Graph Proves That Europe Is A Minor Issue To British Public

Jeremy Paxman Has Another Go At Scottish Independence

Writing in the Radio Times he said: "The United Kingdom is an imperial creation, invented after Scotland had been almost bankrupted by a crackpot attempt to create an empire of its own.
"Joining forces with the English was a much better bet, and Scots became ferocious British imperialists.
"Is it any wonder that with the British Empire reduced now to 14 tiny blobs on the world map, Alex Salmond and the Scottish Nationalists have their tails up?"

Hugh Morgan And Brian Cowen

Sean Gallagher With Albert Reynolds In 1992

Next Irish President The Latest Odds From Paddy Power

Michael D Higgins 2/5
Sean Gallagher 7/4
Martin McGuinness 25/1
David Norris 33/1
Gay Mitchell 66/1
Mary Davis 300/1
Dana 300/1

Interview Between Rachael English And Sean Gallagher On 20/10/2011

Gallagher: I was asked by Fianna Fail Headquarters of which I was a party member at the time in 2008 which is no secret if I would mention it to local business people which I did. 

English: So you rang people up and invited them?

Gallagher: No, people that I met, I explained that there was this event coming up. I have to make it very clear, I sought no money, I received no money from anybody, that was dealt with by Headquarters Fianna Fail Headquarters. I also want to make it very clear that while I attended the event I was not asked for money, I made no contribution myself in either a personal capacity or as a corporate donation either before the event, during the event, or after the event.

English: How many people did you invite?

Gallagher: I think I mentioned to possibly three or four people, and I have no idea to this day whether or not they made a donation whatsoever.

English: Does this not though invite further scepticism about your links with Fianna Fail?

Gallagher: Well I think that has been well trashed out and it's an ongoing issue that keeps coming up. I mean I have made it clear numerous times that I was involved in Fianna Fail in 2007, 2008 and for a short period in 2009.

Full Statement By Hugh Morgan Given To RTE

I wish to clarify and set the record straight in relation to the dealings I had with Sean Gallagher which resulted in my attendance at a Fianna Fail fundraiser in the Crown Plaza Hotel, Dundalk, on the 1st July 2008.

Sean Gallagher , who I had never met previous to this, contacted me by phone. He first phoned me on the 6th June 2008 and invited me to attend the above fundraiser. In the course of the call he requested a donation of €5,000.00 for Fianna Fail. He advised me that this type of fundraising would replace the annual Galway Tent Fundraiser. In return for the €5,000.00 donation I was promised a private audience with the Taoiseach and I would get a photograph taken with him.

He told me that the Taoiseach would give an up-date on the economy in the South which in his words was 'beginning to wobble'

On the 9th June he again phoned me to confirm my attendance . I confirmed that I would attend and was prepared to give the donation he requested. He left two mobile phone numbers for me to contact him on these numbers are 0878293028 and 0879763122.

On the 27th June Sean Gallagher visited my business premises at Killean, County Armagh. I wrote a cheque for €5,000.00 and gave it to him personally. The cheque number is 13014. I still have the stub of the cheque , This payment is declared in my Company accounts and was cleared through my bank on the 1st July 2008.

I then attended the fundraiser which was also attended by other businessmen from South Armagh, North Louth and across the Northeast. Sean Gallagher greeted the guests on arrival and directed us to the room at the top of the Hotel where the fundraiser was held.

Brian Cowen gave a speech on the economy and predicted a soft landing. At the end of the night Sean Gallagher introduced me to Brian Cowen and facilitated a photograph to be taken of myself and him. Approximately one week later Sean Gallagher called back to my business and gave me the photograph.

It is a fact that approximately fourteen years ago I was convicted of tax evasion in relation to fuel smuggling in Northern Ireland. As a consequence to that, I have repaid the Exchequer and paid a substantial fine. I was never investigated by CAB or any other agency in the Republic.

Since that time I have developed a successful international business known as Morgan Fuels.

