'Shock but no surprise' - 32,000 die on NI health waiting lists

LIAM TUNNEY, Belfast Telegraph, December 29th, 2025

NORMALISATION OF EXCESSIVE DELAYS FOR TREATMENT 'A REAL SCANDAL', SAYS MLA

Figures revealing 32,000 people have died while waiting for procedures in Northern Ireland since 2022 are a sign that “something has gone fundamentally wrong” with our health service, an MLA has said.

Up to 868 patients passed away after languishing on the list for more than a decade.

While no assumption can be made that their deaths were directly linked to waiting on treatment, it is clear that many people are spending their final days in pain and discomfort and without the treatment they need.

Figures released under a number of Freedom of Information (FoI) requests made to health trusts revealed the number of removals from waiting lists where “patient deceased” was recorded as the reason for removal.

Some 32,667 removals were made from the waiting lists between 2022 and 2025. Some patients will have been on multiple lists, resulting in some duplication in records.

The largest number of removals (10,384) was in the South Eastern Trust, while the lowest (2,309) was in the Belfast Trust.

Some 8,817 were removed from the list in the Northern Trust, with the figures of 7,068 and 4,089 being recorded in the Southern and Western Trusts respectively.

Overall, the number of removals has fallen over the three-year period. The figure dropped from 11,269 in 2022/23 to 10,909 in 2023/24, before a further decrease to 10,489 was recorded last year.

868 died after waiting over 10 years

A breakdown of how long those who died had been waiting on a procedure was also included within the figures, with up to 868 people dying having been on the lists for more than 10 years.

Some 2,356 deceased were removed after spending five or more years on the lists, with 4,386 removed after more than three years and 13,168 after more than one year.

SDLP health spokesperson Colin McGrath said the figures were “shocking, but sadly not surprising”.

He said: “Health care is simply not available when people need it.

“That alone should give us all pause. No one is claiming that every death was directly caused by waiting for treatment, but it would be disingenuous to pretend that years spent waiting, often in pain or declining health, had no impact.

“When almost 900 people die after waiting more than a decade, something has gone fundamentally wrong.

“We have normalised excessive waiting, and that is the real scandal. Being told this is 'not a quick fix' offers little comfort to patients whose lives are measured in months, not strategies.

“These lists represent real people and real suffering. What is missing is urgency. Patients deserve action while there is still time, not sympathy after the fact.”

A Department of Health spokesperson said: “It is important to understand that not all deaths of patients on waiting lists are caused by the condition for which they are awaiting treatment.

“Many patients, particularly those in later stages of life, have a range of other very serious illnesses which can contribute to their death.

“For patients waiting for procedures that are viewed as low risk or routine it is unlikely to have been a contributing factor in a patient's death.

“The minister is clear that no one should be waiting excessive periods of time for health service treatment.

“Waiting list funding has been earmarked for elective care initiatives in this current financial year.

“Resources are being targeted to reduce the red flag/time critical capacity gap and to tackle the backlog of patients waiting.

“Reducing waiting lists will not be a quick fix and will not be resolved in a year or two. Investment at this level or higher will need to be sustained for up to five years to bring hospital waiting lists down to acceptable levels.”

The department's latest waiting list statistics, up to September 30, revealed there were 542,451 patients waiting to see a consultant.

No Health Trust met targets

No health trust met targets for patients to be seen. The average time for a patient to be seen by a consultant is more than a year, with the longest being 305 weeks — the equivalent of five years and 10 months.

More than half (55%) of patients are currently waiting over a year to be seen, while more than 85% of patients have been waiting more than nine weeks.

As part of its efforts to reduce waiting lists, the department launched a new cross-border waiting list reimbursement scheme in June 2025.

The scheme allows eligible patients the opportunity to reclaim costs for medical treatments received outside of Northern Ireland.

Initially covering procedures in the Republic, the scheme was broadened in September last year to cover access to treatment across the European Union.

Health Minister Mike Nesbitt said the £10 million investment was an “important step” in addressing the long waiting lists.

“This scheme gives those who have waited two years or more the opportunity to seek treatment privately with the reassurance that costs will be reimbursed up to the HSC equivalent rate.

“I will continue to bring forward further measures to ensure patients across Northern Ireland get the care they need more quickly.”

