireland parties from both of the two main communities.

I think his message to the DUP and to all the political leaders is going to be … the continued strong support for seeing the peace process move forward here and the strong desire by this president to increase US investment in Northern Ireland to take advantage of the vast economic potential that that seems here, and to reiterate broad support for the returning of the devolved government in Northern Ireland.

He hates the United Kingdom, I don’t think there’s any doubt about that.

I just think the fact he’s coming here won’t put any pressure on the DUP at all, quite the reverse actually, because he’s seen by so many people as just simply pro-republican and pro-nationalist.

Continue reading...

Man suspected of being Stakeknife, Britain’s top spy in IRA, dies

Posted on by

Death of Freddie Scappaticci, who always denied he was mole, puts question mark over inquiry into his alleged crimes

The man said to be the British army’s most important agent inside the Provisional IRA has died, putting a question mark over the inquiry into his alleged crimes and the role played by security forces.

Freddie Scappaticci, a west Belfast former bricklayer who was alleged to have been a top mole known as Stakeknife, died and was buried last week, it emerged on Tuesday. He was in his 70s.

Continue reading...

Joe Biden to meet Rishi Sunak before keynote speech at Ulster University

Posted on by

President expected to emphasise US’s commitment to ensuring peace in Northern Ireland as he begins visit to island of Ireland

Joe Biden will hold a meeting with Rishi Sunak in Belfast on Wednesday before a keynote speech in which he is expected to emphasise the US’s commitment to ensuring lasting peace and prosperity for Northern Ireland.

US officials said the president would be “underscoring the readiness of the United States to support Northern Ireland’s vast economic potential to the benefit of all communities” with the prospect of major investments if power-sharing is restored in Stormont.

Continue reading...

Derry crowd petrol-bombs police vehicle as Joe Biden heads to Northern Ireland

Posted on by

Land Rover was monitoring a dissident republican parade commemorating the 1916 Rising

The British and Irish governments have condemned petrol bomb attacks on police in Derry on the eve of Joe Biden’s visit to Northern Ireland.

A small crowd threw petrol bombs and other missiles at a police Land Rover during a parade by dissident republicans in the Creggan area of the city on Monday. The vehicle briefly caught fire and was withdrawn.

Continue reading...

York and Shetland sites join UK bids for Unesco world heritage status

Posted on by

The list of hopefuls also includes sites in Birkenhead, Northern Ireland and the Cayman Islands

The historic city centre of York and ancient settlements in the Shetlands are among seven sites backed by the UK government to win Unesco world heritage status, it has been announced.

York, which boasts the Minster and enjoys a rich history bequeathed by its Anglo-Saxon, Viking and Norman inhabitants, and three ancient settlements known as the “zenith of iron age Shetland” join five other sites announced on the “tentative list” to bid for the status.

Continue reading...

Good Friday agreement ‘based on compromise’, Sunak says on 25th anniversary

Posted on by

PM says ‘work to be done’ to restore government at Stormont ahead of Biden meeting on Tuesday

The Good Friday agreement was “based on compromise”, which should be the defining message for the next chapter in Northern Ireland, Rishi Sunak has said on the peace deal’s 25th anniversary.

The prime minister said there was “work to be done” by a new generation of politicians to restore government at Stormont “as soon as possible”, as he and Ireland’s taoiseach, Leo Varadkar, prepare to intensify work to broker a way out of the deadlock.

Continue reading...

Northern Ireland police warn of potential dissident attacks on Easter Monday

Posted on by

Warning comes ahead of US president Joe Biden’s much-anticipated visit to Belfast on Tuesday

Police in Northern Ireland are warning of potential dissident republican attacks over the Easter weekend, as the Democratic Unionist party leader, Sir Jeffrey Donaldson, said the lack of a government in Stormont was not to blame for the increasing threat of violence.

Tensions have increased as the bank holiday weekend marks the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday agreement. The date falls on Easter Monday though many will mark it on Friday, given its association with the day.