I employ over eighty people in Ireland ,both North and South. I have business interests in Ireland , Britan and Europe and the Morgan Fuel card can be used up to 4,000 service stations in fourteen countries across Europe.I am also the official sponsor of the Armagh County teams of the GAA.

Next SDLP Leader Odds On Paddy Power

Patsy McGlone 2/1
Conal McDevitt 2/1
Alasdair McDonnell 5/2
Alec Attwood 7/2

Irish Times Opinion Poll Next Irish President

Sean Gallagher 40%
Michael D Higgins 25%
Martin McGuinness 15%
David Norris 8%
Gay Mitchell 6%
Dana 3%
Mary Davis 3%

Sunday Times Opinion Poll Next Irish President

Sean Gallagher 38%
Michael D Higgins 26%
Martin McGuinness 17%
Gay Mitchell 8%
David Norris 6%
Mary Davis 3%
Dana 2%

RedC/Sunday Business Post Next Irish President Opinion Poll

Sean Gallagher 40%
Michael D Higgins 26%
Martin McGuinness 13%
David Norris 10%
Mitchell 6%
Dana 3%
Davis 2%

Tories At It Again Over Europe

Somethings in life never change. The Pope is always a catholic, bears defecate in the woods. And you can always rely on Tories to start ripping lumps out of each other over the subject of Europe. This time its a vote in the House of Commons on a referendum on EU membership. Cue lots of backbench Tory MP's foaming at the mouth at David Cameron and his government. You would almost feel sorry for Cameron and then you remember what a smug repulsive twit he is and then you don't. A poll has been published in the Daily Express that should give the Tory Rebels some backbone. The biggest laugh of course must go to William Hague who seems to have gone native at the Foreign Office what a turn around from the man who once made a whole General Election campaign about "Saving The Pound" when he was the Tory party leader. Monday at the House of Commons should be a proper hoot.

Sean Gallagher Attended Ogra Fianna Fail Meeting Last Year

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JzNRhohYHIA&feature=youtube_gdata_player

Paddy Power Next Irish President Latest Odds

Sean Gallagher 5/6
Michael D Higgins 5/6
Martin McGuinness 22/1
Gay Mitchell 40/1
David Norris 50/1
Mary Davis 80/1
Dana 250/1

Irish Times Columnist Calls For Votes For All Irish Citizens No Matter Where They Live

Fintan O'Toole has said in his Irish Times column. "Allowing all Irish citizens, wherever they live, to vote in the presidential election would make that election much more interesting. It wouldn’t just be another ballot, it would be a different kind of democracy."

Ivory Tower News

Jim Allister the TUV leader is worried about the lack of Protestants in third level education in the Six Counties. He was responding to figures from the Department of Employment and Learning which showed that just a third of the 35,000 students attending local universities are Protestant.
There are considerably more Catholic students at the two universities. "Of particular concern to me is the Jordanstown campus whereas there are 3,800 students from a Protestant background from NI, there are 6,600 from a Catholic background," he said. Of course protestants from here are still going to University its just they are going to Universities in England and Scotland. Many of them will never return prefering to start careers and families in England and Scotland than to return to the Six Counties. And that is what really upsets politicians like Jim Allister not so much a protestant brain drain as a unionist middle-class vote drain.

A Picture Speaks A Thousand Words

Irish presidential candidate Sean Gallagher with former Irish Prime Minister Bertie Ahern.

The SNP Hope To Increase Party Membership By 20,000

It currently has 18,965 members, a dramatic increase on 2003, when it had only 9,450 people among its ranks.
However, numbers have soared during the party’s years in government at Holyrood, with almost 1,000 joining since the party’s Scottish Parliament victory four months ago, when it won an outright majority. SNP business convener Derek Mackay said: “Over the conference, we will set out a series of initiatives to increase membership to 38,000 and to welcome new people from all backgrounds to the party.
“From Selkirk to Shetland, the SNP are Scotland’s party and we welcome anyone who wants to see the best for Scotland and who wants to play their part in taking Scotland forward.
“There is a myth that membership of political parties is falling. It may be true in other parties, but it doesn’t apply to the SNP.”

