Northern Ireland

Once again Northern Ireland is back in headlines. You would think that after all the troubles of years ago and the progress made since then, the last thing the province needs is a colapse of the power sharing executive. Of course the timing of Peter Robinson's wife scandal has not helped the situation and in some way has detracted from the seriousness of the current assembly problems. We all knew that finding a political solution in Northern Ireland that would suit all the parties would be a difficult thing to achieve. Especially with breakaway elements hell bent on returning to the old ways, which if achieved would benefit nobody. The province has come on leaps and bounds and has put itself firmly on the tourist map, which has brought a welcome boost to local economies. The latest problem is around the devolution of justice and policing from Westminster to Belfast. Disagreement between the two main parties DUP and Sinn Fein revolve around agreeing a date for the transfer to take place. The DUP want "community confidence" in place before a full transfer takes place. This appears to be centred around the handling of parades and they want the Parades Commission who put conditions on marches to be scrapped. Sinn Fein are wary of this happening because they feel it gives the Orange Order an advantage. Let us all hope that commonsense prevails and a compromise can be agreed, so enabling the province to continue moving forward and by doing so benefit everyone.