Belfast sees Red for Victims
Buildings lit up for day of remembrance for victims of terrorism
REBECCA BLACK, Irish News, March 9th, 2026
A EUROPE-WIDE day of remembrance for victims of terrorism will be marked with events at Westminster and Stormont.
A number of buildings, including the Island Arts Centre in Lisburn and St Columb’s Cathedral in Derry, will be lit up red on Wednesday in recognition of the European Remembrance Day for Victims of Terrorism.
Geraldine Ferguson, the mother of Sapper Patrick Azimkar, one of two soldiers killed by dissident republicans outside Massereene Barracks in Co Antrim, and Simon Utley, who survived the Hyde Park bombing in 1982, will speak at the event at Westminster on Wednesday.
An event at Stormont today will be addressed by Travis Frain, who was injured in the 2017 Westminster Bridge attack; John Sproule, whose brother Ian was killed by the IRA in 1991 in Co Tyrone; Denise Mullen, whose father Denis was killed by loyalist terrorists in 1975; and Pastor Stephen Thompson, whose aunt Yvonne Dunlop was killed by a bomb in 1976.
Kenny Donaldson, director of victims group South East Fermanagh Foundation, who helped organise the events, thanked TUV MLA Timothy Gaston and Lord Tom Elliott for sponsoring the Stormont and Westminster events.
He also pressed the government to drive policy changes to support victims and survivors.
“Lighting up for European Day of Remembrance of Victims of Terrorism is an important symbolic representation of support for innocent victims/survivors of terrorism,” he said.
“This year a range of organisations and public authorities are getting on board in turning red on the evening of Wednesday 11 March, and we thank all those local drivers making this happen,” Mr Donaldson added.
“We continue to encourage the widest possible support in recognising this day but also, from this year onwards, the United Kingdom has an official National Day of Remembrance for Victims of Terrorism – 21 August.
“This is the same date as the International Day of Remembrance of Victims of Terrorism and has now been adopted by the UK government.
“We have recognised this date for some years and held an official event last August, bringing together innocent victims and survivors from across the international world.
“But recognition dates in and of themselves aren’t enough – governments must drive policy changes which deliver for innocent victims/ survivors of terrorism across their full needs – health and wellbeing, welfare, justice, truth and accountability, compensation and acknowledgement schemes and other practical needs.”
Gerry Adams case begins in London
Gerry Adams was ‘as culpable as those who planted the bombs’, Troubles-era case hears
The former Sinn Féin president is being sued by three victims of IRA attacks
Mark Paul, Irish Times, Royal Courts of Justice, London, March 9th, 2026
A barrister for Troubles victims who are suing Gerry Adams in London has alleged three bombings in Britain happened with “the knowledge and agreement of [Adams]” as an IRA member and, in the 1990s, “a member of the seven man [IRA] army council”.
The former Sinn Féin president is being sued for personal injury by three victims of IRA attacks – Jonathan Ganesh, John Clark and Barry Laycock – who allege he is personally liable for the bombings in Britain that injured them.
The attacks include the Old Bailey bombing in 1973 and explosions in Manchester and London’s docklands in 1996. The claimants are suing Adams for a nominal £1 damages.
Anne Studd KC, representing the claimants, told the court on Monday morning they would seek to prove that Adams was “so intrinsically involved” in the IRA that he “was as culpable as those who planted the bombs”.
Adams has always denied being a member of the IRA, and is fighting the case in the High Court in London.
Bomb victims
Barry Laycock, a victim of the 1996 Arndale shopping centre bombing stands outside the High Court in central London ahead of a civil claims trial against former Irish republican leader Gerry Adams. Photograph: Getty Images
There was a heavy police presence in central London on Monday morning for the 10.30am start of the case against Adams at the Royal Courts of Justice complex on Strand, next to Fleet Street.
There were five police vans parked near the court complex when it opened at 9am, as well as a smattering of Adams’s supporters with Irish tricolours. The former Sinn Féin president appeared at Court 16 – known as the Chancellor’s Court – shortly before the case began.
