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Week in Review 10-17 September 2014‏

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Sinn Fein
The Week in Review
10-17 September 2014‏

Sinn Fein stand against the welfare cuts of the British Tory party – McGuinness keynote speech in fullMcGuinness
On 12 September Sinn Fein’s Martin McGuinness, gave a keynote address at a national party meeting, in which he set out the party’s position on the issue of welfare cuts and the Assembly.
In his comments he said it was clear that the economies north and south were `interlinked and interdependent’. He said the economic downturn and recession had `hit families and businesses across Ireland’ and that Sinn Féin had a common approach to these problems, proposing `investment to create jobs and grow the economy’ and to `safeguard the needs of those most vulnerable in society’.
He said that communities across the island continued to face the common problems of economic hardship and inequality, adding `austerity and cuts to public services are at the heart of many of the problems that we face’. Sinn Féin stood `against austerity north and south’, he said, and believed that `the policy of attacking the least able to pay is fundamentally wrong’. He reiterated that Sinn Fein were `against the welfare cuts that the British Tory party want to introduce in the north and so far we have been able to protect citizens from the worst effects of their despicable selfish policies’.
He said that `no one in the north of Ireland voted for these vicious cuts’ nor for `Tory politicians who are driving this agenda’. The `social consequences of austerity’ were evident, he said `the ongoing destruction of our health services, the imposition of water charges, the family home tax and the removal of protection for working families, senior citizens, cuts to child benefit, carers allowance, the appalling increase of poverty, wholesale unemployment and emigration’.
He said the `defence and protection of those who need the support and help of wider society’ should be an issue which united the Northern Executive.
We reproduce the rest of his remarks in full:

