Killers of Ian Ogle fail in attempt to overturn guilty verdicts

27 Feb

Alan Erwin, Belfast Telegraph, February 27th, 2026

Killers of Ian Ogle fail in legal bid to overturn convictions

Three men jailed for the “vigilante revenge” murder of east Belfast community worker Ian Ogle have failed in legal bids to overturn their convictions.

The Court of Appeal dismissed claims that Glenn Rainey (39), Robert Spiers (42) and Walter Ervine (44) were wrongly found guilty of involvement in the fatal knife attack in January 2019.

Two other men who admitted involvement in the street killing, 40-year-old Jonathan Brown and Mark Sewell (47), also had challenges to their prison sentences rejected.

Lady Chief Justice Dame Siobhan Keegan declared: “Group violence of the nature displayed in this case has no place in our society and those who engage in such activity will be brought to justice and appropriately punished.”

Mr Ogle (45) was beaten and stabbed 11 times close to his home at Cluan Place in the city.

Long running feud

The assault, carried out as part of a long-running feud, lasted less than 30 seconds.

CCTV recordings captured five masked men walking towards the scene of the killing, with a witness later describing them as attacking the victim like “a pack of hyenas”.

In a circumstantial case based on CCTV footage and telephone evidence, Rainey, Spiers and Ervine were found guilty of murder following a non-jury trial in November 2024.

They were each ordered to serve at least 20 years behind bars. All three men continued to claim their innocence and mounted legal bids to overturn their convictions.

Their legal teams contended that the alleged identification and other strands of evidence against them were flawed.

Nearly 40 clips of footage taken from street cameras and bus shelters relied on by the prosecution were shown to the appeal judges.

One of the recordings depicted Mr Ogle being attacked, kicked and stamped on before the assailants left the scene.

Lawyers for Spiers insisted there was no evidence that he was involved in the 18-month feud or formed part of the gang who assembled to seek revenge against the victim.

Instead, they contended, he had been wrongly linked to the attack by having a knife missing from his home.

An identical type of 33cm blade found in the nearby Connswater River two weeks later could not be established as the murder weapon, the court was told.

Further grounds of appeal centred on the trial judge drawing an adverse inference from the defendant's failure to give evidence, and admitting background material relating to previous events in 2017. But the prosecution maintained that the guilt of Rainey, Spiers and Ervine was safely established by the weight of a circumstantial case involving their telephone contact and clothing.

Self-confessed killer Brown “kicked into action”, phoning to recruit the others after an associate had been attacked outside a chip shop in east Belfast earlier that night.

Crown counsel said a series of calls were made to Spiers, Sewell and Rainey because “he had revenge on his mind”.

Phones burned

Communication between mobiles linked to the suspects then ended following the killing, with their mobiles going dark and being burned.

Backing those submissions, the Court of Appeal rejected all grounds of appeal.

Dame Siobhan, sitting with Lord Justice Colton and Mr Justice Kinney, described the discovery of the knife close to Spiers home as more than coincidental evidence linking him to the murder.

The trial judge was also entitled to draw adverse inferences from Ervine's failure to give evidence to explain his association with the others and reasons for leaving the jurisdiction shortly after the killing.

Rainey's claims that he faced a weak circumstantial case were also thrown out.

“Nothing on the face of this judge's analysis suggested evaluative excess, logical error, the drawing of inappropriate inference or reliance on any strand of evidence beyond its permissible footprint,” the Chief Justice said.

“Accordingly, for all of the reasons given, the convictions are safe and the appeals are dismissed.”

Brown and Sewell both received 17-and-a-half-year prison terms after they pleaded guilty to murder.

Based on those admissions, they contended that the sentences were excessive.

Sewell claimed he should have been given a greater reduction for confessing his role in the attack and expressing genuine remorse.

His lawyers argued he never set out to murder Mr Ogle, but was wrongly treated the same as Spiers, who brought the knife to the scene for the purpose of killing.

However, the court identified no merit in the challenges to the jail terms imposed.

“This was a group vigilante revenge attack with a clear commonality of purpose,” Dame Siobhan stated.

Even though Spiers was the only one implicated by the knife, she highlighted how the victim had also been beaten with a baton and kicked in the head during an outburst of serious and gratuitous violence.

“It was a pre-planned revenge attack by five people on a vulnerable man with multiple weapons used, causing multiple injuries in a public street,” the Chief Justice stressed.

Confirming all appeals against convictions and sentences were being dismissed, she added: “We hope this judgment brings some closure to the bereaved family of Ian Ogle and the community in which he lived.”

COMMENT: Raymond McCord

Those who killed Ian Ogle are murderers who belong to the UVF. Once again it shows this organisation is not here to protect its community and the sooner the DUP takes a stand and publicly calls out for the arrest of the leadership and the Government stops all funding to any UVF linked group the better.

Those who call the UVF God's Army are not supportive of peace and the unionist community. You cannot support a proscribed terrorist organisation whose members have continued to murder people in their own community. Those "loyalist activists" who do should be charged with supporting a terrorist organisation.

The DUP has failed the victims of the UVF, particularly those victims from their own Unionist community.

The exception is Jim Shannon who has raised the case of my son Raymond many times.

The Hypocrisy and selectiveness of our politicians regarding victims is a disgraceful way to chase votes and create division. I hope that at the next election victims are included in the election manifestoes of all the parties. But then again who would believe them?

Unfortunately due to a lack of leadership in the DUP in calling for action against the "loyalist" paramilitaries these gangsters have no intention of disbanding.

Jamie Bryson

Nor does Bryson represent unionism. However he has consistently represented people who allegedly belong to proscribed organisations and written articles about these alleged terrorist members appear in local newspapers.

Has he represented any unionist family who had a relative murdered by our modern day UVF terrorists? I can’t think of one.

As someone from the unionist community I can state that these gangsters who are nothing more than drug dealers, extortionists, murderers and terrorise their own unionist communities. They are despised by 99.9 per cent of the unionist community.