Studd spent the morning walking the judge through the first section of her opening statement, which laid out the claimants’ basis for their claim against Adams.
She cited evidence of his alleged membership of the IRA, including his wearing of a beret at a 1970 IRA funeral. “He would never have been entitled to wear the beret unless he had taken the oath of an [IRA] volunteer,” she said.
Studd also referred to his attendance at secret meetings in 1972 between the IRA and British government officials. Adams has argued that he was at those meetings as a member of Sinn Féin, but Ms Studd referred to later writings from former IRA leader Seán Mac Stíofáin which, she argued, suggested that only IRA members had attended.
The claimants argued that Adams had made certain admissions around being an IRA member when he was arrested in 1972, but the former Sinn Féin president is arguing that any confessions were unreliable because he was beaten after his arrest.
Studd cited a 2010 interview with former IRA member Dolours Price, who was one of 10 convicted of the Old Bailey bombing. She said Adams had been present at a meeting to recruit the teams for attacks in Britain and said they were “hanging” offences.
The claimants also allege that Adams was the IRA prisoner who wrote a 1970s column in republican newspaper An Phoblacht under the pseudonym Brownie. Adams is arguing that he was not the only person who wrote that column.
He says a specific column, in which Brownie admits being in the IRA – “rightly or wrongly, I’m an IRA volunteer” – was written by his then-assistant, Richard McAuley.
The three Troubles victims are also relying on claims by former IRA member Sean O’Callaghan that he attended IRA meetings with Adams in the 1980s. Studd also cited the words of former politicians including former justice minister Michael McDowell, as well as evidence from former RUC and British army intelligence officers.
She said evidence showed Adams only took a “backwards step” from leading the IRA in the 2000s, a decade after the docklands and Manchester bombings. Adams is arguing that evidence shows Sinn Féin politician Gerry Kelly, not him, “dominated and controlled” the IRA in the 1990s.
Adams is also arguing that the personal injury claims against him are time-barred, and that the views of intelligence officers and others are “hearsay”.
The case, which will play out over this week and next, is the first time Adams will be cross examined in a British court about whether or not he was in the IRA.
SDLP seeks assembly support for ‘equalising’ joint first ministers’ titles
JOHN MANLEY, POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT, Irish News,March 9th, 2026
STORMONT’S parties are being urged to support the ending of “top dog” politics by putting the first and deputy first ministers’ titles on an equal footing.
An SDLP motion due to be debated today seeks backing for a move that would “equalise the titles” of the offices currently held by Michelle O’Neill and Emma Little-Pengelly.
The first and deputy first ministers have equal standing and share the same responsibilities within government, making decisions on a joint basis.
However, as a convention, the first minister takes precedence over the deputy first minister when it comes to greeting official visitors and in statements issued by the Executive Office.
Under Martin McGuinness’s leadership, Sinn Féin supported a name change that reflected the roles’ joint status, however, since the party became the assembly’s biggest, it has effectively backed the status quo.
According to the SDLP, its non-binding motion acknowledges that the two roles are equal in terms of authority and responsibility, but that the current titles “have entrenched tribalism”.
Party leader Claire Hanna said at Assembly elections there was a “totally disproportionate focus” on the race to be first minister.
Being top dog is a distraction
“Parties stress the importance of being top dog to distract from their failure to actually use power to improve people’s lives, and to scaremonger about what could happen if another party or tradition seizes control the role,” she said.
“In reality, the roles of first or deputy first minister are equal and always have been – one can’t order paper clips without the other.
“While we understand the symbolism, it doesn’t put bread on anyone’s table.
“This has been readily acknowledged by different parties which have held the offices, who have consistently used language like joint head of government.”
The South Belfast MP said her party motion asked the executive parties to commit to make the change ahead of the next assembly election.
First Minister Michelle O’Neill (left) and Deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly make decisions on a joint basis
“Too often we see this kind of distraction politics deployed where parties retreat to the old bastion of a sectarian bun-fight in an attempt to pull attention away from failing public services, health and housing waiting lists and our polluted environment,” she said.
“They are determined to be named the winner of the title, less determined to use the power the executive has to improve lives.”