Political failure to fund NI Water leading to 'very bleak' future, says housing group

DAVID YOUNG, Belfast Telegraph, December 29th, 2025

BUILD HOMES NI SAYS REGION'S CRUMBLING WASTEWATER NETWORK CONTRIBUTING TO THE ONGOING HOUSE CRISIS

House builders in Northern Ireland are facing a “very bleak” future, with the region's crumbling wastewater network forcing some to relocate and others to plan winding up, an industry body has warned.

The ongoing failure to properly fund NI Water is directly contributing to a spiralling housing crisis, as a chronic lack of supply is pushing up sale prices and rents, according to Build Homes NI.

The lobby group that represents some of the biggest residential construction companies in Northern Ireland was set up this year to campaign for action to address the deepening wastewater problem.

The body claims it is becoming almost impossible to gain planning permission for new-build projects in many areas, because of an inability to secure the green light from NI Water to connect the homes to its overcapacity sewerage network.

The state-funded water company has already identified 100 areas in NI where new developments are severely restricted because of a lack of connections.

Build Homes NI has highlighted that house completion rates are at a 60-year low in the region — around 6,000 a year —at a time when nearly 50,000 households are on a waiting list for social homes.

The level of funding Stormont allocates to NI Water is currently below what the company needs to fund many required upgrades to the network.

The capital investment levels are set in conjunction with Northern Ireland's Utility Regulator (UR) for defined time spans, called price control periods.

For the current period (PC21), which ends in 2027, NI Water has said it is unable to fund £500m of the works planned — around 25% — while the company is facing a projected funding shortfall of around £2bn across the next price control period from 2028 to 2033 (PC28).

Build Homes NI has called on political leaders to urgently address the problem and introduce an infrastructure levy of potentially around £2 a week in domestic rates bills.

It claims political resistance to charging the public for water services is ultimately creating a greater financial burden for many households, as the supply shortage is contributing to increasing house prices and rental costs.

James Fraser, director of Fraser Partners home building company, said he was currently unable to proceed with plans for 400 new homes on his Rivenwood development in Newtownards because of a lack of water connections.

He said builders across Northern Ireland were facing similar frustrations.

“There's a number of other builders, some that are smaller than me, that have already said they probably will have to wind up in a couple of years' time, and that just will be that,” he said.

“And there's nobody else entering this. New-build development is not an area anybody would be looking to get into, if you weren't established and you didn't have a name and you don't have land and the know-how.

“We're going to be losing builders rather than gaining them.”

Problem affects all forms of construction

Mr Fraser said he had tried to diversify away from domestic dwellings but said the same problems existed with other forms of construction, as buildings required water connections whether they were residential or not.

He had instead started to look to move some business operations to the north of England.

“The housing supply in Northern Ireland is going to become so short, demand will continue to rise, both in social and private housing, that prices are going to go through the roof,” he said.

“No-one's going to get on the housing ladder. If you have young children, or even if you've kids that are at university age, the likelihood of them getting that home will only become increasingly unlikely year after year, after year, because there will be less and less new homes built.

“I'm just one of many here — you're talking hundreds of homes that aren't being built. We're looking elsewhere. There are builders who've already gone to the Republic of Ireland.

“Myself and my brother and business partner, we're looking in the north-east of England. Because why would you continue to try and do business in a country where the Executive won't support you?”

He said: “It does look bleak. It looks very bleak, unless something's done.”

Infrastructure Minister Liz Kimmins is considering the introduction of a developer levy model, whereby builders would contribute to the costs of wastewater upgrades.

Mr Fraser said such a system would not fix the problem — potentially creating further inflationary pressure on house prices — and accused the Executive of putting its “head in the sand” over the need for a direct public levy for water.

“It's not just house builders (affected by the water infrastructure problems), there's manufacturers, there's retail, there's a lot of big companies that are no longer looking at Northern Ireland as a viable place to invest their money, and they are going elsewhere, which of course, affects the wider NI economy,” he said. “So the consequences are far-reaching.”

The director of Build Homes NI, Paul McErlean, said householders were paying out more because of the Executive's failure to adequately fund NI Water.

Mr McErlean said soaring house prices and rental costs were a direct consequence of the shortage of new homes.

“Both our house prices and our rents are going up at rates that are way more than the rest of the UK, and that is largely to do with supply,” he said.

