One cheer for Alasdair McDonnell

[sammymorse]

Alasdair McDonnell had a two page spread in Monday’s Irish News. Although the Irish News is still pretty friendly to the Stoops, it isn’t quite the SDLP house journal it once was and a double page spread on a quiet news day is as good as it gets in terms of free publicity for the leader of a medium sized party. Although hardly something that wins

Comments

[nwhyte]

Thanks - I agree with a great deal of this.

On SpAds: I don't know about Germany, but I suspect the system there is similar to what I see in Brussels, where the cabinets of the Commissioners sort out most political difficulties in advance of the formal meetings of the Commission itself. That of course requires a much more formalised cabinet system, with the number and role of SpAds clearly defined in legislation. Unfortunately public understanding of the role of SpAds (and I suspect also understanding of that role among SpAds and their bosses) is probably too weak to allow anything more than the current muddling along by stealth.

I interpret the decision to rotate ministers a bit differently. Attwood has not impressed me - you will have seen my comments on his leadership campaign, and his idea of aligning local councils with parliamentary constituencies is bonkers (and would still be bonkers even if constituencies were not to be revised every five years) but obviously McDonnell can't just sack him for doing a poor job because of the internal party politics. And programming in the flexibility to promote some party figure just before the election may well help avert another electoral meltdown. Sadly, of course, it demonstrates that McDonnell along with many others has given up on rule by ministers rather than civil servants.

[sammymorse]

I think the problem with SpAds is worse than them just not being fit for purpose - there's an inbuilt tendency for intrigue and obstructionism given the terms on which the Executive is elected and, in particular, the way OFMdFM is structured. SpAds, especially OFMdFM SpAds prove their worth not by getting things done but by keeping an eye on the schemes and intrigues of other Ministers and other SpAds. SpAds are mostly competent and very bright; their brief is to keep an eye on other competent and very bright SpAds and make sure they don't get away from pulling any fast ones.

The idea of a Conciliation Committee of the Assembly (used in Germany when the upper and lower houses of parliament are in dispute) may or may not be a runner. But I think it's worth floating any idea that can take logjams away from the poisonous atmosphere of the Executive table and into somewhere where people actually think it's their job to resolve them.

I take your point about rotating Ministers, but Alasdair had his chance to make a clean break immediately after he became leader, especially given Alex Attwood's poor showing in the leadership election. To be honest, it's beyond me why party leaders don't take their party's most senior job in government. I mean, what's a political party's job, other than to seek office because they think they'd be better at governing than any other party? At the end of the day NFL-style free substitution of ministers still means putting pacifying the various barons of SDLP fiefdoms ahead of good government. When Minister No. 3 takes office in 2015, just before the next election, Sinn Féin and the Alliance Party should point this out to the electorate.

Author

[nwhyte]

Sammy where have you been hiding for the last several elections?
Your thoroughgoing and extremely enjoyable analysis at the constituency profile level has been sorely missed! No other political commentator has even come close to matching your grasp of detail and ability to turn boring elections into fascinating, readable accounts.

Re: Author

[sammymorse]

Being a campaign organiser, a candidate and then a missionary in Africa. But I have returned!