    Since the Tory-led coalition came to power there has been a sustained and systematic assault on public services and the very concept of the welfare state. The money allocated to the Executive has remained static year on year. In the context of inflation, increasing wages and rising costs this means a real cut in public spending every year. Next year we are facing into a £500 million reduction which will have a devastating effect on our public services. None of the policies of the Tory-led coalition takes any account of the unique challenges facing the north of Ireland as a society emerging from conflict with higher levels of deprivation, higher livings costs and greater dependence on the public sector.
    The Tory-led government in London are demanding we now cut the income of the poorest in our society while their rich backers continue to avoid and evade taxes and the bankers who created the economic crisis continue to enjoy obscenely large bonuses.
    Over the summer we have heard a great deal of commentary about the consequences of not legislating for the benefits cuts demanded by this British government agenda. Let’s be clear these proposals will not create one job but will force thousands of families into greater poverty.
    The advocates of Tory cuts have been less than vocal when it comes to the consequences for their own constituents, individuals, families and communities who will lose money if these cuts were implemented.
    As is the case under Fine Gael and Labour the people who will lose money if the vicious Tory welfare cuts are implemented are the least well-off in our society – people with disabilities, low income workers, the vulnerable and the unemployed. People – already on the poverty line – would lose even further as a result of decisions made by Tory millionaires in government in London.
    The DUP are demanding that we implement a British government policy, the sole purpose of which is to save money at the expense of the poor, of people with disabilities and the most vulnerable in our society.
    Not one vote was cast in the north of Ireland for those who make up the Tory-led coalition in London. We did not vote for welfare cuts. Cuts in welfare payments are not part of our Programme for Government. In fact the Tory cuts came like a hammer blow after our Programme for Government. These cuts would undermine all of the anti-poverty measures that we are committed to in our Programme for Government.
    It is a right-wing, conservative agenda. It is a policy designed by millionaires in London who know nothing about surviving on a low income and who care even less for those who do.
    It is a policy supported by politicians in the Assembly who also know nothing about surviving on a low income.
    These Tory cuts are the antithesis of a caring, modern society which should protect its most vulnerable. In the Tory world, the rich continue to get richer and the poor continue to pay the price. In this Tory world people claiming benefits are targeted while billions of pounds are denied to the public purse through tax avoidance and tax evasion by the rich friends of the Tory party.
    The Tory welfare programme is not about reform. It is about saving money at the expense of the poor. It is a Thatcherite agenda designed to dismantle the welfare state and punish the poorest and most disadvantaged in society. In Britain the welfare system is in disarray and the cause of growing division and dissension within the coalition government.
    Recently, in the context of the Scottish referendum debate, Alistair Darling declared his opposition to the welfare cuts. Any decision by the Assembly on welfare cuts must be informed by the reality that a British general election might fundamentally change the British government’s approach to the welfare state. Or indeed, in advance of the Scottish referendum which will, whatever its outcome, change fundamentally the welfare and fiscal agenda for all of us.
    The reality is that in Britain people have died as a result of these cuts. Like many people in this state others have been forced into homelessness, poverty, desperation and in some cases suicide. The DUP needs to tell people, including many of their own voters, what they are facing into if welfare cuts are implemented. For example, in Britain by 2015, child benefits cuts will affect 7.5 million households who will lose an average of £370 per year. Cuts to child benefit will force more children into poverty.
    In Britain, half a million people with disabilities will have their income reduced by an average of £3,000 per year forcing already vulnerable and disadvantaged individuals into greater hardship and suffering. These are the real, human consequences of welfare cuts. Sinn Féin is totally opposed to this agenda.
    We believe that the Assembly and the Executive should take our own decisions on these matters. We believe the Assembly and the Executive should have the power and the responsibility; and not just the responsibility.
    The DUP, in contrast, have accepted this anti-working class agenda. Indeed, many in that party share the right-wing conservative ideology of the British Tory party. So, let me be absolutely clear today so that David Cameron and his supporters in the Unionist parties understand fully my position. Sinn Féin is absolute in our opposition to welfare cuts, north and south of the border.
    Sinn Féin have attempted to persuade the other Executive parties to unite against these Tory cuts and to join with us in demanding the right to design a system which meets our needs as is now being promised to the Scottish people. It is our primary duty to protect the most vulnerable in our society.
    This is about choices for all the parties in the Assembly. We do have a choice. In Sinn Féin, we have made our choice. We reject this attack on the poor, people with disabilities and the most vulnerable in our society. We will defend and stand with the working class communities that the Tories are targeting. If, for ideological reasons or in an attempt to curry favour with the Tories, the DUP wish to inflict these devastating cuts on working class unionists as well as the rest of us, then they can and should bring the legislation onto the floor of the Assembly, explain their support for Tory policies and let the representatives of the people decide. That’s what the Assembly is for, that is the democratic thing to do.