“One of the reasons why we've got a short supply is because our house builders — James being a great example — can't build the houses they want to build because of water connections.

“It's a false economy and it's a misrepresentation of facts when it's said we're saving the public money by not paying for water.”

Shortfall in finance means 25% of projects deferred

A spokesperson for NI Water said: “NI Water's work programme for PC21 will outturn some £470m lower than the Utility Regulator's determination for the current price control (PC21).

“The result is that a quarter of work deemed essential by the UR will not happen, restricting development in over 100 towns and villages, and leaving critical environmental challenges unresolved.

“For many years, we have been transforming NI Water into a more efficient, resilient and innovative utility that is helping us to navigate these challenges.

“We will continue to work with our shareholder in order to create the circumstances to allow us to fulfil our dual role of delivering essential water and wastewater services while supporting key Programme for Government priorities of housing, economic growth, and environmental improvement.”

A Department for Infrastructure (DfI) spokesperson said Minister Kimmins had provided NI Water with “as much funding as possible within the budget available to the department”.

“So far this year, NI Water has received over £500m of public money, which is 90% of what the company required to operate this year,” the spokesperson said.

The department said since Stormont was restored in 2024, funding had been provided to unlock wastewater capacity for more than 5,000 properties.

“This is already above the 4,300 that NI Water had originally planned to connect, if fully funded, by the end of this Price Control Period in 2028,” the spokesperson said.

“The minister has been clear that funding is not the only answer and she continues to progress and deliver the three-pronged approach. This includes securing more investment for wastewater infrastructure from Executive colleagues; considering the approach to developer contributions; and bringing in legislation to provide for sustainable drainage systems (SuDS).”

Minister condemns attacks on PSNI after 14 officers assaulted

GARRETT HARGAN, Belfast Telegraph, December 29th, 2025

Justice Minister Naomi Long has condemned recent attacks on PSNI officers as “utterly unacceptable” after a spate of assaults at the weekend.

The PSNI said 14 police officers were assaulted across its southern area on Friday evening and Saturday morning — including one who was bitten.

The area consists of four districts — Newry, Mourne and Down; Mid Ulster; Armagh, Banbridge and Craigavon, and Fermanagh and Omagh.

Ms Long said her first thoughts are with the PSNI officers who have been assaulted, as well as their colleagues and families.

“I hope all the injured officers make a full and speedy recovery,” she added.

“It is utterly unacceptable that any police officer should come under attack for simply doing their job.

Higher sentences

“I intend to introduce legislation to provide for higher sentences for assaults on any person who is providing services to the public, performing a public duty or delivering a public service. This will include police officers.

“One attack on a police officer is one attack too many. They demonstrate extraordinary courage daily, setting aside their own safety as they keep the rest of us safe, and I would like to pay tribute once again to officers and civilian staff for their work over the festive season.”

Two police officers were injured when a car rammed their patrol vehicle in Co Armagh.

The incident took place on the Church Road in Forkhill in the early hours of Saturday morning, with police now appealing for information.

Chief Inspector Adam Ruston said: “At around 1.40am, a silver Renault Megane collided with a police car on patrol in the area. The vehicle failed to stop and then fled across the border. As a result, two officers were injured and the patrol vehicle sustained damage.”

In relation to the assaults in south area, Mr Ruston added: “This a shocking amount of assaults on police and it is totally unacceptable.

“I am appealing to anyone who may have seen the blue Ford Focus in the area, or who may have any information or dash-cam footage that could assist with enquiries, to contact police urgently via 101 quoting reference number 139 of 27/12/25.”

A report can also be made using the online reporting form via www.psni.police.uk/makeareport.

Information can be provided to Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or online at www.crimestoppers-uk.org.

Senior Sinn Féin figures signed off on paramilitary billboards

CONOR COYLE, Irish News, December 29th, 2025

TWO senior Sinn Féin figures were part of an advisory group which signed off on anti-paramilitary billboards which later sparked a row with the party.

North Belfast MLA Gerry Kelly and prominent party member Sean ‘Spike’ Murray were part of the 11-member group which endorsed the campaign in October 2024.

Sinn Féin representatives have since been highly critical of the appearance of the billboards in west Belfast.

