Browse content similar to 09/01/2017. Check below for episodes and series from the same categories and more!
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You're watching a specially extended BBC Newsline, | :00:13. | :00:16. | |
with one main story - the Deputy First Minister Martin | :00:17. | :00:19. | |
McGuinness announces that he's stepping down. | :00:20. | :00:23. | |
He says the public are outraged at the squandering of money, | :00:24. | :00:25. | |
Today I have told Arlene Foster that I have tendered my resignation, | :00:26. | :00:43. | |
effective from five o'clock today. I believe today is the right time to | :00:44. | :00:50. | |
call halt to the DUP's arrogance. Arlene Foster said she is | :00:51. | :00:54. | |
disappointed by Sinn Fein's decision, which she says leaves no | :00:55. | :00:56. | |
government to resolve the problem. I'm at Stormont where we'll be | :00:57. | :00:57. | |
asking how we got to this point, we'll have reaction from all | :00:58. | :01:00. | |
the parties here and we'll be trying In our other news this evening, | :01:01. | :01:03. | |
a drunk driver who killed teenage student has his jail term increased | :01:04. | :01:08. | |
by the appeal court. As the last United Airlines flight | :01:09. | :01:11. | |
from Belfast to New York takes off, hope that other airlines may | :01:12. | :01:14. | |
interested in taking over the route. And it's been chilly enough today | :01:15. | :01:19. | |
after the mild weather over the weekend but that's nothing | :01:20. | :01:21. | |
compared to what's coming our Warnings have been issued for both | :01:22. | :01:24. | |
snow and strong winds. Martin McGuinness says he is | :01:25. | :01:36. | |
resigning as Deputy First Minister because it's "time to call a halt | :01:37. | :01:39. | |
to the DUP's arrogance". While there has been more | :01:40. | :01:43. | |
than a month of political wrangling over the renewable heat scandal, | :01:44. | :01:46. | |
in his formal resignation letter to the Assembly | :01:47. | :01:48. | |
Speaker Robin Newton, Mr McGuinness said that The DUP had | :01:49. | :02:00. | |
never fully embraced "the equality, mutual respect and all-Ireland | :02:01. | :02:03. | |
approaches enshrined He also said successive | :02:04. | :02:04. | |
British governments had. "Undermined the process of change | :02:05. | :02:11. | |
by refusing to honour agreements ... While imposing austerity | :02:12. | :02:17. | |
and Brexit against the best Mr McGuinness then went | :02:18. | :02:19. | |
on to say that the DUP leader Arlene Foster had a clear | :02:20. | :02:26. | |
conflict of interest". And as " | :02:27. | :02:31. | |
The minister responsible for the RHI role in overseeing how it | :02:32. | :02:33. | |
would be rectified." Mr McGuinness who has been suffering | :02:34. | :02:37. | |
from ill-health in recent months said that had nothing to do | :02:38. | :02:41. | |
with his decision to leave office. In a moment, in this specially | :02:42. | :02:45. | |
extended BBC Newsline, we'll hear what his resignation | :02:46. | :02:48. | |
means for the Assembly and the prospect of an election | :02:49. | :02:51. | |
as Sinn Fein say they will not be We will find out what his | :02:52. | :03:00. | |
resignation means for the assembly and look forward to the prospect of | :03:01. | :03:04. | |
an election but first our correspondent Gareth Gordon looks to | :03:05. | :03:08. | |
the announcement that took many by surprise. He looked and sounded | :03:09. | :03:16. | |
frail but there was no doubting the strength of what Martin McGuinness | :03:17. | :03:19. | |
was about to say. We in Sinn Fein will not tolerate the arrogance of | :03:20. | :03:29. | |
Arlene Foster and the DUP, Sinn Fein was -- Sinn Fein wants equality and | :03:30. | :03:32. | |
respect for everyone and that is what this process must be about. So | :03:33. | :03:39. | |
today I have told Arlene Foster that I have tendered my resignation, | :03:40. | :03:46. | |
effective from five o'clock today. He made it clear this was no longer | :03:47. | :03:50. | |
just about the heating scandal and that alone. Said other decisions. | :03:51. | :04:08. | |
The speckled assertions. The RHI was -- has run over by half ?1 billion | :04:09. | :04:12. | |
and has left the process wide open to corruption. All of these things | :04:13. | :04:16. | |
are hugely concerning for others in Sinn Fein and you can see by the | :04:17. | :04:25. | |
wiki debate on hurling side has continued in the cause of recent | :04:26. | :04:28. | |
times there is a massive public outcry. There may not be a mass of | :04:29. | :04:34. | |
public-private outcry in the ranks of the DUP, I told Arlene Foster the | :04:35. | :04:41. | |
DUP have been living in a bubble. They do not seem to understand how | :04:42. | :04:45. | |
serious the general public and voters and other parties in the | :04:46. | :04:53. | |
assembly make of this ridiculous situation which bears full | :04:54. | :04:59. | |
responsibility for the Minnesota the DUP rebel in charge. Martin | :05:00. | :05:04. | |
McGuinness was asked if his health was a factor. My health has | :05:05. | :05:10. | |
absolutely nothing to do with this whatsoever, I have been deeply | :05:11. | :05:12. | |
involved in all of the conversations in the course of recent weeks, not | :05:13. | :05:17. | |
just with our negotiating team but I was here last week speaking to | :05:18. | :05:21. | |
