DUP selective British rights: The Driver's Licence Clause

Yesterday DUP MP for Lagan Valley Jeffrey Donaldson said:

"British Citizens in Northern Ireland deserve the same rights as the rest of the UK."

However, this was not about the rights of NI LGBT people to have the right to marry whom they choose. Nor is it to defend the Equality Act in full, in face of his colleague Paul Givan's conscience clause. Nor it is a freeing up of abortion legislation, no a whole gamut of rights issues that the people of Northern Ireland are the only ones in the UK to have equally with the rest of the UK.

No. This was about the change in driving licence design that in England, Wales and Scotland will not display the Union Flag alongside the European Union Flag, but in Northern Ireland will retain just the flag of the EU.

Of course this comes mere weeks after once again the main parties failed to come to any agreement on symbols and flags (amongst other issues) once again, and merely passed this on to another commission. So it is hardly surprising that flag controversy once again hits Northern Ireland when it is an issue that after over 16 years of talking we have yet to reach a consensus on.

But once again the argument from Donaldson shows the duplicity of the DUP. They use the argument of British Citizens having the same rights as the rest of the UK when it suits them, but with the other hand will argue that Northern Ireland is different from the rest of the UK when it comes to things like LGBT rights, abortion and other issues if it suits them politically with their base.

Sorry Jeffrey I'm not going to let you, or any member of the DUP, get away with playing the British rights card when you deny me the same rights as I would experience elsewhere in the UK because of my sexual orientation. Especially in light of Cllr Maurice "gays caused Hurricane Katrina" Mills becoming a Member of the British Empire in the New Year Honours, while LGBT British citizens are seen as less than full UK citizens with the same rights by the DUP I shall continue to hold institutional homophobia from Mr Donaldson's party to account.

A simple choice says Peter

"Flag-lowering, parade-stopping, gay marriage supporting, pro-water charging, holier than thou Alliance Party".

Was the recommendation that Peter Robinson made of the Alliance Party in his speech this afternoon, so let me take those epithets that raised raucous applause from the small minded, one directioned, homophobic, financially irresponsible, holier than God himself DUP delgates found so humourous and look at them one by one.

Flag lowering: Whilst this relates to Belfast City Council, for Derry City Council and many of the councils to the West of the Bann the Alliance Party policy on flying the Union Flag on designated days is actually a flag raising policy. Yes it is one that Sinn Féin and the SDLP need some work on to see it as being fair to the minority of unionists who live in the council areas that they live in. Some of those Unionists undoubtedly vote DUP but haven't seen the Union Flag fly from their civic buildings for years. Therefore where is the DUP call for the flag to fly on all public buildings to mark the Royal Birthdays, the Queen's Coronation Day etc? Of course designated days is what happens in most council areas in Great Britain, indeed some fly other flags Orkney flies the Norwegian Flag on Norway Day, and many the Rainbow flag for Pride.

So make that Flag Raising or Flag Equality

Parade stopping: No doubt refers to the Twadell Avenue stand off, but it was the Parade's Commission as voted for by 71% of the Northern Irish people in response to the Belfast Agreement who decided that one final part of their parade home on the Twelve in 2013 should not go past a parade of shops in a nationalist area. This was based on previous violence in the area from both sides over previous parades. The DUP of course are supporting the cost of policing the ongoing action there  in hundreds of thousands of pounds, while the PSNI this week announced some cuts to manning of police stations to try and meet budget constraints on top of suspending historical enquiry work.

So make that Police Supporting and People Respecting.

Gay Marriage Supporting: Of course marriage equality is not just about the gays (and lesbians), it also affects the bisexuals and those who are transgender and intersex. But then when you are used to attcking just the G of the LGBT+ spectrum you can't be expected to know the details of some of my potential partners I an marry but others I cannot, spousal vetoes and stolen years of "togetherness". Nor does it allow those faith groups that want to carry out same-sex marriages the same rights as their brethren in England, Wales and very soon Scotland. Of course when you defend the union and attack LGBT+ equality on a par with the rest of the Kingdom you make a certain section second class citizens in their own land.

So make that Equal Marriage Supporting or just Equality Supporting.

