The furore surrounding the provision of job references for paedophiles and sexters by the party that provided a public reference for the misunderstood family man Freddie Scappaticci, while justified, has somewhat taken the heat of the party`s abysmal performance as the lead party in the NI Executive.
The current scandals appear to have derailed the strategy and based on current opinion polls the only hope NSF have of reaching the “big chair” in the South is if they amalgamate with Fine Gael. While this might be an appealing option to Mary Lou and other members of the centre right wing of NSF, I doubt very much that FG, who have a new bounce in their step, will be wooed. Failure to secure Government in Leinster House, this time round, leaves “the border poll 2030 project” dead in the water and the entire “movement” in need of a reboot. Mary Lou will soon discover that the “movement” devours their own without remorse.
In the north, the Executive is delivering nothing but more of the same for workers and families and the only thing that has changed is that instead of blaming “Tory austerity” the Shinners are now blaming Starmer. As one particularly astute commentator noted this week it would suit NSF if the Executive was to collapse and die, but it would not suit them to be the ones to collapse the Executive.
“Events dear boy events”
When the Fist Minister of Northern Ireland was unceremoniously sent packing from Downing Street with her Casement Park begging bowl, quickly followed by her socialist economy and finance Ministers, few chose to cast a critical eye on the not unsubstantial part that New Sinn Fein (NSF) themselves played in this debacle and the many reasons why NSF moved from a position of Casement being a red line to meekly accepting the diktat of the sovereign UK Government.
NSF misread the room, in relation to the “New” Labour Government, perhaps because of the mood music being supplied by Starmer’s now redundant advisor Sue Gray, who maintains a dubious relationship with both former Finance Minister O’Mulleoir and current Economy Minister Murphy.
The UK treasury, Labour MPs and the entire GB Civil Service were aghast that anyone who was enumerate, never mind a finance minister, was arguing for an investment equivalent to the £400m Olympic stadium in London for a football pitch in Andytown, that would, at best, host a few matches and concerts per year.
The socialist Minister Archibald met with the Chancellor 2 days before the official announcement and was left in no doubt that if Casement was to be built to FIFA standards then she would have to find the money. Dr Archibald, I am told was given what GB Civil Servants described as a “reality check” and what her own staff referred to as a “much needed kick in the arse”.
The good doctor, Archibald, who has quickly gained the reputation amongst her officials as having the fiscal acumen of Liz Truss and the competence of Catriona Ruane, left the Chancellery with her tail between legs. Having been given a very clear understanding that not only would “Super Casement” not be built with UK monies, but that she would have to supplement the block grant by raising revenue through the indirect taxation of “workers and families” (© Sinn Fein).
Duly obliging her colonial masters, the socialist republican Minister who had previously increased rates, promised further “progressive” revenue raising measures, such as removing winter fuel payments from pensioners. The Socialist Minister issued a caution to her fellow Ministers, warning them of “dire consequences” if they spent more than they were allocated by her department. No doubt it was the British that made her do it.
Having dutifully moved from the Connollyesque platitudes in their manifesto to an economic position that would have embarrassed Thatcher, the movement required choreography, and the UK Government was content to oblige. The spoon full of sugar that afforded Sinn Fein a modicum of self-respect and a line that the leadership could sell to their faithful was the announcement of the inquiry into the murder of Pat Finucane.
The reasoning behind the Finucane family’s acceptance of an inquiry that was on offer to them 18 years earlier, by Peter Hain, at such a critical juncture for NSF will never be known. However, I suspect that it may have more to do with ongoing negotiations on an overarching deal on legacy, that will address the tricky but paramount issues for NSF such as John Downey and Martin McAuley.
By the time, the British Secretary of State made the public announcement of Casement on a Friday evening, the NSF position had changed from one of “Super Casement” being a red line that might endanger Stormont to “Casement will be built”.
I was minded of a quote by Khrushchev who once opined that “politicians are the same all over. They promise to build bridges, even when there are no rivers”, and reflected on the fact that Casement would have been built had it not been for the incompetence of the previous NSF Ministers, including Hargey and Ni Chuilin.
No doubt Archibald was relieved that the news cycle had moved onto the references for paedophilia story and the subsequent cover up. The outing of Wee Niall and the Mag Uidhir scandal provided ample cover for her and her party’s inability to build a football pitch, as promised. Correspondingly the NSF decision to financially punish “workers and families” at the behest of the British Government, did not receive the serious political or media scrutiny that it warranted.
An inquisitive journalist, or a competent opposition in Stormont, could have sunk HMS NSF below the waterline. O’ Toole tried his best, but he made what once may have been a fatal error: he asked straight questions and naively expected straight responses from a party well versed in deception and sleight of hand.