Health concerns raised over bonfire material at asbestos clean-up site
JOHN MANLEY, Irish News, March 9th, 2026
BONFIRE material is being amassed at a vacant site in south Belfast where there remains a health risk from asbestos.
Environment Minister Andrew Muir has told The Irish News he is “deeply concerned” that signs at the Meridi Street site in the Village area warning of hazardous material are being ignored.
Pallets that are expected to be burned in four months’ time on the Eleventh Night are being stacked yards from an electricity substation.
Last July, the PSNI declared a “major incident” at the site close to the Westlink amid concerns about material containing asbestos and the bonfire’s proximity to the substation, which provides power to the nearby Royal Victoria Hospital and the City Hospital.
Despite safety concerns and potential moves by Belfast City Council to clear the site, the bonfire went ahead with DUP councillors claiming removing the bonfire would have sent the “wrong message”.
Remediation work by the landowner, including the removal of hazardous material, began last August and concluded in November.
However, according to the Northern Ireland Environment Agency (NIEA), “fragments of asbestos” are still present at the site.
NIEA said completely decontaminating the site “could take up to two years”. It said that while the risk from the remaining asbestos is low if undisturbed, “ongoing trespassing at the site will make it extremely difficult for any further remediation work to be conducted”.
Environmental crime scene
An environmental crime investigation into the site off the Donegall Road, which is owned by Armagh-based Boron Developments, is continuing.
Mr Muir urged elected representatives in the area “to provide the leadership needed to ensure everyone obeys the law and heeds the warnings issued to keep people off the site”.
“I am deeply concerned that despite warning signage being erected and NIEA urging people to stay away from the Meridi Street site, it appears that people have entered the site, and that pallets have been deposited there,” he said.
“Unauthorised access to the site could amount to a criminal offence. Given the ongoing risk to the safety of people accessing the site, NIEA would again urge members of the public not to access it under any circumstances.”
The Public Health Agency said serious health conditions can develop as a result of exposure to asbestos. “Breathing in asbestos fibres could cause lung scarring (asbestosis), lung cancer, and mesothelioma,” a statement said.
“The only reliable way to protect yourself and prevent fibres spreading to others is to avoid contact with asbestos completely.”
Belfast City Council said remediation of the site is the responsibility of the landowner, while the PSNI said it supported “partner agencies who lead on public health matters concerning bonfires”.
Trad all over… All-Ireland Fleadh will return to Belfast next year too
REBECCA BLACK, Irish News, March 9th, 2026
THE all-Ireland Fleadh is to return to Belfast for the second year in a row in 2027.
It comes as the Northern Ireland capital prepares to host the world’s largest celebration of Irish music and culture for the first time this summer.
The announcement was made following a meeting of the Ardchomhairle of Comhaltas in Dublin on Saturday.
Belfast will also become the first location in Northern Ireland to host the event twice.
The showcase of traditional music, song, dance and language, which will take place from August 2 to 9, is expected to attract more than 800,000.
First Minister Michelle O’Neill hailed the “fantastic news”.
“The Fleadh will be hosted in Belfast this summer and return in 2027, bringing hundreds of thousands of visitors from around the world to celebrate the very best of Irish music, culture, and heritage,” she said.
“This will also be a great boost for our local economy. Beal Feirste will be buzzing, and we can’t wait to welcome you all!”
Some of the artists involved in the 2026 event include musician Sharon Shannon and her Big Band who will headline the main stage outside Belfast City Hall on Sunday August 2.
Other acts performing on the famous Gig Rig stage for the opening ceremony will be award-winning group Goitse, the Blackwater Ceili Band and Belfast ensemble McPeake.
The line-up will also include a range of school choirs, as well as cross-community and multicultural performances, creating a day of free entertainment and setting the tone for a week of multi-generational shared celebration across the city.
Deputy Lord Mayor of Belfast Paul Doherty described it as a “tremendous honour” for the city.
“We’re delighted our city will host the Fleadh again in 2027,” he said.
“It’s a tremendous honour for Belfast and underscores its status as the island’s only Unesco City of Music.
