Irish hypocrisy

[Ashtree]

All through the Brexit negotiations, we were told that it would be impossible to have any sort of settlement that that resulted in border posts. That has now been shown to be complete hyprocrisy.

Along comes a virus and suddenly the Irish Police are setting up fixed and mobile checkpoints on the border to ensure that northern folk do not get to their holiday homes for the Easter holidays!

Utter hyprocrisy!

Coronavirus: Irish police get powers to enforce Covid-19 rules

Irish minister for health signs regulations giving gardaí new powers to enforce restrictions.

www.bbc.co.uk

What an absolute miserable and peevish post. Absolute dregs of the imagination.
Keep safe and don’t be gallivanting about the place, like those irresponsible people heading to their holiday homes in Donegal. I saw a PSNI and Garda Officer shoulder to shoulder on the RTE news a few nights ago, both say they would police the border area , to restrict these irresponsibles for the common good, both sides of the border.

On another positive note, Mrs. Ashtree and I had booked a trip to Belfast, Titanic Centre etc, this coming weekend. The very nice lady who owns guesthouse we booked, called to say we could reschedule any time, with an extra 5% discount as an incentive.

 

[M-J-G]

Isn't the UK along with dozens of other nations doing things that they hadn't planned before.

I don't have to pay VAT next month and can delay paying my tax this year too, yet up until now the Government said they needed me to pay it, and further more they are paying 80% of people's wages, yet before they wanted them to work and earn it, what hypocritical behaviour.

 

[nivilla1982]

Owen Polley: Nationalists for political ends tried to overturn measured advice to schools on coronavirus

Even in the bloody history of Irish nationalism, trying to exploit the coronavirus to further an all-Ireland agenda is as low as it gets.

www.newsletter.co.uk

Sinn Fein has politicised the virus | TheArticle

Northern Ireland went into the coronavirus crisis with some unenviable disadvantages. The NHS here has been badly ...

www.thearticle.com

 

[Ashtree]

Owen Polley: Nationalists for political ends tried to overturn measured advice to schools on coronavirus

Even in the bloody history of Irish nationalism, trying to exploit the coronavirus to further an all-Ireland agenda is as low as it gets.

www.newsletter.co.uk

Sinn Fein has politicised the virus | TheArticle

Northern Ireland went into the coronavirus crisis with some unenviable disadvantages. The NHS here has been badly ...

www.thearticle.com

SF sure as hell have reason to challenge Arlene’s slavish loyalty to the Boris / Tory Party orthodoxy. Dear old Arlene just doesn’t learn, does she?


UK was too slow on coronavirus and 40,000 could die, professor says
https://reut.rs/2KgVvOY

 

[M-J-G]

We saw what the ROI government really thinks of NI with regards to the recent PPE debacle, good job Boris stepped in and sent us some over.

Guard that PPE well, Boris might be over to take it back soon.

 

[JimAndy]

Arlene is in charge, so she has the ultimate say, the rest are just her subordinates so how the country is run is a reflection of what she allows to happen, be that good or bad.

I can see why you think this due to the titles of first and deputy first minister But Arlene and Michelle are in fact Equals and each have/share the same powers

 

[nivilla1982]

Indeed that is why some politicians/commentators regularly use the phrase "co equal first ministers".

 

[M-J-G]

I can see why you think this due to the titles of first and deputy first minister But Arlene and Michelle are in fact Equals and each have/share the same powers

So Arlene doesn't have the final say, and can be overruled by her deputy?
I didn't realise that.

 

[JimAndy]

again she not her deputy . she is Co jointed first leader. nether can "overrule" the other. that part of the problem with N.I. politics if one says a crow Black the other will say the crow is white, and then we the alliance who tell us the grow is grey

 

[M-J-G]

again she not her deputy . she is Co jointed first leader. nether can "overrule" the other. that part of the problem with N.I. politics if one says a crow Black the other will say the crow is white, and then we the alliance who tell us the grow is grey

So Arlene's title might as well be deputy since they are equals, and neither of them can take credit for good outcomes or be blamed for the bad. Lucky them.

 

[Ashtree]

Arlene however missed a glorious chance to travel a road, independent of the Tory party, and more importantly independent of Boris. She and Unionism had after all, just been through the royalist of all shaftings, compliments of Boris. Right there she had a licence to take stock and create a little space between her and unionists blind loyalty to “English Etonian”, self cantered rule, for which recent history has proven that, Ulster Unionists are mere cannon fodder to be used, when Westminster parliamentary arithmetic requires.

Why didn’t Arlene take the opportunity, which most likely she personally wanted to take?
Simple really, she would have been seen by Unionist backwoods men, as taking a policy too much in synch with ROI. That along with the impending cash for ash corruption inquiry, thwarted her capacity to take a position of real leadership.

 

[yin ewe]

Perhaps because we are still part of the UK, that and Leo has done a fair job of shafting our doctors and nurses in the quite recent history.

