Soldier so scared on Bloody Sunday his 'knees were trembling', court hears

REBECCA BLACK, Belfast Telegraph and Irish News, October 9th, 2025

MILITARY WITNESS RECALLS 'KNEES TREMBLING' ON DAY OF SHOOTING

One of the soldiers present in Londonderry on Bloody Sunday said he was so terrified at being “under fire” that his “knees were trembling”, the trial of one of his colleagues for two murders has heard.

The statement by a former private in the Parachute Regiment, referred to as Soldier H, said it was the most scared he had been in his career to that point.

The evidence came during the non-jury trial of Soldier F, who denies the murder of two men in Glenfada Park North.

Soldier H's earlier statements to the Royal Military Police on the night of the shootings describe seeing Soldier F open fire, but in later statements, including to the Saville Inquiry in the 2000s, he said he did not remember.

The statements by Soldier H along with Soldier G have been described as key evidence in the trial of Soldier F, as they place him in Glenfada Park North and give evidence that he had opened fire.

Neither of the two are available to be questioned about the statements, as Soldier G has since died and Soldier H has indicated that if summoned, he will exercise his legal privilege against self-incrimination.

The defence has argued the hearsay evidence is “contradictory, unreliable and inadmissible”.

However, Judge Patrick Lynch earlier in the trial rejected an application to have the statements omitted as evidence.

Soldier F, who cannot be named for legal reasons, is accused of the murders of James Wray and William McKinney.

They were among 13 people shot dead by the Parachute Regiment at a civil rights demonstration in the Bogside area of Londonderry on January 30, 1972.

The Army veteran is also accused of attempting to murder Michael Quinn, Patrick O'Donnell, Joseph Friel, Joe Mahon and an unknown person.

He has pleaded not guilty to the seven counts.

Soldier F sits in the courtroom behind a curtain during each day of the trial, which began last month.

‘Tried hard to forget Bloody Sunday’

Soldier H's statement to the Saville Inquiry in the 2000s was read to court yesterday by a prosecution lawyer.

He said he had “tried hard to forget Bloody Sunday” but retained “vivid memories of specific events which happened on the day”.

He described arriving in Derry on the day of the shooting and standing smoking outside a church when he said a round was fired at them.

He also described being terrified as they arrived at Glenfada Park North.

“As I entered the courtyard, I was terrified, I remember my knees were trembling — the knocking of my knees is one of the clearest memories I have of the day, coming under fire was absolutely terrifying, it was more frightening than my first parachute jump,” he said.

Soldier H contended a nail bomb was thrown at him and then saw a youth holding a “smoking object”, which he was “sure was a bomb around the size of a Coca-Cola tin”, and threw it at him, when he fired two shots at the youth.

“This was the first time I had ever fired at a live target, the first time I had shot anybody.

“Because I had been concentrating on this target, it is of this incident I have a memory. I have no recollection of what other youths in the courtyard were doing, and I have no memory of what F and G were doing and what shots they may have been firing,” he said.

Soldier H then said he saw a muzzle of a rifle poking out of a window with frosted glass and saw a shape moving behind the window, and fired 19 shots at it, and had to change his magazine, which contained 20 rounds.

Concentrating on sniper

“I was concentrating all this time on engaging the sniper, so I did not see what F, G and E were doing,” he added.

“I cannot remember seeing F and G engage any gunmen or bombers in the area ... I did not see F or G's movements.

“By this time, I was no longer so frightened, my knees were no longer trembling, but I was very tense.”

He also said he could not remember giving the previous statements, but said he accepted they bore his signature.

Soldier H was cross-examined over this claim at the Saville Inquiry, and it was put to him that there were no reports of a window that had been shot at 19 times in the area.

Statements made by Soldier E were also read, despite objections along the same lines as for the statements by Soldiers G and H being read were made by the defence.

However, Judge Lynch admitted the statement by Soldier E into evidence.

Soldier E also contends the soldiers had come under fire with nail bombs, petrol bombs and missiles in his statements.

