The Good Friday Agreement and the Election Results

Opening a debate just to see other members thoughts on the subject.

As a result of the election our Prime Minister has in order for the Government to have a majority has enlisted the support of the DUP., which now is the only political party of N.I., which has representatives in the House of Commons and speak in support of the people of N.I.

How will Sinn Fein see this pact with the DUP., and the British Government, because it could be argued by them that the government is no longer acting as a neutral party under the agreement but putting it's weight and finances behind the DUP., at the expense of the Catholic minority. We could well be back to a 1960's situation. However, things may look on the surface in N.I., the DUP., and Sinn Fein are only the visible and legal parts on the military wings of both organisations. The military structures and memberships of both sides ( In my opinion ) are still in being, together with weapon dumps or the ability to secure weapons, ammunition etc., and once again be mobilised to enforce a political / secterian aim.

To be quite honest I do not want British troops back on the streets of N.I., supporting the civil authority because of the ineptitude of a British Government and a Prime Minister who only wishes to continue in her office.

Hi..I fully agree with the above. But there is, I think, another issue here. I think I am right but not sure. There are also 7 Sinn Fein MP's in NI, which I believe are entitled to sit in Westminster. They have never done so, but there is nothing to stop them. So if they now decided to take up their seats as a result of this DUP deal it would effectively wipe out the PM's ''on paper'' majority. I do not know how well this would ''go down'' with other MP's But I think that this is something that needs to be considered.

I don't like it. The impartiality is no longer there. The government has to be seen by nationalists as an "honest broker". This situation is potentially detremental to the continued peace process.

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Originally Posted by vori101

Hi..I fully agree with the above. But there is, I think, another issue here. I think I am right but not sure. There are also 7 Sinn Fein MP's in NI, which I believe are entitled to sit in Westminster. They have never done so, but there is nothing to stop them. So if they now decided to take up their seats as a result of this DUP deal it would effectively wipe out the PM's ''on paper'' majority. I do not know how well this would ''go down'' with other MP's But I think that this is something that needs to be considered.

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Even if SF went to Westminster the conservatives with the DuP still out number the remaining parties

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Originally Posted by vori101

Hi..I fully agree with the above. But there is, I think, another issue here. I think I am right but not sure. There are also 7 Sinn Fein MP's in NI, which I believe are entitled to sit in Westminster. They have never done so, but there is nothing to stop them. So if they now decided to take up their seats as a result of this DUP deal it would effectively wipe out the PM's ''on paper'' majority. I do not know how well this would ''go down'' with other MP's But I think that this is something that needs to be considered.

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Morning All, I believe that Sinn Fein MP's refusal to take up their seats at Westminster is because they would be required to take an " Oath of Allegiance ", to the Crown.

yes I agree But the problem is made more interesting by the fact that the DUP has said this AM that a deal has not been reached. and is not expected until next week. Sadly she is trying any Twist ,Turn or Ruse to cling on to power which from the point of view of the Country is a Prescription for Disaster. But the addition of the SF MP's might restore any imbalance with regard to the GF Agreement. This has become a Nightmare Situation, and is probably not being helped by the thought of a Fresh Election in October. which is being Rumoured. As you are probably aware I am not a fan of Mrs May. But I am certainly not in favour of someone, of whatever party, who no longer has the Authority of the Country, hanging on. She may have ''won'' but she has lost her credibility as a leader, and as a result can no longer speak for the people.

What confuses me is even if labour formed a minority government then we still have the problem that nothing will get done because then the conservatives and DUP will vote it down we will be in a state of limbo

yes ,you are right. but I would not trust the DUP. to remain loyal to the Conservatives in that situation, they are obviously now in a position to look after themselves, to get the best deals they can and remember they were there on a remain ticket. It is an impossible situation. I honestly can not see Mrs May solving this even if she can get the whole of her party behind her. as the other problem is if she can not do that then she can not even count on her own people. But the same applies to Labour which has to an extent a similar problem. But I think he would at least have the support of his people. a nightmare.

The trouble is that May got the votes with a terrible manifesto and whilst Corbyn and labour did well he is still a leader who even with a rise in his popularity was still less liked by the British public then May.Just makes you wonder if the conservatives had a more popular leader but we won't go to far into that because someone will move this thread and lose half of it

I think you have a good point there. But it is going to be in there best interest to support any party that is going to keep the ''status quo'' within the area. so I think we may be going to see a very dramatic change in the Brexit stance, which Mrs May, probably will not accept. but I can not see any other option.

If we end up going down the Norwegian road then we might as well stay where we are within the EU as going down the route that the Norwegians have will probably cost us more then it does now

There is another road the Tories can go down do a deal with the DUP get the queens speech over with the Tories then oust Mrs may in around six months or so elect another Tory leader call another general election phew then here we go again

Don't know much about the DUP but they are the only party that are against the prosecution of former soldiers during the troubles in Northern Ireland2. Immunity for British soldiers in legacy cases

This relates to the retrospective prosecution of soldiers for alleged crimes committed during the Troubles between 1969 and 2005. The Conservatives are politically – and emotionally – committed to ending prosecutions and delivering immunity for former British troops.
The Tories’ traditional support for the armed forces means that there will be pressure to drop certain high profile cases. These include as many as 18 former soldiers under investigation for the massacre of 14 civilians on Bloody Sunday in 1972, and 75-year old Dennis Hutchings, who appeared in an Armagh court last March for the fatal shooting of a man with learning difficulties in Benburb, County Tyrone, in 1974. Barra McGrory, the outgoing director of public prosecutions, has hinted at other potential actions against British soldiers – cases that could be put into cold storage.
Several cases are ongoing and pending. They are viewed by British veterans and unionists as disproportionately targeting British security forces as opposed to Irish Republicans. This issue has so far been largely ignored by most commentators.