05th Oct 2008
Time for political leadership
The past few weeks may well turn out to be cathartic not just in global terms but also right here in Ireland, North and South. Popular focus will shift onto the issues that really matter like the economy and the role government has to play in protecting jobs whilst supporting those who have become, through no fault of the own, causalities of this crisis. The shock waves from Wall Street will change life here as they will in the US.
I thought it might worth looking at the opportunities this creates for new political leadership here in the North and across the island.
Despite all the progress since the Good Friday Agreement, the challenges this island will face over the next three decades are more complex than ever. On the one hand there is a need to deepen and strengthen regional government in Northern Ireland whilst advocating change across this island – change which must be capable of uniting the people of Ireland.
This demands a strong voice in favour of a better North capable of representing the social and economic needs of northerners as well as leading the debate for a new and agreed Ireland.
After just one year in government north of the border many believe Sinn Fein and the DUP are struggling to deliver for the people of Northern Ireland. Their message is beginning to sound like a justification for doing nothing for the North and doing nothing to protect the distinct interests of all the people of the North.
There are significant policy areas in which a party, the SDLP for example, could seek to establish a leadership position. The first is tackling sectarianism, the second is the economy, the third is education, the fourth is health and the fifth is the environment.
In community / good relations terms it means having the courage to acknowledge and tackle the cancer of sectarianism in the North and the reality of prejudice across the Island, by making it the central plank of government policy.
It means having the vision to demand fiscal discretion for Northern Ireland so we can attract more investment whilst nurturing our own entrepreneurs and levelling the very uneven playing field for those in commerce on the island of Ireland. It could mean a single innovation and higher education strategy across the island and absolutely would mean the removal of trade barriers such as currency, tax or banking systems. For ordinary consumers this would mean a single telecommunications market capable of deliver lower cost telecommunications and no more roaming charges.
People will argue there is nothing that a regional government can do to tackle the banking crisis as these matters are not devolved. Maybe so, but what the Northern Ireland Executive could do is express a clear view as to what sort of financial system would be in the best interests of the people of Northern Ireland. One can’t help but noting that had the major building societies not converted to banks in the past decade the problems in the UK and Irish credit markets would not be as acute. A regional government can encourage mutual societies and look at promoting these as the preferred model to deliver finance for the many.
In health this means protecting what is good about the NHS whist seeking to modernise it for the 21st century. It means rejecting the privatisation of healthcare as is happening south of the border and putting care in the community and public health first.
In education it means transforming our schools into inclusive spaces where faith is protected and difference in accepted. Where excellence is experienced by the many, and is not a preserve of the few. That is good for the economy and good society.
Finally there is an urgent need to acknowledge the importance of environmental governance to our future and to put sustainability at the heart of everything we do.
Being strong on sustainability is good for the island of Ireland. Promoting common regulation, an Island of Ireland carbon strategy and common energy policy building on single electricity market would make common sense. Again this is an issue which impacts on the economy as much as it does on the planet.
Of course none of the above can be achieved without a strong regional government in Northern Ireland which acts in the interests of the many and which is committed to a shared future. Surely this presents an opportunity for progressive politics.
I like this blog as a programme of what responsible leaders should be delivering to people. Of course, our main problem as you highlight is that the central plank of government should be to tackle sectarianism but the irony is, at present, we actually have sectarian leadership at the core of our present government which is perpetuating a deeper sense of anti co-operation.
The SDLP is working hard to ignore ‘play politics’ and develop ‘people politics’. We are developing a future for the North based on what people tell us, not what we want. The priorities that you present here are the ‘real’ issues – sustainability, education, the economy, social justice - and will be the priorities in any future SDLP government.
I hope we can work even harder at spreading this message so people can join us in our pursuit to achieve these aims.