The trial continues.

‘No murder was justified'... victims slam Gildnernew and Bryson over comments

GARRETT HARGAN, Belfast Telegraph, October 9th, 2025

EX-SINN FEIN MP AND LOYALIST ACTIVIST SPARK FURY AFTER 'CORROSIVE' REMARKS ABOUT TROUBLES' KILLINGS

Relatives of Troubles' victims have rejected claims that some murders were justified.

They hit back at controversial comments made by former Sinn Fein MP Michelle Gildernew and loyalist activist Jamie Bryson.

One bereaved relative challenged the pair to state exactly who they believe “deserved to be murdered and who didn't”.

They were speaking in a new BBC podcast, 'Borderland — UK or a United Ireland'.

During the show, former DUP MP Ian Paisley also said he was “open” to conversations about a united Ireland, but has not been convinced by any argument put forward to date.

The DUP was quick to distance itself, making clear that Mr Paisley was appearing in a personal capacity. It said the party “is not interested in engaging or being persuaded on the so-called merits of a United Ireland or New Ireland”.

During what was a fractious debate, Ms Gildernew and Mr Bryson were directly asked, “do you think murder was justified?”

Ms Gildernew, a former Fermanagh-South Tyrone MP, said the Army had helped to spark violence.

‘I think British Army brought a war to our streets’

“I wish it had been avoided, but I think the British Army brought a war to our streets and the repercussions of that were as a result of what happened,” she said.

Mr Bryson, who previously claimed the UVF was a counter-terrorist organisation and has backed Army veterans including Solider F who stands accused of murder on Bloody Sunday — which he has pleaded not guilty to — then interrupted to say Ms Gildernew had not answered the question.

He pressed the former MP, saying he'd be honest too.

In response, she said: “Yes, I do (think murder was justified).”

Mr Bryson responded: “That's fine, at least we can be honest with each other. I believe loyalists had a right to do the same the other way. That's fair enough, at least we're honest.”

Stephen Gault, whose father was killed by an IRA bomb in Enniskillen on Remembrance Day in 1987 said: “All I will say is that no murder was justified.

“Too many people in this country have lost their lives for nothing.

“Does Gildernew say that those murdered in the Enniskillen Poppy Day bombing were justified? Does she say that the innocent people murdered on the Shankill Road fish shop bomb were justified?”

Which victims deaths were justified?

Raymond McCord's son, Raymond junior, was murdered by the UVF. He said Ms Gildernew and Mr Bryson should “state publicly which murders they believe were justified and which weren't”.

He added: “She was an elected representative. He is a self-appointed spokesperson for people from unionist or loyalist communities. How can either talk about truth and justice when they justify murder?”

In approving of some murders, Mr McCord believes they have also “created a hierarchy of victims”, where they've indicated “some people deserved to be murdered, and others didn't”.

Following up on the comments by Ms Gildernew and Mr Bryson, host Chris Buckler said it was “awful” there was agreement between the pair that “murders were justified in this place”.

Mr Bryson then responded saying he thinks “the murder of IRA people was justified, yes, not civilians.”

Alliance deputy leader Eóin Tennyson said the comments “are utterly corrosive”.

“Peddling a narrative that past violence here in Northern Ireland was somehow 'different' or 'more acceptable' only creates the conditions in which more young people today can be groomed by those who would seek to justify current violence,” he said.

“These comments, and those expressed by Jamie Bryson on the same podcast, are two sides of the same toxic coin, and neither are conducive to building the shared, respectful, and inclusive future we should all be striving for.”

On the issue of a border poll, Mr Bryson stated: “I personally would never accept a united Ireland because I think some things are more fundamental than that.

“And the only difference is, look, I'm honest enough about that, you know.”

Ms Gildernew then put it to Mr Bryson that he also said he was a democrat, and asked if he would accept the outcome of the border poll.

Gildernew and Bryson deny ‘close links’ with paramilitaries

He responded: “No, I've said before that fundamentally there's some things which are just more important than that.”