“It allows us to build on 2026 and further strengthen Belfast’s position as a vibrant, inclusive city that celebrates its rich cultural heritage.
“The two-year staging will deliver a substantial tourism and economic impact, supporting local businesses, hospitality providers and cultural organisations.
“The opportunity to welcome so many artists and visitors to our city is already bringing great excitement and will no doubt add to the atmosphere and energy of the week.
“We look forward to sharing everything Belfast has to offer and to celebrating together.”
Comhaltas Ceoltoiri Eireann praised the partnership with Belfast City Council and their host local branch, Ards CCE, saying that the combination of world-class international venues and specialist music hubs, unique street environments and strong community support made the decision to return to Belfast an easy one.
Elevated to new heights
Dr Labhras O Murchu, director-general of Comhaltas, said Belfast will elevate the event to new heights.
“The decision to host the Fleadh in Belfast again in 2027 reflects the scale of our ambition and the strength of our partnership with Belfast City Council,” he said.
“With world-class stages in the Waterfront and Ulster Hall, Belfast is set to elevate the amazing performances and atmosphere of Fleadh Cheoil na hEireann to new heights.
“It’s clear the warmth of welcome that awaits in Belfast will create a natural home for the event and we look forward to celebrating our 75th milestone year in the city.
“We appreciate the work that Belfast City Council and Ards CCE have put into planning 2026 and for their 2027 bid.”
Niall McClean, chairman of Ards CCE, added: “It’s a privilege to host the event in Belfast in both 2026 and 2027.
“Even before the first note has been played at Fleadh 2026, we’ve seen a remarkable surge in interest in Irish traditional music, song and dance with increased enrolment in classes particularly around Belfast.
“The Fleadh is more than a festival, it’s a catalyst to inspire older generations to pass on their skills and for new generations to carry these timeless traditions forward.
“We continue to be delighted to be part of this momentous opportunity for both our organisation and for Belfast.”
Placing long-term security of the Union above party interests is the oxygen Unionism breathing
DAVID GRAHAM, Belfast Telegraph, March 9th, 2026
Unionism has always been better at warning about division than actually preventing it.
The root cause of division has been debated ad nauseam.
Throughout the past century, many unionists have stood behind the mantra of Lord Craigavon: “What we have, we hold.” However, that has become equally as true for party political interest as it has for national interest.
Craigavon's mentor Lord Carson turned unionism into a disciplined political force, but this strategic discipline is missing from modern day unionism.
Of course, this discipline was built against opposition to the perceived betrayal of Gladstone's government.
History has taught unionists a harsh lesson — one many seem determined to relearn every generation.
British governments will always prioritise their own electoral survival. Even during the 2017 'confidence and supply' arrangement, the DUP's leverage had limits. When push came to shove, wider UK political pressures took precedence, England was prioritised and unionists found themselves in an even worse position than prior to being dubbed “kingmakers”.
That reality has consequences.
In Northern Ireland, unionism remains divided across three main parties whose policies are, at times, as similar as Coca-Cola and Pepsi. They look almost identical to the naked eye, taste very similar, consist of almost the same ingredients, and bar a different label, it's almost impossible to tell which one is which.
In fact, if some within political unionism spent more time discussing the benefits of the Union rather than the minor policy differences between unionist parties, the Union would be in a much stronger position.
The Northern Ireland Protocol continues to expose deep faultlines within unionism itself. Even unionism's most moderate voices recognise the scale of the constitutional challenge that it presents. Yet instead of forging common purpose, the issue has too often fuelled further division within unionism.
For decades unionist leaders have repeated the phrase: “United we stand, divided we fall.” Yet division has been as regular as the UUP leadership changeover.
Too many parties. Too many ego battles. Too many short-term tactical plays designed to outflank one another rather than outmanoeuvre political opponents.
The next election cycle cannot be business as usual. It is high time that the DUP, UUP and TUV develop a strategic vision for each individual election.
I would also suggest that smaller unionist parties or independent unionists should be part of this conversation. This is not as simple as an “electoral pact”, but a professional statistical analysis of current trends, where seats are in danger of being lost due to intra-unionist battles.