    If Nelson McCausland on behalf of the DUP refuses to bring it to the floor of the Assembly, then the only other option is to put it directly to the people in an election. Sinn Féin has no fear of an election.
    The DUP have of course thrown this issue up in recent weeks. In reality it is a smokescreen for the real threat to the institutions that results from the anti-agreement axis which emerged as a result of the failure of the DUP to show positive leadership.
    This anti-agreement axis is opposed to inclusive, peaceful progress and the requirement for parity of esteem, mutual respect and reconciliation.
    Earlier this week, The DUP asserted that we need a new negotiation.
    I agree. Negotiations should be convened immediately by the two governments with the support and assistance of the US administration. The context must and will be the Good Friday Agreement which the Irish people democratically endorsed. In any negotiations Sinn Féin will defend that agreement and the institutions that flowed from it.
    The reality is that political unionism and the DUP have repeatedly walked away from negotiations and from agreements already made. They reneged on the agreement on the development of the Maze/Long Kesh site. Unionists collectively rejected the democratic decision of Belfast city council on the flying of the union flag. When flag protesters took to the streets in violent protests, largely directed at the Alliance Party and the police, unionist leaders refused to stand shoulder to shoulder with me in condemning these loyalist protests and the accompanying violence, as I had done with them in condemning violence by dissident republicans. They rejected the Haass/O’Sullivan proposals and then walked out of party leaders talks because the Orange Order did not get its way in North Belfast.
    The DUP refuse to accept the lawful determinations of the Parades Commission, established by the very parliament that they claim loyalty towards. The health minister questions the independence and impartiality of the justice system because he didn’t get the outcome he wants, a ban on gay men donating blood.
    All of this demonstrates a dubious and questionable commitment by unionist leaders to negotiations, agreement and to democratic decision making. As I have said previously we are in government with our unionist colleagues because we want to be, they are in government with us not because they want to be but because they have to be.
    Republicans have long recognised that negotiations and agreement required compromise in the best interests of all our people. Progress requires reconciliation and a willingness to respect our differing political perspectives and beliefs. I have attempted to reach out to the unionist population not least in my engagements with Queen Elizabeth.
    But there has been little reciprocation from the leadership of unionism. Unionist leaders have singularly failed to reach out or to recognise and accept the validity of nationalist and republican perspectives, narratives and aspirations. Unionist politicians routinely excuse and defend racism, sectarianism and homophobia.
    Racism, sectarianism and homophobia are totally and wholly unacceptable.
    In stark contrast, I can say without any fear of contradiction that Sinn Féin has genuinely engaged in the
    process of reconciliation. And we have stood by and delivered on all agreements entered into, from Good Friday to the Hillsborough Agreement and the various Programmes for Government agreed by the Executive.
    So the difficulties in the institutions arise from the refusal of unionism to engage in dialogue around difficult issues and from the failure to honour agreements reached. But more fundamentally damaging is the totally unrealistic desire of a section of political unionism to turn the clock back, to end power sharing and undermine the evolving equality agenda. This is nothing short of delusional.
    There will be no return to the failures of the past.
    Unfortunately, negative unionism has been encouraged in this view by a Tory-led government that has itself failed to deliver on commitments and agreements made, including an Acht na Gaeilge and the Bill of Rights and it failed to support the Haass/O’Sullivan proposals. This – and the courting of DUP MPs by the Tory leadership at Westminster – has encouraged and deepened unionist intransigence and moved unionism politically to the right.
    It has become apparent that this British government has become part of the problem. This refusal by Downing St to fulfill its obligations highlights the urgent need for the Taoiseach to hold the British Government to account. The Irish government is co-equal guarantor of the Good Friday Agreement and subsequent agreements. The Taoiseach needs to be a champion for the Good Friday Agreement and the peace process.
    The DUP claim that the institutions are not fit for purpose. In reality the DUP are not fit for purpose. Just as unionists were not fit for purpose in 50 years of sectarian, one-party rule. The days of repression, inequality and discrimination are gone forever. The picture I paint here may seem to be a bleak one. But it need not be so. Everyone needs to appreciate the distance we have travelled out of conflict. Building peace is a process, the journey is not over.
    But I retain great hope for the future. Political unionism may be sleep walking into a crisis but civic unionism, the business sector, the voluntary and community sector value the work that has been done and are focussed on the future.
    That is Sinn Féin’s focus also. Whatever the current challenges and problems they can and will be overcome. Sinn Féin is up for negotiations. We are willing to work with all the parties and the two governments to address outstanding issues and to build a process of reconciliation based on mutual respect.
    I firmly believe that all the problems we face are surmountable that given the political will they can be resolved.
    There is no going backwards. The way forward for all in our society is inclusion, equality and powersharing.

