NEWS

A plan to introduce a drug-testing pilot at major gigs and festivals in Belfast has been effectively blocked by the Department of Health. A motion passed unanimously by Belfast City Council earlier this year called for drug-testing and harm-reduction facilities to be explored at council-owned venues hosting music festivals and large-scale events. The motion called on public bodies, including the Public Health Agency and Belfast Health and Social Care Trust, alongside organisa

The Dark Hedges, County Antrim in June. (Image: Shirley Carson Photography) Causeway Coast and Glens DUP councillor Darryl Wilson has accused the Department for Infrastructure (DfI) and the Department for the Economy (DfE) of a “dereliction of duty” over the future management of the Dark Hedges. June’s meeting of the council’s Leisure and Development Committee received an update report from Causeway Coast and Glens Heritage Trust (CCGHT). The report followed a motion tabled b

New drivers across Northern Ireland will face a major overhaul of the licensing system from October after MLAs approved legislation paving the way for Graduated Driver Licensing (GDL). The Assembly on Tuesday, 23 June approved Regulations confirming that the new road safety scheme will come into force on 1 October 2026, marking the most significant reform of driver licensing and testing in almost 70 years. Designed to reduce the disproportionate number of fatal and serious ro

Economy Minister Dr Caoimhe Archibald is pictured with George Healy (Go Succeed, Belfast City Council), Prof Thomas Cooney (Technological University Dublin), and Marty McLaughlin (Disability Action) to launch this year’s programme. People with disabilities across Northern Ireland are being encouraged to turn their business ideas into reality through a specialist entrepreneurship programme that is now open for applications for a second year. The Self Employment for Persons wit

Muckamore Abbey Hospital A landmark public inquiry into abuse at Muckamore Abbey Hospital has concluded that vulnerable patients were abused, families were repeatedly let down, and a series of systemic failures across Northern Ireland’s health and social care system allowed poor practice to continue unchecked for years. The final report of the Muckamore Abbey Hospital Inquiry, published on Thursday, delivers a stark verdict on the treatment of people with learning disabilitie

North Antrim TUV MLA Timothy Gaston, Allister Kyle, Chairman of the Traditional Unionist Voice (TUV) with Party Leader Jim Allister MP A senior TUV figure and Causeway Coast and Glens councillor has been unveiled as the party’s candidate for East Londonderry ahead of next year’s Northern Ireland Assembly election, with a pledge to build on what he described as the party’s strongest-ever electoral performance in the constituency. Allister Kyle, who currently serves as Chairman

Ulster Unionist Party leader Jon Burrows MLA The father of North Belfast attack victim Stephen Ogilvy has made a direct appeal for false rumours about his son’s condition to stop, as the young man remains in intensive care following what has been described as a “horrendous” assault. Ulster Unionist Party leader Jon Burrows MLA said he spoke personally with Mr Ogilvy on Wednesday morning, June 10, following Monday night’s attempted murder investigation, and revealed the family

Ulster Unionist Party leader Jon Burrows MLA speaking on Tuesday in the Northern Ireland Assembly Ulster Unionist Party leader Jon Burrows MLA has called for calm across Northern Ireland following a shocking attempted murder in north Belfast that has left a man in a serious condition in hospital. Speaking after raising the incident in the Assembly on Tuesday morning, Mr Burrows condemned what he described as a “barbaric attack” and warned against escalating tensions as graphi

Jim Allister says attack reflects ‘alien culture’, while UUP Leader Jon Burrows has secured Matter if the Day for the brutal incident to be discussed in The Assembly TUV leader Jim Allister has linked brutal knife attack in north Belfast to “unchecked immigration” and Stormont Speaker Edwin Poots accepted a Matter of the Day from Ulster Unionist leader Jon Burrows following the declaration of a PSNI critical incident. The chilling attack has left a man with serious injuries t

Free electric vehicle charging for MLAs at Stormont has been suspended after mounting public criticism over taxpayer-funded electricity use and concerns around travel expense claims. The Assembly Commission confirmed on Monday morning that a new paid charging system will now be introduced for all EV charging points under its control at Parliament Buildings following a cross-party meeting chaired by Speaker Edwin Poots. The decision comes after days of political pressure and g

