Sinn Fein? They have gone away, you know.

[tiempo]

Seems quite clear whats going on here. Whole affair orchestrated so that down the track Unionist knuckledraggers can be held to the same standard. Smart move.

[theskull1]

More than most parties would have done for what I believe was one of the a stupidest of errors. Who in their right mind would be smug and smart about an embarrassment like Kingsmill? I wouldn't thing BMcE would have that in him. Does anyone think some republicans in dark corners are proud of it? I'd doubt it myself *

*Haven't read much of the thread so may be repeating arguments made elsewhere.

[haranguerer]

I agree skull.

Still, this isn't a bad thing - a standard has been set for respect. Will be good to see it being adhered to going forward...

[GJL]

Does this mean a by-election?

[Itchy]

Fair play to him for taking responsibility and doing the right thing. It may be a tad late but it is still now done. What this shows is that nationalists and republicans will hold their elected representatives to a high standard which is only right. Perhaps unionism now could think about doing the same given that they have some of the most vile individuals within their ranks doing things just as wrong as this and being held to no account. Same goes for the parties in the South who frequently allow unsavory individuals within their ranks. This is a good day for republicanism in my opinion.

[BennyCake]

I wonder if SF will indeed put Barney the Dinosaur up for the re-election.

[AQMP]

Does this mean a by-election?

Yes.

[Rossfan]

I presume "Head Office" decided it was time he went due to the level of negative publicity.

[Hereiam]

This has been badly managed by SF from start to finish. O'Neill is no leader and never will be, she is a poor replacement and i still don't understand why she was picked for the job. The fact that media outlets were willing to take this into a second week shows that it was not going to be swept under the carpet so BMcE has done the right thing this time.
You have to fear for SF going forward if this is a sign of how they intend to manage small mistakes like this, there is a real possibility of them becoming how the SDLP are now if they are not careful.

[Itchy]

I presume "Head Office" decided it was time he went due to the level of negative publicity.

Either way, if you compare it to say how long Alan Shatter took before he got the bullet I think it is fair to say it was dealt with a lot quicker

[tonto1888]

This has been badly managed by SF from start to finish. O'Neill is no leader and never will be, she is a poor replacement and i still don't understand why she was picked for the job. The fact that media outlets were willing to take this into a second week shows that it was not going to be swept under the carpet so BMcE has done the right thing this time.
You have to fear for SF going forward if this is a sign of how they intend to manage small mistakes like this, there is a real possibility of them becoming how the SDLP are now if they are not careful.

Whilst I don't think BmE done it purposefully to cause hurt for Kingsmill survivors, it was more than a small mistake

[yellowcard]

Ultimately the correct decision, I think he should have done it a week ago but at least it show's some level of accountability for his actions. It sends a message out that certain standards are expected of public representatives and negates any accusations of hypocrisy. For the Sinn Fein bashers it will probably still not be enough though. 

[Applesisapples]

Barry McElduff's resignation was most likely on the cards from last week. I'd guess that was the deal with the leadership, that he be allowed to resign and not be seen to be ousted by the sometimes faux outrage. Don't hold your breath on Unionist Politicians being held to the same standard, they have no shame.

[AQMP]

The result from the GE in June:

Barry McElduff (SF)            22,060        50.7%
Thomas Buchanan (DUP)    11,718        26.9%
Daniel McCrossan (SDLP)     5,635         13.0%
Alicia Clarke (UUP)              2,253          5.2%   
Stephen Donnelly (All)        1,000           2.3%
Ciaran McClean (Green)         427           1.0%
Barry Brown (CISTA)             393           0.9%

Majority                            10,342        23.8%

Turnout                            43,675        68.2%

On these figures it would take something earth shattering for SF to lose this seat.  McElduff got more than 50% of the vote.

[screenexile]

Barry McElduff's resignation was most likely on the cards from last week. I'd guess that was the deal with the leadership, that he be allowed to resign and not be seen to be ousted by the sometimes faux outrage. Don't hold your breath on Unionist Politicians being held to the same standard, they have no shame.

I'd say the interview Alan Black had with Miriam over the weekend put the tin hat on it. You could see it genuinely hurt him and that as one of the victims there was no party politics at play. What McElduff did negligently or otherwise was wrong and he had to go.

Now they're saying it took too long which is true but hopefully it will allow us to hold the Unionists to a higher standard going forward as some of the stuff they have gotten away with is shocking especially Arlene!

You would think the seat is fairly safe although the Unionists are already suggesting a bi-partisan victims candidate which will make it very difficult for Sinn Fein