Pro-Water Charging: Water charging is just one possible way to increase government income. We do have a failing water and sewage provision infrastructure which needs a sizeable amount of work and replacement. One way this is funding in England, Wales and Scotland is through the water charge component in the council tax. So yeah while we have a financial crisis shouldn't we be looking at the various ways that we miss out on the revenue that the rest of the UK can call upon to actually do stuff with, but then doing stuff and the Assembly are two things that very rarely go together. Of course Peter Robinson is looking to get control of local corporation tax, but that is only so he can lower it to match the Republic of Ireland and therefore create more holes in budgets. Taxes and revenue need to meet expenditure not cause even more savings to be sought.

So make that Fiscally Responsible.

Holier than thou: Coming from a party that fails to take into account people of non-Christian, Roman Catholic Faith, or no faith into consideration this seems rather rich. When their definition of what is right is based on a rather narrow reading of the Bible which not even every Christian in Northern Ireland holds to 100%. When they cannot legislate for the state without reference to the bible it is clear who truly is Holier than thou, though I suspect that like the Pharisees and Sadducees before them are actually Holier than God creating extra laws and legislations to go on top of what Moses was given. This is why Jesus said that the greatest commandment was to love. For until you can live up to that one you cannot possibly start to consider the others and that is where the hate for certain sectors and failure to understand equality legislation leads to.

So finally I make that  Being a Good Samaritan for EVERYONE.

So in conclusion what Peter failed to see is that the Alliance Party is actually:

Flag Equality Everywhere, Police Supporting, People Respecting, Equality Supporting, Fiscally Responsible, Good Samaritan for EVERYONE

So yeah it is a simple choice for the people of East Belfast. If they want progress and normality that most of the Western World knows, loves and experiences then they can vote for Naomi Long. If they want to carry on with the bigotry, keeping others down and lurching from one financial crisis to another they can back Gavin Robinson.

Just how in the real world is Alderman Humphrey.

Woodvale Park in Belfast is one of those locations that is surrounded by names that many around the world will even recognise. The Woodvale Road that leads up to the park is an extension of  the Shankhill Road. Not far away at the Springfield Road which itself comes off the Falls Road and loops round the back of Falls Park and up in the hills where often they are messages of protest that can be seen from the M1.

But it is also close to the Crumlin Road and as a result the Ardoyne shops, past which the Orange order have not been allowed to march on each weekend since the 12th of the July.

It is also one of those locations that I have played bowls in (just like Falls Park) because bowls does not recognise the various divides that are marked by high walls topped with steel fencing and sharp points. Indeed Woodvale Park was where I played my last competitive outdoor match at the end of last season before my move to Orkney.

The season before as we were trying to make out way there, we were trying to avoid bands and lodges that where marching all over the place between the Shankhill and Crumlin roads. Indeed after our game we just about managed to get away before trouble broke out at Clifton Street and Donegall Street. After going up the Crumlin to avoid the marching (so we thought) we came down the Shankhill, just in time before that entire part of Belfast got sealed off. Having spend 3 hours in tranquility of the park it was sad, though not a surprise having seen the police presence that this was how that day would end.

The reason that today I am retelling all this is because last season we saw that there was some work being done to restore the park to somewhere that local people could enjoy more fully. Today was supposed to be the day that the Lord Mayor officially opened it. A Lord Mayor who promised that he would go to every part of the City of Belfast that invited him, when he took his office.

The issue is that the current Lord Mayor is Máirtín Ó Muilleoir, which as regular readers may be able to guess from my correct use of the fadas in his name is a Sinn Féin Lord Mayor, while the park is in a staunch Loyalist area.

Now of course any first citizen in almost any part of the UK would be expected to be the one to reopen a £2 million redevelopment within their city of a public space. But protestors came out in such force that they injured a police man and the Lord Mayor himself was taken to the Royal Victoria Hospital for check-ups saying he was sore in some places. He since then carried on with his schedule for the day.

However, the incident was not helped by one of the City's Aldermen, William Humphrey of the DUP saying:

"We asked that the deputy lord mayor or the high sheriff carry out this duty here today.

"There is real anger, frustration. It started when the flag was removed. The lord mayor's party, the SDLP and Alliance came together to do that.

"This should have been a day of celebration for a £2m investment by the council and the Department of Social Development and quite honestly the lord mayor needs to understand he cannot make statements and go around doing press interviews calling for our flag to be removed, remove the flag, and then when he has a chain around his neck as lord mayor of this city, expect people to welcome him as first citizen.

"That's not how it works in the real world."

