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THE DUP HAVE accused the Irish government of getting involved in the Stormont Assembly talks by urging the North to legalise same-sex marriage, which is a Sinn Féin policy demand.
Both powersharing parties have already missed three different deadlines this year to form a Stormont Assembly, and leaves an uncomfortable precedent to the British and Irish governments on how to react.
As talks aimed at form a Stormont Assembly slowly grind to a halt, Sinn Féin responded to criticism from the DUP that they’re demands are “unreasonable” and “amount to blackmail”.
Sinn Féin MLA Conor Murphy told Morning Ireland that this was ”simply not true”.
He said that most of what Sinn Féin are asking for – which include an Irish Language Act, the legalisation of same-sex marriage and the resignation of Arlene Foster – have been already agreed in previous agreements, and haven’t been implemented.
These are rights and entitlements that people agree to in the [Republic of Ireland] and in Britain… so they’re not unreasonable demands at all.
I can’t understand why the DUP would not allow someone who wishes to live their life through the medium of Irish the right to do so.
Meanwhile, the DUP’s Arlene Foster has said that Sinn Féin “has a shopping list that keeps getting longer” and dismissed the chances of an agreement if this didn’t change.
The DUP’s Sammy Wilson told Morning Ireland today that it wouldn’t come to an agreement on Sinn Féin’s terms.
“The Irish government is sticking its nose in business it has no responsibility for,” he said, before criticising the Taoiseach for urging the North to change its laws to allow same-sex marriage.
He said he hadn’t heard the Taoiseach urging any other member of the EU who haven’t legalised same-sex marriage to change their laws.
More disagreement
Yesterday, Sinn Féin accused British Prime Minister Theresa May of setting the Northern Ireland peace process back decades after a further delay in talks.
Michelle O’Neill, Sinn Féin’s leader in Northern Ireland, said an agreement between May and the Democratic Unionist Party’s 10 MPs in the London parliament to prop up her minority government was at fault.
“She is in hock to the DUP,” O’Neill told reporters in Belfast in comments aired on national television.
Sinn Fein are disappointed but not surprised that a deal has not yet been done. What this constitutes is a monumental failure on behalf of Theresa May.
“She has set back decades of work,” O’Neill said.
The British government continues to insist that the deal has no bearing on the Northern Ireland peace process.
The DUP, in turn, has been critical of Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Coveney’s support for an Irish Language Act, and Coveney was quick to then distance himself again:
The governments can support and encourage but, in the final analysis, it is only the parties themselves that can make an agreement with each other.
Britain’s Northern Ireland Secretary James Brokenshire warned that if no agreement was reached, he would be forced to draft a budget for the province and have it enacted by civil servants, but a day later said only that he would “reflect carefully” on how to manage public services.
- With reporting from AFP
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This would definitely ensure that many small businesses would fold.
While they force up rates for business too, some up by 75%. Enda Kenny is killing Irish business but you are all to blind to see it.
A lot of lazy idiots will simply take the piss and take a load of sick in a row, knowing well the employer cant do anything about it.
I think most decent workers who don’t currently have a sick pay entitlement in work would only use it if they really needed it.
I’ve never heard such rubbish. There are no advantages in this to be had by an employee. In fact all this legislation does is give an employer another reason to lower wages even more. It also encourages infighting between healthy and sick employees.
I’d definitely be leaving at least one person go when this comes in. Government just don’t get it do they?….small businesses are on the cross at the moment and are treading water at best. This must be one of the most anti business measures they’ve brought it.
Well we do know the Government are dumb enough to be thinking about it…
Lets see how many jobs they create after this comes in….its serious enough to make a multi national company choose another location over Ireland
Hair brained scheme. Reckless carry on from our Government. SME’s would implode.
Corrupt, sleazy, reckless private sector mismanagement in the economy threatens 100% of us all
I think you mean public sector…
Kingstown the private sector create the wealth like it or not & if we ever get out of this we will have the private sector to thank for it.
The private sector does don’t create wealth the consumer does
So would that mean no more P.A.Y.E contribution? Nah dont think so!
I love these soundbites everyday coming up to the budget…..
Sad times for the PAYE employee.
What about the employer who can’t even get benefit if the company closes??
This nonsense is the law in France and cripples small businesses and as a result small businesses avoid hiring anybody other than family. A little restaurant I used to go to had 3 waitresses employed, 2 were “on the sick”. When the third did the same, the man’s wife became the waitress. They won’t employ anyone else in a long time.
This is an excellent idea. It is right wing crap to suggest workers would deliberately go sick. There will always be a tiny number but the overwhelming majority would never do such a thing. I am a public servant with decent sick pay provision and have not taken any sick days this year (as I haven’t been sick!). The private sector will see similar stories to me and my colleagues. It is anti-worker drivel to suggest otherwise. If people take the piss, deal with them through the disciplinary procedures
I’m guessing you do not have employees? Trust me, the piss gets taken.
Ridiculous law and more smoke and mirror games by the shambles of a government.
Its all part of the FG plan, divide and conquer. And people wonder why there are no protests? We are all arguing over this crap while the country is destroyed further.
a strategy known as it’s “the roman circus”
Right wing crap ? Really , and are you aware of the appalling track record of some of the public sector levels of sick …for example the health system as highlighted in the following article recently to illustrate
..”Staff in the ‘other patient and client care’ category had some of the highest absenteeism rates across the hospital system, reaching 15.63 per cent in Drogheda. Nursing absenteeism rates meanwhile varied from 0.4 per cent in St James’s Hospital to 11.17 per cent in Lourdes Orthopaedic.
The place for the government to start tackling real abuse in the sick system is its own front door as the public service employer , by hurting RTE really small business with 2 or 3 people which this does is crazy timing as they are struggling far more in a recession
Not RTE…..should read The really small business
As an employer take my word for it, this proposal will cost jobs and increase demand on social welfare. Nothing will be saved by dept of social protection as in the case of my business the cost of sick pay will have to be made up for in reduction in overall pay bill by reduction in numbers or more part-time working.
BTW, this is regardless of whether the cases are genuine or people “take the piss”
This government are brain dead if they don’t realise how many small businesses will have to close if they persist with this lunacy .
This must mean that 42% of Business were always unviable and were merely existing because of the PAYE sector
have your say