According to British law the "loyalist" paramilitaries are proscribed organisations and terrorists.

How can those who define themselves as "loyalists or loyalist activists" want any organisation that the British government defines as terrorists to exist? Who are these "loyalists" loyal to?

It’s certainly not to Northern Ireland or British citizenship.

Maybe a better question would be, ‘What are they loyal to?’ I think the general public know the answer to that.

Those who claim to be "loyalists" never speak out about the drug dealers, the extortionists and the intimidation in their own districts. At least these "loyalists" have something in common with some unionist politicians who are silent on who controls unionist districts. Votes before its citizens.

The government should arrest those in power of these gangsters and if wannabes wish to defend them then let them tell the families that the unionist communities are better off with the gangsters destroying the communities. No more pussy footing around the issues of paramilitary flags and terrorists, arrest them, seize their assets and maybe our grandchildren can grow up in our unionist communities without gangsters who control it with beatings, baseball bats, facilitated by guns and by the silence of elected representatives, as well as a few unelected self-appointed representatives.

Raymond McCord is a Victims Campaigner whose son Raymond Junior was killed by the UVF in 1997

Angry exchanges at council meeting over plan for UDR memorial cemetery benches

GARRETT HARGAN, Belfast Telegraph, February 27th, 2026

A plan for commemorative UDR benches in cemeteries has sparked heated exchanges at a local council.

The debate at the monthly meeting of Derry City and Strabane District Council links back to a discussion at committee level.

At committee stage, an application from the Memorial Association sought permission to erect three memorial benches to commemorate members lost during the Troubles.

UUP councillor Derek Hussey and DUP councillor Keith Kerrigan voted in favour, independent councillor Gary Donnelly voted against, and SDLP and Sinn Fein representatives abstained.

On Wednesday, People Before Profit councillor Shaun Harkin challenged that decision.

He said it wasn't “a green and orange issue” and described the UDR as “a state militia whose members filled the ranks of sectarian death squads”.

Mr Harkin suggested that councillors may have supported the proposal “to make it clear that we are not a sectarian council”.

He continued: “But I don't think that it's sectarian to actually oppose a state entity whose members were so deeply involved in collusion and sectarian slaughter.”

His party has “always opposed militarism and paramilitarism”, Mr Harkin said, and to support these plans would amount to “abandoning this principle”.

Mr Harkin made reference to the Cassel Report where experts examined 25 cases of suspected loyalist paramilitary violence — involving 76 murders and some attempted murders — here during 1972 to 1977.

It found that in 24 of the 25 cases, involving 74 of the 76 murders, evidence suggested collusion by members of the RUC or the UDR.

Independent councillor Paul Gallagher proposed that the matter be deferred to allow for a public consultation.

He disagreed with the findings of an equality screening assessment on the matter.

Mr Donnelly also backed the proposed deferment.

Mr Kerrigan said comments from the previous speakers caused “immense hurt”. He said “many” members of the UDR were “murdered very, very cowardly” and the debate would “anger a lot of people”.

“You are now tarring my uncle and aunt who lie in Castlederg cemetery with the same brush as what has been stated there,” he added.

“It is a complete disgrace. And I'll leave it at that because I am immensely annoyed.”

‘Vitriolic’

Mr Hussey expressed “extreme disappointment” at the “vitriolic, shameful denigration we've had”.

He explained his father, mother and sister were “proud” members of the UDR.

Mr Hussey said linking those being commemorated to the Glenanne gang was an “absolute disgrace”.

Sinn Fein councillor Christopher Jackson said he was “disappointed this is being played out in a public way”.

He spoke of “obscene activities” by the UDR but added his party has “a proud stance that everyone has a right to remember their dead”.

Mr Gallagher said when he brought a motion in 2016 to permit council staff to wear an Easter lily to mark the 1916 Rising, it was not supported by unionist parties.

He said respect has to be reciprocated and 10 years later that matter has not been resolved.

Put to a vote, councillors Harkin, Gallagher and Donnelly voted in favour, with 31 against, including the SDLP and Sinn Fein.

Mr Donnelly requested a second vote on rejecting the committee's recommendation.

Three voted for, seven against, with 24 abstentions including Sinn Fein and SDLP councillors.

Leo Norney report: The world now knows he was innocent, say family

Conor McParland, Belfast Media, February 27th, 2026

THE family of a Turf Lodge teenager murdered by the British Army over 50 years ago say a report into his brutal killing will "tell the world he was innocent".

Leo Norney (17) was shot dead by a member of the Black Watch regiment on 13 September 1975 soon after he left a black taxi. In 2023, a coroner found he was “entirely innocent” and was deliberately shot dead by a soldier.

Now, a report into Leo's murder has been published on behalf of his family by Relatives for Justice.

Speaking to the Andersonstown News, Leo's niece Linda Norney said the publication of the report will inform the world of his innocence.

"Words can't express it. When you think of truth recovery, healing and justice, I think this report has done so much for our family," she said. "We knew Leo was an innocent boy but the British government, Ministry of Defence and the British Army tried to smear his name.

"This report tells the world that he was innocent.

"I was only one-year-old when Leo was murdered. He was my godfather. Growing up, he was always spoken about.

"He was on the cusp of a new life. He was getting married in January. He was only 17-years-old and the world was his oyster. He was going to visit his girlfriend and because someone had an intention that they needed to take a life, they took his life.

"That was the reality and then the cover up. The cover up is the worst thing.

"Of course you want your loved one back but the inquest for me was so important because it gave the family a chance to speak and be heard.

"The ballistics expert spoke for two minutes. He was clear that Leo was innocent, he had no weapons.

"After, the judge said Leo was innocent. To hear that word innocent meant everything to us. I had seen him cry once in his life and I looked over to my dad and he cried that day in court when he heard that word innocent.

"They knew he was innocent all along but the world had to hear it. There was a sense of peace after that day."

