stewgreen, the difference between fraud and incompetence in the Green Blobbified Civil Service is that you can get jailed for fraud.

Those that have legally maximised their financial benefit from this scheme, have not been incompetent, or committed fraud, though if they had also helped to develop the scheme .....

Saw on lunchtime national News on BBC that there's been a walk out in the NI assembly when a no confidence vote about this scheme.

Personally I'd put it down to incompetence, based on the fact that most politicians in the UK have only ever been politicians and only ever worked in politics. They have no idea about the cost of anything, nor are they capable evaluating any scheme put forward by "experts".

Mark Hodgson

Sorry, I forgot you dont know Northern Ireland that well. Let me explain the joke. It was a pun on "green".

The population of Northern divided into those who are "Green", who support a united Ireland, and those who are "Orange", who wish to remain in the UK.

There are also greens like myself, concerned about the environment.

I should know better than to attempt humour at BH!

Entropic Man

Mea culpa! I shouldn't post at breakfast time when I'm in a grumpy mood after seeing/hearing the latest madness from around the world on the news.

Entropic man
Puns involving politics or religion are risky, puns involving both are downright dangerous.

A tiny taste of what allowing the climate consensus to guide policy has in store for us all.

Help, I'm being ruled by idiots!

Sinn Fein just shut down the Northern Ireland Assembly.

That blocks any remedial action on RHI, any preparation for Article 50 and many other loose ends. No government decisions for two months at a time when a lot needs to be done!

EM, a painful and expensive lesson for Northern Ireland, with possible consequences for all, irrespective of personal politics and/or religion.

Is this the first Government to be toppled by Green Blob Greed/incompetence? Hopefully ALL politicians will learn a lesson.

I appreciate that "Green" has slightly different connotations on the island of Ireland, but "Too Green to be True" should be in the Handbook for Politicians and their Civil Servants, everywhere.

stewgreen, I guess many people, on all shores, can tell that when Martin McGuinness feels the need to resign over a political topic, then there is some heavy shit going down. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-38561507

"Help, I'm being ruled by idiots!"

A propos of our conversations elsewhere you cannot be sued for libel by the government of NI, (who aren't your rulers BTW) because what you've said you believe to be true. Get it now?

micharl hart, he has resigned to force an election. Presumably he considers that to be in his advantage, right now.

I stay clear of Politics in NI, it gets bloody and messy. If Sinn Fein never promoted or benefitted from this latest Green Scam, it is a bold move.

Election now called. Chaos instigated by a Green Scam.

You know Northern Ireland politics.

Remember Jenkins' Ear. RHI is the excuse for Sinn Fein to bring down Stormont, not the reason.

The d'hondt rules have changed. Under the new rules there will be five elected representatives from each constituency instead of six. This will reduce the Assembly from 108 members to 90.

Sinn Fein hope to gain a higher proportion of seats in the smaller Assembly which the March 3rd election will produce.

Why now? Martin McGuinness is in poor health and would be standing down soon anyway. Resigning in protest, supposedly about RHI, lets SF squeeze the maximum political advantage from his departure.

GC, my comment was tongue-in-cheek. Not a few of Martin McGuinness' political opponents have had to retire due to the suddenly poor health of their knee-caps.

michael hart, the problem with "politics" and the operatives in Northern Ireland, is nothing is ever what it seems.

Apparently they are all shocked and surprised by the Green Scam which has precipitated this Election, which must mean that no one saw anything, or heard anything, but privately all sides will point at the others blaming them.

I would agree with EM that this is Political Opportunism, and may cost the population of Northern Ireland rather more than the Green Scam that led to it. It was too Green to be true.

Entropic Man - interesting insight. Thank you.

But don't forget that if the NI power-sharing and peace models collapse amidst this mess, it was green bollox what did it (or at least which facilitated it).

Golf Charlie, Mark Hodgson

RHI runs fine in the rest of the UK. Indeed, but the "cash for ash" it runs fine here.

This is just the latest in a series of scams pulled by DUP politicians on the make. To use a local colloquialism, even the dogs in the street know it.

Similarly, Sinn Fein and others pretend that there is no IRA, but "They haven't gone away, you know!"

Take this seriously. Well handled , it could b a storm in a teacup. Badly handled, you could see IRA bombs in London again.

Entropic Man, I have avoided directing blame at any "Political" Party for the RHI scam, as I think the most likely explanation is that none of them wanted to rock the boat by being labelled anti-Green.

I have never aligned myself with any UK mainland political party.

I agree that dissolving Parliament is political opportunism, and this could get worse. RHI is a political justification, not the underlying cause.

I do take this seriously. Politics in Ireland, both North and South of the border, is a bit of a joke. All sides have their extremist factions, who prefer direct action.

RHI does not run fine in the rest of the UK!

Being paid a subsidy or bung to burn trees is madness.

EM

What golf charlie and Steve Richards said! I agree with both of them.

I'm concerned about the current situation in Northern Ireland, and will watch the continuing situation with interest and concern in equal measure. I wish those of you in Ulster the very best of luck in what follows (and the rest of us too if it all goes wrong).