Sinn Fein presence at British party conferencesIvanLewis
Next week Sinn Fein representatives will travel to Manchester to attend British Labour Conference, including holding a key fringe meeting on the issue of “Labour, Ireland and defending the peace process”. The fringe event will take place on Sunday 21 September, with speakers Sinn Fein Senator Kathryn Reilly, MP Michelle Gildernew and Labour Shadow Secretary of State for the North of Ireland, Ivan Lewis. The Guardian commentator and writer Seumas Milne will chair the meeting, at the Jury’s Inn Hotel, Great Bridgewater Street, Manchester.
The issue of welfare cuts and the next crucial steps to ensure progress in the political process will feature in the discussion.
Sinn Fein MP Paul Maskey will also attend the cross-party CHAMP group event, and Irish Embassy events.
In the following weeks Sinn Fein representatives will also attend events at the British Conservative and Liberal Democrat Conferences.

    For further detail contact Jayne Fisher 07940 565123.

Week in Review is circulated by Sinn Fein MPs. Email fisherj@parliament.uk to join the list. For further information visit www.sinnfein.ie or follow us on twitter @sinnfeinireland

Why Tory welfare cuts must be opposed – Pat Doherty MP

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By Pat Doherty MP

First published via The Derry Journal, Wednesday 10 September 2014

DohertyMost of the welfare cuts the Tories are trying to impose on the north are already being implemented in Britain with devastating consequences particularly for the sick and disabled, single parents, those on low incomes and the working poor. Poverty levels have spiralled along with homelessness and suicide rates, with food banks and other charitable help now often the only safety net preventing more people falling into total destitution and despair.

Given the poorer socio-economic demographics of the north we would suffer an even more severe ‘hit’ than the worst affected regions of Britain if the intended Tory cuts were to come into full effect here.

A report commissioned by the Council for Voluntary Action (NICVA) spells out the stark consequences of these Tory cuts with £750m a year being taken out of the north’s domestic economy with the most deprived districts suffering the greatest losses.

Based on official government data, the report finds that Derry and Strabane would be worst hit with the loss of income, per annum, for every adult of working age in both districts estimated to be £900 and £870 respectively. Likewise, four districts west of the Bann are ranked in the top six in the north in terms of estimated loss of annual income: (1) Derry -£64m (2) Strabane -£22m (4) Limivady-£16m (6) Omagh-£23m

Therefore, if the local cheerleaders for these Tory cuts were to have their way not only would the regional disparities in deprivation between the north and Britain be further re-enforced but within the north itself there would be a further re-enforcement of the disparities between lowest multi-deprivation ranking districts like North Down and Castlereagh and the highest like Derry and Strabane.

Apart from the deteriorating social consequences that such Tory cuts would bring the consequent loss of household income would result in severe reduction in spending power in the local economy with the inevitable knock on affect of more business closures and job losses.

As a result more people, not less, would become dependent on a shrunken benefits system with an increasingly punitive sanctions regime applied pushing many families and individuals further below the poverty line.

So if anyone thinks these Tory cuts won’t affect them it’s time to think again. This is a Thatcherite agenda that needs to be fought tooth and nail. While billions are allowed to be defrauded through the tax avoidance – including by many who are also generous donors to the Tory party – the working poor and most vulnerable in society are being expected to pay to balance the Exchequer books regardless of the social cost.

Instead of delivering a long awaited Peace Dividend to the North in an effort to tackle decades of historical neglect here, the Tory Government cut the Block Grant to the Assembly by £4 billion during this 2011-2015 mandate which has reduced Departmental budgets at a time when demands upon them are growing and particularly in terms of health.

The Tory government is now threatening to impose financial penalties on the Assembly budget if we do not legislate for their regressive cuts agenda. This is despite the fact that in Britain itself this agenda is being increasingly challenged and cracks are opening up between the Tories and their Lib-Dem coalition partners who are now questioning the wisdom, workability and counter-productive nature of many of the cuts measures.

While back in the north, the DUP continues to act as cheerleaders for the Tory cuts agenda, there is a growing realisation, generated in particular from the issues being discussed in the Scottish Independence Referendum Debate, that the Tory cuts agenda is designed to serve the interests of the Tory heartlands in the south east of England and their millionaire friends. Its clear that the interests and needs of the people of the north do not even factor in their thinking. This Tory cuts agenda must be opposed!