Arlene Foster. I have been doing my job. As is appropriate for me to do | :05:22. | :05:28. | |
so. Sounds like it'll take more an election to resolve this. There will | :05:29. | :05:37. | |
be no interruption to the status quo and spent -- now return to the | :05:38. | :05:41. | |
status quo except on terms acceptable to Sinn Fein. The | :05:42. | :05:44. | |
situation we have been dealing with this unacceptable, I have now called | :05:45. | :05:51. | |
a halt to the DUP arrogance and of the DUP think in the aftermath of an | :05:52. | :05:55. | |
election that they can step back into ministerial positions short of | :05:56. | :06:00. | |
resolving the critical issues, some of which I have identified during | :06:01. | :06:04. | |
the course of this conversation, then they are living in a fools | :06:05. | :06:10. | |
paradise. In an election will Martin McGuinness be a candidate? Goal that | :06:11. | :06:14. | |
is something I will speak to you about at a later date, about my | :06:15. | :06:19. | |
resignation. Ten years ago Martin McGuinness began a relationship with | :06:20. | :06:23. | |
a DUP leader that was warmer than anyone could have expected. But as | :06:24. | :06:27. | |
the cash for ash scandal heated up things with Arlene Foster cools | :06:28. | :06:31. | |
down, and Stormont now faces a very long time with a deep freeze, -- | :06:32. | :06:34. | |
with a deep freeze. Let's get analysis from our | :06:35. | :06:37. | |
political editor Mark Devenport and Mark people will be surprised | :06:38. | :06:39. | |
not just by the announcement by Martin McGuinness today but also | :06:40. | :06:42. | |
by the obvious deterioration Sinn Fein has not specified what the | :06:43. | :06:50. | |
illness is that Martin McGuinness has been suffering from City Council | :06:51. | :06:53. | |
that your god is the trip to China last month, but you don't have to be | :06:54. | :06:58. | |
a doctor to be light it is serious. Has it been a factor in the | :06:59. | :07:04. | |
decision-making in this? Martin says no, what we did speak to the former | :07:05. | :07:08. | |
Sinn Fein MLA Daniel Mackay earlier today and he said that comments from | :07:09. | :07:12. | |
Arlene Foster at the about Sinn Fein politicians jockeying for politician | :07:13. | :07:18. | |
-- for position behind Martin McGuinness's back at up the ante. I | :07:19. | :07:21. | |
think those comments from the First Minister went down like a lead | :07:22. | :07:26. | |
balloon, obviously the First Minister thought that by trying to | :07:27. | :07:29. | |
raise the health of the Deputy First Minister that she could create a | :07:30. | :07:31. | |
distraction from her own problems but I think all it does, all it has | :07:32. | :07:36. | |
done is highlighted the lack of leadership skills the First Minister | :07:37. | :07:41. | |
has because if the Deputy First Minister had been in the same | :07:42. | :07:44. | |
position he would not have taken advantage of his partner's health. | :07:45. | :07:49. | |
Set out the timetable of what happens. At five o'clock tonight | :07:50. | :07:54. | |
Martin McGuinness and Arlene Foster officially stop being first and | :07:55. | :07:57. | |
Debbie diverse minister. Arlene Foster can still carry out some | :07:58. | :08:02. | |
functions of the office but effectively the clock is ticking and | :08:03. | :08:06. | |
the bat on passes to the Secretary of State on Monday. It is then up to | :08:07. | :08:11. | |
him to cause a -- to call an election. You can take a reasonable | :08:12. | :08:14. | |
measure of time by doing that but if he does call an election on a | :08:15. | :08:17. | |
six-week campaign we could look at a fresh poll in early March. | :08:18. | :08:22. | |
And all the while, while the election campaign takes place, what | :08:23. | :08:27. | |
happens with the RHI scheme? In terms of stemming potential | :08:28. | :08:31. | |
losses, ?490 million, that is now scheme that has been put in place. | :08:32. | :08:35. | |
In terms of the Green bean independent investigation, nothing | :08:36. | :08:41. | |
on that score either. Some might say we are cutting off our nose to spite | :08:42. | :08:45. | |
our face but Sinn Fein says when we return it will not be to the status | :08:46. | :08:50. | |
quo so that must mean wider negotiations not just on the | :08:51. | :08:53. | |
renewable heat scandal but on a wider range of issues. | :08:54. | :08:55. | |
Well Martin's McGuinness's decision to resign comes almost ten years | :08:56. | :08:57. | |
BBC Newsline's Mark Simpson looks back at some of the twists | :08:58. | :09:01. | |
and turns which led up to today's dramatic events. | :09:02. | :09:09. | |
He has been Stormont's longest serving minister, stretching back to | :09:10. | :09:18. | |
the early days of power-sharing. I nominate Martin McGuinness as | :09:19. | :09:23. | |
Minister for education. An even bigger surprise was to come when he | :09:24. | :09:27. | |
became Deputy First Minister, he got an remarkably well with Ian Paisley. | :09:28. | :09:32. | |
We have been described as the chuckle Brothers by people who | :09:33. | :09:36. | |
thought that might by people who would have demeaned as in the | :09:37. | :09:40. | |
beginning. It turned against them in the end and we hope we can chuckle | :09:41. | :09:44. | |
through 2008. Would Peter Robinson took over as First Minister | :09:45. | :09:48. | |
relations became strained, very strange, but they somehow managed to | :09:49. | :09:53. | |