Call for report to be published

Linda said that it is very important that the report has been published.

"We are indebted to RFJ and the advocacy and support over so many years. Their service is vital," she said.

"The report is so insightful. It is everything that we wanted people to know and I think going forward, if someone wants to know about Leo, we will let them read it.

"It took 48 years for us and we stand in solidarity with other families who are still waiting for justice for their loved one."

Paul Butler from RFJ who helped compile the report said they set out to show that Leo was not a statistic but a person.

"He was only 17, so he was still a child. He was growing up. He had been down in town with his friends and got into a taxi to go and see his girlfriend.

"He was doing things people do in this day and age and the poor lad was shot dead in cold blood by the British Army.

"This case is unique in that sense because there was so much information. The evidence was very, very clear and it pointed only in the one direction, which was he was innocent."

Copies of the report are available from RFJ office on the Glen Road.

‘PSNI has a lot of work to do to earn our trust’

BRETT CAMPBELL, Belfast Telegraph, February 27th, 2026

POLICE WATCHDOG LAMBASTED ORIGINAL RUC PROBE INTO TEEN'S 1973 KILLING

The cousin of a teenager found murdered at the bottom of a Co Tyrone quarry more than five decades ago says the PSNI has “a lot of work to do” to earn the trust of the family in their quest for justice.

Colette Toman questioned the “coincidental” timing of Chief Constable Jon Boutcher's decision to commission an independent review into the RUC's handling of the case of Marian Beattie.

The review, to be carried out by Bedfordshire Police, was confirmed after Marian's loved ones met with First Minister Michelle O'Neill at Stormont on Tuesday.

A damning Police Ombudsman report last June identified numerous failings in the original investigation into the 18-year-old's killing.

“I really don't know what the terms of reference of this review will be,” Ms Toman told the Belfast Telegraph.

“It could be the same as what the ombudsman did, so we're not jumping for joy, but waiting to see the next steps.

“The ombudsman probe was really clear that there were 150 steps still to be taken in the original case before it seemed to have closed down.

“Those steps were never followed up, there are suspects, as we understand it, that are still alive and have never been questioned.

“We don't need the ombudsman's report rehashed, we need all those lines of inquiry to be followed up.”

Ms Beattie was last seen leaving a charity dance in Aughnacloy with a young man at around 1am on March 30, 1973.

Five hours later the Portadown woman's partially-clothed body was found at the bottom of the quarry near Ballygawley.

No one has ever been charged with what detectives at the time described as a “vicious and cruel murder, with sadistic overtones”.

Ms Toman added: “The (ombudsman) report intimated that there was up to 12 suspects in Marian's murder, but we were only informed of three.

“There's lots of things that just simply weren't done in this case.

Missing evidence

“But the biggest issue for us is the missing evidence, and I don't know what an outside police force will be able to do about that.

“I mean, how does a police force lose over 50 pieces of evidence? It's totally unacceptable and we can't understand it — it makes no sense.”

Among the missing forensic evidence is a shoe with a muddy palm print on it.

Referring to the BBC crime series Murder in the Badlands, which explored Marian's case, as well as those of Lisa Dorrian, Inga Maria Hauser and Arlene Arkinson, Ms Toman said “it was very obvious to note” the PSNI refused to provide commentary on her cousin's killing to programme makers, but did for the other three.

She added: “All of these things add up to the point where how could you possibly have trust?

“We're in this arena now where everybody's talking about the need to end violence against women and girls.

“How can you do that when you have a case like this of a young girl of 18 murdered at a dance with 400 people there?”

The ombudsman found there had been only eight documented contacts between the police and the victim's family since 1973, which led to an “understandable” loss of confidence and trust.

Ms Toman said: “This week's meeting with Michelle O'Neill should never have been needed.

“But it took until October for the Chief Constable to actually meet with us and we were promised he would come back in three weeks — he didn't do that.

“Instead, he phoned our family solicitor and told them he needed a few more weeks, which rumbled into four months.

“We have still heard absolutely nothing.”

Confirmation of the independent review was received by the family solicitor within an hour of the First Minister agreeing to write to Mr Boutcher to seek an urgent update, and to have the issue raised at the Policing Board.

Ms Toman said the PSNI had “quite a lot of work to do” to win the family's trust as they prepare to meet detectives early next month.

She added: “I suppose the question arises: had we not had the support of Michelle O'Neill, would this have happened?

“But the proof will be in the pudding. We are interested in what the police have to say to us.”

The PSNI told the Belfast Telegraph Mr Boutcher affirmed his commitment to helping Ms Beattie's family get answers at a private meeting in October.

“Since that meeting work has been undertaken to seek to answer the family's questions,” it said.

“An update regarding that work will be provided to the family in the near future. This is an incredibly sad case dating from 1973 and we will do whatever we can for Marian.”

Endless talk of division, yet nobody challenges segregated schools causing it

DAVID GRAHAM, Belfast Telegraph, February 27th, 2026

Northern Ireland is a unique place, a very special speck of land on the globe.

A place of many quirks and peculiarities. Indeed, it's the only place in the world where you can be a 'Catholic or Protestant atheist'.

Although our society has improved drastically, even since I grew up in the latter days of the Troubles, a walk through urban areas of 'our wee country' underlines the visible historic divisions that still remain.

The pipe dream of removing all peace walls by 2023 has failed miserably. It's almost the time of year for people to become triumphalist or offended by flags, too.

Some are quick to pass off these differences as simply being a working-class issue, or a problem that impacts only some sections of our political sphere.

Ironically, it is the very same people who espouse an end of division that seem unwilling to muster the courage to call out the fundamental cause of continued division in this country — segregated education.

As Peter Robinson said in 2010: “I don't in any way object to churches providing and funding schools for those who choose to use them. What I do object to is the state providing and funding church schools.”

