Worrying times......

[#1]

........ not sure Arlene Foster's choice of brooch helps matters either.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-38561507

[#2]

What amazes me is that the scheme was known to be open to abuse, an understatement, so why was it allowed to continue for do long.

When you get offers in supermarkets/industry etc there's always the clause about availability and that the offer can be withdrawn at any time.

I suppose the main difference is the same old story of it's not their money.

[#3]

You are right of course, but one does wonder about his real reason for leaving given that here was a man that could and did work with the likes of Paisley, yet resigns over this. It may be as I suspect because of ill health by the look of things in which case why not put in place a transitional Deputy First Minister?

[#4]

only northern ireland would allow a terrorist to be given a position of power, and then said terrorist resign under principle of a dubious boiler scheme.

clearly the "we don't negotiate with terrorists" was swept under the carpet.

[#5]

---

@chenks76 wrote:
"we don't negotiate with terrorists"

---

Sadly that's just government and newspaper rhetoric seeing that virtually every government does at some point.

[#6]

Yes, out of pragmatic necessity! Otherwise we'd still be fighting the Pomans, Norman French, Germans, Japanese and so on and one.The world is bad as it is.

[#7]

You cannot defeat an enemy @chenks76 and not allow those same enemies to be part of any peace process, that is not how it works. It was not done in the Republic, it was not done in Germany, it was not done in Japan......

[#8]

but were they defeated? or was it simply give us power or we'll keep doing it.
doesn't sound like defeat to me, more like blackmail.

that guy should be in prison (along with his beardy buddy), not in public office.

[#9]

As chenks pointed out, the man has had his hand in the murder of a lot of innocent people. 

I don't understand hoiw he can be upset about other peoples money being wasted when he was happy to waste other people?

[#10]

What is her brooch?  It looks like a Blue Peter badge.

I remember John Major decided that we were not to be allowed to hear the voice of the IRA.  The broadcasters got a Northern Irish actor with an almost identical voice to Gerry Adams to speak his words.  The poor thespian was left unemployed when the ban was lifted.

[#11]

i'm pretty sure that was going on long before John Major was on the scene.

[#12]

"I'm pretty sure that was going on long before John Major was on the scene"

You think so?

[#13]

Remembering how Spitting Image portrayed John Major, do you think his affair with Edwina Curry was the catalyst for Fifty Shade of Grey?

[#14]

I'm inclined to think the feisty lady would have brought some colour to his cheeks top and bottom! 

[#15]

@Jonpe

Images have changed on that link content, the original was much clearer and showed her wearing a brooch which was in the shape of a crown. Not sure she'd qualify for a Blue Peter badge even before that botched energy scheme fiasco!