work through it. We have disagreements at times, there has | :09:54. | :09:56. | |
never been an occasion where we have refused to speak to one another so | :09:57. | :10:00. | |
we have the ability to sit down and work out your problems. When Arlene | :10:01. | :10:03. | |
Foster became First Minister initially be worked well together, | :10:04. | :10:08. | |
and at the time of last year 's election Martin McGuinness said he | :10:09. | :10:10. | |
was looking forward to making the new executive work. I am as fit as a | :10:11. | :10:16. | |
fiddle, I have all my faculties and great support from my family and | :10:17. | :10:20. | |
party and they are adamant I continue with the work I do. The IRA | :10:21. | :10:25. | |
tried to kill Arlene Foster's father, for how this meant that | :10:26. | :10:28. | |
working with Sinn Fein was never easy but she said she was prepared | :10:29. | :10:33. | |
to do it for the greater good. I want to focus on the future and not | :10:34. | :10:39. | |
the past. One of the big challenges was a Brexit Ford, it did make life | :10:40. | :10:42. | |
difficult but did not cause a crisis. The test will be how this | :10:43. | :10:46. | |
British Prime Minister deals with the issues of concern that we have | :10:47. | :10:51. | |
raised to what will be a very historic negotiation. Now a definite | :10:52. | :10:57. | |
was Asian is on the cards. On the table will be RHI, the Irish | :10:58. | :11:00. | |
language, social issues, dealing with the past and all the other | :11:01. | :11:05. | |
issues that have poured DUP and Sinn Fein apart in recent months. That -- | :11:06. | :11:14. | |
now a definite change is on the cards. | :11:15. | :11:19. | |
Let's TZ some of those issues. Paul, you have been accused of arrogant | :11:20. | :11:26. | |
and living in a bubble. Given that came from Gerry Adams that is said | :11:27. | :11:31. | |
on that issue. Obviously we're disappointed that Martin has decided | :11:32. | :11:35. | |
to resign and walk away instead of dealing with these problems, we had | :11:36. | :11:38. | |
an election months ago and Arlene was returned with a renewed mandate | :11:39. | :11:42. | |
of over 200,000 votes, Sinn Fein did not like that and I can understand | :11:43. | :11:45. | |
why but we need to work through these problems but instead they | :11:46. | :11:48. | |
walked through the door. We will go to the country and put forward | :11:49. | :11:52. | |
positions and let's be clear, this is not about the RHI scheme, the now | :11:53. | :11:56. | |
can't be an enquiry because of Sinn Fein, we cannot recover the money | :11:57. | :11:59. | |
under the proposals that we are ready to use because of Sinn Fein, | :12:00. | :12:03. | |
instead they have called an election. Because this is about | :12:04. | :12:08. | |
removing Arlene Foster as the leader of unionism and weakening unionism | :12:09. | :12:13. | |
to pursue a public agenda. Did you take Sinn Fein and the support for | :12:14. | :12:18. | |
granted? We did not, we recognise that the electorate at the people | :12:19. | :12:21. | |
return individuals to office, we do business with people on that basis. | :12:22. | :12:25. | |
We are not friends with Sinn Fein did not seek to be friends with Sinn | :12:26. | :12:28. | |
Fein but we do business with Sinn Fein because that is the electorate | :12:29. | :12:32. | |
decided to return. The public will suffer as a result of this decision | :12:33. | :12:36. | |
because cannot now have a budget. And the finance Minister knows that | :12:37. | :12:41. | |
better than anyone else. The voluntary and community sector will | :12:42. | :12:44. | |
be pitting people on notice. The Bedroom Tax for example, I can bring | :12:45. | :12:48. | |
a regulation in to stop that being introduced to Sinn Fein have two be | :12:49. | :12:56. | |
held to account for how they are using the public. With painting does | :12:57. | :13:00. | |
Arlene Foster stepping aside six weeks ago not look like a better | :13:01. | :13:05. | |
action? Arlene Foster is being called to account three Sinn Fein | :13:06. | :13:08. | |
Republican agenda, not evidence. That is due process to be followed, | :13:09. | :13:13. | |
we said we want the enquiry and said that we would have a public enquiry | :13:14. | :13:18. | |
under the enquiry is act 2005. Sinn Fein did not want that. We wanted | :13:19. | :13:22. | |
proposals to deal with these costs and Sinn Fein did not want it, they | :13:23. | :13:25. | |
want to go to the country because there are internal issues in | :13:26. | :13:28. | |
republicanism that is clear from the interview that Martin McGuinness has | :13:29. | :13:31. | |
given over who will replace him and there is a wider narrative around | :13:32. | :13:35. | |
the maze development, the Irish line which act, all the things that Sinn | :13:36. | :13:40. | |
Fein don't like. They have brought the issue is down. How the comeback | :13:41. | :13:45. | |
as a result of the -- after the results of the electorate is the | :13:46. | :13:49. | |
challenge. So that is not alternative? We are calling time on | :13:50. | :13:54. | |
corruption and arrogance, corruption evidence by red sky and numb and RHI | :13:55. | :13:59. | |
scheme, and of course there can be no investigation into the RHI scheme | :14:00. | :14:03. | |
until Arlene Foster steps aside. She has scuppered the investigation by | :14:04. | :14:08. | |
refusing to do that. But also breathtaking arrogance and | :14:09. | :14:11. | |
