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4,524 releases
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MEP Funchion welcomes positive signal from EU Commissioner on future of PEACE Plus
Sinn Féin MEP Kathleen Funchion welcomes a reply from EU Commissioner Raffaele Fitto on PEACE Plus after the Commission's proposal removed a specific allowance from the central EU budget. She warns post-2028 funding would rely on Irish and British contributions and says she will table an amendment…
Community relations and legacy International affairs Issue: EU Commissioner Fitto reply on PEACE Plus post-2028 funding Original release: MEP Funchion welcomes positive signal from EU Commissioner on future of PEACE Plus (opens in a new tab)
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McGrath: Cancer waiting times show Executive has lost focus
SDLP Opposition Health Spokesperson Colin McGrath MLA says published cancer waiting time figures show the Executive is failing to prioritise cancer care. He points to only 30% of urgent GP referrals treated within 62 days, a fall on the previous quarter, and calls on the Executive to take…
Health Issue: Department of Health cancer waiting times statistics publication January 2026 Original release: McGrath: Cancer waiting times show Executive has lost focus (opens in a new tab)
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Staff and patients paying price for another year of late and ineffectual winter planning, says Donnelly
Alliance Health spokesperson and registered nurse Danny Donnelly MLA says the Winter Preparedness Plan should have prioritised patient flow, citing RCN testimony on corridor care. He calls the plan late and rushed and urges investment in social care to free hospital beds, ahead of an Assembly…
Health Issue: RCN testimony on corridor care and Winter Preparedness Plan Original release: Staff and patients paying price for another year of late and ineffectual winter planning, says Donnelly (opens in a new tab)
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Breast cancer screening referral wait times unacceptable, says McAllister
Alliance Health spokesperson Nuala McAllister MLA says waits for urgent breast cancer screening referrals are too long after new Department of Health figures showed only 3.5% of 6,194 urgent referrals were seen within 14 days. She calls on the Health Minister and Trusts to ensure the move to a…
Health Issue: Department of Health breast cancer urgent referral waiting time figures Original release: Breast cancer screening referral wait times unacceptable, says McAllister (opens in a new tab)
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Failure to transform education system and address service duplication represents historic budget mismanagement, says Mathison
Alliance’s Education spokesperson and Education Committee Chair, MLA Nick Mathison, says the Department of Education has overspent by hundreds of millions, added bureaucracy through the Controlled Schools Unit and TransformEd, and failed to transform schools or address estate duplication, urging a
Education Public finance and taxation Issue: Department of Education budget overspend and school estate duplication Original release: Failure to transform education system and address service duplication represents historic budget mismanagement, says Mathison (opens in a new tab)
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Fairness in public appointments must be restored - Campbell
DUP MP Gregory Campbell, after tabling a Commons motion, says public appointments must be fair to every community, citing Protestant under-representation in the Northern Ireland Housing Executive and alleged intimidation deterring Catholic recruits to the PSNI, and urges nationalist parties to…
Disability and equality Justice and policing Issue: Commons motion on public appointments and community representation in public bodies Original release: Fairness in public appointments must be restored - Campbell (opens in a new tab)
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New mothers experiencing serious mental illness deserve specialist support – Flynn
Sinn Féin MLA Órlaithí Flynn urges the Health Minister to keep prioritising a Mother and Baby Unit in the North, welcoming a £4 million cut in its estimated cost and calling for it to be set up without delay.
Health Disability and equality Issue: Mother and Baby Mental Health Unit £4 million cost reduction Original release: New mothers experiencing serious mental illness deserve specialist support – Flynn (opens in a new tab)
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McGrath: Public can’t wait five years to sort out health service
SDLP Opposition Health Spokesperson Colin McGrath MLA says people cannot accept a five-year timeline for fixing the health service, after Health Minister Mike Nesbitt suggested recovery could take that long. He presses the Minister and Executive on ambulance response delays, citing a 75-year-old…
Health Issue: Health Minister Nesbitt says health recovery could take five years Original release: McGrath: Public can’t wait five years to sort out health service (opens in a new tab)
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EU Customs Shake-Up to Hit Northern Ireland Consumers with New Parcel Charges
UUP MLA Dr Steve Aiken warns that the EU's accelerated customs reforms, bringing a €3 levy and €2 handling fee on small non-EU parcels forward to July 2026, will add costs for Northern Ireland consumers and retailers. He calls for clarity from HM Government and HMRC on how the rules apply under…
Economy and employment International affairs Issue: EU accelerated customs reform and small parcel charges for Northern Ireland Original release: EU Customs Shake-Up to Hit Northern Ireland Consumers with New Parcel Charges (opens in a new tab)
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Leader's Weekly email - 10th January
DUP leader Gavin Robinson MP says the Prime Minister must protect veterans in the Northern Ireland Troubles Bill and reject any Irish Republic veto over amendments, and criticises the Sinn Fein Finance Minister's draft Budget as lacking Executive agreement.
