NEWS

Households across Northern Ireland who rely on home heating oil could benefit from stronger consumer protections after the UK’s competition watchdog called for new regulations to better safeguard customers during periods of price volatility. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has recommended that the UK Government and Northern Ireland Executive introduce a new regulatory framework for the heating oil sector, arguing that the current system leaves around 1.5 million U

Families looking to keep the cost of the school holidays down can now search for free children’s meals, discounted attractions and cheaper activities close to home. Offers already available in Northern Ireland include kids eating free at YO! Belfast, reduced admission and children’s meals at The Ark Open Farm, and discounts on food and trampoline sessions at Airtastic. A new postcode-search website brings the participating deals together, allowing parents to see what is avail

North Antrim MP Jim Allister, and inset, former Lagan Valley MP, Jeffrey Donaldson Questions have been raised over payments totalling almost £12,000 made by the Ministry of Defence to former Lagan Valley MP Jeffrey Donaldson while he was serving as a sitting Member of Parliament. The issue has been brought into the spotlight by North Antrim MP and TUV leader Jim Allister, who said the payments were made for consultancy work connected to peace efforts in Cameroon at a time whe

Political fallout intensified across unionism on Friday night after a special edition of BBC Spotlight examining the double life of former DUP leader Jeffrey Donaldson prompted renewed scrutiny over what was known, when it was known, and who, if anyone, failed to act. The programme, presented by investigative journalist Mandy McAuley and titled Politician, Predator and Paedophile, examined how one of the most powerful figures in modern Northern Ireland politics was able to ri

People living with obesity in Northern Ireland will soon be able to refer themselves directly into NHS weight management services without needing to wait for a GP appointment, under a major new UK-wide programme backed by £85 million in government and industry funding. The move forms part of a series of pioneering projects designed to transform how obesity care is delivered across the UK, using technology, digital services and community-based support to make help easier and f

Ten years after the Brexit referendum reshaped British politics, Northern Ireland remains deeply divided over whether the historic vote has ever truly been delivered. Marking the 10th anniversary of the UK’s vote to leave the European Union, the Traditional Unionist Voice (TUV) and Alliance Party have set out starkly different visions for Northern Ireland’s future, highlighting how Brexit continues to define political debate across the region. While the TUV argues Brexit rema

UUP Party Leader and North Antrim MLA Jon Burrows, and (inset) convicted former MP and DUP Party Leader Jeffrey Donaldson. Ulster Unionist Party leader Jon Burrows has called for sweeping changes to parliamentary pension rules, arguing it is “absolutely reprehensible” that former DUP leader Jeffrey Donaldson remains entitled to a taxpayer-funded parliamentary pension following his conviction for sexual offences against children. The intervention comes in the aftermath of Dona

The UK Government has announced a £4 million emergency funding package for the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) following last week’s widespread public disorder and “racially motivated violence” that left communities shaken and placed significant pressure on policing resources. The intervention comes after several days of unrest which followed the serious knife attack in north Belfast and led to violent incidents across Northern Ireland, including attacks targeting e

More than 200 hospitality and food service businesses have closed across Northern Ireland since the beginning of the year, industry leaders have claimed, as support grows for a proposal to cut VAT to 10 per cent in a bid to protect jobs and struggling local firms. The Northern Ireland Food to Go Association (NIFTGA) has publicly backed South Antrim MP Robin Swann’s call for a Northern Ireland hospitality VAT pilot, arguing that businesses are facing unprecedented financial pr

South Antrim MP Robin Swann South Antrim MP Robin Swann is calling for a major tax intervention that he says could help struggling hospitality businesses survive mounting financial pressures, safeguard jobs and breathe new life into town centres across Northern Ireland. The Ulster Unionist MP has tabled an Early Day Motion (EDM) in the House of Commons urging the Treasury to introduce a pilot scheme that would reduce VAT on hospitality services in Northern Ireland from the cu