disrespect for the tradition as evidenced by the decision at the | :14:12. | :14:20. | |
mouth of Christmas, to take ?50,000 from children who want to learn | :14:21. | :14:23. | |
Irish language. Talking about straws that broke the camel 's back, the | :14:24. | :14:28. | |
RHI scheme and awaited DUP have created that scheme and refused to | :14:29. | :14:31. | |
shoot the military or allow us to have the investigation -- refused to | :14:32. | :14:39. | |
show humility. The issues that both concerned about, of course we are | :14:40. | :14:44. | |
concerned about, we want to see good governance. Did they take you for | :14:45. | :14:49. | |
granted? We want a government that has zero tolerance for sectarianism | :14:50. | :14:53. | |
of corruption. Did they take the public for granted? Did the bite off | :14:54. | :14:57. | |
more than they could chew? Did do not listen to the warnings? | :14:58. | :15:01. | |
Absolutely. The DUP were told again and again, act with respect to | :15:02. | :15:08. | |
everyone. Now we are facing internal action over corruption and | :15:09. | :15:11. | |
arrogance. Martin McGuinness said there will be no corrupt -- now | :15:12. | :15:16. | |
return to the status quo. It is clear that there will be protracted | :15:17. | :15:19. | |
negotiations are so we could have no Stormont for a couple of years. That | :15:20. | :15:23. | |
is up to the DUP in particular poll has already said about what happens | :15:24. | :15:29. | |
after the election. I'm saying very clearly there will be no return to | :15:30. | :15:33. | |
the status quo, we will not go back to any government that tolerates | :15:34. | :15:37. | |
corruption or sectarianism in any way and that is what has been | :15:38. | :15:39. | |
hallowed to happen in the last few weeks with the RHI scheme. We have | :15:40. | :15:45. | |
called time on that. Poll about the decision not Irish language that was | :15:46. | :15:49. | |
read by many nationalists as extremely arrogant. That is not the | :15:50. | :15:53. | |
case, Irish language is for everyone, it was Unionist to kept | :15:54. | :15:57. | |
the language alive Scottish Presbyterians, a language that all | :15:58. | :16:01. | |
should be proud of. When you look at Bursaries around ?500 per child, is | :16:02. | :16:06. | |
that money that could have been better spent? It was not an attack | :16:07. | :16:09. | |
on the Irish language. But to weaponised and use it as a cultural | :16:10. | :16:12. | |
weapon which Sinn Fein have done repeatedly that is what does most | :16:13. | :16:17. | |
damage to the Irish language. Do you find yourself in a long negotiations | :16:18. | :16:20. | |
when the Irish language act will come on the table and you will be | :16:21. | :16:24. | |
forced to bring that its additions up and running? The DUP have never | :16:25. | :16:29. | |
been forced to do anything at the behest of Sinn Fein and we will not | :16:30. | :16:32. | |
be forced to remove a leader at the behest of Sinn Fein. What are you | :16:33. | :16:36. | |
saying to the public? You will have no government for X number of | :16:37. | :16:40. | |
months? We want the government to work. We have shown government can | :16:41. | :16:44. | |
work and none of the issues that Sinn Fein have now used to justify | :16:45. | :16:47. | |
calling time as they have put it on these institutions are not the one | :16:48. | :16:53. | |
year ago, two years ago in terms of debates but for whatever reason and | :16:54. | :16:56. | |
the public know what they are within the republican movement there using | :16:57. | :17:00. | |
those reasons to bring these institutions to ahead thank you | :17:01. | :17:01. | |
both. The Secretary of State James | :17:02. | :17:02. | |
Brokenshire said a short time ago that the UK government | :17:03. | :17:05. | |
would do all it can to help The position is clear. If Sinn Fein | :17:06. | :17:14. | |
does not nominate a replacement to the role of the different minister | :17:15. | :17:20. | |
then I am obliged to call an election of the assembly within a | :17:21. | :17:28. | |
reasonable period. I would urge the political parties, the leaders of | :17:29. | :17:33. | |
the political parties to come together and work together to find a | :17:34. | :17:39. | |
solution to the current position and we will be doing all that we can | :17:40. | :17:44. | |
with the political parties and the Irish government to that end. | :17:45. | :17:48. | |
I'm joined now by UUP Leader Mike Nesbitt; | :17:49. | :17:54. | |
. This is the worst outcome for everyone, doesn't it? Yes, it is not | :17:55. | :18:01. | |
about the renewable heat initiative, if it was Sinn Fein would hang into | :18:02. | :18:05. | |
old Arlene Foster to account to bringing the cost controls were | :18:06. | :18:10. | |
missing. It cost ?85,000 of taxpayer money today because of the lack of | :18:11. | :18:13. | |
cost controls and they would be looking for a public enquiry or | :18:14. | :18:17. | |
something similar. So it is not about renewable heat it is about | :18:18. | :18:20. | |
Sinn Fein looking after Sinn Fein 's interests and I hope the public | :18:21. | :18:23. | |
reflect on the fact we have had ten years of Sinn Fein DUP rule, decade | :18:24. | :18:29. | |
characterised by scandals, tobaccos and disappointments and if we do go | :18:30. | :18:34. | |
to the polls but remember that there is the possibility of change. There | :18:35. | :18:37. | |