They have been erected as part of the Executive Programme for Tackling Paramilitarism and Organised Crime (EPPOC), run by the justice department under Naomi Long.

Sinn Féin insists that the issue is not with the message but the “locations of specific posters”.

The ‘Ending The Harm’ campaign includes slogans such as ‘paramilitaries control our communities with violence, intimidation and drug dealing’.

More than £1 million has been spent on advertising the campaign in the last five years, including more than £112,000 in the last year on billboards and outdoor posters alone.

Earlier this month West Belfast MP Paul Maskey said the posters were not reflective of the community in his constituency and urged the justice minister to “get them down”. There were also accusations of “demonising communities”.

A Freedom of Information response seen by The Irish News from the Department of Justice reveals that Mr Kelly and Mr Murray were on the advisory group which “considered and endorsed” the six posters put forward by the EPPOC programme.

The group is made up of two members of each of the north’s five largest political parties, in addition to justice minister Ms Long.

Location key

Nine of the advisory group’s 11 members are serving MLAs, with the exceptions being Mr Murray and former SDLP MLA Alex Attwood.

Mr Attwood served as an MLA for close to two decades and was a Stormont minister on two occasions.

Mr Murray has never held elected office but is known to have a key role within the higher ranks of Sinn Féin. He also acts as chair of the Springfield Road Residents Action Group.

The billboards have been erected in west Belfast and other areas of Northern Ireland

Sinn Féin insists location is the ‘key issue’ over posters

He is a former member of the Provisional IRA and was jailed for 12 years for explosives offences in 1982.

A Sinn Féin spokesperson said the last advisory group meeting in 2024 “did not discuss the locations of specific posters”.

“Sinn Féin supports the programme to tackle paramilitarism. However, the key issue is the actual message conveyed on the posters located in areas,” the spokesperson added.

“The posters of concern in west Belfast don’t reflect what’s happening on the ground in that area. For the posters to be effective the message they send out must be reflective of what is the lived experience in that particular community.

“While communities can and do suffer from the consequences of paramilitarism, criminality, drugs and exploitation, such activities are robustly challenged by the community and their public representatives in west Belfast. This is a matter of public record.

“So paramilitaries or criminal gangs do not coerce or control the west Belfast community as is the suggestion with the wording of some posters. As such, they do not reflect the lived reality of the area.”

The party did not respond directly to questions around what role is held by Sean Murray within Sinn Féin.

In relation to appointments to the EPPOC political advisory group, Sinn Féin said “it is a matter for individual parties to decide who they appoint to represent their views and positions.”

According to the FOI response provided by the Department of Justice, the 11 members of the group which signed off on the posters were: Naomi Long, Doug Beattie, Gerry Kelly, Alex Attwood, Sinéad McLaughlin, Joanne Bunting, Nuala McAllister, Sean Murray, Robbie Butler, Sian Mulholland and Trevor Clarke.

The Department of Justice said “executive members” of the group later provided a joint statement of support for the campaign.

Calling out criminality

The statement, which was initially released in October 2024, said the advisory group “continued to support the vital work aimed at supporting communities and individuals vulnerable to paramilitary harm”.

“Collectively, we believe that it is important to call this criminality out for what it is and facilitate a whole-of-society conversation about that activity, its consequences and causes,” it added.

The Department of Justice has repeatedly defended the Ending the Harm campaign, saying it was designed to “challenge control and exploitation exerted by paramilitaries” and that the billboards feature across Northern Ireland.

“In December last year independent tracking research was undertaken which showed that this campaign is actively changing perceptions about the harms perpetrated by paramilitary gangs in Northern Ireland,” a spokesperson said.

“Eighty-nine percent of respondents said that they fully supported what the campaign was saying and trying to do.”

STATE PAPERS

Haughey wanted Govt portraits of Pearse and Wolfe Tone ‘re-executed’

RALPH RIEGEL, Irish Independent, December 29th, 2025

Former taoiseach Charles Haughey ordered a "Sweepstake” rug to be removed from Government Buildings as he was personally unhappy with it, and raised reservations about the quality of portraits of Irish heroes Padraig Pearse and Wolfe Tone, wanting them to be "re-executed” by other artists.

The revelation came as confidential documents released as part of the State Papers shone a light on the inner operation of the government in the early 1990s and how budgetary cutbacks were impacting on state entertainment.