Actually Mr Humphrey in most of the real world, while people may disagree with a political decision made by a Mayor or his party he rarely comes under the physical threat and actuality of violence while carrying out his civic duties. As Mr Humphries said the Council had invested in this redevelopment, it is right and proper that the Lord Mayor should there to reopen it. Calling for the deputy (who happens to be the DUP Christopher Stalford) or the High Sheriff to carry out this task actually demeans the Council's involvement.

Does Mr Humprey not know that 'in the real world' the position of Deputy Lord Mayor has a representative role within the city along with the Lord Mayor. When the Lord Mayor is unavailable for whatever reason, it is the responsibility of the Deputy Lord Mayor to carry out the representative functions of the Lord Mayor. Now it appears that the Lord Mayor was available to go to Woodvale to open this park. He was willing to go somewhere where he knew they might be hostility for the wider public good.

Politics is about more than flags and at council level providing amenities for the local people is a key part of that role. That is what should have been celebrated in Woodvale today, Mr Humphrey is right about that. The opening of improved civic amenities for their people is what was important about today, not turning it into an extension of the protest that has been going on in one form or another since December.

In the news offer the last few days we have heard of people being threatened so often by online troll. But since December those who fail to understand how the real world operates with regard to flags have carried out heavy handed threats and actual violence against those that want Northern Ireland to actually live in the real world. Some who are my friends have been direct victims on that intimidation and violence.

Mr Humphrey and his DUP colleagues talk about wanting the best for Northern Ireland, maybe it is time for them to start acting and speaking like they actually meant it.

Update The Belfast Telegraph has video coverage of the arrival of the Lord Mayor on their news story.

Fly the flag: a historic perspective

Here in Northern Ireland we hear the argument that the flag has always flown 24/7/365. It is like something set in time immemorial. So imagine what happens when someone actually scours through some historical documents. Here is the page about flying the flag in the 1950s. Note the lack of the Princes Andrew and Edward and the fact that Charles most senior title is that of Duke of Cornwall. Note also the time for flying them is 8 a.m.till sunset.

The days are:

• 1st January - New Years Day
• 6th February - Her Majesty's Ascension
• 17th March - St. Patrick's Day
• 31st March - Birthday of the Duke of Gloucester (note this is Prince Henry the son of the current Duke and son of George V)
• Easter Day
• 21st April - Birthday of Her Majesty the Queen
• 25th April - Birthday of the Princess Royal (again note this is Princess Mary, daughter of George V at the time)
• 24th May - Empire Day
• 10th June - Birthday of the Duke of Edinburgh
• 12th July - Bank Holiday
• 4th August - Birthday of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother
• 18th August - Birthday of the Princess Anne
• 31st August - Birthday of the Princess Margaret
• November - Remembrance Day
• 14th November - Birthday of the Duke of Cornwall
• 20th November - Her Majesty's Wedding Day
• 25th December - Christmas Day

Also to be flown for the official celebration of Her Majesty's Birthday and the Opening and Closing of the sessions of the Houses of Parliament of Northern Ireland.

A grand total of twenty days.

So when people tell you it has always been that way, ask them to check the facts.

Just like the name of Northern Ireland's second city, where if like me you look at family census returns from 1901 and 1911 where protestant children are born in the City of Derry and family live in Derry, this issue didn't become political until one side made it so. Now is the time for grown up politics.

In the UK we don't fly the flag every day. But we do fly it from civic and government buildings on a set number. That should apply to all council offices including those that do not fly it. Flying it any more than this is the equivalent of a dog marking their territory, and we know how they go about that.

The DUP and the missed opportinity

I'm back. Did you miss me? I was over in Scotland for an interview on Friday, though sadly I am still on the hunt for that damned illusive thing called a job. However, despite being unemployed you will not find me taking part in recreational rioting.

However, while I was away from Thursday to Saturday I had quite a bit of time for thinking and here is something that I thought about.

Sinn Féin over the last 6 weeks have been saying that they do not want to totally disrespect the symbols that matter to the Loyalists. Indeed they were happy to accept the flying of the Union Flag on designated days from Belfast City Hall. It is something the the SDLP also are happy to accept.

Now here is the crunch thing. The DUP's immediate knee jerk reaction was to try and get the flag flying in as many councils as they can flying 365 days a year. Even in ones like Craigavon and Lisburn where they were part of the decision to fly it only on designated days. But what about the councils to the West of the Bann, the ones with a nationalist/republic majority?