The discussion on ending segregation and the obvious societal benefits requires much greater detail than in this column. I intend to return to the subject of religion-based education in due course as well.

Nevertheless, the fundamental flaw of our education system has a much broader impact than simply breeding an 'us and them' mentality.

Expensive duplication of resources

Our current school estate is letting our children down. We have simply too many schools in Northern Ireland. A comparison with areas of the mainland with a similar population and urban/rural mix will underline the fact we have far more schools in Northern Ireland. The key reason for too many schools is that we have too many sectors. This bloated system creates inefficiency, significant financial pressures and has a direct impact upon the welfare of teachers, and in turn, future generations of our young people.

In 2020/21, sectoral bodies were funded to the tune of almost £7m. That may be a small slice of the overall pie, but it underlines the cost of propping up a failing system.

Indeed, the report entitled 'Investing in a better future' underlined the fact that we cannot even agree what a 'single system' would look like in Northern Ireland's education system. Moreover, the strong lobby for the 'integrated' sector has many benefits, but it is far from a panacea. The theory is unquestionably well-meaning, but the practicalities do not match.

Similar to Protestant atheism, there are numerous examples of 'Integrated' schools which match the demographics of an area, rather than the required numbers to reach 'integrated status'. The result is conflict, such as we saw in Bangor in recent months.

The lack of political appetite is a major stumbling block to any sort of reform or change. It's fair to say that a politician will not garner many votes if they run an election campaign based upon 'close schools and shut down hospitals'.

I remember interviewing Dr Kieran Deeny for my AS-level politics course, a man who was elected on the single issue of keeping Omagh Hospital open. Moreover, I recall as a Spad, sitting in a meeting with local political representatives and members of a board of governors who fought to maintain a school with fewer than 20 pupils in a declining area of population.

Of course, I don't blame any political representative for advocating on behalf of their constituents, but this short-term approach will drive continued decline.

As the aforementioned report stated: “Northern Ireland could significantly benefit if unnecessary fragmentation or duplication, where they exist, were removed or rationalised.”

Duplication of resources and services while continuing to build a divided society is a sad indictment of our ruling classes.

Until there is a genuine political will, the courage to put their shoulder to an unpopular wheel, future generations will continue to be educated in a system which will never be allowed to hit top gear.

David Graham is a former DUP special adviser and councillor

Blue plaque honours MP who opposed famine ‘extermination’

ALLAN PRESTON, Irish News, February 27th, 2026

A CO Down MP who accused the British government of “exterminating” the Irish during the Great Famine has had a blue plaque erected in his memory.

William Sharman Crawford (1780-1861) was remembered at his ancestral home of Crawfordsburn yesterday.

The Ulster History Circle say that despite being a wealthy landowner, he also fought to give power to tenant farmers in the face of “almighty landlords” and campaigned against slavery.

Married to Mabel Crawford in 1805, he took on both her name and estates in Crawfordsburn.

Elected on both sides of the Irish Sea, he served as MP for Dundalk from 1835-7 and later in Rochdale in 1841-52.

His first spell in parliament saw him champion rent reform and tenant rights at a time of acute poverty and “violent outrages” on Irish farms.

At the height of the Great Famine in 1849, he famously told MPs: “Will you, with reckless prejudice, be the instruments of exterminating that people over whom you hold the power, in order to carry into effect your favourite theory of consolidating the lands of Ireland for the use of capitalist farmers, and converting the Irish peasants into the hired labourers of these monied masters?”

His comments were well-received in Ireland, but ultimately ignored by the British Government.

While a self-proclaimed Irishman and patriot, he favoured self-governance over a full separation from Britain which was said to have led to “a spectacular falling-out” with the nationalist leader Daniel O’Connell.

As a lifelong campaigner against slavery, Crawford spoke in 1846 at a public welcome in Belfast for Frederick Douglass, the African-American abolitionist.

While welcoming the end of slavery under British law he condemned its persistence in the United States.

Later standing for election in Co Down in 1852, he was opposed by landed families in the area and the Orange Order, with newspapers dismissing him as “the ally of papists and infidel democrats”.

After retiring from public life and his death in 1861, the Ulster History Circle say Crawford is admired not for his concrete achievements but “sticking stubbornly to ideals and proposals that would only be fully achieved in later decades”.

MI5 had office at BBC London HQ used to vet new staff

CONNLA YOUNG, Irish News, February 27th, 2026

BRITISH intelligence agency MI5 had an office at BBC headquarters in London that was used to vet all journalists, a snooping tribunal has been told.

The claim is made in a submission to the Investigatory Powers Tribunal by veteran Belfast-based journalist Chris Moore.

The IPT examines complaints from people who believe they have been the victim of unlawful covert surveillance by state agencies.

The tribunal has held a series of hearings this week into the unlawful surveillance linked to the BBC and its former reporter Vincent Kearney, who is now northern editor at RTÉ.

Mr Moore has also been linked to the case, although he has not been told why.

Details of state surveillance on Mr Kearney and Mr Moore came to light as part of IPT proceedings involving two other Belfast journalists, Barry McCaffrey and Trevor Birney, in 2024.

At the time the tribunal refused to join the current proceedings with those involving Mr McCaffrey and Mr Birney.

In submission to the tribunal the respected journalist said MI5 had a room at the BBC’s London HQ when he worked there more than four decades ago.

The BBC claim is made in a submission to the Investigatory Powers Tribunal by journalist Chris Moore

“When I joined the BBC in 1979 I soon became the National Union of Journalists (NUJ) shop steward in BBC Northern Ireland and while attending national pay talks at Broadcasting House in London in the 1980s

NUJ members based in London pointed out a small office in Broadcasting House which they told me was the MI5 office where an MI5 officer vetted every single journalistic job applicant, me included,” he wrote.

Mr Moore added that “I point this out to explain the nature of those close links between the BBC and MI5 then”.

