On This Day / November 13, 1970
Go BackReproduced with permission from The Irish News.
19701113
Reference Date
19701113
Publication Date
Listen Along in Éamons Voice
Summary: On This Day – 13th November 1970, the Stormont government faced criticism for funding the “Ulster ’71” celebrations, seen as a Unionist Party showcase. Gerry Fitt and other SDLP MPs denounced the £800,000 cost, while Rev Ian Paisley refused to back the plan. Edited by historian Dr Éamon Phoenix.
‘Ulster ’71 Row’ | On This Day – 13th November 1970
THE STORMONT Government was accused in the House of Commons yesterday of earmarking £800,000 of public money for a Unionist Party celebration next week.
Mr Herbert Kirk, Minister of Finance, moved a supplementary estimate of £109,000 for advance expenditure on the ‘Ulster ’71’ project and Mr Gerry Fitt, leader of the SDLP Opposition, said the total involved was £800,000 – ‘the £109,000 will do for a weekend’ – and the money was used to celebrate fifty years of Unionist government.
The Unionist Party, Mr Fitt said, was entitled to celebrate in its own right because it had dominated the political scene for so long, but many people bitterly opposed to the party were being asked to approve the expenditure of public money on a Unionist celebration.
Mr Ivan Cooper (SDLP) said if the Government wanted to present a better image of NI they should get on with giving equal rights and opportunities to all the people.
Mr James O’Reilly (Nat.) said the money should be spent on the creation of new industries in depressed areas and Mr Austin Currie (SDLP) said his reservations about the Ulster ’71 project were increased when he saw that Mr John Brooke [a leading Unionist right winger] would be in charge.
Meanwhile, Rev Ian Paisley (Protestant Unionist), who abstained, said that he would not give a blank cheque to the Government if they were not prepared to state clearly the origin and the birthright of NI – ‘warts and all’ – during Ulster ”71′.
The estimate was approved by 22 votes to 6 with Mr Vivian Simpson (NI Labour Party) voting with the Government.
Mr Kirk said the proposed expenditure for ‘Ulster ’71’ was ‘a massive investment in the future and a great act of faith by the Government’.
Street Violence ‘Symptom of Failure’
‘IN SO far as violence has erupted in the streets of Northern Ireland, it is a symptom of failure and a monument to our inadequacies as a community’. So declared Dr Norman Gibson, Professor of Economics at the New University, Coleraine.
At the heart of the Northern problem, there was a political conflict, he went on: ‘There is fundamental disagreement over policy and even more basic, over the very existence of Northern Ireland.
‘Political conflict could scarcely be more divisive than this. This political conflict has been so destructive that it has infected, distorted and corrupted economic, social, cultural, religious and personal life.’
(Eamon Phoenix editor’s note: The launch of ‘Ulster ’71’ with its jarring jingle, ‘Come and join in the fun’ coincided with the introduction of internment by Brian Faulkner’s Unionist government and major violence on the streets. Predictably, the event was boycotted by nationalists.)
On This Day – 13th November 1970
Further Reading on Irish History:
List of other On This Day columns
Other resources: National Library of Ireland Irish News CAIN Archive
19701113
Reference Date
19701113
Publication Date
Listen Along in Éamons Voice
Listen Along in Éamons Voice
Summary: On This Day – 13th November 1970, the Stormont government faced criticism for funding the “Ulster ’71” celebrations, seen as a Unionist Party showcase. Gerry Fitt and other SDLP MPs denounced the £800,000 cost, while Rev Ian Paisley refused to back the plan. Edited by historian Dr Éamon Phoenix.
‘Ulster ’71 Row’ | On This Day – 13th November 1970
THE STORMONT Government was accused in the House of Commons yesterday of earmarking £800,000 of public money for a Unionist Party celebration next week.
Mr Herbert Kirk, Minister of Finance, moved a supplementary estimate of £109,000 for advance expenditure on the ‘Ulster ’71’ project and Mr Gerry Fitt, leader of the SDLP Opposition, said the total involved was £800,000 – ‘the £109,000 will do for a weekend’ – and the money was used to celebrate fifty years of Unionist government.
The Unionist Party, Mr Fitt said, was entitled to celebrate in its own right because it had dominated the political scene for so long, but many people bitterly opposed to the party were being asked to approve the expenditure of public money on a Unionist celebration.
Mr Ivan Cooper (SDLP) said if the Government wanted to present a better image of NI they should get on with giving equal rights and opportunities to all the people.
Mr James O’Reilly (Nat.) said the money should be spent on the creation of new industries in depressed areas and Mr Austin Currie (SDLP) said his reservations about the Ulster ’71 project were increased when he saw that Mr John Brooke [a leading Unionist right winger] would be in charge.
Meanwhile, Rev Ian Paisley (Protestant Unionist), who abstained, said that he would not give a blank cheque to the Government if they were not prepared to state clearly the origin and the birthright of NI – ‘warts and all’ – during Ulster ”71′.
