Soapbox 
SOAPBOX: Andrew Deaney argues that it is time that Presbyterians did unto others regarding support for same-sex marriage as they wished the Church of Ireland had done unto them in the 18th century when Presbyterian marriages weren’t recognised by the state.
By John Martin of Nature Matters NI For the first time in nearly half a century an Agriculture Bill has been brought forward in Westminster. The Bill outlines a significant change in the direction of farm support in England, moving from a system focused mainly on area based payments to payments for public goods such as clean water, fresh air and recreational opportunities. The proposals do not apply to Northern Ireland but there is no doubt that post-Brexit we will …
By SDLP Youth On Sunday past, we watched a very uncomfortable Michelle O’Neill, the Vice President of Sinn Féin on BBC Inside Politics, when being questioned about the Máiría Cahill case. Upon being asked if she believed Máiría Cahill’s account of the abuse she suffered in the 1990s, at the hands of an IRA member, Ms O’Neill replied, “it’s not for me to say that I believe her.” In recent years, Sinn Féin have positioned themselves as the political defenders …
The disadvantages faced by individuals who go to court without a lawyer can jeopardise their right to a fair trial. This is the finding of a two-year Nuffield Foundation study by Ulster University on ‘litigants in person’ in the civil and family courts in Northern Ireland, which examined the experiences of individuals who represented themselves in court. There has been considerable concern over the rise in the number of litigants in person across the UK, although this research shows that …
#MyBelfastIdea by Ciarán Fox, Director of the Royal Society of Ulster Architects Three weeks after the fire which gutted the Bank Buildings owned by Primark the people of Belfast are starting to galvanise in support of the city’s traders and retail core. As a profession, architects immediately recognised not only the devastating damage to a listed building but also crucially the risk to our thriving city. Today RSUA, as the voice of architecture in Northern Ireland, is launching a public …
Last year, an incident of domestic violence was reported to the PSNI around every 18 minutes each day in Northern Ireland. In 1992, a previous study on domestic violence in Northern Ireland, led by Professor Monica McWilliams and Joan McKiernan highlighted the serious consequences of domestic violence for women and children during the Troubles particularly given the availability of guns at that time. It also showed how the conflict limited access to police thereby increasing the power and control of …
By Aidan Harkin At the time of writing Fianna Fáil (FF) is struggling to re-assert itself as the prominent force in Irish politics. The 2016 election was a moment of promise for FF who experienced considerable gains from its disastrous 2011 election performance, resulting in a difference of only six seats between them and the governing party Fine Gael (FG). This rise coupled with the implosion of the Irish labour party has meant both FF and FG now co-exist uncomfortably …
Denise Hart is Chair of Glee@PwC in Northern Ireland I’m the Chair of Glee@PwC in Northern Ireland, the firm’s UK-wide diversity network, so it’s no surprise I feel passionately about LGBT issues and equality. But back in August of 2017, when the Northern Ireland High Court ruled Marriage Equality as a devolved matter and LGBT equality felt further away than ever, I sent what could have been a rather career limiting email to the regional chair of PwC NI. I was …
The results of a survey released today by the Women’s Resource and Development Agency reveal the impact of having no government at Stormont on women’s community organisations and campaign groups. 80% of those surveyed said they have continued to lobby decision makers in the 19 months since the collapse of the Executive, but the majority felt that it is now much harder to make progress on the issues that affect their organisations and communities. The 48 respondents to the survey …
I’m a 50 year old Derry Girl, teacher of Drama and English in a local all girls’ grammar school and mother of two teenage daughters. I’ve lived in Derry all my life. My parents instilled in us a deep love of Donegal, its wild and often soft scenery, its simplicity and the gentle, unassuming people. Every Sunday we made the pilgrimage to Bridgend and then on to Rathmullan for the Football Special; Ballyliffin for the 70s delight of Chicken Maryland …