“The fact that the tribunal heard from counsel for MI5 in closed [hearing] before refusing to join the BBC’s case to that of Birney and McCaffrey has caused many to raise questions about the current relationship between MI5 and the BBC.”

The BBC was contacted for comment.

Veteran journalist ‘drawn into’ spying scandal but not told why

CONNLA YOUNG, Irish News, February 27th, 2026

MI5 and PSNI have admitted unlawful surveillance

A HIGH-PROFILE Belfast-based journalist responsible for exposing the Kincora child abuse scandal has not been told why he is being investigated by a powerful spy tribunal in London.

Veteran reporter Chris Moore has been included in a case linked to the BBC and RTÉ’s current northern editor Vincent Kearney.

The London-based Investigatory Powers Tribunal (IPT) heard this week how Mr Kearney was unlawfully spied on by MI5, which admitted its role last year, the PSNI and Metropolitan Police between 2006 and 2014 when he worked with the BBC.

The tribunal went into closed session yesterday, meaning legal representatives for Mr Moore and Mr Kearney were barred from proceedings.

The IPT examines complaints from people who believe they have been the victim of unlawful covert surveillance by state agencies.

Earlier this week, Mr Kearney was told how state agencies, including the PSNI, targeted his communication data multiple times over an eight-year period.

IPT members were also told the PSNI “obtained and created a detailed profile” of Mr Kearney that included home and work addresses, landline and mobile telephone numbers, and vehicle registrations.

Personal details included his wife’s name, his mother-in-law’s name, along with details of others living with him at the time.

Details of state surveillance on Mr Kearney and Mr Moore came to light as part of IPT proceedings involving two other Belfast journalists, Barry McCaffrey and Trevor Birney, in 2024.

The IPT examined allegations that they were subjected to unlawful surveillance over their 2017 film about the 1994 Loughinisland atrocity.

The tribunal later found that the PSNI and Metropolitan Police acted illegally by spying on both men to identify their sources.

Never told why he was investigated

However, it has now emerged that Mr Moore has never been told why he has been included in the current proceedings.

Mr Moore, who has worked as journalist over seven decades, has previously investigated links between British intelligence, loyalist paramilitary groups and the British royal family in the Kincora child abuse scandal.

During his long career he has also touched on numerous sensitive areas of work involving MI5, RUC and PSNI Special Branch and state agents.

Tribunal members have been told that Mr Moore provided former police ombudsman Nuala O’Loan with a copy of the then unpublished Walker Report, which reviewed the practice and organisation of RUC intelligence gathering.

The journalist was later told MI5 were unhappy he had obtained a copy and wanted to know his source.

At a hearing on Wednesday his barrister Mark Vinall suggested his client is someone who has “solid reasons to suspect that his journalistic sources in particular have been the subject of interest by state agencies”.

Mr Moore said he would “rather know the truth” adding there was “some interest” in his telephone number when the PSNI was investigating alleged leaks to Mr McCaffrey about the Loughinisland shootings.

Mr Moore’s solicitor, Kevin Winters, of KRW Law, said none of the state agencies involved in his client’s case “has produced any open material suggesting that surveillance took place”.

“This leaves our client in the anomalous position of being drawn into complex IPT proceedings without being told why he is there or what, if anything, is being alleged behind closed doors,” he said.

“Bluntly, he ought to have been told to exit stage left from the proceedings but that hasn’t happened.”

Mr Winters said “there are clear reasons why” Mr Moore “fears that covert activity may have been directed towards him”.

“We have urged the Tribunal to exercise its powers to interrogate whatever may sit within the closed case and to ensure that, where possible, transparency is restored,” he said.

“If there is nothing to see here, then the state parties ought to say so. If there is more, then it must be scrutinised in accordance with fundamental rights and the protection of journalistic sources.”

The PSNI was contacted for comment.

Starmer’s powers curtailed over Mandelson documents

CHRISTOPHER McKEON and SOPHIE WINGATE, Irish News, February 27th, 2026

PRIME Minister Sir Keir Starmer, will not be able to overrule parliament’s security watchdog on whether documents relating to Lord Peter Mandelson’s appointment as ambassador to Washington can be published, the UK Government has confirmed.

Parliament’s Intelligence and Security Committee (ISC) said officials had confirmed “in writing” that it would have the final say on which papers would be released following a meeting yesterday.

MPs have ordered the government to release a huge quantity of documents relating to the 2024 appointment following questions about the peer’s vetting and what was known about his links to the late paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein.

Some of the thousands of documents are expected to be withheld for national security or foreign relations reasons, but it will be up to the ISC, rather than ministers, to determine which items should be redacted.

In a statement, the ISC said it had met with Cabinet Office officials yesterday morning.

It said: “Following this morning’s meeting, officials have now confirmed in writing to the committee that the decision as to whether material referred to the ISC is published is for the Committee alone.

“The Prime Minister – or anyone else in government – will not be able to overrule the Committee’s decision to publish material that has been referred to it.”

The committee said it is waiting to hear when it will receive the first tranche of documents, how they will be transferred and how many there will be.

The first tranche is unlikely to be published next week, and more likely in the following week, it is understood.

The information will include messages between ministers and senior officials that have the potential to prove embarrassing for the government and even raise tensions with Donald Trump’s White House.

‘Embarassment’ not a valid excuse

ISC chairman Lord Beamish has previously said that “embarrassment isn’t a reason for withholding information”.

The government has also agreed a framework with the Metropolitan Police on which documents can be released without prejudicing the ongoing police investigation, according to the ISC.

Lord Mandelson was arrested on Monday on suspicion of misconduct in public office, having been accused of passing sensitive information on to Epstein during his time as business secretary. He has been bailed until May.

The ISC also said the government has decided what files are “within scope” of the Conservative-led Commons motion compelling their release and that material from across government is being gathered by the Cabinet Office.

“It is hoped that some material will be published shortly,” the committee said.

A government spokesperson said: “We are proceeding at pace to publish the first tranche of documents in early March.