The real story, was hiding in plain sight: NSF as represented by Archibald and O’Neill (the two most senior Ministers in Stormont) went to the Chancellor with their begging bowl, asking for three things:
The Brits being the Brits, behaved as one would expect any government to behave having just discovered a 22 billion budgetary deficit. They asked NSF to prioritise what it is was they wanted most, and as if by magic the demand for a super Casement was dropped for what had been on offer for 10 years.
The Chancellor reminded the dynamic duo that the block grant and the financial package on offer was what they had publicly signed up to only a few months earlier to support the restoration of Stormont. Perfidious Albion, who have actually been true to their word, agreed to review the current NI funding arrangements but forgot to mention to NSF, that this would also encompass a review of the “City Deals”.
NSF once again failed to read the small print of their “requests “to HM Government. HMG, having bared their teeth to NSF in the hope that they might finally understand fiscal prudence, rowed back on the city deals after the intervention of the SDLP inside Westminster. Senior Hurling indeed.
The priority for NSF was to secure the commitment to replace the EU funding which is critical for many community groups in NI. While O’Neill and Archibald were busy pleading with the UK chancellor, other prominent NSF dignitaries were lobbying the EU, the US and others imploring them to pressure the UK Treasury to live up to its pre-Brexit commitment on a replacement.
While this bizarre concern for an already burgeoning community sector, which has delivered nothing in real terms for the most disadvantaged in the north, may seem entirely altruistic of NSF, it should, of course, be viewed in the context of the “movement's” strategic priorities.
The 2006 internal NSF document somewhat optimistically titled the “Roadmap to Victory” commits NSF to:
The current scandals appear to have derailed the strategy and based on current opinion polls the only hope NSF have of reaching the “big chair” in the South is if they amalgamate with Fine Gael. While this might be an appealing option to Mary Lou and other members of the centre right wing of NSF, I doubt very much that FG, who have a new bounce in their step, will be wooed. Failure to secure Government in Leinster House, this time round, leaves “the border poll 2030 project” dead in the water and the entire “movement” in need of a reboot. Mary Lou will soon discover that the “movement” devours their own without remorse.
In the north, the Executive is delivering nothing but more of the same for workers and families and the only thing that has changed is that instead of blaming “Tory austerity” the Shinners are now blaming Starmer. As one particularly astute commentator noted this week it would suit NSF if the Executive was to collapse and die, but it would not suit them to be the ones to collapse the Executive.
“Events dear boy events”
When the Fist Minister of Northern Ireland was unceremoniously sent packing from Downing Street with her Casement Park begging bowl, quickly followed by her socialist economy and finance Ministers, few chose to cast a critical eye on the not unsubstantial part that New Sinn Fein (NSF) themselves played in this debacle and the many reasons why NSF moved from a position of Casement being a red line to meekly accepting the diktat of the sovereign UK Government.
NSF misread the room, in relation to the “New” Labour Government, perhaps because of the mood music being supplied by Starmer’s now redundant advisor Sue Gray, who maintains a dubious relationship with both former Finance Minister O’Mulleoir and current Economy Minister Murphy.
The UK treasury, Labour MPs and the entire GB Civil Service were aghast that anyone who was enumerate, never mind a finance minister, was arguing for an investment equivalent to the £400m Olympic stadium in London for a football pitch in Andytown, that would, at best, host a few matches and concerts per year.
The socialist Minister Archibald met with the Chancellor 2 days before the official announcement and was left in no doubt that if Casement was to be built to FIFA standards then she would have to find the money. Dr Archibald, I am told was given what GB Civil Servants described as a “reality check” and what her own staff referred to as a “much needed kick in the arse”.
The good doctor, Archibald, who has quickly gained the reputation amongst her officials as having the fiscal acumen of Liz Truss and the competence of Catriona Ruane, left the Chancellery with her tail between legs. Having been given a very clear understanding that not only would “Super Casement” not be built with UK monies, but that she would have to supplement the block grant by raising revenue through the indirect taxation of “workers and families” (© Sinn Fein).
Duly obliging her colonial masters, the socialist republican Minister who had previously increased rates, promised further “progressive” revenue raising measures, such as removing winter fuel payments from pensioners. The Socialist Minister issued a caution to her fellow Ministers, warning them of “dire consequences” if they spent more than they were allocated by her department. No doubt it was the British that made her do it.