Strategic focus needed
If the pro-Union vote in Northern Ireland becomes more coordinated, a significant increase in political representation from local government to Westminster is entirely achievable. Nevertheless, that requires something which unionism has struggled with in recent decades: strategic discipline.
For the avoidance of doubt, curbing choice is not what I am suggesting. Moreover, the idea of one unionist party is unworkable. I do intend to return to how many unionist parties can coexist in a similar manner to Sinn Fein and the SDLP.
Admittedly, this is a complex issue and far from straightforward. That is why I am a strong advocate of close analysis of local areas to ensure unionist square pegs are not put forward for round holes.
Choice brings out more voters, but it can also spread the unionist vote too thin. Engaging the undecided, middle-ground, 'small-u' unionist is vital, as is increasing voter registration, especially amongst working-class urban areas. These are the voters who will ultimately decide any future border poll.
This is a delicate balance as there must be a resistance to turning every campaign into a sectarian headcount, even though that is the natural inclination. Placing the long-term security of the Union above narrow party interests is the only oxygen that can keep unionism breathing.
Many have already started their electoral campaign for 2027. It is vital that unionism approaches the next election as it should every future election, united in common purpose, to maximise representation and strengthen the case for Northern Ireland's place in the United Kingdom.
Taylor still enjoys creating a stir at 88
NOEL DORAN, Irish News, March 9th, 2026
JOHN Taylor is well used to having his opinions directly questioned, but what cannot be disputed is that his range of political experience – which stretches back over 60 years – is unparalleled in these islands.
When I first met him while covering Castlereagh Borough Council back in the late 1980s, in the days before restrictions on multiple mandates were introduced, he was an elected member of both that body and the House of Commons, and approaching the end of his 10-year term in the European Parliament.
He had also previously been an MP and minister in the old Stormont administration, as well as serving in the Constitutional Convention, the Northern Ireland Forum and the versions of the legislative assembly which were launched in 1973, 1982 and 1998, while he went on to become Ulster Unionist deputy leader and remains a peer of the realm today.
It is an extraordinary record, requiring him to take on many different roles, but what has never changed is the way in which he likes to mix a sense of gravitas with a tendency to cause either controversy or mischief.
His decision to tell his fellow unionists, in the course of an intriguing Irish News interview with Alex Kane last week, that a united Ireland was inevitable was, in many ways, a classic Taylor intervention, demonstrating that, even at the age of 88, he still enjoys being at the centre of attention.
It was something of a surprise when he stretched his involvement beyond the grandiose surroundings of Strasbourg and Westminster almost four decades ago to take in a more functional setting on the Cregagh Road in east Belfast – now the headquarters of the Orange Order – but the tactical reasons soon emerged.
Castlereagh council was very much the power base of Peter Robinson, who, as the then deputy leader of the DUP, was using every means at his disposal during an ultimately successful campaign to overtake Taylor’s Ulster Unionist Party as the dominant voice within unionism.
Taylor set out to challenge Robinson’s authority in his own back yard during the pre-devolution era, and I watched from the press desk as the two heavyweights confronted each other directly at the monthly council meetings.
There was no love lost between them, with the flamboyant Iris Robinson tending to target Taylor even more firmly than her husband, and there were unexpected developments as other councillors actively joined the argument.
One angry Robinson supporter moved from verbal exchanges to jumping up, gesticulating and barging ominously past my seat to within inches of Taylor, who impassively stared him out before order was restored.
Shot in his own constituency by OIRA
Taylor, who still carried the scars from an appalling Official IRA gun attack which almost killed him near his Armagh home in 1972, was at that stage guarded by two plain clothes RUC officers, but, assuming that any threats would be external, in a council without a single nationalist representative, they sat in the corridor outside the chamber.
When I discussed the episode with him afterwards, he responded with good humour to my tongue-incheek suggestion that places might need to be found between the rival unionist benches for his armed escorts.