Finances were tight as Mr Haughey's government took over the European Council presidency in 1990.

However, confidential files revealed the hair-shirt budgetary measures introduced by Mr Haughey to bring order to the public finances were having an impact on all aspects of government.

A Department of Taoiseach briefing note in respect of Ireland's assumption of the European Council presidency in 1990 revealed an alarming budgetary shortfall.

It confirmed a state entertainment budget of IR£5,000 (€6,300) had been allocated for the presidency.

However, conservative estimates had indicated the actual budget would exceed that by almost 900pc.

"Our allocation of IR£5,000 shows a shortfall of IR£48,500 at present for the (EC) Presidency,” the note said.

"There is also the possibility of further expenditure i.e. possible inward visits (Iceland), gifts, printing costs, hospitality etc and we would consider that a contingency of IR£20,000 be provided for this.

"Therefore the additional allocation required for the 1990 funding would now be IR£68,500.”

It was pointed out that the cost involved in providing traditional state visit gifts for European commissioners would be IR£15,000 alone - three times the overall budget that had been allocated.

A further IR£1,500 was required to fund a lunch for correspondents.

Gifts provided by the taoiseach on the occasion of Ireland's hosting of the European Council summit amounted to IR£12,000. Ireland also had to host four inward visits from countries including Sweden, Norway, Finland and Austria to the estimated tune of IR£37,000.

The total allocation for all state entertainment in 1990 was IR£85,000.

Malahide Castle was being prepared to host key elements of Ireland's presidency.

Cost of European Presidency was IR£209,000in 1990

"This note does not cover the matter of additional expenditure required to prepare Malahide Castle for the Taoiseach's dinner on the occasion of the European Council in June,” the note said. "The estimate in this regard is IR£209,000.”

At the same time, Government Buildings were being refurbished by the Office of Public Works (OPW).

Mr Haughey took a keen interest in the refurbishment and ensured his personal opinions were made known.

On May 8, 1991, Colm Butler of the Department of the Taoiseach wrote to assistant principal architect Klaus Unger about some of the works and decorations.

"Further to our conversation the other morning about the refurbishment work at the Council Chamber, I am writing to confirm what the Taoiseach has said in relation to the adjustments required,” Mr Butler wrote.

"Of the portraits hanging on the wall of the chamber itself, the Taoiseach has reservations about those of Pearse and Tone in terms of the quality of the work.

"Would it be possible to have these 're-executed' (the portraits, of course) by other artists.

"As regards the Sweepstake rug, the Taoiseach is not happy with the end product. Could you have the rug removed?”

Haughey's anger after British patrol boards yacht on Carlingford Lough

GRAINNE NI AODHA, Belfast Telegraph, December 29th, 2025

ROYAL MARINE 'PUT HIS GUN TO NECK OF IRISH SAILOR'

Taoiseach Charlie Haughey was unhappy after a British marine allegedly put a gun to the neck of a Dubliner while he was sailing on Carlingford Lough in 1991.

There were several instances where leisure boats on the disputed territory of Carlingford Lough had been approached by British patrols in the 1990s.

This included two British naval officers with submachine guns boarding the yacht of Mr Haughey in July 1990, who was not on board at the time.

The incidents on the inlet, located between Co Louth and Co Down, prompted Irish officials to seek the British Government policy underpinning the boardings.

One particular incident, where a marine allegedly put a gun to a Dublin sailor's neck and took the safety off, saw Mr Haughey write to the sailor to say the Irish Government would be making representations on his behalf.

“I was very disturbed to learn of the incident involving your boat in Carlingford Lough and I immediately conveyed my concern to the British authorities through the Anglo-Irish Secretariat who based their approach on your detailed report of the incident,” Mr Haughey wrote on June 17.

As part of the annual release of National Archive files in Dublin, several pieces of correspondence detail the incident with the sailor, Sir Henry Barnwell from Glenageary, and his yacht the Lady Jane, on Saturday, June 1, 1991.

This includes a Garda file on the incident in which it recounts the statement from Sir Henry, his wife Joy, who it said were “visibly shaken”, and a Swiss friend who was on board the yacht with them.

The Garda file stated that as Mr Barnwell was passing by the Greenore side of the shore, he was approached by two dinghies and “two soldiers requested permission to board”.