More Protests Against Rupert Murdoch

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=UOAsZGEnH54

Support For Scottish Independence At 49%

According to a new opinion poll in the Independent On Sunday newspaper conducted by ConRes support for Scottish Independence stands at 49%.

Sunday Independent Opinion Poll On Next Irish President

Michael D Higgins 36%
Sean Gallagher 29%
Martin McGuinness 13%
David Norris 10%
Gay Mitchell 6%
Mary Davis 4%
Dana 2%

Michael D Higgins Supports Voting Rights

Speaking during a visit to Derry the Irish Labour Party candidate for President. Addressing the issue of voting rights for people in Northern Ireland in certain elections in the South, Mr Higgins stated, "For my part, I very much welcome the fact that the Government of the Republic are planning a major Constitutional review for early next year, and I believe the issue of voting rights should and can be addressed in that forum."

Red C Opinion Poll Next Irish President

Sean Gallagher 39%
Michael D Higgins 27%
Martin McGuinness 13%
Gay Mitchell 8%
David Norris 7%
Mary Davis 4%
Dana 2%

Liam Fox Resigns From Cabinet

Liam Fox the Defence Secretary in the Con/Dem alliance has resigned from the cabinet.

Paddy Power Latest Odds On The Next Irish President

Michael D Higgins 2/5
Sean Gallagher 5/2
Martin McGuinness 14/1
Mary Davis 25/1
David Norris 33/1
Gay Mitchell 33/1
Dana/Rosemary Scallon 250/1

500 New Jobs For Scotland

A SWISS banking software firm is to create hundreds of high-skilled jobs in an investment package for Scotland worth up to £15 million.
First Minister Alex Salmond announced the scheme, which will see the jobs created at a new development centre in Edinburgh for Zurich-based Avaloq, a specialist provider of software to banks and financial institutions across the world. Mr Salmond, speaking at the launch of the scheme, said Avaloq's decision to base itself in the Scottish capital was "testament to the high quality of Scottish education" and enhanced the strength of the city's international reputation for finance and IT services.

He said: "I take great pleasure in welcoming Avaloq to our capital city and this is exactly the sort of investment that's welcome.

"This is a substantial number of training positions being created by a well-respected international software company, whose solutions are used by dozens of banks in more than 20 countries worldwide."

Mr Salmond added Scotland and Switzerland "have a great deal to offer" by working together on investments such as the Avaloq plans for an Edinburgh base.

Mr Fernandez said: "A key factor in our success story has been people, people and people. We have found the right people here in Scotland. It's very important to have the best engineers in the world."

Simon Kauth, Avaloq head of development for Scotland, said: "People may ask themselves why move to Edinburgh when there are so many other places to go.

"We thought about Brazil and the Philippines, but we decided to go to Scotland.

Sweet Sixteen

The SNP want to give Sixteen year olds the vote just in time to vote in any independence referendum. Which would add around 125,000 new voters to the electorate in Scotland. It is a great move by Alex Salmond as opinion polls show support for Scottish Independence is at its strongest amongst Scotlands youth. Young people in Jersey and The Isle of Man can already vote at the age of Sixteen in elections. In Austria and Brazil 16 year olds can vote as well.

Senior Liberal Democrat Begs Party Members Not To Defect To The SNP

Michael Moore the Liberal Democrat has pleaded with his party members not to defect to the SNP. Already some party members have made that political journey. And Mr Moore must fear what starts as a trickle may become a flood. Many Liberal Democrats living in Scotland are said to be unhappy that their party has gone into political partnership with David Cameron's Tory party. Alex Salmond the SNP party leader has already put out the welcome mat for them by praising the great traditions of Liberalism. And this Blog says he is right to do so.