“We are working closely with the ISC and have made progress on a number of their requests.

“The government is very grateful to the committee for their work and commits to full engagement with them to ensure these processes are timely and effective.”

Control over which files to withhold was given to the parliamentary committee after a Downing Street climbdown in the face of a Labour backlash against initial plans for the cabinet secretary to make the judgment.

Stormont MLA’s silent on 27% pay hike but only give councillors 5%

SUZANNE BREEN, Belfast Telegraph, February 27th, 2026

Councillors from across the political spectrum have accused Stormont of double standards for giving them only a 5% pay increase while remaining silent about a 27% hike for MLAs.

DUP, UUP, SDLP and Alliance representatives who serve on a range of councils across Northern Ireland expressed their anger at the situation to the Belfast Telegraph.

They criticised the Executive parties for supporting DUP Communities Minister Gordon Lyons last year when he didn't implement an independent review's proposal that councillors' basic allowance rise by 29%.

Agreeing to only a 5% increase, the minister said he was operating in “an extremely challenging financial climate”.

Councillors' basic allowance went up from £17,030 to £18,329 - well below the £21,935 recommended by the review of the role and responsibilities of councillors here which was chaired by Maynard Mawhinney.

An independent review of MLAs' salaries last week recommended they rise from £53,000 to £67,200, effective from April 1.

An Ulster Unionist councillor told the Belfast Telegraph: “I am at a loss to see why the Executive parties have nothing to say about an independent review proposing that MLAs salaries rise by 27%, but they last year said no to an independent review proposing that councillors salaries rise by a similar proportion.

“Gordon Lyons indicated that he couldn't sell such a big rise for councillors during a cost-of-living crisis. I haven't heard the minister or his party say the same about the proposed rise for MLAs.

“Why is one independent review of pay rejected, while there's not a word of opposition to another independent review of pay?”

A DUP councillor said: “It seems there's one law for MLAs, and another for councillors. Quite frankly, I'm stunned that the MLA pay rise is going through. Councillors already get a raw deal, and this increases those feelings. Gordon (Lyons) said things were tight financially last year. Things are just as tight now - even tighter - yet an MLA pay rise is apparently okay.”

An SDLP councillor said that paying MLAs “almost four times what councillors receive” could not be justified. “We are undervalued. We work very hard - harder I believe than many at Stormont,” they said. “This is a huge slap in the face to us.”

An Alliance councillor said that councillors who worked in MLAs offices were fortunate, but it was “tough” for those who didn't have that “cushion”. They said the “pay hierarchy” in politics was “extremely unfair”.

The National Association of Councillors is discussing the disparity in salary increases at a meeting of its executive on Monday. It is also expected to raise the issue when it meets Mr Lyons on Thursday. Last year, the body said his response to the Mawhinney review “fell short” and that councillors felt “overlooked”.

Last March, Mr Lyons announced that the Executive had agreed an increase of 5% to the basic allowance for councillors with effect from 1 April, 2025.

Justifying his dismissal of the recommendation of considerably greater pay increase at the time, he said: “I am pleased that the Executive has unanimously agreed to the proposals that I have brought forward.

“I have considered carefully the recommendations in the report and, in doing so, I needed to balance any increase in the basic allowance for councillors against the cost to ratepayers in what is an extremely challenging financial climate. I need to ensure that increases in rates bills are kept to the minimum.”

The minister added: “Against a backdrop of wider public sector settlements generally in and around this level, I am content that this 5% increase for councillors is justified given the volume and complexity of council duties, the hours required to carry them out, and the fact that the role and responsibilities of councillors was last reviewed in 2013.”

Mr Lyons has been approached for comment.

MLAs' pay hike is set to increase their wage bill by almost £1.3m. Only the TUV and People Before Profit oppose the rise.

TUV MLA Timothy Gaston said: “The public pay MLA wages, yet they were never asked. Indeed, MLAs have designed a system which ensures the taxpayer has no voice.”

He added: “At a time when major issues facing ordinary people go unaddressed, Stormont has made clear what its priorities are.”

People Before Profit MLA Gerry Carroll said: “A £14,000 pay rise for MLAs is a complete disgrace, and shows that Stormont is completely and utterly out of touch with ordinary people.”

He added: “A public representative can't relate to their constituents if they've just received a £14,000 pay rise, while most people have seen their wages stagnate and the cost of living skyrocket.

“There's no 14k pay rise for health workers, teachers and classroom assistants, retail workers and other frontline staff, and there must be no preferential treatment for MLAs.”

Grand Orange Lodge of Ireland's 19 venues for 2026 Twelfth Demonstrations

By Michael Cousins, Belfast News Letter, February 27th, 2028

Baroness Foster attempts to tighten UK laws on glorifying terrorism - amid attempts to 'normalise' violence

By David Thompson

Published 27th Feb 2026, 00:00 GMT

Baroness Foster is hoping to secure House of Lords support for her big to tighten laws on glorifying terrorism.

A former first minister is seeking to amend UK government legislation in a bid to tighten the rules on the glorification of terrorism – to counter efforts to “normalise” past violence.

Baroness Arlene Foster wants changes to Westminster’s Crime and Policing Bill which would make the wearing or displaying articles in support of proscribed organisation a criminal offence.

She said the issue is putting a “wedge between those from different backgrounds” and bringing fear to ordinary citizens – and must be defeated “in all its forms”.

Legislation is currently making its way through the House of Lords, where peers are seeking to make amendments – with Baroness Foster’s proposal expected to be discussed in March.

“At committee stage I received support from cross bench, DUP and Conservative peers – I hope now that I have clarified that it is intended to deal with only current proscribed organisations and not historic issues that the Liberal Democrats will also support it”, the former DUP leader told the News Letter.

“My key point around glorification is the impact it had on current and future discourse – and the fact that some are trying to normalise terrorism.