He refused and demanded identification from them, which was refused and they boarded the yacht.

“He continued to refuse them permission and one of them said they were arresting him and taking him to Northern Ireland,” the statement said.

“In attempting to turn Mr Barnwell's yacht around, one of the soldiers put a gun to Barnwell's neck and grabbed the 'tiller' and strained the tiller socket.”

‘They have you in the Republic’

The statement said Mr Barnwell heard someone say over the soldiers' radios “they have you in the Republic”, after which they left the Lady Jane.

The statement noted that two senior gardai inspected the damage done to the yacht and said the tiller socket was “definitely strained”, the plug for the automatic pilot was “ripped from its socket” and “boot marks were visible on deck”.

Mr Barnwell later said that when he resisted the soldiers attempting to wrestle the tiller from him, one of them “put a gun to his neck and clocked off the safety catch”, according to an official from the Department of Foreign Affairs.

The official urged that the issue be raised “in strong terms” with British authorities and requested a full report on the incident, particularly as the yacht was “so close to the Greenore side of the shore” and was proceeding to an Irish port.

“The aggressive manner in which the boarding was carried out also gives rise to serious concern,” a civil servant said.

“The holding of a gun to Mr Barnwell's neck was a reckless action...”

Mr Barnwell had written to Mr Haughey on June 5 about the incident, stating that he, his wife and friend “continued to shake with fear and trepidation for the remainder of the day”.

“I have had several conversations with the British, whom I fear will concoct some denial to pervert the course of justice, which seems to have become as much a tradition of British culture as their reputation for piracy.”

He added: “...the vibes I have picked up indicate that they are claiming the right to patrol the entire lough and I fear there will be a fatality.”

Major wrote to reprimand Taoiseach Bruton after his 'storm-causing' speech in London

PRESS ASSOCIATION, Belfast Telegraph, December 29th, 2025

John Major wrote to John Bruton to reprimand him for a speech in London that would cause “a storm” in 1995.

The then taoiseach made an address at a dinner on Armistice Day.

He said “at this critical juncture” there was a need for “reasonable compromise” towards all-party talks and called for the “dignity” of the nationalist community to be respected.

“Unionists need to understand that failure by them to accept that police powers were misused during Stormont rule, reduces the effectiveness of the RUC in nationalist areas right up to the present time,” he told the Meath Association of London dinner at the Copthorne Tara Hotel.

Mr Major (right) was at Auckland airport about to board a plane for London as he wrote to Mr Bruton the next day.

“I have to say that I am very surprised at it (the speech), and I regret that you have spoken in this way,” the Prime Minister said.

He said that unionists were “bound” to take from it that the Irish Government is “strongly aligned against them”.

“(NI Secretary) Paddy Mayhew has had to set the record straight. You left him with no option.

“However, we shall do whatever we can to calm down the storm your speech will inevitably raise.”

He said he had been busy dealing with various international matters and said it was not easy “to have my finger on the pulse of Northern Ireland”.

He also said that he knew Mr Bruton was “under great pressure at home”.

Referencing the US president's planned visit to the island of Ireland at the end of December, he said: “We must not allow (Gerry) Adams' conscious efforts to step up pressure ahead of Bill Clinton's visit to panic us or throw us off course.”

He asked for the two sides to speak over the phone over the next few days.

Two days later, in response to a question in the Dail from Bertie Ahern, Mr Bruton said that Mr Major had, at the weekend, “expressed a view that a joint approach on the twin-track strategy is the best way to proceed.”

The relationship between the two leaders is in stark contrast to the warmth between Mr Major and Mr Bruton's predecessor, Albert Reynolds.

This article is based on documents contained in the file labelled 2025/115/827 in the National Archives of Ireland.

Fears PSNI's Sinn Fein offices raid would impact the peace process

RALPH RIEGEL, Belfast Telegraph, December 29th, 2025

INDICATIONS OF AN 'IRA SPY RING IN STORMONT' HAD TRIGGERED SWOOP

Irish officials feared the 2002 PSNI raid on Sinn Féin offices in Stormont as part of a spying scandal would have “grave implications” for the peace process.

One stark note by an Irish civil servant, in a briefing for then Taoiseach Bertie Ahern, warned that there were fears “the [Northern Ireland peace] agreement is at stake”.