Surely if Sinn Féin and the SDLP are prepared to accept that until the people of Northern Ireland decide otherwise that we are part of the United Kingdom and as such the Union Flag can be flown on designated days, what about those locations where the unionist community is in a minority? Should not instead of going on the attack about the flying of a flag, which by the way I did not see flying outside civic buildings in Scotland, into an appeal to get it flying everywhere in Northern Ireland on the designated days.

But no that would be far too sensible a thing to take out of this for the DUP. It is all or nothing with them at the moment and while some have nothing, some have some and some have all days of the Union Flag flying they think that is good enough. If Sinn Féin are prepared to let the flag fly on the days that honour the Monarch and Royal Family most in Belfast why not in Londonderry, Omagh, Dungannon and the rest?

But of course rather than seek a compromise for all of Northern Ireland, rather than even considering publishing the Cohesion Sharing and Integration strategy at a time the glue holding Northern Ireland together is falling away, they decide to retreat into their corner. They march out about 40,000 leaflets which told untruths to the people of East Belfast. They fail to mention that a committee had actually already voted to totally remove the Union Flag. They instead issue a legal challenge to try and overturn something was was voted on not once but twice and came to two different conclusions, just not the one they wanted.

You see while the unionists shrink back into their sections of society, they do leave men and Britishness behind. They are no long the party supporting Britishness in all of Ulster, indeed they are no longer such in all of Northern Ireland. They are only the party of large parts of Down and Antrim and smaller parts elsewhere, but largely unseen West of the Bann.

Meanwhile talking of Scotland the protestors fighting for their right to be British took their protest to the office of Nicola Sturgeon (it appears on their way to Ibrox). Yes they took their appeal to defend the Union Flag to the deputy leader of a party that wants to get rid of  the blue parts to keep all to themselves.

Rory and the Olympics Dilemma

Regular readers will know that when it comes to the Olympics I support two nations. As some of you know I also know from first hand experience that the decision of which of those two an Northern Irish sports person faces when deciding who to represent isn't always straight forward or black and white.

Yesterday in a documentary shown on BBC Northern Ireland there was another twist to this tail.

First though a little bit of trivia question. When was the last time that Northern Ireland won a gold medal in an individual event? The answer was 1972 with Mary Peters. We have won team gold since then, and other medals both individual and team for both GB and Ireland. Our last Northern Irish Paralympians to win golds were three who took home 5 between them in London.

Northern Ireland does have a current world number one in a sport that will be making his Olympic debut in Rio 2016, so we should be looking forward to supporting someone with a real chance of ending that famine. But that world number one golfer Rory McIlroy is wary of the dispute of which flag he should represent. Last night he said if he played for either nation he would upset people so maybe he should take the other option and not take part at all.

Yeah the latest fall out of the entire flags issue is that Northern Ireland's top sportsman is seriously considering not taking up a place at the 2016 Olympics because whoever he chooses to represent he is fearful of upsetting someone. I know some Loyalists who cannot consider supporting an all Ireland team such as the successful Rugby or Cricket teams. Yet the same people will support Ulster in Rugby, they fail to notice ⅓ of the Province is actually not in the UK or that some of the players aren't British! Yes there seriously are people in Northern Ireland who cheered on England against Ireland in the One Day International World Cup despite there being Northern Irish players on the Ireland team and England containing a player from Dublin. 

Yes there really is such a divide in sporting circles here and the ungoing inability of some to respect other communities, democratic decisions on flags or personal preferences seems to be having a knock on effect that top Northern Irish sportspeople may seriously consider not going to the Olympics to achieve a once in four years dream as it will offend others.

I think it is time for those who feel offended by someone choosing who to represent (BTW a right protected in the Good Friday Agreement) to stop being so selfish as to threaten, appear to threaten or cause our best to not seek to gain an Olympic accolade.

Well done to all the flag protestors. You're making it impossible for Northern Irish sport to flourish now.

How can Hay retain confidence?

The announcement from another MLA that he is going to join the street protests against the removal of the Union Flag, when both the leader of the Unionist leaders have called for a suspension of such protests, is upsetting.

The fact that the MLA is question also serves as Speaker of the Assembly is a matter of confidence. Not only does that mean that he is going against the expressed desire of the leader of the party he was elected under but his position as speaker in which he has to act as the neutral voice concerning the chamber and behaviour of the MLAs is now thrown into doubt.