“Of its nature this is a long-term policy, requiring patience, understanding and forbearance and resolute resistance to emotionalism and opportunism. It is not the less patriotic for that” TK Whitaker, Note on North-South Border Policy, 11 November 1968 There is no denying that the idea of a United Ireland has more momentum now than ever before. Out of the Brexit chaos, and the Stormont vacuum, it tempting to ask: is the time for patience is coming to an end? And …
In Northern Ireland we’re well-used to hearing bad economic news. What sits underneath much of this comes down to productivity – the value of what we produce by every hour of work. In fact, productivity here is almost a fifth lower than the UK average, and whilst the UK’s productivity rates are lower than some of our key competitors, which in itself is a significant structural problem, in Northern Ireland we have some of the very worst productivity rates in …
Brian Smyth (Green Party rep. for Lisnasharragh) International Youth Day was Sunday 12 August and the theme this year is, “Safe spaces for youth”. There seems to be an International Day for everything, but as a Youth Worker, I believe it’s important to use these opportunities to tune into the issues that affect young people growing up, particularly those disadvantaged by poverty and inequality. The notion of safe spaces got me thinking about my safe spaces growing up. It made …
The Brexit negotiations have been plagued with political point scoring and little ‘real’ progress since the onset. There is a whirlwind of media noise surrounding any development when in reality the only concrete thing to emerge recently is the Chequers deal. This serves to embed the perception that Brexit is an intractable enigma, a foreign and absurd entity the likes of which we have not seen before. In reality, this kind of complex negotiation that fundamentally seeks to secure bi-lateral …
This Saturday marks the 99th anniversary of the death of Andrew Carnegie, the Scottish-born philanthropist whose legacy and mission of improving ‘the wellbeing of the people of Great Britain and Ireland’ continue to this day through the work of the Carnegie UK Trust. The Trust’s latest initiative aimed at furthering Carnegie’s goals was announced in June, with the naming of the three local authorities set to participate in the Embedding Wellbeing in Northern Ireland project. The Community Planning Partnerships working …
By Paul McIlvenny The silly season has begun. As the parliamentary recess began and TDs returned to their constituencies to touch base and escape the parliamentary heat for the heat of summer, the political commentariat were predictably consumed by pre-election claim and counter-claim. As the summer draws to a close, political fever around the October Budget will become pandemic, with new temperatures reached as the budget signals the end of the current Confidence&Supply agreement that holds Fine Gael and their Independent …
The conference, convened by Queen’s University Belfast and the University of Chicago, will be addressed by a range of distinguished speakers who will share their expertise on the Northern Ireland peace process, the peace process in Colombia, and the international refugee crisis, among other themes. Confirmed speakers include United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi; former US Senator George J. Mitchell; former US Assistant Secretary of State Anne C. Richard; Dominic MacSorley, CEO of Concern Worldwide; and James Robinson, Reverend …
Former UUP Leader, Mike Nesbitt was at the Belfast Pride march on Saturday and we asked him for some thoughts on the parade. What struck me about Pride 2018 was its air of relaxed confidence. It’s a while since I have observed a Belfast Pride Parade in any great depth and the change is remarkable. Back in the early days, it seemed to me many taking part felt a need to force themselves and their issues on the agenda with …
By Eoin Tennyson In last year’s election cycles, Sinn Féin ran a campaign based on “equality, respect and integrity”, called for the “implementation of previous agreements” and promised “no return to the status quo”. Marriage equality featured alongside Irish language legislation as a cornerstone of the party’s campaign. The rhetoric was enthusiastically endorsed by almost 225,000 voters. In the negotiations that followed, it proved to be just that: rhetoric. February’s so-called “draft deal” revealed that Sinn Féin were in fact …
Stranmillis University College’s Lifelong Learning team are launching a major Living History project next month to mark the half century of the civil rights march in Londonderry on 5 October 1968 which will include live interviews with key people who were involved at the time. Among those who have agreed to take part are Bernadette McAliskey, Brid Rodgers, May Blood, Eileen Paisley, Austin Currie, John Kilclooney, Stratton Mills, Kenneth Bloomfield, Danny Morrison and Billy Hutchinson. Shirley Williams, appointed by Harold Wilson to be the first …