West Belfast MP Paul Maskey to attend TUC Congress

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MaskeyWest Belfast Sinn Féin MP Paul Maskey will travel to Liverpool Monday and Tuesday 8/9th September to attend the Trade Union Congress.
Paul Maskey said:
“I welcome the opportunity to attend the TUC Congress where I will brief senior union leaders on Sinn Féin’s opposition to the Tory welfare cuts and austerity agendas.
Sinn Fein have made clear that devolution in the north of Ireland is not about implementing Conservative policies dreamt up in London.”
He continued,
“I will also take advantage of the occasion to listen to what approach the unions in Britain are taking to oppose these attacks on the benefit system and the welfare state itself.
It can only be beneficial for political parties and unions to act in partnership in our opposition to these unacceptable attacks on the unemployed, disabled and low income families.
I hope to strengthen our links with union leaders that will be mutually beneficial in our common battle to defeat the Tory agenda.”

Governments partisan and disengaged on the North – Conor Murphy MP

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Sinn Fein

MurphySinn Féin MP Conor Murphy said British secretary of state Theresa Villiers must end her government’s partisan approach to dealing with problems in the political process in the North.
And the Newry Armagh MP said that the approach of Irish Foreign Affairs minister Charlie Flanagan to the difficulties in the North have more to do with his own party’s narrow electoral considerations in the South.

Conor Murphy said:
“Theresa Villiers’ speech to the British Irish Association was the latest crude attempt by the NIO to absolve the British government of responsibility for the current problems in the political process.
The British government’s refusal to endorse the Haass/O’Sullivan proposals on flags, parading and the legacy of the past has provided cover for unionists to walk away from a solution.
Her response to a unionist walk-out from all-party leaders’ talks over their demand for an Orange march in North Belfast has been to offer them fresh concessions.
Theresa Villiers is well aware that the only blockages to talks taking place is coming from political unionism. The British government’s refusal to honour its own commitments has emboldened that intransigence.
It is a disgrace that Ms Villiers should also attempt to draw an equivalence between failure to make progress on the issues of flags, parading and the legacy of the past due to unionist refusal to embrace compromise, and the defence of the welfare state through opposition to vicious Tory welfare cuts on the basis of social justice.
It is her government which seeks to impose Thatcherite cuts on those unionist and nationalist citizens least well off to fend for themselves. Sinn Féin and others will not accept this attack on the most vulnerable in our society.
The British were not by-standers. The current deep political impasse can only be resolved when the British government ends its one-sided approach to helping address the key issues.”

Mr Murphy also rejected comments made by the Irish Foreign Affairs Minister, Charlie Flanagan that Sinn Féin was ‘disengaged’ in the North.
“Charlie Flanagan’s use of the term ‘disengaged’ far more accurately describes the position of the Irish and British Governments in relation to the North and outstanding issues.
Mr Flanagan seems to forget that Sinn Féin compromised in talks and signed up to the Haass proposals on flags, parades and dealing with past.
Minister Flanagan’s dishonest and inaccurate portrayal of current difficulties in the political process in the North are deeply unhelpful and, I suspect, have more to do with his own party’s narrow electoral considerations in the South.”

Call to stand together as Tory government fractures on cuts – Conor Murphy MP

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MurphySinn Féin MP Conor Murphy said today that political parties in Britain are finally wakening up to the devastation being caused by vicious Tory welfare cuts.
And he called on political parties here to come together and stand against the imposition of welfare cuts on the people of the North.
Conor Murphy was speaking after British MPs voted to overturn parts of the so-called bedroom tax.
Conor Murphy said:
“It’s significant that the party in coalition with the Tories in the British government, the Liberal Democrats, voted with Labour against the bedroom tax.
They are clearly worried about the impact of Tory cuts which are driving people into poverty. There are clearly cracks opening up in the British coalition as a whole range of Tory cuts aimed at the most vulnerable people are creating a society dependent on charities and foodbanks.
Local parties should end their indecent haste to implement the same failed cuts agenda in the North.
I am calling once more on all parties in the Executive to stand united against any proposal to impose these cuts here.”

