Political donations: NIO not promoting a transparent society

Image via Wikipedia

The decision of Hugo Swire MP to extend the legislation which prevents the public from finding out about donations to political parties in Northern Ireland is shameful. This is not reasonable.

As the Northern Ireland Liberal Democrats said in our submission to the Northern Ireland Office on this subject late last year,

1. A fair, free and open society “The Liberal Democrats exist to build and safeguard a fair, free and open society, in which we seek to balance the fundamental values of liberty, equality, and community and in which no one shall be enslaved, by poverty, ignorance or conformity.”

2. Openness and transparency

The Northern Ireland Liberal Democrats fully support the openness and transparency that would be brought about by the full implementation of the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000 in Northern Ireland.

3. Recommendation

Therefore, we support the implementation of Option 12, id est Allow the prescribed period to expire and make the full register of donations available to the public.

Our position has not changed. I do not understand what parties – if not individuals – have got to hide. There ought to be public outcry about this. However, some people may be prepared to continue with the status quo: perhaps they have too much invested in getting politicians to do as they want.

DUP First Minister calls to end school apartheid

First Minister Peter Robinson calls for end of "benign form of apartheid"

Yesterday in a speech the Rt Hon. Peter Robinson MLA, Northern Ireland’s First Minister, spoke about the need for to end the “benign apartheid” of the Northern Irish education system. He is advocating setting up a commission to looking at total integration of the different sectors.

There already is a growing integrated sector within the community but the First Minister does not believe this voluntary shift is moving fast enough, with enough ‘critical mass’  to make a real difference.

In calling for a commission to look at change the First Minister does acknowledge there will be difficulties such as religious education, school assembly devotions, the curriculum and that it will not be an overnight achievement.

“It may take ten years or longer to address this problem, which dates back many decades, but the real crime would be to accept the status quo for the sake of a quiet life.

“The benefits of such a system are not merely financial but could play a transformative role in changing society in Northern Ireland.”

Lagan College in 1981 Northern Ireland's first planned integrated secondary school

I’m glad to see the move to integrated education in Northern Ireland being raised at the highest level. When I was going up to secondary school, in 1981, a new project was starting at Lagan College (pictured) a first planned integrated secondary school. Twenty eight pupils that year attended classes in a scout hut. My parents being teachers toyed with the idea of sending me there, but not being certain of the levels of education attainment at that time decided against it.

These days a generation later my nephews attend an integrated primary school and hopefully will move on the integrated secondary.

As Mr Robinson says:

“Future generations will not thank us if we fail to address this issue.”

That is true and I hope that the First Minister will also look at another form of educational apartheid in some of our schools; the failure to acknowledge same-sex relationships in RSE classes (Relationships and Sexuality Education). Also the failure by some to set up homophobic bullying policies. If we’re going for total integration may as well make it do exactly what it says on the tin.

councils delay has gone to Poots

By now we should be well down the road for reorganisation of the local district councils in Northern Ireland from the 26 current district councils to the 11 council model. Sadly for some, though better for actual local democracy and relation of councillor to constituent, this has not happened.

According to the BBC, Northern Ireland’s Minister for the Environment, Edwin Poots, of the DUP, said that he

remained committed to reforming local government

Committed to reforming local government he may be, but not committed to bringing forward the legislation necessary to enable this to be done. For Mr Poots has failed to bring the Final Report of the Local Government Boundary Commission to the NI Assembly for final approval. Last November, we were still waiting, and we are still waiting today.

And today the Minister has decided to pull the plug on the funding for the Transition Committees. Whilst I have no problem in doing this, there is no point in them existing if we are not going to move to the eleven council model, we need to remember that it is not the Executive’s fault – nor the Assembly’s: it is the Minister’s fault himself. He is responsible for steering the requisite legislation through the NI Assembly. He has not even allowed the Final Recommendations of Dick Mackenzie to be approved – though this would appear to have something more to do with the actual boundaries between Belfast City Council area and the Lisburn City and Castlereagh merged council area.

cross posted from Gyronny Herald.