Kane was fully entitled to challenge Taylor over his frequently unacceptable barbs against perceived nationalists down the years, with the latter agreeing that at times his comments had been “crass and offensive”, while it is also worth separately acknowledging that he has been one of very few senior unionists who have been prepared to consistently oppose the slaughter in Gaza since 2023, accusing Israel of war crimes.
Particular attention has focused one aspect of his conversation with Kane, when he declared: “…the reality that there is going to be a united Ireland. Unionists need to be prepared for that if we are to avoid more violence”.
Other unionists have come to the same conclusion, but prefer to keep their thoughts to themselves, with one of Stormont’s most prominent DUP figures known to have conceded privately to an opponent in recent years over the certainty of the demographic trends, while insisting that he would still strive to delay unity for as long as the electoral arithmetic permitted.
Taylor, as ever, offered a much more open and blunt assessment, advising unionists that voters in Britain were not interested in them, and, together with nationalists, they should start seriously considering the kind of northern institutions which could evolve within a united Ireland.
Those who have expressed similar views in the past have regularly been dismissed by critics as not understanding the history and fundamental principles of unionism, but, given the unique nature and duration of his public career, that is not a charge which can easily be made against the veteran polemicist officially known as Baron Kilclooney.
Givan - Departments need to change how budgers are allocated
REBECCA BLACK, Irish News, March 9th, 2026
HOW Stormont departments are allocated their budgets should “fundamentally change”, Education Minister Paul Givan has argued.
He was speaking as severe financial pressures on the Northern Ireland Executive, particularly in delivering public services, have been highlighted.
Mr Givan said if public sector pay commitments are to be met, that should be the starting point on how money is allocated to departments.
“My department is 82% staff pay, other departments that only accounts for around 30%, so fundamentally how we approach the budget is a flawed process and we need to now start a new way of allocating funds to each department,” he told the BBC’s Sunday Politics programme.
“I think we need to look at how we actually start the process of allocating funding, it can’t just be, last year department x spent the following, this year we’ll top it up by another 5%.
“We need to look at the basis upon which we allocate funding. I think it should be based on contractual inescapable pressures, and pay is very much one of those things.”
Mr Givan also argued for closer engagement with the Treasury, referencing an additional £400 million which was made available to Stormont to support public services in the form of a reserve claim to be repaid over three years.
“I fully accept that collectively as an executive, we’re all facing difficulties within our departments, that’s why opening our books up to the Treasury, allowing that detailed examination, and we need to get a longer-term arrangement with the Treasury to enable us to have that transformation,” he said.
“I have published a sustainability budget plan with clear proposals in it, we need the Treasury to help enable us to do that.”
Mr Givan argued the current approach to the education system is not sustainable either financially or in terms of outcomes for pupils.
Last month he published a five-year budget strategy which included proposals such as reducing the number of schools in the region and reshaping special educational needs support in mainstream schools.
“There are difficult decisions for this executive to take, we do need to ensure that every pound is being effectively spent, and I couldn’t say honestly that every single pound is being effectively spent in education, but there are wider pressures, we do need more funding, but it is my job to make sure that what we do have is spent effectively,” he said.
“There is a declining birth rate, when we look at the next 10 years enrolments will reduce by 13%, so it’s not sustainable for a school where there are already small numbers of pupils, for them to remain open.”
Ugly scenes as Celtic beats Rangers in penalty shoot out
Michael Jones, Belfast Telegraph, March 9th, 2026
Celtic secured a 4-2 shootout victory after the goalless draw before dozens of their fans invaded the pitch. That sparked an invasion from hundreds of Rangers supporters.
A flock of police officers and stewards were called into action to separate both sets of supporters and quickly gained control of the situation by forming a barricade as pyrotechnics were thrown from end to end.
This match was the first one in a decade that had allowed a sizeable amount of away supporters inside the ground for an Old Firm derby between the two Glasgow rivals.
Celtic had around 8,000 fans in the away end and hundreds of them stormed the pitch following Tomas Cvancara's winning spot-kick with Rangers supporters quickly following them.
The Scottish FA released a statement following the ugly scenes and announced that there will be an investigation.