British Advocate General must order inquest in Loughgall ambush – Michelle Gildernew MP

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Sinn Fein

GildernewSinn Féin MP Michelle Gildernew has said that any inquest into the Loughgall ambush must have full disclosure from the British Government.
Ms. Gildernew stated,
“There is no doubt that the British Army and RUC had prior warning of an attack on Loughgall RUC barracks in May 1987.
However rather than mount a stop and arrest operation the British army and RUC carried out an ambush which resulted in the deaths of eight IRA volunteers and one civilian and serious injury to another civilian.
The statement from British Secretary of State Theresa Villiers Loughgall that there is material held by the British government which is both relevant to the decision whether to open fresh inquests in these cases only reinforces the need for an inquest to be held as soon as possible.
The families of the dead men deserve to know the true circumstances surrounding the deaths of their loved ones so any new inquest must have full disclosure from the British Government including files that they claim are sensitive.
I will be supporting the families in demanding that Advocate General Jeremy Wright sets a date for the opening of an inquest that is needed and in order to get to the truth.”

Sinn Féin will fight welfare cuts tooth and nail – Paul Maskey MP

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MaskeyWest Belfast MP Paul Maskey has said Sinn Féin will fight welfare cuts tooth and nail to protect the most vulnerable people in society.
Addressing a meeting of Sinn Féin delegates at the party’s monthly Cúige meeting bringing together party members from all across the north Mr Maskey stated:
“Sinn Féin will fight welfare cuts because it is the right thing to do. If the cuts proceed, more families will be plunged into poverty.
Levels of deprivation across the North are on the increase. Cutting back on services such as health, housing and benefits only adds to the misery suffered by families on low income, people with disabilities and the poor.
The British Tory Government has stated that its reform agenda is about getting people back to work.
Yet a recent TUC report exploded that myth when it said that up to 75% of the people affected by the cuts to family tax credits, child benefits and housing support will be those already in work.
Rather than imposing cuts the British Government should be honouring commitments made by them in the St Andrew’s Agreement.
Among those was an investment of £18bn, which would allow us to invest in stimulating the economy. David Cameron and his cabinet of millionaires reneged on this commitment.
If we frame the current economic difficulties in terms of this and the removal of £4bn from the block grant it is clear that the Tories do not care about the North or its economy. In terms of Westminster we are and remain its last priority.
Sinn Féin has been consistent in our opposition to these vicious cuts and we will continue to work to protect those who will feel the hardest impact of this Tory-driven policy.”

Sinn Féin present £3,350 to Irish Medical Aid for Palestine – Paul Maskey MP

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MaskeySinn Féin MP Paul Maskey on presenting a cheque to Irish Medical Aid for Palestinians said it was important that aid continues to flow to the people of Gaza.
Accompanied by MLA Gerry Kelly and party councillors at Belfast City Hall, the West Belfast MP was presenting the cheque for £3,350 collected by Sinn Féin activists in Belfast over recent weeks.
Paul Maskey said:
“The people of Gaza are under severe pressure after the recent murderous onslaught they suffered.
Irish Medical Aid for Palestinians do great work in helping the citizens of Gaza and the West Bank and any contribution will help in some small way.”
It will take months if not longer for the people of Gaza to get their lives back to any resemblance of normality.
The infrastructure and daily necessities are very scarce on the ground after the Israeli bombardment.
Hopefully this small gesture from the people of Belfast will help in some way and I would encourage people to keep up their donations, whether that be financial or clothes etc, to the Palestinian people.”

