Submitting.
Defenders of the status quo argue that Labour shouldn’t undermine their ‘sister party’, the SDLP.
But unionists can’t be blamed for not trusting a future Labour government on the Union when their only formal link is to a party committed to ending the Union.
It is probably too much to hope that Starmer might overturn two decades of bad policy and have the guts to make his case directly to voters in Northern Ireland.
But there is another option that he should consider: reviving the old Northern Ireland Labour Party (NILP).
The raw materials are already in place. Ulster already has a core of activists who could provide the base for a revived NILP.
Sir Keir Starmer criticised after snubbing Labour Party members in Northern Ireland Labour Party leader Sir Keir Starmer with shadow Northern Ireland secretary Louise Haigh at Stormont last week. Picture by Peter Morrison/PA Wire
Labour activist Boyd Black
LABOUR Party members in Northern Ireland have criticised Sir Keir Starmer for not meeting them during his visit to the region last week.
Labour has more than one-thousand members in Northern Ireland but headquarters in Britain prevents the party from standing in elections.
Previously the Labour flag in the north was carried by the affiliated but separate Northern Ireland Labour Party. Since 2003, British Labour has allowed membership in the north but has not contested elections.
Yes We Have No Bananas: Class and Sectarianism in Northern Ireland by T J libcom.org - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from libcom.org Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Veteran campaigner Eamonn McCann steps down from council on health grounds Veteran campaigner Eamonn McCann steps down from council seat on heath grounds.
VETERAN socialist Eamonn McCann has stood down from his seat on Derry and Strabane council.
One of the founding members of the Civil Rights campaign, the journalist and trade unionist has been involved in campaigning politics for more than 50 years.
He said he was stepping down from council for health reasons.
Mr McCann announced he was retiring from his seat just shy of his 78th birthday after being diagnosed with the neurological condition ataxia.
The People Before Profit (PBP) councillor said the condition has made it increasingly difficult for me to fulfil my duty as a councillor .
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IMAGE: A new coin from the Royal Mint marks 50 years since Britain went decimal. view more
Credit: The Royal Mint
The move from the ancient system of £sd coinage to 100p to £1 was controversial, considered by some to be a sign of the UK s receding importance on the world stage and even as the beginning of the tumultuous relationship with Europe that ultimately led to Brexit.
But as a result of extensive analysis of a quiet backwater of recent history, Andy argues that the move towards decimalisation had little to do with Europe and in fact was a traditional British compromise.