was change in America and with Brexit, people do react when they | :18:38. | :18:40. | |
get angry and people are angry about renewable heat. Poll given was | :18:41. | :18:45. | |
pretty bullish about their chances in an election and you are a long | :18:46. | :18:48. | |
way behind them. This surely cuts down on the time you had to give | :18:49. | :18:54. | |
unionism Altera device. Yama what is different about this cannot compare | :18:55. | :18:57. | |
to the others like red sky and the social investment fund, people | :18:58. | :19:01. | |
generally get this, they understand cash for Ash is a real scandal and | :19:02. | :19:07. | |
the crush of -- the cross about it. They may welcome the opportunity to | :19:08. | :19:11. | |
commit an vote and if you look at voting patterns in 1998, ten to the | :19:12. | :19:16. | |
assembly 70%, last year 55%, if anything will encourage people to | :19:17. | :19:19. | |
come out and vote for change, to change this full record of | :19:20. | :19:21. | |
incompetence, this must be it. Thank you. Let's hear from the leader of | :19:22. | :19:31. | |
the SDLP. This is disastrous for all the parties because you have to | :19:32. | :19:34. | |
quote and face the electorate several months after doing the same | :19:35. | :19:39. | |
thing. We are not afraid of an election, we look forward to it. But | :19:40. | :19:44. | |
it has been brought about by Arlene Foster's arrogance and Sinn Fein 's | :19:45. | :19:47. | |
weakness over the past ten years. Did they not commit stronger today | :19:48. | :19:50. | |
because they have brought the institutions down and forced her | :19:51. | :19:55. | |
hand and she did not take it? They had an opportunity to vote for the | :19:56. | :19:58. | |
public enquiry and didn't take it. If you look at what happened today, | :19:59. | :20:03. | |
Sinn Fein talk a lot about the ad is in good and equality. They produced | :20:04. | :20:06. | |
a draft programme for government couple of weeks ago was no mention | :20:07. | :20:09. | |
of an Irish line would act, nor anti-poverty strategy and now | :20:10. | :20:14. | |
poverty Bill, but we were told we had to wear that and accepted so | :20:15. | :20:17. | |
Sinn Fein are now seeing they are annoyed at the way the DUP have | :20:18. | :20:21. | |
acted but they have aided and abetted them for ten years. I don't | :20:22. | :20:24. | |
know what they're worried about, we do know today is the will not be a | :20:25. | :20:28. | |
full public enquiry into the RHI scheme. Those people who should be | :20:29. | :20:31. | |
afraid of accountability are getting a two-month holiday from a | :20:32. | :20:36. | |
credibility. I do not understand it in the public don't. Could be a much | :20:37. | :20:40. | |
longer holiday all-round, Google will wonder about a budget and what | :20:41. | :20:44. | |
happens next. We still don't have a budget or a final programme for | :20:45. | :20:48. | |
government, we don't have a plan for Brexit. During this crisis what will | :20:49. | :20:52. | |
happen is Theresa May will trigger article 50. We will be in the | :20:53. | :20:57. | |
process of Brexit in the area most affected by it will have no voice. | :20:58. | :21:00. | |
That is because of the arrogance and weakness of these two parties. | :21:01. | :21:05. | |
Let's hear from the Alliance party. The Brexit issue is a massive one, | :21:06. | :21:08. | |
we have Nicola Sturgeon talking about them being the only government | :21:09. | :21:13. | |
with a plan. We are part of the UK with no government. Worse than that, | :21:14. | :21:17. | |
when we did have a government it was not one capable of showing | :21:18. | :21:21. | |
leadership which is why we're standing here today. The reality is | :21:22. | :21:24. | |
that the DUP have been entirely tone deaf, both of the partners in | :21:25. | :21:28. | |
government and the anger of public outside these situations. Sinn Fein | :21:29. | :21:32. | |
are happy to prop up when it suited them because they too were being | :21:33. | :21:36. | |
arrogant, we were not seeing the proper process is being gone through | :21:37. | :21:39. | |
with respect to budget controls and everything else. Now we find that | :21:40. | :21:41. | |
Sinn Fein are obviously getting pushed by their own electorate and | :21:42. | :21:44. | |
so they have called this four part biblical posturing, not for the | :21:45. | :21:49. | |
public of Northern Ireland. The public are sick to the back teeth of | :21:50. | :21:52. | |
the crisis at Stormont. They want good government and to see people | :21:53. | :21:55. | |
who are less keen to dig responsibility as they are to take | :21:56. | :21:59. | |
power. And what we have here is not that it is the opposite. That is the | :22:00. | :22:03. | |
message you have said before and it has not seen the Alliance through to | :22:04. | :22:08. | |
victory. It has not but this is a different situation because what I | :22:09. | :22:11. | |
detect that there is real anger, real anger and change things and we | :22:12. | :22:14. | |
offering them a different alternative. We are willing to take | :22:15. | :22:18. | |
responsibility and stand up and be accountable. If others were willing | :22:19. | :22:21. | |
to do the same we would not be in this mess. | :22:22. | :22:26. | |
Thank you. Quite the hill to climb. We are back later in the programme | :22:27. | :22:30. | |
with our political editor. For now it is back to you. In a few minutes | :22:31. | :22:40. | |
