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DEBATE: DOES THIS DEAL MARK A FRESH START FOR NORTHERN IRELAND?

NORTHERN IRELAND: Gerry Kelly of Sinn Fein speaks to the media in Belfast

Friday February 5,2010

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A LAST-MINUTE deal between Northern Ireland's Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) and Sinn Fein will see policing and justice powers transferred from Westminster to Belfast, in a breakthrough for the country's power-sharing government.

Prime Minister Gordon Brown and Taoiseach Brian Cowen arrived at Hillsborough Castle, Co Down, today to seal an agreement between Northern Ireland's stricken power-sharing government.

It comes after nearly two weeks of round-the-clock negotiations and brings an end to fears the fragile government could have collapsed on the policing, justice and parades stand-off.

The British and Irish Premiers confirmed Northern Ireland will take on policing and justice powers within a few weeks, satisfying a key republican goal, while new arrangements for overseeing loyal order parades will meet the demands of unionists.

Mr Brown said: “This is the last chapter of a long and troubled story and the beginning of a new chapter after decades of violence, years of talks, weeks of stalemate.”

The talks have been the longest set of continuous negotiations held in the near 20-year peace process.

DOES THIS DEAL GO FAR ENOUGH TO SOLVING NORTHERN IRELAND'S PROBLEMS? IS THIS A NEW BEGINNING FOR NORTHERN IRELAND?

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VULTURES?

09.02.10, 9:13am

Well have there not been enough vultures on here of late?

• Posted by: IMONLYSAYINGIT • Report Comment

More like OLD BATS.

• Posted by: One_of_the_seven_dwarves • Report Comment

VULTURES?

09.02.10, 9:13am

Well have there not been enough vultures on here of late?

• Posted by: IMONLYSAYINGIT • Report Comment

More like OLD BATS.

• Posted by: One_of_the_seven_dwarves • Report Comment

THEY WILL COME IN THROUGH THE FRONT DOOR.

09.02.10, 8:58am

!

WELLINGTON put the boot into Napoleon at Waterloo, Drake said bowls to the Spanish armada, and Churchill stuck two fingers up to Hitler's German invaders.

But zut alors! Gordon Brown is SURRENDERING a chunk of England to the French by flogging them the port of Dover.

Sorry Vera, but if the PM gets his way you'll be singing...

There'll be bleu birds over,

Le blanc cliffs de Dover,

Tomorrow, just vous wait et see

news of the world...sh*te paper good story!

Because broke Britain needs the cash and Dover - with a price tag in the region of £500 million - is just one of the nation's treasures up for sale.

We can reveal the leading bidder is the Nord-pas-de-Calais regional council, which also owns the port of Calais. The government is being advised by blue chip merchant bank Rothschild and a source there said: "This is an exciting sale.

"Selling Dover to Calais is a very logical move as that is where most of the business is directed.

"Dover made an operating profit of £15.1 million in 2008. Now it is seeking £400m to expand, as it anticipates a doubling in freight traffic by 2040." But the move has sparked outrage. Conservative Party prospective MP for Dover Charles Elphicke said: "In trying to sell off our port and the White Cliffs, it's clear Gordon Brown has no sense of the history of our nation or the pride of our town.

"How dare he consider selling it all off to the French? Dover is the English border. We stood proud in defending our nation in times past.

"We are the nation's front line. The people of Dover have a clear message for him - hands off our port, hands off the English border, hands off the White Cliffs. He can take a hike."

But the government is desperate for the cash. The channel rail link and Dover, Europe's busiest ferry port, are in the vanguard of Brown's £16 billion privatisation plan, as he aims to halve Britain's budget deficit in four years.

The government is also looking at selling the M25 Dartford toll crossing over the Thames, its student-loan book and its stake in uranium processor Urenco. It is also reviving plans to sell the Tote.

Overseen by Standard Life Chairman Gerry Grimstone, the plan targets £3 billion from asset sales and £13 billion from selling government property. Grimstone was a key architect of Tory PM Margaret Thatcher's privatisation of firms such as BT in the Eighties.

what will dover become? one big camp?

.

• Posted by: IMONLYSAYINGIT • Report Comment

NOT ONE TO BE BACKWARDS COMING FORWARD!

09.02.10, 8:34am

morning Marigold,well thats two of us,the others are too shy to come forward !

BRITAIN’S immigration system is descending into chaos as a new backlog of applications piles up, a senior Parliamentary watchdog warned last night.

"Basic" errors are being made .

THEN THERE IS, Former culture minister Jack Lang complained about the plight of thousands of “starving” migrants who had “bravely” trekked across Europe to get to the UK from Calais.

whats he complaining about?

"They are human beings and they are starving,” said Mr Lang, an MP for the Pas-de-Calais area, as well as a special adviser to President Nicolas Sarkozy.

so whats mr special adviser advising.....let them eat cake?

He has the gaul to encourage chaos,

Hundreds of migrants have been sleeping rough in Calais

and he wants them to sleep rough in britain instead.

.

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• Posted by: IMONLYSAYINGIT • Report Comment

IMONLY.....

09.02.10, 8:02am

There are one or two I think....

But his biggest fan has to be.......me

Harri....you have achieved celeb status !

Dont forget to blub during interviews

• Posted by: marigold • Report Comment

TWEETER

09.02.10, 6:34am

Love birds can be alone :) :)

• Posted by: One_of_the_seven_dwarves • Report Comment

Well have there not been enough vultures on here of late?

Is it me or is anyone else turned on / tuned in and indeed all the other positive T,S , by leg iron journals and all the other excellent posts he , LORD HARRI ,writes?

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