“This has the terrifying consequence that young people begin to think terrorism is acceptable. When glorification is added to the narrative from senior politicians that there was ‘no alternative’ it is very dangerous for our future society”, the cross-bench peer said.

Earlier this week, DUP MP Carla Lockhart called on the government to amend the terrorism act to explicitly prohibit the the glorification on convicted terrorists. That came after Sinn Fein President Mary Lou McDonald eulogised a former convicted IRA man on social media as a man who dedicated his life to peace.

Brendan 'Bik' McFarlane was jailed for a gun and bomb attack on the Bayardo Bar on Belfast's Shankill Road, which killed five people and injured 60 others.

Speaking on the issue at Westminster last month, Baroness Foster said: “As someone who has lived with and through terrorism, I am always alert to anything which would encourage it and bring back those dark days of intimidation, murder and mayhem. Unfortunately, over the years since the cessation of IRA violence, there has been a strategy from Sinn Féin to lionise and put terrorists and their actions on a pedestal.

“There are many examples of Sinn Féin politicians, many of them senior figures, attending commemorations and celebrations for the lives of those who sought to murder their neighbours. In the interest of time, I will not bring any examples of that, because I have done so in the past in this Chamber, but suffice to say that apart from the pain which it causes to their innocent victims, it also seeks to normalise terrorism as a legitimate way to bring about political change”.

Baroness Foster also told peers that there have been no prosecutions under the existing legislation, to her knowledge, in Northern Ireland – in comparison to 52 prosecutions in England and Wales since 2011.

She said the legislation needs to be changed so that glorifying the acts of a current proscribed terrorist organisation, should “in and of itself” be a criminal offence.

Questioning the lack of prosecutions in Northern Ireland , she said policing across the UK “should be without fear or favour and certainly should not allow political bias or fear to enter decision-making”.

She said defeating terrorism “is about not just militarily defeating the organisation but not allowing the narrative of those terrorists to be justified”.

“Unfortunately, with the continued glorification of the IRA by senior politicians and others, there is a deliberate attempt to rewrite what happened in Northern Ireland. It was an unjustified, bloody, murderous terrorist campaign—nothing more and nothing less—and those of us who grew up with threats and the attempted murder of members of our family will not allow that to happen. We need society as a whole to recognise it as well. I urge noble Lords not to utter the phrase, ‘Yes, but it’s Northern Ireland and that’s all very difficult’.

“It is really not difficult. Whether you were a loyalist terrorist or a republican terrorist, you were a terrorist: someone who went out with the sole purpose of murder. Of course, the same is true of other shades of terrorists today”.

The Grand Master, Most Wor. Bro. Harold Henning said:

“Our Twelfth of July celebrations are an annual highlight for our members and the wider Orange family.

The tradition of Twelfth processions stretches back 230 years and are very much a focal point for local communities to come together and commemorate the important historical events which shaped our society.

The Grand Orange Lodge of Ireland has announced the 19 venues which will host this year’s Twelfth Demonstrations.

The colour, pageantry and music provide a unique spectacle, and we are increasingly witnessing a growing number of international visitors attending our events, as well as the great many who regularly travel from other parts of the United Kingdom.

I trust that wherever you plan to take part or spectate, everyone has an enjoyable day.”

The host venues for 2026 are

Co. Tyrone

The Grand Orange Lodge of Ireland has announced the 19 venues which will host this year’s Twelfth Demonstrations.

Cookstown

Castlederg

Aughnacloy

Co. Down

Rathfriland

Killyleagh

Royal Hillsborough

Ballymartin

Ballywalter

Co. Antrim

Larne

Ballymoney

Portglenone

Ballymena

Glenarm

Belfast

Co. Armagh

Newtownhamilton

Co. Londonderry

Limavady

Kilrea

Co. Fermanagh

Maguiresbridge

Co. Donegal

Rossnowlagh (11th July)

Baroness Foster attempts to tighten UK laws on glorifying terrorism

By David Thompson, Belfast News Letter, February 27th, 2026

Baroness Foster is hoping to secure House of Lords support for her bid to tighten laws on glorifying terrorism.

A former first minister is seeking to amend UK government legislation in a bid to tighten the rules on the glorification of terrorism – to counter efforts to “normalise” past violence.

Baroness Arlene Foster wants changes to Westminster’s Crime and Policing Bill which would make the wearing or displaying articles in support of proscribed organisation a criminal offence.

She said the issue is putting a “wedge between those from different backgrounds” and bringing fear to ordinary citizens – and must be defeated “in all its forms”.

Legislation is currently making its way through the House of Lords, where peers are seeking to make amendments – with Baroness Foster’s proposal expected to be discussed in March.

“My key point around glorification is the impact it had on current and future discourse – and the fact that some are trying to normalise terrorism.

Earlier this week, DUP MP Carla Lockhart called on the government to amend the terrorism act to explicitly prohibit the the glorification on convicted terrorists. That came after Sinn Fein President Mary Lou McDonald eulogised a former convicted IRA man on social media as a man who dedicated his life to peace.

Brendan 'Bik' McFarlane was jailed for a gun and bomb attack on the Bayardo Bar on Belfast's Shankill Road, which killed five people and injured 60 others.

Attempting to normalise terrorism‍ ‍

She said the legislation needs to be changed so that glorifying the acts of a current proscribed terrorist organisation, should “in and of itself” be a criminal offence.

She said defeating terrorism “is about not just militarily defeating the organisation but not allowing the narrative of those terrorists to be justified”.

'Honesty needed' from politicians - Nesbitt wants to prioritise frontline services

By David Thompson, Belfast News Letter, February 26th, 2027

Health Minister Mike Nesbitt is set to defer free hospital car parking - saying the money could be better spent on services. Photo: Liam McBurney/PA Wire

A DUP MLA says politicians need to be honest about the pressures facing the NHS, as health minister Mike Nesbitt seeks to push back plans to introduce free hospital car parking.