The estimate was approved by 22 votes to 6 with Mr Vivian Simpson (NI Labour Party) voting with the Government.
Mr Kirk said the proposed expenditure for ‘Ulster ’71’ was ‘a massive investment in the future and a great act of faith by the Government’.
Street Violence ‘Symptom of Failure’
‘IN SO far as violence has erupted in the streets of Northern Ireland, it is a symptom of failure and a monument to our inadequacies as a community’. So declared Dr Norman Gibson, Professor of Economics at the New University, Coleraine.
At the heart of the Northern problem, there was a political conflict, he went on: ‘There is fundamental disagreement over policy and even more basic, over the very existence of Northern Ireland.
‘Political conflict could scarcely be more divisive than this. This political conflict has been so destructive that it has infected, distorted and corrupted economic, social, cultural, religious and personal life.’
(Eamon Phoenix editor’s note: The launch of ‘Ulster ’71’ with its jarring jingle, ‘Come and join in the fun’ coincided with the introduction of internment by Brian Faulkner’s Unionist government and major violence on the streets. Predictably, the event was boycotted by nationalists.)
On This Day – 13th November 1970
Further Reading on Irish History:
List of other On This Day columns
Other resources: National Library of Ireland Irish News CAIN Archive
19701113
Reference Date
November 13, 2020
Publication Date
Listen Along in Éamons Voice *
Summary: On This Day – 13th November 1970, the Stormont government faced criticism for funding the “Ulster ’71” celebrations, seen as a Unionist Party showcase. Gerry Fitt and other SDLP MPs denounced the £800,000 cost, while Rev Ian Paisley refused to back the plan. Edited by historian Dr Éamon Phoenix.
‘Ulster ’71 Row’ | On This Day – 13th November 1970
THE STORMONT Government was accused in the House of Commons yesterday of earmarking £800,000 of public money for a Unionist Party celebration next week.
Mr Herbert Kirk, Minister of Finance, moved a supplementary estimate of £109,000 for advance expenditure on the ‘Ulster ’71’ project and Mr Gerry Fitt, leader of the SDLP Opposition, said the total involved was £800,000 – ‘the £109,000 will do for a weekend’ – and the money was used to celebrate fifty years of Unionist government.
The Unionist Party, Mr Fitt said, was entitled to celebrate in its own right because it had dominated the political scene for so long, but many people bitterly opposed to the party were being asked to approve the expenditure of public money on a Unionist celebration.
Mr Ivan Cooper (SDLP) said if the Government wanted to present a better image of NI they should get on with giving equal rights and opportunities to all the people.
Mr James O’Reilly (Nat.) said the money should be spent on the creation of new industries in depressed areas and Mr Austin Currie (SDLP) said his reservations about the Ulster ’71 project were increased when he saw that Mr John Brooke [a leading Unionist right winger] would be in charge.
Meanwhile, Rev Ian Paisley (Protestant Unionist), who abstained, said that he would not give a blank cheque to the Government if they were not prepared to state clearly the origin and the birthright of NI – ‘warts and all’ – during Ulster ”71′.
The estimate was approved by 22 votes to 6 with Mr Vivian Simpson (NI Labour Party) voting with the Government.
Mr Kirk said the proposed expenditure for ‘Ulster ’71’ was ‘a massive investment in the future and a great act of faith by the Government’.
Street Violence ‘Symptom of Failure’
‘IN SO far as violence has erupted in the streets of Northern Ireland, it is a symptom of failure and a monument to our inadequacies as a community’. So declared Dr Norman Gibson, Professor of Economics at the New University, Coleraine.
At the heart of the Northern problem, there was a political conflict, he went on: ‘There is fundamental disagreement over policy and even more basic, over the very existence of Northern Ireland.
‘Political conflict could scarcely be more divisive than this. This political conflict has been so destructive that it has infected, distorted and corrupted economic, social, cultural, religious and personal life.’
(Eamon Phoenix editor’s note: The launch of ‘Ulster ’71’ with its jarring jingle, ‘Come and join in the fun’ coincided with the introduction of internment by Brian Faulkner’s Unionist government and major violence on the streets. Predictably, the event was boycotted by nationalists.)
On This Day – 13th November 1970
Further Reading on Irish History:
List of other On This Day columns
Other resources: National Library of Ireland Irish News CAIN Archive
On This Day is a daily column in the Irish News looking back either 50 or 100 years. The column was compiled by Dr Éamon Phoenix from the mid 1980s until autumn, 2022. The Foundation is very grateful to the Irish News for giving permission to reproduce Eamon’s columns. Funding gratefully received from Ireland’s Department of Foreign Affairs and the Magill Trust.
* The Foundation has worked hard to recreate Eamon’s distinctive voice through AI. Since this is an emerging technology, occasional imperfections may be audible.