Having dutifully moved from the Connollyesque platitudes in their manifesto to an economic position that would have embarrassed Thatcher, the movement required choreography, and the UK Government was content to oblige. The spoon full of sugar that afforded Sinn Fein a modicum of self-respect and a line that the leadership could sell to their faithful was the announcement of the inquiry into the murder of Pat Finucane.
The reasoning behind the Finucane family’s acceptance of an inquiry that was on offer to them 18 years earlier, by Peter Hain, at such a critical juncture for NSF will never be known. However, I suspect that it may have more to do with ongoing negotiations on an overarching deal on legacy, that will address the tricky but paramount issues for NSF such as John Downey and Martin McAuley.
By the time, the British Secretary of State made the public announcement of Casement on a Friday evening, the NSF position had changed from one of “Super Casement” being a red line that might endanger Stormont to “Casement will be built”.
I was minded of a quote by Khrushchev who once opined that “politicians are the same all over. They promise to build bridges, even when there are no rivers”, and reflected on the fact that Casement would have been built had it not been for the incompetence of the previous NSF Ministers, including Hargey and Ni Chuilin.
No doubt Archibald was relieved that the news cycle had moved onto the references for paedophilia story and the subsequent cover up. The outing of Wee Niall and the Mag Uidhir scandal provided ample cover for her and her party’s inability to build a football pitch, as promised. Correspondingly the NSF decision to financially punish “workers and families” at the behest of the British Government, did not receive the serious political or media scrutiny that it warranted.
An inquisitive journalist, or a competent opposition in Stormont, could have sunk HMS NSF below the waterline. O’ Toole tried his best, but he made what once may have been a fatal error: he asked straight questions and naively expected straight responses from a party well versed in deception and sleight of hand.
The real story, was hiding in plain sight: NSF as represented by Archibald and O’Neill (the two most senior Ministers in Stormont) went to the Chancellor with their begging bowl, asking for three things:
- The money for Super Casement
- A bigger block grant for NI and a review of the current funding arrangements
- A re-commitment to provide the EU funding to the community sector that would be lost as a result of Brexit.
The Brits being the Brits, behaved as one would expect any government to behave having just discovered a 22 billion budgetary deficit. They asked NSF to prioritise what it is was they wanted most, and as if by magic the demand for a super Casement was dropped for what had been on offer for 10 years.
The Chancellor reminded the dynamic duo that the block grant and the financial package on offer was what they had publicly signed up to only a few months earlier to support the restoration of Stormont. Perfidious Albion, who have actually been true to their word, agreed to review the current NI funding arrangements but forgot to mention to NSF, that this would also encompass a review of the “City Deals”.
NSF once again failed to read the small print of their “requests “to HM Government. HMG, having bared their teeth to NSF in the hope that they might finally understand fiscal prudence, rowed back on the city deals after the intervention of the SDLP inside Westminster. Senior Hurling indeed.
The priority for NSF was to secure the commitment to replace the EU funding which is critical for many community groups in NI. While O’Neill and Archibald were busy pleading with the UK chancellor, other prominent NSF dignitaries were lobbying the EU, the US and others imploring them to pressure the UK Treasury to live up to its pre-Brexit commitment on a replacement.
While this bizarre concern for an already burgeoning community sector, which has delivered nothing in real terms for the most disadvantaged in the north, may seem entirely altruistic of NSF, it should, of course, be viewed in the context of the “movement's” strategic priorities.
The 2006 internal NSF document somewhat optimistically titled the “Roadmap to Victory” commits NSF to:
use our membership in a strategic way on all civic and public bodies, community structures and political institutions to effect positive change.
The “Roadmap to Victory” was designed to support those who had transitioned into NSF following the army statement of 2005. It laid out in detail, the strategy, as it then was and exemplified community organisations that had been established by the “movement” as models of best practice.
This national objective was strengthened by the Cuige Uladh, who in 2006, redefined the strategic objective to: deepen our community roots (This means becoming embedded within the community as ONH was during the armed campaign).
One does not dismiss the success of the movement in embedding their membership into strategic positions in the community sector in the north particularly in Belfast. Well paid jobs, that are not scrutinised by funders, who fear “destabilising the peace process” have propelled many careers and maintained a loyalty to the movement that only a mortgage, a nice car and holiday home can engender.
In part two of this article, I will explore how the noble sentiments of “community, service and positive change” have been corrupted by the absolute need to control and dictate how billions of pounds of funding was allocated. Funding which was supposed to support working class communities emerge with dignity from a bloody conflict has been abused and misused by those who claim they will lead us to the Republic.
Absolute Power corrupts absolutely.
⏩Muiris Ó Súilleabháin was a member of the Republican Movement until he retired in 2006 after 20 years of service. Fiche bhliain ag fás.