We won’t be taking lectures from Tories – Conor Murphy MP

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MurphyNewry and Armagh MP Conor Murphy said tonight that Sinn Féin will continue its opposition to vicious Tory welfare cuts and would not be accepting any lectures from Iain Duncan Smith.
Conor Murphy said:
“Iain Duncan Smith’s welfare cuts in Britain have been an unmitigated disaster since their introduction in 2013.
These cuts have been an attack on the most vulnerable people in society, taking money out of the pockets of low-paid workers, people with disabilities, lone parents and the poor.
The impact of these vicious cuts in Britain has been increasing levels of child poverty, homelessness and dependency on charities and food banks.
People have been driven to desperation and even suicide and the welfare system set up by Iain Duncan Smith is in chaos.
Sinn Féin won’t be taking lectures on our responsibilities to the electorate from Mr Duncan Smith or anyone else in Cameron’s millionaire cabinet.
The responsible thing for all parties here to do is to stand up together against the Tories attempt to impose further hardship on those who can least afford it.”

No alternative to dialogue and agreement, says McGuinness on 20th anniversary of IRA cessation

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Martin McGuinness MLA – An Phoblacht News – 31th August

McGuinnessMajor statement on historic date in Irish Peace Process

“Twenty years ago today the IRA announced its total cessation of military activities. That unilateral initiative by the IRA leadership broke the cycle of conflict in this country and opened up new and challenging possibilities.

But the subsequent success of the Peace Process and the transformation of politics across this island and between this island and Britain that flowed from that courageous initiative in 1994 were not a given. Real efforts and commitment, courage and determination and the personal engagement of key political players all played a part.

The dialogue between Gerry Adams and John Hume was the starting point for what became the Irish Peace Process but many other played a part. In particular, Fr Alex Reid laboured tirelessly at a time of exclusion and censorship to uphold and promote dialogue.

At the start of this week we buried Albert Reynolds, Taoiseach at the time of the cessation in 1994. Albert played a key role in laying the essential groundwork for that initiative. He personally discarded the failed and disgraceful policy of isolation, censorship and repression that had been the traditional response of the Irish Establishment to the conflict. The abandonment of Northern nationalists by successive Irish governments to the excesses of the Orange state was one of the key drivers of conflict in the North. Albert Reynolds changed that policy and authorised direct discussion between his office and Sinn Féin and it is his courage in taking this step that sets him apart.

So also with Tony Blair and President Clinton, who challenged those who were wedded to the failed policies of isolation and repression. The collective efforts of these people, senior political leaders and ordinary citizens led ultimately to the transformation of the political landscape on this island. And despite the ongoing difficulties, no one should gainsay or underestimate the progress which has been achieved, especially given the ongoing conflicts elsewhere. Despite our obvious political differences, I want to commend today all those involved in our successful peace process, from all parties and none. Dialogue was the key to progress in Ireland. It is the key to progress today, and the alternative to terrible conflict, in Gaza, in Syria, in Africa and in Ukraine.

As Irish republicans, we entered the early stages of the Peace Process with the deepest (and healthiest) scepticism about British intentions. Some small dissident republican groups remain wedded to conflict and the past despite the political transformation of our society. Successive agreements supported by the vast majority of the Irish people have removed any rationale for armed struggle and have put in place peaceful and democratic alternatives.

In 1994, dialogue offered the only way out of perpetual conflict and Irish republicans entered that dialogue confidently. I would urge dissident republicans still committed to armed actions to take that same step in 2014 into politics and away from conflict. There can be no return to the violence and repression that scarred this society for so long.

A commitment to dialogue and the confidence to enter that dialogue as Irish republicans but with a willingness to listen to the perspectives of others are critically important elements in the progress we have made so far. And the absence of dialogue and a commitment to dialogue as the way to overcome disagreements is at the heart of the growing difficulties we are now facing in the Peace Process across a range of key issues. Rather than making progress on the issues of identity, parading and the past by building on the enormously important work carried out by Richard Haass and Megan O’Sullivan, the DUP and UUP have now retreated into a coalition with rejectionist unionism and with loyalist paramilitaries. This coalescing of unionism and loyalism around negative politics has its origins in the anti-democratic protests that followed the decision of Belfast City Council to change the policy of flying the Union flag every day of the year.