Community relations and legacy Infrastructure and transport Original release: Leader's Weekly email - 10th January (opens in a new tab)
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Over 72,000 incidents of abuse against health and social care staff -…
DUP health spokesperson Diane Dodds MLA says Health Minister figures show over 72,000 recorded incidents of abuse against health and social care staff over five years, and says the true number is higher. She calls for further information on alcohol, substances, mental illness, time off work and…
Health Issue: Health Minister figures on abuse against health and social care staff Original release: Over 72,000 incidents of abuse against health and social care staff -… (opens in a new tab)
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SDLP proposes new law to combat Executive inaction as public loses confidence
SDLP Leader of the Opposition Matthew O'Toole says the party has tabled an amendment to the forthcoming fiscal watchdog legislation so that Stormont's fiscal council must assess whether Executive budgets deliver on the Programme for Government. The move follows criticism of the draft multi-year…
Public finance and taxation Economy and employment Issue: SDLP amendment on fiscal council powers over Programme for Government delivery Original release: SDLP proposes new law to combat Executive inaction as public loses confidence (opens in a new tab)
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People Before Profit Rejects Status Quo Budget from Sinn Féin
People Before Profit's Gerry Carroll rejects the Executive's draft budget, saying Finance Minister blames Westminster while Executive parties choose cuts and a 5% rates rise each year. He calls for abolishing industrial derating, completing income tax devolution and a fairer rates system.
Public finance and taxation Economy and employment Issue: Draft Budget 2026–2029/30 Executive disagreement Original release: People Before Profit Rejects Status Quo Budget from Sinn Féin (opens in a new tab)
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North Down TUV demands accountability from local council
TUV North Down chairman Peter Wilson accuses Ards and North Down Council of poor governance after it funded a first-time Fleadh Fringe event in Bangor alongside the Ulster Pipe Band Championships. He says a formal complaint has been lodged, demands an Equality Impact Assessment, and questions why…
Local government Public finance and taxation Issue: Fleadh Fringe event in Bangor clashing with Ulster Pipe Band Championships Original release: North Down TUV demands accountability from local council (opens in a new tab)
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Hanna calls for recognition of TG4 in Northern Ireland
SDLP Leader Claire Hanna MP backs a campaign by Foras na Gaeilge for TG4 to gain formal status as a public broadcaster in the North and move to Freeview Channel 8. She welcomes Minister Ian Murray's pledge to examine the issue but says progress must come soon.
Disability and equality Issue: Foras na Gaeilge campaign for TG4 recognition and Freeview Channel 8 placement Original release: Hanna calls for recognition of TG4 in Northern Ireland (opens in a new tab)
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Farmers Need Action, Not Speeches, to Restore Confidence says Butler
UUP Deputy Leader Robbie Butler MLA says Minister Andrew Muir's Oxford Farming Conference address offered warm words but not the action needed to restore farmers' confidence. He calls for concrete progress on bovine TB, ammonia regulation and farm transfer, rather than pilots and timelines.
Agriculture and rural affairs Environment and climate Issue: Minister Andrew Muir's Oxford Farming Conference address Original release: Farmers Need Action, Not Speeches, to Restore Confidence says Butler (opens in a new tab)
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Action to deliver better outcomes for women’s health is urgently needed – Dillon
Sinn Féin MLA Linda Dillon calls on the Health Minister to urgently set out a dedicated women's health plan, citing rising gynaecology waiting lists and long delays for women and girls with endometriosis. She urges specialist services with clear diagnosis and treatment targets.
Health Disability and equality Original release: Action to deliver better outcomes for women’s health is urgently needed – Dillon (opens in a new tab)
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Women being routinely failed by gynaecology waiting lists, says McAllister
Alliance health spokesperson Nuala McAllister MLA calls on the Health Minister to urgently explain how gynaecology waiting lists will be cleared, citing around 60,000 women reported by the RCOG and no timetable for a Women's Health Action Plan.
Health Disability and equality Original release: Women being routinely failed by gynaecology waiting lists, says McAllister (opens in a new tab)
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Boylan welcomes active travel funding for greenway projects
Sinn Féin MLA Cathal Boylan welcomes over £1m in active travel funding from Infrastructure Minister Liz Kimmins for greenway projects in Belfast, Derry and Strabane, and Newry, Mourne and Down councils. He says the projects will provide cleaner connections and support health and the economy.
Infrastructure and transport Local government Issue: Active travel greenway funding for three councils from Infrastructure Minister Original release: Boylan welcomes active travel funding for greenway projects (opens in a new tab)
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Stormont Budget Descends into Chaos
TUV MLA Timothy Gaston says the Executive is in open disarray over the draft 2026–2029/30 budget, pointing to the Education Minister's public criticism shortly after the Finance Minister's briefing and the deputy First Minister's call to oppose it. He says Stormont is broken and failing the public.
Public finance and taxation Issue: Draft Budget 2026–2029/30 Executive disagreement Original release: Stormont Budget Descends into Chaos (opens in a new tab)