Election prospects discussed
14/12/06

THE St Andrew\'s Agreement and the prospect of an election in March led the talking points when the Northern Ireland Affairs Group hosted a panel discussion on December 12th.

The discussion, part of NIGAG\'s Christmas Reception, included Alex Attwood (SDLP), Tom Elliot (UUP), Stephen Farry (All) and Peter Weir (DUP). *

An analysis of the St Andrew\'s Agreement was delivered by each speaker, and members of the 40+ audience then quizzed the panel on current political developments.

Vice chair of NIGAG, Glyn Roberts, who chaired the discussion, said the debate provided a refreshing insight into current thinking among the parties.

"We had the opportunity to hear a range of views, including more detail on thinking on the current debate on policing and justice," he said.

"It was also interesting to hear that most of the panel believed the elections would go ahead, despite a more pessimistic outlook from the BBC\'s Martina Purdy."

Ms Purdy rounded off the Christmas Reception by recounting anecdotes from her book Room 21 Behind Closed Doors and giving her analysis of the state of political play.

* Sinn Fein\'s Philip McGuigan was also to be on the panel, but was unexpectedly delayed and could not attend.

ENDS

For further information on the work of NIGAG, please contact the group\'s Communications Officer, Jonathan Traynor, 07917 543 953

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