They said: “The Scottish FA condemns the behaviour from supporters entering the field of play following today's Scottish Gas Scottish Cup Quarter-Final at Ibrox Stadium.
“An investigation will be carried out immediately in line with the Judicial Panel Protocol.”
Celtic manager Martin O'Neill was caught up in the melee as he attempted to marshall his players off the pitch during the ugly scenes with fans wanting to get photos with him.
Speaking to Premier Sports after the match, the former Northern Ireland international hoped that the post-game scenes would not take away from his team's victory and performance.
He said: “There were a few tete-a-tetes, anyway. It's unfortunate. Hopefully it doesn't dilute the performance.
“It was our fourth game in 10 days and we were really out on our feet, but we defended magnificently. Blocks, boys throwing their bodies on the line. I've got the utmost regard for the team. Old Firm games are explosive games, they always have been.
“That's maybe one of the reasons why the derby is one of the best in the world.”
Rangers manager Danny Rohl was also asked about the fracas and admitted he had left the pitch before it kicked off after the penalty shootout.
“I'm honest, I wasn't on the pitch I didn't see it until now,” Rohl explained.
Nobody likes to see this
“I think we all know it's an emotional situation after the game but nobody likes to see this.
“I think it was a great atmosphere for 120 minutes and all the other things should not be in the stadium around football.”
BBC Scotland's Tom English said it “looked like” a Rangers fan “threw a punch at someone in the Celtic staff”.
“They got it under control but 7,500 Celtic fans in, and you wonder when you are going to have it again,” he said. “It was disgraceful.”
Former Scotland international Charlie Adam, speaking on talkSPORT, said: “It's a disgrace.
“It's a sad day for Scottish football. For the Old Firm that we talk about being our leadership teams and (what) they represent, it's an embarrassment for our game.
“And as a national team we're trying to improve and we're trying to get better.
“But these two clubs have let us down as a nation and they have to have a look at themselves today.
“Both football clubs have to look at themselves because they are the standard-bearers for us as football clubs and they have, both (sets of) supporters have let themselves down.
“It's an embarrassment for Scottish football. This should not be happening. In this day and age this should not be happening and we have to get control of it quickly because if it doesn't it'll keep escalating and escalating and there'll be big, big problems.”
More than one million euro funding for community groups
CLAUDIA SAVAGE, Irish News, March 9th, 2026
MORE than one million euro of funding has been announced for community and voluntary groups across the island of Ireland.
The Special EU Programmes Body (SEUPB) has confirmed funding awards for 18 organisations totalling 1.17 million euro, just over £1 million, through the Peace-Plus Change Maker Funding Programme.
The projects cover initiatives including youth leadership and nonformal education; inclusive sport; outdoor learning (including adapted provision for young people with additional needs); arts, heritage and language; intergenerational engagement; women’s workplace wellbeing; cancer support outreach; and neighbourhood projects such as community gardening.
SEUPB chief executive Gina McIntyre welcomed the awards and congratulated the 18 successful organisations.
Each has brought forward strong, thoughtful proposals that place cross community and/or cross border engagement at their core,” she said.
EU funding has been announced for community and voluntary groups across the island of Ireland
“These projects reflect the commitment, creativity and leadership that exists across our region.
“I would also encourage other groups to explore this opportunity. These projects funded may inspire an idea.
“The Change Maker Funding Programme is designed to be straightforward, flexible and applicants are well supported.
“Our aim is to ensure grassroots organisations can access funding that helps build relationships, confidence and connection where it is needed most.”
Successful groups include:
– The LinkUp, a youthled crossborder podcast project linking young people from Armagh and Monaghan.
– Bridging Divides Programme, a programme for young people across Newry, Bangor, Dungannon and Carrickfergus/Larne combining weekly basketball sessions with peacebuilding and youthleadership development.
– Growing the Community Through Gardening, which will fund the creation of a new community garden in Buncrana to bring together a wide crosssection of residents, with a focus on women and migrant communities.
Peaceplus is managed by SEUPB and represents a funding partnership between the European Union, the UK and Irish governments and the Northern Ireland Executive.