Children across the UK will be banned from using major social media platforms under landmark government plans designed to “give kids their childhood back”, in what ministers are describing as the most far-reaching package of online protections introduced anywhere in the world. The proposed measures would prevent under-16s from accessing platforms including Snapchat, TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, X and YouTube, while also introducing sweeping restrictions on harmful online feat

Senior figures from the Ulster Unionist Party have met with the Secretary of State to press a series of urgent concerns arising from this week’s attack on Stephen Ogilvie in North Belfast and the disorder that has followed across Northern Ireland. The meeting took place on Thursday between Ulster Unionist Party Leader Jon Burrows MLA, North Antrim MP Robin Swann and South Antrim MLA Dr Steve Aiken OBE, and Secretary of State Hillary Benn. It comes amid heightened tensions fol

A major new weight-loss treatment has been approved for use in the UK, marking the first time a GLP-1 receptor agonist tablet has been authorised for weight management rather than requiring injections. The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) announced on Thursday, June 11, that the semaglutide tablet, marketed under the Wegovy brand, has met the regulator’s standards for safety, quality and effectiveness and can now be prescribed to eligible patients ac

Immigration enforcement activity in Northern Ireland has increased significantly over the past two years, according to information provided by a Government source, which says arrests for immigration offences have risen by 30% and nearly 1,000 illegal migrants have been removed during the past year. The figures emerge as immigration, border security and the movement of people through the Common Travel Area have become central issues in political debate following recent unrest

Ryanair is being investigated by the Competition and Markets Authority over charges that parents must pay to sit beside their children on flights, including in cases involving disability-related obligations. The budget airline’s terms and conditions require at least one adult travelling with children aged two to 11 to reserve a seat, through what Ryanair calls a “mandatory family seat”. That reservation typically costs around £8 per flight, meaning the charge can apply on bot

The UK Home Office has confirmed that the man arrested over the brutal attempted murder in north Belfast is a Sudanese national who was granted refugee status in the UK after arriving in 2023 — with questions around the attacker’s status sparking a heated Commons clash today involving North Antrim MP Jim Allister and Secretary of State Hilary Benn. In a statement issued on Tuesday afternoon, a Home Office spokesperson said: “We can confirm the individual is a Sudanese nationa

A chinook helicopter like the one that crashed in 1994 on Mull of Kintyre, and (inset) Sir Liam Fox More than three decades after one of Britain’s deadliest military aviation disasters, fresh pressure is mounting on the UK Government to re-examine the circumstances surrounding the RAF Chinook crash at the Mull of Kintyre that killed 29 people — including many of Northern Ireland’s most senior security and intelligence personnel. Former UK Defence Secretary Sir Liam Fox has wr

Communities Minister, Gordon Lyons, Economy Minister, Caoimhe Archibald and Health Minister, Mike Nesbitt with Commission Chair, Alan Milburn (second from right). More than 315,000 working-age people in Northern Ireland are currently economically inactive — the highest rate anywhere in the UK — with disability and long-term ill health now driving more than a third of those cases. The stark figures come as Stormont ministers unveiled a new cross-government Commission on Work a

L-R Fionnuala Walsh, Head of Funding UK Portfolio, The National Lottery Community Fund, Jacinta Linden, Co-Director of Together for Families, Health Minister Mike Nesbitt, Paul Sweeney, Chair of the Northern Ireland Committee, The National Lottery Community Fund and Peter Toogood, Deputy Secretary, Social Care and Public Health Policy Group. Paper prescriptions are set to become a thing of the past in Northern Ireland under a major £42 million digital transformation programme

Northern Ireland Secretary of State Hilary Benn Northern Ireland’s struggling public services are set for a major shake-up after the UK Government released a further £102.6 million to fund wide-ranging reforms across healthcare, employment support, digital services and agriculture. The funding package includes a landmark £42 million project to replace Northern Ireland’s paper prescription system with a fully digital process — ending the manual handling of more than 45 million