The deterioration in political relationships has it origins in the inability of unionism to accept and come to terms with a democratic decision taken by Belfast city councillors. The decision to restrict the flying of the flag to designated days is, of course, a compromise position – a compromise which Sinn Féin was prepared to support. But the unionist parties have been incapable of accepting this compromise and have railed against this democratic decision. And it is that failure – the failure to accept a democratic decision, the failure to work towards compromise, the rejection of dialogue and negotiations to resolve contentious issues – which is now at the heart of the problems that we are facing.

Political unionism has walked away from dialogue and has now adopted the Orange Order’s position of setting down preconditions and predetermined outcomes for any discussions. The failure of the Orange Order to enter a process of meaningful engagement with the local community in Ardoyne is now mirrored in the politics and make-up of the pan-unionist coalition. Dialogue is now contingent on an Orange march being allowed to parade through a nationalist area of north Belfast. And the rejection of dialogue and negotiations has spread like a virus to all other issues, including those already agreed such as the development of the Maze/Long Kesh site. Similarly with welfare cuts.

The DUP position is that because they have accepted the anti-poor agenda of the Tory millionaires in London, we should all accept cuts to the income of the most vulnerable in our society. They have rejected any further discussion on welfare cuts which the British Government are trying to impose on the Executive and which are no part of our agreed Programme for Government.

And let me be absolutely clear – Sinn Féin is totally opposed to the Tory welfare reform programme because it is a right-wing, ideologically-driven attack on the poorest and most vulnerable in our society. These welfare cuts would undermine the rights and entitlements of many within unionist and loyalist communities and whole families would be plunged into deeper poverty through reduced support and cuts to their benefit payments.

Three times in the last six months, the DUP have threatened the political institutions if they do not get their own way. The first time around the issue of OTRs; the second in response to the Parades Commission’s decision to restrict the Orange parade on the Crumlin Road; and the third on the issue of welfare cuts.

But the real threat to the political institutions is stagnation and the absence of progress. The real threat is the retreat of political unionism from dialogue, compromise, agreement and reconciliation. And none of this is about abandoning sincerely-held political beliefs or positions. Republicans have recognised that agreement and compromise is about building a better future for all our people. It is about reconciliation and learning to live with our different political perspectives and beliefs.

I have personally tried to understand and reach out to the unionist population, not least in my engagements with Queen Elizabeth. But reconciliation is not a one-way street. Unionist leaders need to engage in similar initiatives. They need to reach out to the republican and nationalist traditions and to the new and diverse communities that increasingly make up our modern society.

So there is an enormous onus on those who recognise the enormous progress we have made, and continue to make, since the IRA cessation in 1994 to make their voices heard. The obvious goodwill and support for partnership government and for a shared future which exists needs to manifest itself much more tangibly right across civic society in the North of Ireland. And the supporters of the agreement internationally, in particular in the United States of America, need to reassert their interest and influence.

In all of this, the two governments have a duty to act decisively in defence of the new political dispensation. A central pillar of the Peace Process has been the involvement of the US administration at times of difficulty and the role of the two governments acting jointly as guarantors of the process. The two governments must now act decisively to uphold and fulfil their obligations. The two governments need to be champions for progress, not, as they have been over the recent past, facilitators of inertia.

The negative anti-agreement axis must understand that there will be no return to the past, that the days of one-party rule, of domination and repression, are over and will never return. There needs to be a renewed focus by those who support agreement. These are the challenges for all of us as we enter a new term in the Assembly but I am convinced that we can find a resolution to all the difficulties facing the political process. This will require focus, attention and patience but, through genuine engagement by all parties and a hands-on approach by the British and Irish governments, progress can be made.

Dialogue and agreement brings with it many challenges. That is one of the obvious lessons of the last 20 years. But there is no alternative to dialogue and agreement. This is the only path to a shared and better future on this island.”