The revelation came in secret documents released as part of the Irish State Papers.

The October 4 raid by PSNI officers at Sinn Fein's offices in the Northern Assembly came to be known as Stormontgate.

PSNI officials said the raid was ordered amid indications of an IRA spy ring in Stormont. One of those arrested by the PSNI was Denis Donaldson, the then head of Sinn Féin's administration office at Stormont.

Mr Donaldson was subsequently revealed as an informer before he was murdered in April 2006 living at an isolated cottage in Glenties, Co Donegal.

His murder was later claimed by the dissident republican group, the Real IRA.

In the wake of Stormontgate, Mr Donaldson admitted working for the police and MI5 for a period of 20 years.

Dublin concern at raid

On October 4, the day of the raid, Tom Lynch of the British-Irish intergovernmental secretariat wrote warning that the Irish side “would be concerned that the basis for the raid would prove to be well-founded”.

Prime minister Tony Blair's chief of staff Jonathan Powell personally rang Irish officials over the issue.

He warned that “we had rather a large problem” and that the evidence they had leading to the raid “was damning” and the situation was “pretty grim”.

The PSNI raid sparked a flurry of contacts between Dublin, Belfast and London as officials tried to ascertain the likely damage to the peace process.

Northern Ireland Office official Jonathan Phillips contacted the Department of Foreign Affairs in Dublin on October 7 and described the events as “serious and significant”.

Irish official Brendan Scannell noted that he had “expressed dissatisfaction at the flow of information” about the arrests to Mr Phillips.

In response, Mr Phillips referred to the coincidence of key officials missing on the Friday of the raid and the fact that “it was the weekend”.

He warned that “we should not under estimate” the fundamental crisis in unionism following “Friday's events”.

Mr Scannell replied: “I said while I did not want to equate the feelings of both communities”, there was also “outrage amongst nationalists in the way the raid at Stormont was carried out”.

On October 7, a briefing note for Mr Ahern, before he met Sinn Féin officials, had suggested questions including: “Did you know what was going on?” and “Did Donaldson have confidential material at home?” and were they “as surprised as us” at the raid?

In December 2005, all charges from Stormontgate were dropped with the PSNI confirming its investigation was over.

UK officials thought Storey planned Northern Bank heist

JOHN BRESLIN, Irish News, December 29th, 2025

THE late former Sinn Féin chairman Bobby Storey was believed by British officials to be behind the £26m Northern Bank heist in 2004, Irish State Papers have revealed.

The UK government was “given to believe” the robbery of £26m in cash from the Donegall Square bank in Belfast had been organised by Mr Storey.

It was too complex to have been solely “a brigade job”, an official wrote.

Sinn Féin was contacted for comment but did not respond.

Mr Storey, whose funeral during the Covid lockdown in 2020 caused huge controversy, was a veteran IRA member who spent close to 20 years in prison.

According to the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs official: “The British side said they were given to believe that it had been organised by Bobby Storey, and agreed there must have been a substantial co-ordination between south Armagh, west Belfast and Downpatrick.”

Quoting a senior British official, the file continued: “’Not a brigade job, it had approval from GHQ’… The raid itself has postponed some tough decisions within the Provisional IRA on policing.”

Deep anxiety

Mr Storey was once the northern chairman of Sinn Féin. In 2005, he was named under parliamentary privilege in Stormont by two UUP MLAs as being the Provisional IRA’s head of intelligence.

Files also reveal British officials feared the “top man” behind the Northern Bank robbery in 2004 would be “clever enough to avoid getting arrested”.

They also agreed that the heist would not derail peace process efforts, but added that “the republican movement had knocked up the price”.

The exchange about the impact of the high-profile robbery was made during a meeting of British and Irish officials at Downing Street on January 5 in 2005.

The memo emerged as part of the annual release of National Archives documents in Dublin.

Then-Downing Street chief of staff Jonathan Powell said discussions about a bilateral deal were ruled out in the aftermath of the robbery, and a meeting with Gerry Adams in Dublin the next day would be called off.

An Irish civil servant said the Republic side “shared the deep anxiety about the bank robbery” and said they would welcome any information the British side had gathered.

Mr Powell said that the British authorities were “pretty certain that it was the IRA” and that it was undertaken by people who were “very close to the Sinn Féin leadership”.