 

[M-J-G]

Arlene however missed a glorious chance to travel a road, independent of the Tory party, and more importantly independent of Boris. She and Unionism had after all, just been through the royalist of all shaftings, compliments of Boris. Right there she had a licence to take stock and create a little space between her and unionists blind loyalty to “English Etonian”, self cantered rule, for which recent history has proven that, Ulster Unionists are mere cannon fodder to be used, when Westminster parliamentary arithmetic requires.

Why didn’t Arlene take the opportunity, which most likely she personally wanted to take?
Simple really, she would have been seen by Unionist backwoods men, as taking a policy too much in synch with ROI. That along with the impending cash for ash corruption inquiry, thwarted her capacity to take a position of real leadership.

To be fair Arlene can do what she wants, she could sh!t on people's doorstep and they'd still vote for her.
There's no other choice, you can't split the vote and let the RA in.
In reality (albeit to a lesser extend) the nationalists are almost as limited for choice.

 

[Ashtree]

Perhaps because we are still part of the UK, that and Leo has done a fair job of shafting our doctors and nurses in the quite recent history.

Help me understand how Leo shafted your doctors and nurses? I’m genuinely interested!
Be specific and fill in the details, if your reason is around the PPE issue mentioned on here regularly.

 

[yin ewe]

BBC News
menu
Coronavirus: Murphy confirms Chinese PPE order failed

• 03 April 2020
• Northern Ireland

Share this with Email Share this with Facebook Share this with Twitter Share this with Whatsapp
Image copyrightBRIAN LAWLESS/PA WIRE

Image captionConor Murphy is the finance minister in the Stormont executive
Finance Minister Conor Murphy has confirmed that an order for Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) from China was not completed.
Last week he said a joint consignment was agreed between NI and the Irish government.
But on Friday he said that the plan failed when "major economic powers entered the global race for PPE".
Meanwhile, NI will receive over five million items of PPE including goggles, aprons and masks from Great Britain.
The Health Secretary Matt Hancock made the announcement at the British government's daily press conference, where he said the order had been agreed with the Stormont executive.
The detail comes as 12 more people died with coronavirus in NI in the past 24 hours - the highest daily total so far.
A further 130 people tested positive for the virus.
On Friday afternoon, Mr Murphy said he had agreed to process an order for PPE with Dublin from China last week, and was arranging the transfer of pay when a number of "significant players had moved in", thwarting the order.
He said he had only found out on Thursday that "intense international demand" had scuppered the bid, but that would not give up.
"All week we were trying to secure that route but it was not possible," he told BBC News NI, adding there were Invest NI staff on the ground working to find an alternative supplier.

Coronavirus cases in Northern Ireland. . .

Coronavirus cases in Northern Ireland. . .
In a statement to BBC News NI, the Republic of Ireland's Department of Health said it had not been possible to place the joint order, due to what it said was "the context of what is an increasingly challenging international environment" for such equipment.
"We are ready to discuss any area where we can cooperate effectively, North and South, including on procurement of PPE and critical supplies," a spokesperson said.
"In relation to procurement, while it has not so far proved possible to place a joint order in the context of what is an increasingly challenging international environment, discussions between procurement teams are ongoing and active.
"It remains our intention to continue to co-operate in this area."

• EASY STEPS: How to keep safe
• A SIMPLE GUIDE: What are the symptoms?
• CONTAINMENT: What it means to self-isolate
• HEALTH MYTHS: The fake advice you should ignore
• MAPS AND CHARTS: Visual guide to the outbreak
• VIDEO: The 20-second hand wash

Later on Friday, at the daily briefing in Dublin, the Irish Chief Medical Officer, Dr Tony Holohan, said he was in almost daily contact with his NI counterpart Dr Michael McBride and he had not indicated anything about a joint PPE bid.
When Mr Murphy announced at the end of March that the joint PPE order had been agreed, he said he hoped it would be supplied to frontline workers in NI as soon as possible.

• Historic Ireland-China PPE flight lands in Dublin

He did not detail the size of the order, but said it should "satisfy our supply demands".
Health Minister Robin Swann he was acutely aware of the concerns about PPE but that his department was working with Mr Murphy's officials to secure as much equipment as possible.
In other developments:

• The first Northern Ireland testing site for health staff will go live this weekend at the SSE Arena car park, with tests from County Antrim firm Randox being used in the initiative
• A consortium including Queens University Belfast and Ulster University has been set up to scale up diagnostic testing in Northern Ireland
• The executive has agreed a support package for the Northern Ireland fishing industry
• There have been 13,900 expressions of interest for the NHS workforce appeal in Northern Ireland, with the first recruits expected to be deployed on Monday
• Predicted grades provided by schools will be used to decide results for pupils in Northern Ireland who take A-Levels through English exam board

More on this story

Coronavirus: 'Significant order' of PPE from China
27 March 2020
Copyright © 2020 BBC. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites.

 

[M-J-G]

Who stepped in to take what they had ordered?