William Hay in action as Speaker

The decision of William Hay to announce that he will be attending these protests from now may actually throw the entire Assembly and devolution into jeopardy. Indeed it does throw into the ring the possibility that the DUP are actually setting the Assembly and a shared future up to fail at the moment. It isn't just Hay who is defying Peter Robinson and joining the street protests, some of which are peaceful, but it is the others which are not that is the concern.

As someone who is trained in street preaching I know that you can set up anywhere on the Queen's highway as long as you do not cause an obstruction. The irony of a lot of these street protests is that they do obstruct the Queen's highways night in night out. They are affecting businesses and charities not just here in Northern Ireland but further afield. We learnt last night that the volunteers coming into Childline for one were less than normal affecting the ability of that charity to answer the calls of needy children. There are other charities that have volunteer phone operators in the city centre who must also be suffering in this way.

But Hay himself is stepping into the controversy. There will now be doubts that he can adjudicate over any debate into this issue or any other contentious issue going forward. With his utterances this morning he has lost the confidence of a great many people that his is capable of serving as speaker, especially at a time such as this when tensions are running high.

Here is what the Assembly's website says about the role of the speaker:

"Members must be confident of the impartiality of the Speaker and this is achieved through the operation of a number of conventions. He does not participate or vote in any debates in the Assembly, he does not become involved in party politics, nor does he comment on Northern Ireland political matters or on issues of Government policy. When speaking on behalf of the Assembly, the Speaker confines himself to matters relating to the operation of the Assembly. Similarly, he will only make statements to the press on factual or procedural matters relating to the Assembly."

 Judge for yourself if William Hay can maintain that confidence.

When you fail to respect Donegal Loyalism you lose my respect

As regular readers of my blog will know I have a family history that goes back to Donegal. Indeed one of my Great Grandfather's was a Grand Master in the Orange Order in that county pre-partition.

Therefore with my roots divided by the imaginary line across our island I naturally associate myself as Irish as much as anything. Because even though my roots are largely within Ulster, they are by in large from the part of Ulster that joined the 26 Counties of the Republic of Ireland.

Therefore the meaning of the Tricolour means something to me. The Orange quarter furthest away from the flag pole actually represents those Presbyterian farmers from Donegal who were relatives. It represents those Loyalist men and women who also signed the Ulster Covenant but were not kept within the United Kingdom. At the other edge of the flag is of course the green that represents Ireland and the nationalist movement and in the middle is white for peace.

Today yet again the Tricolour was burnt outside Belfast City Hall. As will all such burnings the so called 'loyalists' burn from the end furthest away from the pole. Little do they realise that in so doing they are burning away the legacy of those Protestant men and women who did not remain within the United Kingdom. They are burning away the legacy of my ancestors some of whose descendants still live in Donegal and other parts of the Republic.

They claim that the removal of the Union Flag is a chipping away at their Britishness. Well the burning away of the Orange third of the Tricolour is a disrespect to the Britishness of those Loyalists who were cast away in 1922. The burning of that flag and the symbolism of it is also a disregard of those of us proud of our roots which lie outside of Northern Ireland, who come from Loyalist backgrounds, but realise that we are Irish and British at the same time, through no fault of our own making.

Disrespecting a flag that actually goes out of the way to recognise your Orange brethren (if indeed you are Orange) is no respect of tradition or vexillology and the meaning behind it. The Irish Republic when creating their flag recognised that they were a divided community. Yet the Loyalist of Belfast cannot recognise the same here, even though the flag will now be flown to mark all the birthdays of the senior Royals and important days in the Queen's reign. Surely more honouring to the crown to notice these events as special than the current 365 day flying of flags that end up getting frayed as a result.

Minister sticks head in the sand #Flags @DUPOnline

Unbeleivable!

This morning instead of calling for a time out on the issue of flag the DUP's Health Minister has decided to throw more fuel on the flames by calling on a review of the days the Union Flag flies at Stormont.

He says we "need to identify a sustainable position" on the issue. At the moment we do not have a sustainable position across the whole country because of a decision made in just one Council area. How on earth can he think that bringing this issue before the Assembly in the next few weeks is going to diffuse the situation?

This is one case that the status quo is right.

Bringing that debate to the chamber of the Assembly could end up with a petition of concern being raised. It is a tool that the DUP themselves have used (including on marriage equality). But if it were to be used on this issue to ensure the status quo all hell would break out and we would most likely end up in some sort of civil war. How do I know this? Well I've just observed things in the last week, maybe Poots should do the same.