Mary Davis Calls For Voting Rights For Those Living In The North

On a visit to Belfast earlier this week the Irish Presidential candidate Mary Davis said "I'm in favour of a discussion about anyone holding an Irish passport, particularly people living in Northern Ireland, to be able to vote in the Irish presidential election."We're constantly promoting greater cross-border co-operation, so it makes sense to me to make more people connected and extending voting rights to Northern Ireland is a way of doing that."

Next Irish President The Latest Odds On Paddy Power

Michael D Higgins 4/7
Sean Gallagher 2/1
Martin McGuinness 12/1
Mary Davis 16/1
David Norris 33/1
Gay Mitchell 40/1
Dana/Rosemary Scallon 100/1

Irish Times Opinion Poll Party Strengths

FG 35% -3
Lab 17% -1
FF 16% -2
SF 18% +8
Grn 2% nc
Oth 12% -2

The Irish Presidential Election My Thoughts So Far

Martin McGuinness is not doing so well with women voters.His political powerbase seems to be the young male unemployed. David Norris is doing well considering all the mud that has been thrown at him and I am pretty sure there is more still to come.Nobody has laid a finger on Michael D Higgins the media treat him like everyones favourite grandfather.And Gay Mitchell just comes across as a nasty piece of work in all the debates.And Mary Davis with her links to Bertie Ahern and Denis O'Brien. Dana has made some good points in debate and may take some votes of Gay Mitchell who maybe just to Pro-Europe for a Country that might be turning slightly sceptic over the EU.

Star Trek Actor Colm Meaney Endorses Martin McGuinness For Irish President

Colm Meaney has endorsed Martin McGuinness for Irish President on the Pat Kenny Show on RTE Radio this morning.The Irish actor has starred in many Hollywood hits such as The Commitments and Con Air. As well as appearing on Star Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.

RedC Opinion Poll For Paddy Power

Who Should Be The Next Irish President?

Michael D Higgins 25%
Sean Gallagher 21%
Martin McGuinness 16%
David Norris 14%
Gay Mitchell 10%
Mary Davis 9%
Dana 5%

Irish Times Presidential Opinion Poll Results

Michael D Higgins: 23%(+5)
Sean Gallagher: 20%(+7)
Martin McGuinness: 19%(-)
Mary Davis: 12% (no change)
David Norris: 11% (-14)
Gay Mitchell: 9%(-11)
Dana Rosemary Scallon: 6% (-)

TV3 Irish Presidential Debate Online Poll Result

Martin McGuinness 34%
David Norris 19%
Sean Gallagher 15%
Michael D Higgins 13%
Gay Mitchell 8%
Dana 6%
Mary Davis 5%

UUP MLA Refuses To Help Constituents Who Did Not Vote For Him

A UUP MLA is under investigation after challenging constituents over their failure to vote.

By doing so, Upper Bann MLA Sam Gardiner revealed that he was checking electoral records to see whether those who contacted him for help had voted.
The Electoral Office confirmed that it is investigating the UUP veteran, over his use of electoral registers.
The case centres on allegations by two of Mr Gardiner’s constituents – Peter Marks and Dylan Lyness – that the MLA refused to help them when they asked for assistance and that on both occasions the reason given was that they had not voted in May’s Assembly elections.

The Late Late Show Debate Online Poll For Paddy Power

Martin McGuinness 46.2%
Sean Gallagher 14.2%
David Norris 11.1%
Michael D Higgins 10.3%
Gay Mitchell 6.4%
Mary Davis 2.9%

Murdo Frasers Potential New Names For The Scottish Tories

1. Scottish Unionists
2. Scottish Reform Party
3. Progressive Conservatives
4. Caledonia
5. Scotland First
6. Scotland Forward

Next President Of Ireland Odds On Paddy Power

Michael D Higgins 4/7
David Norris 4/1
Martin McGuinness 9/2
Gay Mitchell 8/1
Mary Davis 9/1
Sean Gallagher 40/1
Dana 50/1