we will speak to article commentators about the resignation | :22:41. | :22:42. | |
of Martin McGuinness and its applications. | :22:43. | :22:44. | |
In other news - A drunk driver who killed a County Tyrone teenager | :22:45. | :22:48. | |
has been given an extra year in prison by the Court of Appeal. | :22:49. | :22:50. | |
18-year-old Enda Dolan was knocked down and killed | :22:51. | :22:52. | |
His father says the increased jail sentence is not enough. | :22:53. | :22:56. | |
Enda Dolan was a talented teenager who had just started studying | :22:57. | :23:12. | |
architecture at Queens University. He was knocked down and killed by a | :23:13. | :23:17. | |
drunk driver on the 15th of October 2014 as he returned to his halls of | :23:18. | :23:20. | |
residence. Evidently steward of Grace Park Avenue was sentenced to | :23:21. | :23:23. | |
see and have years in jail with another three and a half on licence. | :23:24. | :23:27. | |
The sentence was referred to the Court of Appeal 's on the basis that | :23:28. | :23:32. | |
it was unduly lenient. The court was reminded that on the night of the | :23:33. | :23:34. | |
killing steward had consumed six pints of beer, for cocktails known | :23:35. | :23:41. | |
as Eurobonds and the other drinks. It was also suggested he had been | :23:42. | :23:44. | |
taking drugs before getting behind the wheel. The Court of Appeal | :23:45. | :23:47. | |
decided to increase the sentence which means it steward. The had -- | :23:48. | :23:53. | |
spend an extra year in prison. Increasing the prison term from the | :23:54. | :23:56. | |
scene half to a foreigner have used the Lord Chief Justice said nothing | :23:57. | :23:59. | |
is court can do can turn the clock back. What happened was needless, | :24:00. | :24:04. | |
senseless and entirely avoidable so Declan Martin said in cases of this | :24:05. | :24:08. | |
kind deterrent sentences must continue to be imposed. While | :24:09. | :24:12. | |
welcoming the increase, the boy's father said it should have been | :24:13. | :24:18. | |
more. Satisfied would be the word, again in my opinion it is not enough | :24:19. | :24:24. | |
given the crime that he committed. I think it is still a disgrace, I | :24:25. | :24:28. | |
think the justice system needs to be looked at, I think legislation in | :24:29. | :24:31. | |
relation to drinking and driving needs to build that. Since Enda | :24:32. | :24:36. | |
Dolan's death that is something the whole family has to deal with | :24:37. | :24:41. | |
everyday. Christmas was difficult, there was an empty seat at the table | :24:42. | :24:45. | |
and there was a lot of tears. Unfortunately that is the way it is. | :24:46. | :24:50. | |
You must either family celebrations like birthdays and other times of | :24:51. | :24:54. | |
the year that you have other family gatherings and he is not there. The | :24:55. | :24:58. | |
dull and family say they will continue the campaign to have | :24:59. | :25:02. | |
sentences for drunk drivers who kill increased. | :25:03. | :25:05. | |
A solicitor for a 22-year-old man accused of procuring drugs intended | :25:06. | :25:08. | |
to cause an abortion has protested about delays | :25:09. | :25:10. | |
two drugs which are commonly used woman is charged with taking | :25:11. | :25:17. | |
to bring about a miscarriage or abortion. | :25:18. | :25:20. | |
The case was adjourned until later this month. | :25:21. | :25:25. | |
As many as three airlines are said to be looking at | :25:26. | :25:28. | |
a new Belfast to New York air service. | :25:29. | :25:31. | |
Today Northern Ireland waved goodbye to its existing link | :25:32. | :25:33. | |
Our business correspondent Julian O'Neill reports | :25:34. | :25:39. | |
The last United Airlines New York flight was almost fool with 150 | :25:40. | :25:54. | |
passengers booked to travel. The route is being axed due to its pure | :25:55. | :25:58. | |
financial performance and after the airline said that the European | :25:59. | :26:02. | |
Commission indicated a ?9 million rescue package involving Stormont | :26:03. | :26:08. | |
would break rules around state aid. It is a sad day for us and for me, | :26:09. | :26:18. | |
it is, I chose to come over and they choose to come at New Year and see | :26:19. | :26:22. | |
Mum and go home at the last one and say goodbye to your. The | :26:23. | :26:24. | |
grandchildren are here so it makes it so convenient, instead of flying | :26:25. | :26:29. | |
into Dublin, waiting the hour for the bus, two hours on the bus etc | :26:30. | :26:36. | |
etc. This was Northern Ireland only year round long haul flight, and | :26:37. | :26:40. | |
when the executive has claimed was important to attracting inward | :26:41. | :26:44. | |
investment by US companies. The service has been running for the | :26:45. | :26:51. | |
best part of 11 years, but finding a replacement is not proving | :26:52. | :26:55. | |
straightforward. I understand the airport is presently in negotiations | :26:56. | :26:58. | |
with up to three airlines with a view to taking on the New York | :26:59. | :27:03. | |
route. There are several hot leads and we will follow up with that to | :27:04. | :27:07. | |
get that replacement in but it does take time, you can switch it on | :27:08. | :27:13. | |
overnight. Airlines do not have available aircraft ready to go so we | :27:14. | :27:17. | |
will keep talking to those carriers. I understand the low-cost carrier | :27:18. | :27:20. | |