This is one vote that the DUP cannt stand a chance of winning in the Assembly because of that petition of concern option open to the other side. Therefore it deliberately confrontational, it is deliberately provocative, deliberately looking for trouble.

I repeat once again.

It is time for the DUP to show actual leadership for ALL the PEOPLE of NORTHERN IRELAND.

They must call an end to all these protests at the moment. That is not to prohibit free speech but to prevent mobs forming around these that can result in criminal attacks and damage.

They must shelve the idea of a heated debate on the flag over Stormont. In the current environment, with the current state of tensions this will not end well.

Flag protest now leads to arson and terrorism

This is the scene tonight in Carrickfergus at the Constituency Office of Stewart Dickson MLA. He is the Alliance representative for East Antrim.

Stewart does not represent any part of Belfast, yet the protest against the decision made by the Alliance party to come with a middle ground between no flags and the status quo has not led to criminal damage being caused. There is probably outstanding case work that has been destroyed in the fire and Stewart will certainly be inconvenienced in working for this constituents while this mess is getting sorted out.

As Stewart has said:

"This is an outright attack on Democracy and cannot be allowed to continue."

The problem is that the DUP and UUP have been stirring up tension over the issue of the Union Flag at Belfast City Hall for a month. They dropped a leaflet into the protestant areas of East Belfast.

There are suggestions that they are using this issue to stir up support to regain the Westminster seat they lost to Naomi Long. But this protest has now reached criminal levels. There are calls nightly to met outside Alliance Constituency offices. Where are the calls from the DUP leaders or the UUP leadership for these attacks, because that is what they now are. This is no longer the threat against a Belfast Councillor but are not actual attacks.

Update No sooner had I blogged this that the DUP issued this. Although I think at the moment they should call on people not to protest outside Alliance Offices at all as there is too much tension.

UTV have published this picture of the inside of the office

Further update My own Alliance Party Councillor, Michael Bower, and his wife Christine also a Councillor have now been attacked at home, where they live with their infant daughter. This indiscriminate targeting of any Alliance representative has gone to new levels this evening, this is terrorism and intimidation. And yes attacking peoples homes in the dead of night is a form of terrorism.

Michael has now said:

"My daughter who is 17 months old had just gone to bed when I heard an explosion against the window.

"I guessed it was some sort of attack on our family home. I checked that my wife and daughter were okay. The paint bomb hit the corner of the room where my daughter usually plays.

"There is damage to the window, but it could so easily have been so much worse. If events had been different, a young life could have been lost. I would plead with people to calm down and to stop attacking representatives doing their best to support their communities."

Even further update Police have reported that petrol or another accelerant were poured on the front of the Alliance Party offices in Bangor. A passing patrol disrupted their attempts at arson and no damage was done.

Why designated days actually make the Flag special

The designated days that the Alliance Party amendment ensured that the Union Flag will still fly over Belfast City Hall are key days to our Monarch.

It is rather ironic that a number of people have said that they didn't notice there was a Union Flag flying over City Hall on Twitter today. I used to work in a Government Office and the Union Flag was only flown on designated days. It always stood out as a special day when I could see the flag on the pole outside my window, it made me wonder what (and more often who) we were celebrating that day.

Indeed here is the recommendation and clarification from the Department of Culture, Media and Sport on when the Union Flag is to be flown. It is being misreported on the news that this will next happen on January 20th for the Countess of Wessex's birthday when it will actually be the 9th for the Duchess of Cambridge. There are now 18 of these Days that apply in Northern Ireland (again people are forgetting the addition of the Duchess of Cambridge last year). These days as you can see actually all honour either our monarch and her family, our fallen forces or each nation's individual identity.

Also the flag should only be flown from 8am until sunset (unless the flag is floodlit). This is why the military have their bugle calls for the raising and lowering of the flag at their barracks. They serve under the flag, hence its raising all 365 days and lowering at the end of the day. This is respect of the flag for them, they do not keep it up all day and night and let it get frayed, indeed they will repair it overnight if that is required.

So actually designated days helps keep the flag special, it honours the monarch and her family more so that flying it every day, all day throughout the year. It is a pity that there aren't more vexillologists around here in Belfast who understand that.

What was that about triple checks on national anthems? Do we need same for flags?

This is the flag of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (AKA North Korea)

Note the red star, so often a symbol of communist countries upon it.

This is the Republic of Korea

Not to be confused for the above.

Dear LOCOG make sure you don't mix them up again.

