Spin but no substance
19 February 2010
Responding to the DUP’s ‘New Deal’ publication TUV Leader Jim Allister said:
“This pitiful document is most significant for what it conceals.
- It fails to admit the ‘new deal’ is an exclusive DUP/Sinn Fein deal in which Sinn Fein got their key demand of early devolution of policing & justice to their terrorist-inclusive Executive.
- It forgets to say its only an interim deal, postponing Sinn Fein’s aspirations on the Justise portfolio for a mere 2 years.
- It conveniently ignores all its abandoned pre-conditions, like Jeffrey Donaldson's pledge that the Full-time Reserve would stay and the IRA Army Council would go. And, of course, no mention of Lord Morrow's pledge of no p & j to this Assembly.
- It fails to mention the Sinn Fein veto meantime on every key Justice decision.
- It conceals the fact that McGuinness gets to jointly appoint the Attorney General and those who appoint the judges.
- it claims no Irish Language Act but ignores the pledge to an Irish Language Strategy, already given a helping hand with £20m.
- it boasts ‘progress’ on parades but forgets to say that means a review of a review and mandatory dialogue with objectors and adjudicators jointly handpicked by McGuinness;
- it pretends no extra north/southery but omits to mention Section 5 of the Agreement which will bring forward all outstanding St Andrews issues, including an expansion of the north south bodies and all-Ireland civil and parliamentary fora.
- It conveniently ignores that throughout the negotiations the DUP meekly accepted the joint authority of Brian Cowen in what is supposedly an internal Strand one issue.
- It totally fails to explain what is new in the deal rejected on a Monday, but accepted on a Thursday – nothing, of course.
“The inescapable truth is that despite all the DUP’s pretence and bluster, Hillsborough was a humiliating defeat, with push-over unionism once more delivering the Sinn Fein agenda. Petrified of an election the DUP caved in to every Sinn Fein demand. Sadly, it was IRA/Sinn Fein left Hillsborough triumphant, laughing all the way to their next staging post.
