Ostrich Economics
Margaret Ritchie had a good line during her budget speech this morning - accusing the DUP of adopting "ostrich economics" by preferring "to ignore the difficult realities of the environment rather than try to do something to improve it". The DUP's Simon Hamilton ridiculed the SDLP budget amendment as "big on words but short on actions". Sinn Fein's Mitchel McLaughlin claimed the amendment was a "whatever you are having yourself" document.
So who are the Ostriches? The UUP who stick their heads in the sand rather than admit their Conservative allies played a major part in the Β£4 billion cut to the local budget? The SDLP who sometimes seem reluctant to face up to the fact that the DUP and Sinn Fein are playing by the rules they helped create back in Castle Buildings in 1998? Or the DUP and Sinn Fein, who might have less of a rebellion on their hands if they had taken a more corporate approach over the last four years, rather than appearing to delight in sewing up deals behind the scenes and presenting them to the other two parties as faits accomplis?
It's clear now both the UUP and SDLP will propose their respective amendments, then when they are inevitably voted down both parties will vote against. The UUP call for 38% of the additional Β£432 million which Sammy Wilson claimed to have identified last week to be allocated immediately to Health, and the rest to be allocated by the incoming Executive. That translates as Β£165 million for health in year one - in contrast to the Finance Minister's offer of Β£120 million over 4 years. So much for the maths - the proposal will be voted down.
At the weekend on Inside Politics, Danny Kennedy refused to rule out UUP ministerial resignations. However UUP sources were insisting last night that their ministers aren't quitters. So we can expect a ministerial vote against, or the ministers finding themselves busy elsewhere, but no resignations. Technically this would be a breach of the Stormont ministerial code. Yet what would be the point of the First and Deputy First Ministers launching a motion of censure? It would distract attention from their visit to washington next week and increase the focus on the dissident ministers in the run up to the start of the election campaign.
By early evening the final budget should go through, with no resignations, no motion of censure, but plenty of sound and fury taking us into the election.
I'm 
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