Let's celebrate the Queen's birthday with the Tricolour

So Sinn Féin are welcoming the decision by the Assembly Commission to consider whether the Irish Tricolour should fly alongside the Union Flag at Stormont. I take it by that they mean on the same flag days, the only days that the Union Flag flies over the building.

So what are the 16 days that the Union Flag flies from all Government buildings in Northern Ireland?

Well there is one Saturday in June that will mark HM the Queen's official birthday, along with the 10th to mark HRH the Duke of Edinburgh's birthday and the 21st April for her actual birthday and the 20th November to mark their wedding anniversary. There is also 6th February to mark the Queen's Accession to the throne and 2nd June to mark her coronation.

Then we have the 19th February, 10th March, 15th August and 14th April to mark the birthdays of her children HRH The Duke of York, HRH The Earl of Wessex, HRH The Princess Royal and HRH The Prince of Wales in that order. Plus 20th January and 17th July for the Countesses of Wessex and Duchess of Cornwall.

The 2nd Sunday of November of course marks Remembrance Sunday and the 2nd Monday in March for Commonwealth Day.

So while none of the above seem to be days that Sinn Féin would want to see the tricolour flying I suspect it must be for the other two days that they are so adamant that the green, white and gold of the tricolour to fly on top of Stormont as well. So obviously it is for the other two days that are such pressing importance.

17th March St. Patrick's Day a given

and

9th May Europe Day.

So I say no give and take Sinn Féin you want it to fly we'll let you fly it on all the dates listed above.

And while we at it can Unionists keep to flying the flag on these days unless there is a member of royalty present that necessitates further days, and make sure that they only fly the Queen's standard when she is actually in the building. I doubt she is in some of the housing estates or shops that I've seen her standard fly outside throughout the summer months.

Fisking Tom Elliot's defence of those comments

In today's Newsletter UUP leader Tom Elliot tries to defend his outburst in his acceptance speech where he called talked of "the scum of Sinn Féin". I am producing it in full so I cam fisk it in red.

 My Comment was right um I'll get unto that later by Tom Elliot UUP

MY remarks at the count in Omagh have attracted a great deal of attention and comment.

The people of Fermanagh and South Tyrone suffered grievously at the hands of the IRA, many of whom were members of Sinn Fein for decades. This is true, there is no denying history.

Whilst we are now in a new era and many people would prefer us to whitewash the past, many of us are not whitewashing the past, what we are doing is attempting to move on the fact is that Sinn Fein as a party does come with some pretty awful baggage. As does the UUP and Elliot himself, he will no doubt still be commemorating a Battle from 1690 all summer. As I stood in that hall yesterday I was subjected to abuse and heckling from the worst type of Sinn Fein’s supporters.

My comments were certainly not directed at broad nationalism, republicanism or indeed Sinn Fein supporters and members in general, as I am aware that a number of their members may not have been involved in terrorism.

However we need to remember that a number of these Sinn Fein members are unrepentant members of the IRA, who have murdered people from this province. Sinn Féin have renounced violence and recent murders. Their political aim is still the same that of a united Ireland. They are now seeking to achieve that through democratic means. Just as in the same way that Elliot's Unionist Party forebears sought to keep Ireland, and since 1921 Northern Ireland, in the Union. Indeed the Unionist set up a militia the Ulster Volunteers in 1913 to defend the Union by force if necessary. Neither side is without a paramilitary past in Irish conflict history.

My comments may have shocked or caused discomfort to some people, but I have to say that the murder campaign mounted by the IRA, which resulted in over 3,000 deaths, caused a great deal more.

It is amazing that I get severely criticised for these comments, while just two weeks ago at the republican Easter Rising commemorations senior Sinn Fein representatives glorified the IRA terrorist campaign that murdered many Northern Ireland citizens with comments like: “The IRA were not war mongers. They were a revolutionary force....” Was this a dig at his fellow Fermanagh and South Tyrone representative Sean Lynch.

And: “They took up arms in a bid to force the British out of our country. Their sacrifice and selflessness is an inspiration to us all.” I'll remind Tom that through the summer with a culmination on 12th July he will be celebrating a force from the Netherlands that came over to Ireland to rid the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland of its rightful sovereign, because he worshiped God in a different way.

None of these comments, which are insulting to many within our community, received the same type of adverse publicity or attention. Maybe that is because you are a political leader who is talking about a shared future and this was your acceptance speech on being elected to represent ALL the people of Fermanagh and South Tyrone. Yes! Even those that choose to fly a tricolour.