Diane Dodds says plans to remove the parking charges would leave a “significant hole in funding” – money which then can’t be invested in life-saving treatments.

Her comments come as the UUP-run health department confirmed it has received approval to bring new legislation to defer the plans for the third time – arguing that the money could be better spent on other services.

Some hospitals have already informed the public that from May 2026, car parking will be free of charge – in line with the legislation originally passed in 2022. But that now looks unlikely, with ministers already struggling to live within their budget.

The Department of Health told the News Letter that the minister “has secured approval to proceed with legislation to defer the introduction of the Hospital Parking Charges Act”. It said Mr Nesbitt “requested the deferral in the context of the severe HSC financial pressures and to ensure prioritisation of funding for frontline services”.

Mrs Dodds says now is not the time for the changes to be introduced – as while there is broad public support for the idea of free hospital parking, decisions must be rooted in the financial reality facing the health service, with patient care coming first.

She said: “Of course people want to see hospital parking provided free of charge. That is an understandable and reasonable aspiration. But we also have a duty to be honest about the pressures currently facing our health service and the difficult choices that flow from that.

Health Budget under stress

“The health budget is under sustained strain. Frontline services are already stretched, staff are under pressure, and waiting lists remain far too long. Removing parking charges at this point would leave a significant hole in funding, and that money would have to come from the same budget that pays for patient care.

“In a system under this level of pressure, priorities matter. To put this in real terms, around £5 million could deliver a full 24/7 thrombectomy service in Northern Ireland. That single investment is estimated to save around 160 lives each year and, for many stroke patients, mean the difference between walking out of hospital and facing a lifetime of disability.

“Every pound matters. Money used to replace lost parking revenue is money that cannot be invested in life-saving treatments, reducing waiting times, or supporting the staff delivering care day in, day out.

“The DUP’s position is clear. Protecting frontline healthcare must remain the first call on limited resources. While free hospital parking is a worthy aim, it should only be introduced when the financial position allows it to be done properly and sustainably, without risking harm to patient services.”

The law was brought in my MLAs ahead of the collapse of Stormont in 2022, one of a number of pieces of Assembly legislation which critics described as populist and not costed.

In 2021, Sinn Fein MLA Fra McCann brought forward the Hospital Parking Charges Bill to abolish all health trust parking charges. He said the move would “reduce the burden on patients and visitors who are already physically, psychologically, and financially impacted by the experience of ill health” – and reduce pressures on staff.

The Assembly passed the law the following year, with very little opposition.

In March 2022, then UUP health minister Robin Swann amended the bill – providing for a two-year grace period before it kicked in, instead of the original six months. He cited a lack of car parking spaces and the need for time to “deal with capacity” issues.

In 2024, it was decided to push the implementation of the law even further back – to May 2026.

In November 2024, the Department of Health announced work had commenced at hospital sites across Northern Ireland in preparation for the removal of car parking charges in May 2026.

Jeffrey Epstein blamed King Charles for Andrew losing UK Trade Envoy job

By Josh Payne, Press Association Chief Reporter, Belfast News Letter, February 26th, 2026

Paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein claimed the King was to blame on the day Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor gave up his role as the UK's trade envoy.

In an email dated July 21 2010, released as part of the US Department of Justice's document dump related to Epstein last month, an exchange saw the convicted sex offender write: “I assume he knows that this is Charles doing.”

His words came in response to a message from Andrew's close aide David Stern, which read: “Lots of tv coverage on PA and always big feature on you. Insane.”

The former prince was arrested last week on suspicion of misconduct in public office following allegations he shared sensitive information with Epstein during his time as trade envoy.

He spent around 11 hours in custody as searches were conducted at his home on the Sandringham Estate in Norfolk and at his former home, Royal Lodge in Windsor, Berkshire.

Andrew became the UK's special representative for international trade and investment in 2001 but stepped down 10 years later amid the furore over his friendship with Epstein.

He received no salary for travelling around the world and at home promoting Britain's business interests, but criticisms were made about the thousands of pounds spent each year on his expenses and travel costs.

Retired civil servants have recently claimed Andrew used taxpayers' money to pay for massages and excessive travel costs, with one telling the BBC: “I couldn't believe it... it was like it wasn't real money, they weren't spending any of their own money.”

Disowned by King

His decision to step down from the role came in the same year he was pictured with his arm around his primary accuser, Virginia Giuffre, who said she was trafficked to the former duke at the home of convicted sex trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell.

Ms Giuffre claimed she had sex with the former prince three times – at Maxwell's home in London, at Epstein's New York townhouse and on the disgraced financier's Caribbean island, Little St James.

Andrew paid Ms Giuffre millions of pounds to settle a civil suit in the US in 2022, a woman he has claimed never to have met. The former prince has vehemently denied any wrongdoing.

Charles issued a statement shortly after his brother's arrest on February 19, in which he said: “The law must take its course.”

Following the arrest, ministers agreed to release files related to Andrew's appointment as trade envoy, but said they would be unable to publish material that police need for their inquiries until officers are "satisfied".

Meanwhile, the Metropolitan Police apologised to the speaker of the House of Lords after the “inadvertent revealing of information into allegations of misconduct in public office”.

Lord Forsyth of Drumlean was wrongly said in some media reports to have passed information to the police ahead of Lord Peter Mandelson’s arrest on Monday on suspicion of misconduct in public office.

The Lord Speaker held a meeting with the Met yesterday morning after the claims were aired in public.

Lord Mandelson, who has been accused of passing sensitive information on to paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein during his time as business secretary, has been bailed until May.

Sir Lindsay Hoyle, the House of Commons Speaker, received an apology on Wednesday from the Met for “inadvertently revealing information during an investigation into allegations of misconduct in public office”.

The Speaker told the Commons that he had passed information along to the force about Lord Mandelson “in good faith” and said it was “regrettable this rapidly ended in the media”.

Padraig Yeates https://www.truthrecoveryprocess.ie