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Speech delivered by Baroness Kate Hoey in the House of Lords on 29 November 2021 My Lords, it is a genuine pleasure to follow the noble Lord, Lord Bew. I was getting rather ahead of myself. His knowledge of Northern Ireland is probably greater than anyone else’s in your Lordships’ House, so I apologise to […]
By Jamie Bryson In a remarkable volte face before the Court of Appeal, the Government contrived a brand new argument in regards to the conflict between the Protocol and the Acts of Union. They have now abandoned the assertion that the Acts of Union is subject to implied repeal, but instead suggest that section 7A […]
By Jamie Bryson It is patently obvious that there is a clear and obvious (likely Northern Ireland Office inspired) effort to condition unionism and loyalism to accept some form of Protocol, and thus by extension the fundamental erosion of the core tenets of the Union. We have seen this in the increasingly bizarre language coming […]
By Jamie Bryson The principle of nationalist interpretation- referred to more commonly as the ‘spirit’ of the Belfast Agreement- has two limbs. Firstly, every constructive ambiguity must be resolved in favour of nationalists, and secondly if the overriding objective (the progression of the ‘process’ of dismantling the Union) requires it, then exceptions or new clauses […]
By Jamie Bryson There is simply no credible analysis which can provide a cogent justification for continued unionist support for the Belfast Agreement, or the institutions flowing from it. It is trite to point out, evidenced by the recent ‘constitutional statement’ by PUP leader Billy Hutchinson, that even those who campaigned in favour of the […]
By Jamie Bryson Today’s statement by PUP leader Billy Hutchinson is a significant constitutional contribution. During an interview with BBC Talkback (generally referred to as ‘TalkNationalist by the loyalist community) the presenter William Crawley sought to twist and misrepresent the content of the statement. Firstly, Mr Crawley appears to entirely misunderstand Billy Hutchinson’s point on […]
By Stacey Graham “Loyalists have had it easy”- That is what an anonymous Twitter account told me today after I shared Loyalist Jim Wilson’s opinion piece on policing. Jim (rightly) highlighted in his piece that relations between the RUC and Loyalists were not as some would lead us to believe and the narrative that it […]
QBy Andrew McQuillan @ajmcq1993 What does the state of policing in Northern Ireland, twenty years after the departure of the RUC, say about the political and societal condition of the place today? One of the most common takeaways at the time of the rebranding – or depending on your point of view, demise – of […]
By Jim Wilson I was nineteen years old when I was arrested and interned in Long Kesh. I need not point out the obvious reality that this transpired without any due process, any evidence of any offence being put to me. If you were to listen to the historical narrative, you would believe internment was […]
In a lengthy discussion, Jamie Bryson and Billy Hutchinson discuss loyalism and policing. Billy provides an outline of loyalism’s historic troubled relationship with the RUC, discusses the concerns over two tier policing post the creation of the PSNI and sets out his vision for how trust in policing can be repaired within PUL communities. https://youtu.be/w5aaP5Krlb8