With regard to the results of the election, the UUP entered it with 16 seats and we have returned with 16 seats. Clearly many media commentators and pundits will be deeply disappointed this morning that their gleeful forecasts of meltdown and wipe-out did not come to pass. I’m not sorry to disappoint them.

The Ulster Unionist Party has been around for over 100 years Should I be pedantic and point out that from 1905 -1920 it was the Irish Unionist Party and Ulster Unionists have learned the ability to take a few knocks and come back from them. Life is not just about setbacks, but how you respond to them.

He then goes on to what a leader should be talking about in his acceptance speech.

We did indeed face setbacks in this election, but we also have some good news. I am obviously deeply sad that Fred Cobain did not manage to hold his seat. He will be sorely missed by the Ulster Unionist assembly team and the ordinary working people of North Belfast for whom he was a tireless worker and advocate.
I also regret the loss of our second seat in East Antrim where Rodney McCune put up a great fight but ultimately lost out to Sinn Fein. My commiserations and best wishes go out to all the defeated Ulster Unionist candidates.

But there is good news too with the addition of five new faces to the UUP assembly team, providing fresh ideas and approaches to complement the tried and trusted performers. Amongst the five new faces are two female MLAs in the form of Jo-Anne Dobson and Sandra Overend. I would also like to congratulate Ross Hussey on regaining a seat for the UUP in West Tyrone and Mike Nesbitt for regaining a second seat in Strangford. We will also benefit from the emergence of new blood in the form of Robin Swann in North Antrim.

It is vital that the next four years will provide a settled position for education in terms of both post-primary transfer and a way forward with an administration body. This is something that would instill much confidence within the public of Northern Ireland.

There also needs to be an immediate slimming down of our government and reduction of the size of the structures.

Finally some thoughts from me.

Tom I consider myself a proud Ulster man. On Saturday I  took great pride in wearing an Ulster county tartan. I'm a true man with roots in the north of Ireland. As one family member only people with viking blood like us could have survived and farmed where the family farmed for centuries. Thing is Tom that tartan was Donegal, the farm was in the frozen north of Malin head, the west facing side. One of my grandparents was born there, three of my great-grand parents, three branches of the family have roots in Donegal. Indeed one member of the family was Grand Master of the Orange Order in St. Johnstown, Donegal.

So yeah they may have been staunch Unionists but the flag of the land of my roots combines the Green of nationalism, the orange of unionism and the white of peace. It is a flag that was meant to symbolise a shared future, much in the same way that Elliot is meant to be leader of a party that is looking for a shared future. He should be one of those who really needs to grow up on the issue of symbols.

What's in a flag?

OK to the Olympics at Beijing will not be allowing any regional flag etc if it is not part of the recognised country that participants are presenting. There goes the colourful array you'd expect in the cycling road races as the Basque or French departmental flags are a tradition at the Tour de France. Should an American senator turn up at the game would he not be allowed to wear a pin of their States flag only the star and stripes. You see what is black and white in China is grey for the rest of us.


Let's look at just one of the sports I've taken part in shall we, in this case we'll take bowls, not an Olympic sport sadly but one that will illustrate my point.


In bowls I have won titles with the world North Irish in the title. Plus I've represented the Northern Irish Civil Service therefore this would be the flag:

But in the same year I've also won tournaments with the word Irish in them and reached the later stages of Irish indoor championships which I've I'd won through would have meant me representing under this flag:

As a Civil Servant I actually won a British title therefore this flag:

Bowls is also one of those sports where your nationality is decided by the affiliation of the club side that you play for rather than you own therefore I've also be eligible to play, if I'd been or ever will be selected under these flags as well.

Now I could have also represented two of those flags at the Olympics, which would have left me with a potential dilemma should I have gold medalled at say Beijing, where I'd have only been able to celebrate wrapped in my national flag. For as you can see I'm more diverse than the criteria for the 2008 games would allow me room to be me.

Of course the real issue is that China do not want to be reminded or for the world to be shown this flag:

or this one:

You see China wishes it was homogeneous but fortunately for us, sadly for Beijing, it isn't. Therefore this Olympics is being held under a set of restrictions that try to fit us into boxes just like the Citizens of the world's most populace country without consideration that we're not all the same.

We are individuals of this world as are the athletes and supporters heading to Beijing and the citizens of China. Each deserves to have their human rights recognised even if that means not being wholly part of the nation the IOC designates them as.