 

[Ashtree]

BBC News
menu
Coronavirus: Murphy confirms Chinese PPE order failed

• 03 April 2020
• Northern Ireland

Share this with Email Share this with Facebook Share this with Twitter Share this with Whatsapp
Image copyrightBRIAN LAWLESS/PA WIRE

Image captionConor Murphy is the finance minister in the Stormont executive
Finance Minister Conor Murphy has confirmed that an order for Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) from China was not completed.
Last week he said a joint consignment was agreed between NI and the Irish government.
But on Friday he said that the plan failed when "major economic powers entered the global race for PPE".
Meanwhile, NI will receive over five million items of PPE including goggles, aprons and masks from Great Britain.
The Health Secretary Matt Hancock made the announcement at the British government's daily press conference, where he said the order had been agreed with the Stormont executive.
The detail comes as 12 more people died with coronavirus in NI in the past 24 hours - the highest daily total so far.
A further 130 people tested positive for the virus.
On Friday afternoon, Mr Murphy said he had agreed to process an order for PPE with Dublin from China last week, and was arranging the transfer of pay when a number of "significant players had moved in", thwarting the order.
He said he had only found out on Thursday that "intense international demand" had scuppered the bid, but that would not give up.
"All week we were trying to secure that route but it was not possible," he told BBC News NI, adding there were Invest NI staff on the ground working to find an alternative supplier.

Coronavirus cases in Northern Ireland. . .

Coronavirus cases in Northern Ireland. . .
In a statement to BBC News NI, the Republic of Ireland's Department of Health said it had not been possible to place the joint order, due to what it said was "the context of what is an increasingly challenging international environment" for such equipment.
"We are ready to discuss any area where we can cooperate effectively, North and South, including on procurement of PPE and critical supplies," a spokesperson said.
"In relation to procurement, while it has not so far proved possible to place a joint order in the context of what is an increasingly challenging international environment, discussions between procurement teams are ongoing and active.
"It remains our intention to continue to co-operate in this area."

• EASY STEPS: How to keep safe
• A SIMPLE GUIDE: What are the symptoms?
• CONTAINMENT: What it means to self-isolate
• HEALTH MYTHS: The fake advice you should ignore
• MAPS AND CHARTS: Visual guide to the outbreak
• VIDEO: The 20-second hand wash

Later on Friday, at the daily briefing in Dublin, the Irish Chief Medical Officer, Dr Tony Holohan, said he was in almost daily contact with his NI counterpart Dr Michael McBride and he had not indicated anything about a joint PPE bid.
When Mr Murphy announced at the end of March that the joint PPE order had been agreed, he said he hoped it would be supplied to frontline workers in NI as soon as possible.

• Historic Ireland-China PPE flight lands in Dublin

He did not detail the size of the order, but said it should "satisfy our supply demands".
Health Minister Robin Swann he was acutely aware of the concerns about PPE but that his department was working with Mr Murphy's officials to secure as much equipment as possible.
In other developments:

• The first Northern Ireland testing site for health staff will go live this weekend at the SSE Arena car park, with tests from County Antrim firm Randox being used in the initiative
• A consortium including Queens University Belfast and Ulster University has been set up to scale up diagnostic testing in Northern Ireland
• The executive has agreed a support package for the Northern Ireland fishing industry
• There have been 13,900 expressions of interest for the NHS workforce appeal in Northern Ireland, with the first recruits expected to be deployed on Monday
• Predicted grades provided by schools will be used to decide results for pupils in Northern Ireland who take A-Levels through English exam board

More on this story

Coronavirus: 'Significant order' of PPE from China
27 March 2020
Copyright © 2020 BBC. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites.

Indeed. I expected that same reply. Am I not correct in saying that incompetent shinner Murphy, initially put it out there that PPE had been ordered through some joint arrangement with ROI? Am I correct in saying that he later corrected that, and confirmed that no such order had been placed and NI executive had not confirmed such an arrangement.
More to the point though, wasn’t it British (English Etonian) government policy, to sacrifice a slice of the population and by extension a slice of the doctors and nurses, to the virus, in pursuit of the holy grail of herd immunity. Wasn’t it Arlene policy, to just suck it up, as her only alternative was to pursue a policy of protecting the population and doctors and nurses, but that would have the bad smell from unionist perspective of being too close to ROI policy.
If I were to look for the person(s) who failed NI doctors and nurses, I’d look close to home, and across the border in the Irish Sea.
PS: I’m no fan of SF, and would vote against a United Ireland in the morning. That said, your leaders and your union, are fast careering into oblivion. Zero to zilch leadership. Just banging the same old drum, no matter how many times London screws your over. Time to get it together, or lose the farm....

 

[yin ewe]

Who stepped in to take what they had ordered?

No idea where it went. We hear lots of talk about cross border cooperation from the shinners but it seems that goes out the window in a proper crisis. Might be different when Mary Lou is in the driving seat.

 

[Ashtree]

Who stepped in to take what they had ordered?

“They”, (Murphy and NI executive), didn’t order anything! One assumes UK, the oft quoted fifth biggest economy in the world, could and should have been miles ahead of ROI in the scrum which was, in getting PPE. There should be no questions to be asked of Dublin in this matter. The answers lie in London and Belfast.

 

[thewalrus]

I’m surprised Murphy isn’t suggesting the use of balaclavas I’m sure he’d be able to get his hands on a more than a few!