Norwegian air is one of those taking a look. It might be seeking public | :27:21. | :27:25. | |
funds before committing to not just a New York service but Boston as | :27:26. | :27:27. | |
well. A bus driver has been praised | :27:28. | :27:32. | |
for helping to save a middle-aged man who was | :27:33. | :27:34. | |
in a distressed state The driver was on an early morning | :27:35. | :27:36. | |
journey from Londonderry to Dublin Rowland Ward set off an ordinary | :27:37. | :27:58. | |
express run to Dublin seven on Saturday morning. Within half an | :27:59. | :28:02. | |
hour, his day took an extraordinary tone on this bridge on 01. There was | :28:03. | :28:10. | |
a young man working for us and another gentleman in his early 50s. | :28:11. | :28:14. | |
He looked distressed, this person, and I looked. I stopped the bus, it | :28:15. | :28:23. | |
was just a reaction and when I got off the bus and looked, he was on | :28:24. | :28:27. | |
the other side of the ratings towards the Riverside. It was still | :28:28. | :28:32. | |
dark and every passing moment was critical. The man was in distress on | :28:33. | :28:39. | |
the side of the bridge and the efforts of the bus driver and Newman | :28:40. | :28:43. | |
became a mental and physical struggle. I had him by one arm, and | :28:44. | :28:47. | |
a young fellow had him by the other arm and we were trying to physically | :28:48. | :28:50. | |
pulled across the railings to try and get him. Then a young fellow | :28:51. | :28:57. | |
came with a safety harness that he had on the back of his van, and he | :28:58. | :29:02. | |
put that on the side of the bridge, he leaned over the bridge, lifted | :29:03. | :29:07. | |
his legs up. The bus driver says that he has been assured that the | :29:08. | :29:12. | |
man he helped is now in good care, and following his dramatic | :29:13. | :29:16. | |
intervention, he is now taking this week off work. Back to the main | :29:17. | :29:24. | |
story, the resignation of Mark McGuinness as Deputy First Minister. | :29:25. | :29:28. | |
We have been asking people on the streets of Belfast what they think | :29:29. | :29:32. | |
about what happened today. It is very sad that he has stepped down | :29:33. | :29:37. | |
but it will probably have a big impact on what this to come for | :29:38. | :29:40. | |
Arlene Foster and the rest of the country, really. It is another | :29:41. | :29:44. | |
election. Nothing we can do about it. Will it make any difference the | :29:45. | :29:50. | |
assembly? Not really. Who knows what is going to happen next? It is | :29:51. | :29:56. | |
interesting that something is moving, anyway. What we think of the | :29:57. | :30:00. | |
possibility of another election? Would I like one? Don't know, just | :30:01. | :30:05. | |
don't know. At least it's sort of start something. I'd be disappointed | :30:06. | :30:10. | |
if there was another election. I am not sure that it would make any | :30:11. | :30:15. | |
difference. But if it does, we will have two pass the vote and see what | :30:16. | :30:21. | |
comes out of it. How do you think the RHI scandal has reflected on the | :30:22. | :30:26. | |
assembly? It has not reflected well. A lot of people are very cynical of | :30:27. | :30:32. | |
what is going on. It is time for an election, definitely, we need | :30:33. | :30:35. | |
change. Do you think it should have come to this? I'm sorry you did. I | :30:36. | :30:41. | |
don't know. Would it make any difference? I don't know. The last | :30:42. | :30:47. | |
thing we need now is an election. We need to come together and sort out | :30:48. | :30:51. | |
the problems we are already trying to deal with. Do you think an | :30:52. | :30:54. | |
election could make any difference to the assembly? I don't know, but | :30:55. | :30:59. | |
of all the time and effort that will be spent on it it is not what I | :31:00. | :31:03. | |
would be spending time and effort on. Just a sample of public opinion | :31:04. | :31:05. | |
there. Who wins and loses this? I'm not | :31:06. | :31:22. | |
sure that anybody wins. I reckon action thing could not have let it | :31:23. | :31:26. | |
go any longer to let this week build-up to some kind of melodrama | :31:27. | :31:29. | |
would have made them look worse and would not have done Arlene Foster | :31:30. | :31:33. | |
any good, either. Beyond that, in electoral terms, it would have | :31:34. | :31:42. | |
damaged things as much as staying on would have done to Sinn Fein. From a | :31:43. | :31:50. | |
unionist voters' point of view, will the election and possible | :31:51. | :31:52. | |
resignation make much difference? This will not be an election about | :31:53. | :31:57. | |
the RHI scandal. Sinn Fein has known about this for over a year | :31:58. | :32:02. | |
internally. It is also the case that all of these other issues that have | :32:03. | :32:07. | |
been raised, gay rights, the Bill of Rights, things that had been long | :32:08. | :32:11. | |
forgotten when the DUP and Sinn Fein were working coherently in | :32:12. | :32:14. | |
government together over seven months have been known about. | :32:15. | :32:19. | |
National inverses of an arms that Sinn Fein seems to be getting | :32:20. | :32:23. | |
nothing out of Stormont, so it is wider than RHI. What it will come | :32:24. | :32:29. | |
back to is what sort of politicians will, what platform will politicians | :32:30. | :32:37. | |