Mental Health Champion Professor Siobhan O'Neill with Philip McGuigan MLA, Chair of the Health Committee and Danny Donnelly MLA, Deputy Chair of the Health Committee. Expanding community mental health support and tackling mounting pressure on crisis services have emerged as urgent priorities after frontline organisations warned politicians about growing strain across Northern Ireland’s mental health system. More than 50 people from across the sector gathered at Parliament Bui

Northern Ireland has entered its most peaceful era in modern history — but too many people still feel left behind economically, according to Ulster Unionist Party leader Jon Burrows MLA, who is set to deliver a major speech calling for a new political and economic direction. In a keynote address in Dublin on Thursday, Mr Burrows will argue that while the Good Friday Agreement transformed Northern Ireland by ending decades of violence, peace alone is no longer enough if famili

TUV North Antrim MLA Timothy Gaston A heated row over comments made during a Stormont committee session on race relations has escalated after TUV North Antrim MLA Timothy Gaston used Assembly proceedings to demand that a publicly funded community representative be compelled to return before the committee “and learn some manners”. Speaking in the Assembly on Monday, June 1, Mr Gaston sharply criticised evidence given during a recent meeting of the Committee for the Executive O

Doug Beattie MLA, Upper Bann Ulster Unionist MLA Doug Beattie has resigned from the Ulster Unionist Party with immediate effect after launching a scathing attack on party leader Jon Burrows and accusing the party leadership of fostering a “toxic atmosphere”. In a dramatic statement published on social media on Saturday evening, the Upper Bann MLA said “integrity is more important than just belonging” as he confirmed he was walking away from the party he once led. The resignat

Micro-businesses employing fewer than 10 people will be exempt from proposed new trade union workplace access rules after Economy Minister Caoimhe Archibald announced a significant change to the Good Jobs Bill following pressure and engagement from businesses and trade unions. The move marks one of the first major revisions to the flagship employment rights legislation as it moves closer to Assembly scrutiny, with the Minister signalling a willingness to alter proposals in re

Emergency Department at Antrim Area Hospital Emergency departments across Northern Ireland are becoming dangerously overcrowded as a result of a new ambulance handover policy designed to speed up patient transfers, according to frontline emergency medicine leaders. A snap survey carried out by the Royal College of Emergency Medicine (RCEM) has revealed that more than half of Emergency Department Clinical Leads believe the policy is worsening conditions inside already stretche

Northern Ireland Justice Minister Naomi Long The Department of Justice has pulled its controversial consultation on firearms licensing fees following mounting opposition from rural and sporting communities across Northern Ireland, in a move being welcomed as a significant climbdown by critics of the proposals. The consultation had proposed changes aimed at achieving full cost recovery for firearms licensing, potentially increasing the financial burden on certificate holders a

Communities Minister Gordon Lyons pictured with Bryan O’Donnell, President, Cricket Ireland and Sarah Keane, Chief Executive Officer, Cricket Ireland at day one of the Ireland v New Zealand test match at Stormont. Communities Minister Gordon Lyons has said the future of cricket in Northern Ireland is “bright” as Belfast hosted a major international test match between Ireland and New Zealand at Stormont. The match marks only the second ever men’s test hosted at the famous east

A major new cross-border attempt to tackle bovine tuberculosis across Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland has secured £4 million in public funding — but questions are already being raised over whether it will deliver real change for farming families living through repeated herd breakdowns. DAERA Minister Andrew Muir confirmed the funding allocation on Tuesday as part of a wider research programme focused on reducing bovine TB in cattle across the Derry and Strabane a

16-year-old Jaidyn Rice was tragically killed in a road traffic collision in Bangor, Co Down on the evening of Tuesday 8th July 2025. The family of 16-year-old Jaidyn Rice are backing a push to change Northern Ireland’s road traffic laws after the teenager was killed in a collision that has left loved ones campaigning for tougher drug testing powers. Proposed amendments to the Justice Bill — being described as “Jaidyn’s Law” — would bring drug testing much more to the forefro