Monthly Archives: October 2017

<!– –> A Co Antrim man has accused the UVF of firing shots into a room where his children were sleeping. The Larne man was speaking after his three young sons were lucky to escape injury when four shots were fired at his family home in the Brustin Brae Road area of Larne in the early hours of yesterday. In recent months several properties and vehicles in the Larne area have been torched in attacks. Victims’ campaigner Raymond McCord, whose son Raymond was murdered by the UVF almost 20 years ago, last night claimed the gun attack was sanctioned by the group’s leadership. Police said they intend to step up their presence in the town. The victim claims that two gunmen used sawn-off shotguns to blast the family home. He said two shots were fired at a room where his three sons, aged 10, 7 and 3, were sleeping but … Continue reading →

<!– –> Talks aimed at restoring powersharing at Stormont have reached a “sensitive” point, Dublin’s Foreign Affairs Minister Simon Coveney has said. Mr Coveney, who has been involved in the negotiation process along with Secretary of State James Brokenshire, said the DUP and Sinn Féin “want to make the process work” but that they still face “real challenges.” “There are sensitive discussions happening today. I am somewhat cautious in what I am saying. I don’t think it would be helpful to make a running commentary today,” Mr Coveney told the Seanad in Dublin. He warned that a “critical phase” for the devolved institutions have been reached. “Ten months have now passed. It means the people of Northern Ireland are not being served by an elected and accountable devolved government. “This is not a sustainable position for much longer. This is a most critical point for the devolved institutions and peace … Continue reading →

Image caption Mr Newton has been Speaker of the Northern Ireland Assembly since May 2016 Politicians from four of Northern Ireland’s main parties have called for the resignation of the Democratic Unionist Party Assembly speaker Robin Newton. Mr Newton, MLA for East Belfast, has rejected claims that he misled the Assembly about the true nature of his role with a community organisation linked to the loyalist paramilitary group, the Ulster Defence Association. The claims were made in a BBC Spotlight programme on Tuesday night. Here are a selection of responses to the programme. Sinn Féin Carál Ní Chuilín MLA said Mr Newton should resign immediately. “Robin Newton’s position as speaker is completely untenable in light of the serious allegations in a BBC Spotlight programme,” she said, adding that a refusal to do so had “eroded public confidence” in the Stormont institutions. Ms Ní Chuilín said Mr Newton had “totally compromised … Continue reading →