be going forward on. I think the effect for Sinn Fein was definitely | :32:38. | :32:41. | |
that they had to go. There were other things there. Red Sky and | :32:42. | :32:46. | |
Nama. A list that has been mentioned today. Parra has not been shared, | :32:47. | :32:53. | |
and the DUP never seemed ready to do that. I don't think that is a | :32:54. | :33:00. | |
particularly partisan view. The DUP would admit that. It is not a word | :33:01. | :33:08. | |
that they use easily, in fact rarely, and cumulatively, RHI | :33:09. | :33:13. | |
definitely playing a part, and the last straw being the DUP cup. Arlene | :33:14. | :33:27. | |
Foster Sting, is she being seen as a strong lead over by her electorate? | :33:28. | :33:30. | |
She will be comfortable with Sinn Fein attacking and the language that | :33:31. | :33:39. | |
Gerry Adams used. That plays very well to the DUP base. It plays well | :33:40. | :33:46. | |
to the DUP base. Neither of those parties have been comfortable | :33:47. | :33:48. | |
addressing what has been a huge failure of government on their | :33:49. | :33:52. | |
watch. They were both partly responsible for this, the DUP much | :33:53. | :33:57. | |
more culpable. They fail to see this and to stop it. Sinn Fein have known | :33:58. | :34:00. | |
about this for one year. What has happened in that time and why has | :34:01. | :34:03. | |
there been no emergency legislation to recoup these costs? That all | :34:04. | :34:08. | |
falls apart. There will be no inquiry in the short-term and of the | :34:09. | :34:12. | |
assembly does not come back will there ever be an inquiry? Brother be | :34:13. | :34:15. | |
an election? It is almost inevitable. Yes, there will be an | :34:16. | :34:25. | |
election. We have not had much snow so far this winter but that could be | :34:26. | :34:29. | |
about to change. Cecilia Delie is in the weather studio with -- studio | :34:30. | :34:34. | |
that although the details. That is the main message this week. It is | :34:35. | :34:38. | |
going to get much colder during the course of Wednesday. As that cold | :34:39. | :34:43. | |
air arrives all the way from Canada, it will bring snow showers and | :34:44. | :34:48. | |
bitterly cold winds which could, in themselves, be a hazard. The hills | :34:49. | :34:54. | |
catching the worst of the snow, the North and west in particular will | :34:55. | :34:59. | |
probably see more snow. Stay tuned to the forecast. Warnings have been | :35:00. | :35:03. | |
issued for strong winds and snow from 6pm on Wednesday. No slow | :35:04. | :35:07. | |
tonight but there will be some rain for a while. Most of us will escape | :35:08. | :35:14. | |
the post and ice tonight. In fact, tomorrow is the exception to the | :35:15. | :35:20. | |
rest of the week. There will be some mild air, and some rain and drizzle | :35:21. | :35:24. | |
in the morning. But you should not have to scrape your windscreen. | :35:25. | :35:27. | |
Quite blustery in the morning with a brisk wind along the north coast. | :35:28. | :35:31. | |
There will be some wet weather, as you can see. Nothing too heavy, but | :35:32. | :35:35. | |
you will need an umbrella to start the day. It does not last, with a | :35:36. | :35:39. | |
good chunk of the day brightening up for a time and temperatures in | :35:40. | :35:44. | |
double figures. During the course of Wednesday it will start to turn | :35:45. | :35:48. | |
colder with strong winds and driving rain showers through the day, but | :35:49. | :35:52. | |
those will become increasingly wintry through Wednesday night and | :35:53. | :35:57. | |
into Thursday. So a reminder, warnings have been issued for strong | :35:58. | :36:01. | |
winds and snow. Thursday looks to be the worst of the days this week. | :36:02. | :36:07. | |
Let's go back to Stormont and to Tara Mills. Lots to die just today, | :36:08. | :36:12. | |
Mark. Any chance of suspension rather than an election -- lots to | :36:13. | :36:25. | |
digests. As part of the deal that was done in Scotland in 2006, Parra | :36:26. | :36:30. | |
was taken off the statute book. This present government without do you | :36:31. | :36:33. | |
use an emergency law to put it back onto the statute book. Government | :36:34. | :36:37. | |
Celsius indicate they don't intend to do that. They intend to let the | :36:38. | :36:41. | |
current law take its course. That means an election. What will the key | :36:42. | :36:49. | |
battles be? You could say every paddle -- every party will be the | :36:50. | :36:54. | |
loser, they will be going down to one less seat in each constituency | :36:55. | :36:59. | |
so one, potentially losses all round and the battle lines will be quite | :37:00. | :37:02. | |
fierce. We have this fierce argument between the main parties over the | :37:03. | :37:07. | |
RHI scandal and other issues, you can imagine some of the arguments. | :37:08. | :37:12. | |
And the opposition party saying, these two parties promised a fresh | :37:13. | :37:16. | |
start. They were going to make everything better. Instead, they | :37:17. | :37:21. | |
messed things up. All the while, the bills continue to mount up in the | :37:22. | :37:26. | |
RHI scandal and no sign of any structure of the investigation into | :37:27. | :37:32. | |
it. That's it from Stormont for this evening. We will have an extended | :37:33. | :37:39. | |
programme at 10:25pm. For now, we leave you from another day of | :37:40. | :37:42. | |
uncertainty and drama at Parliament buildings. | :37:43. | :37:43. |