 Assembly ministers seem to be following the advice of Bing Crosby |
If there was a theme tune for the Stormont Executive it would be an old classic from 1944 once sung by Bing Crosby amongst others - Accentuate The Positive. On Stormont Live last week Finance Minister Sammy Wilson berated me for daring to suggest that he might have to make cuts in his budget. On Stormont Live this week - after Martina Purdy had got hold of an Executive paper in which he proposed cuts approaching £400m - he returned to admit that, yes, they were necessary. "You've got to accentuate the positive, Eliminate the negative, And latch on to the affirmative, Don't mess with Mr In-Between" He's not the only one whistling this tune. Housing Minister Margaret Ritchie was at it last week too on Stormont Live. When asked about her target to build 5,250 new homes over three years she said she was confident she would build the specified 1,750 in this second year. What about the first year then? After being pressed, she admitted that she had fallen somewhat short in year one by three or four hundred of the 1,500 planned. That represents a shortfall of between one fifth and one quarter. In a speech in October last year the minister said that the targets were "non-negotiable and will be met". When pushed on this commitment last week she said that she "hoped" to meet them. "You've got to spread joy up to the maximum, Bring gloom down to the minimum, Have faith or pandemonium's liable to walk upon the scene" The problem with this Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah approach to politics is that a sceptical public is likely to grow hostile whenever the cuts or charges they've been lead to believe will never happen, suddenly materialise with awful consequences. What seems increasingly clear about the current proposed cuts is that they are a direct consequence of the Executive's decision to defer water charges for another year.  The issue of water charges has resurfaced |
This week, Regional Development Minister Conor Murphy couldn't rule out water charges - as it's an issue for the whole Executive - yet less than six months ago he circulated an Executive paper recommending deferral of charges for three years. As much as they might like to accentuate the positive aspect of no water bill landing on domestic doormats, the parties cannot now eliminate the negative consequences which are cuts in public spending. In a report on the local economy this week, Mike Smyth of the University of Ulster suggested it was time to rewrite the Programme for Government. "In comparison to the local Scottish administration's response to the global economic crisis, Northern Ireland's policymakers have been much less proactive," he said Which is a diplomatic way of saying the Executive has been too pleased with its own stunning story of success to deal with the reality we now face. So, on The Politics Show this week we're going to try our best to get an honest analysis of where the cuts will fall from the ministers who'll have to make them. Yvette's been to Dublin in advance of the Lisbon Treaty vote next week, where no amount of positive thinking can disguise the very difficult choices ahead for politicians and public as they grapple with the worst economic crisis in the history of the State. See you Sunday Jim PS - Cuts are everywhere and you'll be glad to hear that MLAs are suffering too. Staff members in the Stormont canteen were overheard this week discussing the controversial issue of portion sizes. From what was overheard it appears that a number have been seeking extra helpings. Speaker Willie Hay told us he knew nothing of a new drive to cut portions, but joked that such a policy would do many some good. Indeed, it's one area where the public would generally agree that the politicians have quite enough on their plates already. Click here to watch the latest programme,
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