Continue reading...

Biden brings forward Belfast visit, putting meeting with king in doubt

Posted on by

Charles and president likely to instead stage back-to-back visits to mark 25 years of Good Friday agreement

Hopes that Joe Biden’s landmark trip to Belfast next month will be rounded off by a meeting with King Charles are fading after the US president brought forward by a week his trip to celebrate 25 years of peace.

It now appears likely the king and the president will stage back-to-back visits in an echo of historic visits to Dublin by Barack Obama and the queen in 2011.

Continue reading...

Northern Ireland terrorism threat level rises to ‘severe’

Posted on by

MI5 increases level from ‘substantial’, meaning an attack is highly likely

MI5 has increased the terrorism threat level in Northern Ireland from substantial to severe, meaning an attack is highly likely, the Northern Ireland secretary, Chris Heaton-Harris, has said.

Heaton-Harris cited a “small number” of individuals who remain determined to use “politically motivated violence”.

Continue reading...

Rishi Sunak stresses ‘close partnership’ with Israel amid protests at Benjamin Netanyahu visit – live

Posted on by

UK prime minister meets Israeli PM at Downing Street as Oxfam and Amnesty condemn visit amid protests in Whitehall

Downing Street described Israel as a “vital international partner” after Rishi Sunak’s meeting with Benjamin Netanyahu this morning. At the morning lobby briefing the PM’s spokesperson said:

Israel is a vital international partner for the United Kingdom and the prime minister was visiting London, and this was an important opportunity to talk about issues that matter to both countries, whether that’s the threat of Iran, Russia, new trade and investment … as well as peace and stability in the Middle East.

The prime minister expressed his solidarity with Israel in the face of terrorist attacks in recent months. The UK would always stand with Israel and its ability to defend itself. At the same time, the PM outlined international concern at growing tensions in the West Bank and the risk of undermining efforts towards the two state solution. He encouraged all efforts to de-escalate, particularly ahead of the upcoming religious holidays.

The prime minister stressed the importance of upholding the democratic values that underpin our relationship, including in the proposed judicial reforms in Israel.

The prime minister welcomed Israel’s prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu to Downing Street today for talks on strengthening the close partnership between the United Kingdom and Israel.

The two leaders welcomed the signing of the UK-Israel 2030 Roadmap this week, which will drive our bilateral relationship forward and commit £20m in funding for joint science and technology projects over the next decade.

We would not accept any Scottish government simply vetoing parts of the Bute House agreement.

Those policies are in the Bute House agreement, that’s what we’re intended to deliver.

Continue reading...

Boris Johnson insists Partygate leaving dos were ‘essential for work purposes’ during grilling by MPs – as it happened

Posted on by

Former PM suggests ‘unsocially distanced farewell gatherings’ were allowed at work and that he didn’t think following guidance meant following it perfectly

Turning back to the Northern Ireland protocol deal vote for a moment, Steve Baker, the Northern Ireland minister, has said that Boris Johnson risks being remembered as a “pound shop Nigel Farage” for his stance on the Windsor framework.

Baker said that reviving the Northern Ireland protocol bill, Johnson’s declared alternative to Rishi Sunak’s deal (see 9.40am), would “wreck our relations with the European Union and damage our standing internationally”. Sky’s Sam Coates has posted the full quote on Twitter.

Continue reading...

Sunak evades damaging Commons rebellion as NI Brexit plan passes

Posted on by

Boris Johnson and Liz Truss among 22 Tory rebels voting against deal agreed with European Commission

Rishi Sunak has escaped an overly damaging Commons rebellion over his revised plan for post-Brexit Northern Ireland trade, winning a vote on the measure with 22 of his own MPs voting against the deal.

Among the Conservative rebels were Boris Johnson and Liz Truss, another former party leader, Iain Duncan Smith, and the former cabinet ministers Jacob Rees-Mogg, Priti Patel and Simon Clarke.

Continue reading...

