ANALYSIS:SDLP LEADER Mark Durkan recently remarked how in contrast to the Chuckle Brothers of Ian Paisley and Martin McGuinness that Peter Robinson and McGuinness were more like the Oasis brothers of Noel and Liam Gallagher – appearing to be in a state of perpetual feuding, writes GERRY MORIARTY
It’s been tetchy, and sometimes nasty, since the Northern Executive and Assembly returned to business last month after the summer holidays, primarily because of disagreement between the DUP and Sinn Féin over when policing and justice powers should be devolved to the Executive.
Such was the gulf between them that Gordon Brown felt disposed to travel to Stormont yesterday to see if a deal could be hammered out on policing and justice. This was after three recent meetings with Robinson and McGuinness on the issue.
Today Robinson and McGuinness do the travelling, flying to Downing Street for yet another encounter with the British prime minister to try to close any remaining gaps.
Policing and justice is very much still work in progress, and, according to Brown, Robinson and McGuinness, even more progress was achieved yesterday, and the expectation is that a deal will be even closer today.
But there is still a lingering Sinn Féin suspicion that the DUP could yet prolong this issue beyond the British general election, which must happen by June of next year. If so then the powersharing institutions are in trouble. Sinn Féin could walk away, precipitating Assembly elections or even worse, possible collapse, if it is clear the DUP and Sinn Féin can’t work together.
The cause of that suspicion is that Robinson not only wants financial guarantees from Brown on policing, but is seeking assurances from the potential next British prime minister David Cameron that he will honour these guarantees (assurances the Tory leader appears willing to deliver). Robinson also plans to hold a public consultation to ensure that unionists are up for seeing a department of justice at Stormont, meaning further delay.
There seems a fair chance that a deal can be done before the general election. One incentive is the prospect of economic investment from the US, a carrot that is likely to be proffered when US secretary of state Hillary Clinton visits next Monday.
Nothing is guaranteed, however, because we don’t know for sure which strategy Robinson is following. McGuinness claims Robinson is being held back by “the 12 apostles, the 12 angry men” in his party – such as the Rev William McCrea and Gregory Campbell – whom he accused of seeking to destroy powersharing.
Robinson countered he wasn’t aware of “angry men in the DUP” although he had seen “some irritable characters in Sinn Féin”.
There is little evidence that Robinson and McGuinness can establish the close working relationship that the Deputy First Minister last week said was non-existent. Not only is there no agreement on policing and justice but the two parties are squabbling over the shared future project, the Irish language and education.
Last week Robinson said that “the deputy should try and control himself especially when in public”.
“The deputy” is a very loaded word, because the Office of First Minister and Deputy First Minister is one of equals. Some suspect Robinson inspired DUP Assembly member Simon Hamilton to use that term with studied emphasis when posing a question to McGuinness in the chamber yesterday. McGuinness put Hamilton right by advising him of the co-equal nature of his post with the angry addendum, “and don’t you ever forget it”.
It’s entertaining, but it’s serious too because if Robinson and McGuinness prefer to trade schoolyard insults rather than work together, then clearly the Stormont institutions can’t work either. As they say in the North, they need to catch themselves on.