Boris Johnson ‘very much looking forward’ to appearing before MPs investigating whether he misled parliament over Partygate – as it happened

Posted on by

Former prime minister says he believes evidence shows he did not recklessly mislead parliament over Partygate

Boris Johnson claims there is no document showing that he was given “any warning or advice” than any No 10 event may have broken Covid rules. He says:

It is clear from that investigation that there is no evidence at all that supports an allegation that I intentionally or recklessly misled the house. The only exception is the assertions of the discredited Dominic Cummings, which are not supported by any documentation.

There is not a single document that indicates that I received any warning or advice that any event broke or may have broken the rules or guidance. In fact, the evidence before the committee demonstrates that those working at No 10 at the time shared my honest belief that the rules and guidance were being followed.

I accept that the House of Commons was misled by my statements that the rules and guidance had been followed completely at No 10. But when the statements were made, they were made in good faith and on the basis of what I honestly knew and believed at the time.

Continue reading...

‘A spirit of goodwill’: Michel Barnier praises Northern Ireland Brexit plan

Posted on by

Rishi Sunak’s attitude ‘much more responsible’ than that of Boris Johnson, says former EU negotiator

The EU’s former Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier has praised the agreement on Northern Ireland between the union and the British government as a positive step that turns a page in relations between the two sides.

In an interview with the Guardian, the veteran French politician said the Windsor framework agreement signed by Rishi Sunak and the European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, last month, “operationalised” the Northern Ireland protocol he had negotiated with the British government in 2019. “There was a spirit of goodwill for the first time in three years, to find solutions that are concrete, operational and realistic.”

Continue reading...

Boris Johnson set to submit Partygate dossier, saying he didn’t deliberately mislead MPs – UK politics live

Posted on by

Former PM expected to attack privileges committee inquiry as unfair before appearing before it on Wednesday

Downing Street has rejected a claim that government announcements are being held back this week because of all the media attention that the Boris Johnson privileges hearing will get. Asked about the claim (see 11.36am), the PM’s spokesperson said:

There is a large number of announcements being made this week, whether that’s on support for low-income households on energy, and obviously the vote on the Stormont brake on Wednesday so it is a significant week for government.

It’s wrong to suggest government business changes as a result of this committee hearing.

Continue reading...

Brexit: DUP to vote against government over Windsor framework

Posted on by

Jeffrey Donaldson confirms unionist party will oppose Sunak plan for Northern Ireland in this week’s vote

The Democratic Unionist party (DUP) is to vote against the government in this week’s first parliamentary vote on the new Windsor framework Brexit deal.

Party officers met on Monday and made a unanimous decision to reject Rishi Sunak’s revised plan for post-Brexit trade arrangements in Northern Ireland, the DUP leader, Sir Jeffrey Donaldson, said in a statement.

Continue reading...

Several Tory MPs may join DUP in voting against Brexit ‘Stormont brake’

Posted on by

Anger among European Research Group over vote on key part of Windsor framework for Northern Ireland

Rishi Sunak faces a reckoning from hardline Brexiters on his backbenches who are prepared to follow the Democratic Unionist party in voting against a key element of his “Windsor framework” that overhauls the Northern Ireland protocol.

Anger is rising among those in the European Research Group at ministers using a vote on a statutory instrument to implement the “Stormont brake” on Wednesday, as a proxy for MPs to have their say on the whole deal.

Continue reading...

Leo Varadkar meets Biden after apparent Clinton-Lewinsky joke

Posted on by

Irish leader meets US president at White House for traditional St Patrick’s Day event a day after making gaffe

Ireland’s taoiseach, Leo Varadkar, has apologised for making an apparent joke about Bill Clinton’s affair with Monica Lewinsky, during an event in Washington on the eve of St Patrick’s Day celebrations.

Varadkar’s comment on Thursday risked overshadowing his meeting with Joe Biden at the White House on Friday for the traditional handing over of a bowl of shamrock to the US president, the most important day in the Irish-American political calendar.

Continue reading...