The former Sinn Fein MP then asked if Mr Bryson would “go back to your buddies in the UVF and say, 'right lads, let's get…”

Mr Bryson hit back: “What do you mean about my buddies in the UVF, I haven't started talking to you about your buddies in the IRA.”

Ms Gildernew said she wasn't in the IRA and Mr Bryson said that he wasn't in the UVF.

They both accused the other of having “close links”, with Mr Bryson saying that when Ms Gildernew was his age, she was going to Downing Street for negotiations with Gerry Adams and Martin McGuinness.

“I was going with the leadership of Sinn Fein,” she stated.

Mr Buckler then said listeners will be “very concerned” by what Mr Bryson said, because they will take it as “a threat”, that suggestion that if there was to be a border poll “that some groups might take up arms again”.

He added, that will “scare them” and they'll also think “it's really irresponsible language”.

In response, Mr Bryson said: “Well, it's not irresponsible to tell the truth.”

Borderland should be about NI's future, not our bloody past

ALLISON MORRIS, Belfast Telegraph, October 9th, 2025

COMMENT

It was a much-anticipated podcast, featuring two political rivals and a cast of characters from both sides of the constitutional debate.

Republican Michelle Gildernew and unionist Ian Paisley were genius signings for the BBC.

Both opinionated, both controversial and both now free of the constraints of their party press offices, free to express their views in a way rarely heard from recognisable political figures.

There was an uneasy tension between the pair, who have shared an Executive table in the past and were both MPs until the recent general election.

However, while the subject matter was the future of this island, the sad reality is that the debate was almost always dragged back to our past.

But was that inevitable?

Born in Caledon, Co Tyrone, Gildernew's grandparents were involved in a pivotal incident that gave rise to the civil rights movement in Northern Ireland.

The family, including three children, had been forcibly evicted from a house in a new development, while the local council allocated a house to a 19-year-old unmarried Protestant woman who was the secretary of a local unionist politician.

It sparked protests organised by Austin Currie and other campaigners who would go on to lead the Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association.

Ian Paisley is a member of unionism's first family. His father's 'Never, never, never' speech is played at the start of the Borderland podcast, setting the scene for the debate.

Irish Govt refused to engage

BBC journalist Chris Buckler, who presents and produces the eight-part podcast, revealed that despite many attempts by his team, the Irish Government refused to take part in Borderland discussions.

Being shunned by both the Taoiseach and Tánaiste causes problems going forward, but didn't in any way diminish the entertainment value offered by what is an eclectic group of people, not often seen — or in this case heard — in the same room together. In a particularly testy debate, involving former SDLP leader Colum Eastwood, Paisley asked the Foyle MP to “speak to his people through him” in terms of how he would convince unionists to vote for Irish unity.

“Well I'm not going to convince you, Ian,” Eastwood replies.

He added: “If the DUP keep behaving the way they are behaving, it'll make it even easier.”

Paisley quipped back: “You haven't presented one single argument that would say to me, that's stumped me, I should really be voting for a united Ireland.”

The episode also includes the academic and Ireland's Future member Colin Harvey, who repeated his hopes of a border poll by 2030.

But it was in episode two that Borderland moved back into a place where the past overtakes any real honest discussion about the future.

'The Importance of Being British' included contributions from loyalist Jamie Bryson and the Orange Order's Mervyn Gibson.

Justifying violence - at arms length

When asked was violence justified, Ms Gildernew said the Army had helped to spark violence.

“I wish it had been avoided, but I think the British Army brought a war to our streets and the repercussions of that were as a result of what happened,” she added — a fairly standard republican reaction to what is a pretty predictable question.

Bryson was heard interrupting to say she was avoiding answering the question.

Pressing the former MP, the loyalists said he'd be honest too.

In response, she said: “Yes, I do.”

Bryson responded: “That's fine, at least we can be honest with each other. I believe loyalists had a right to do the same the other way. That's fair enough, at least we're honest.”

It could be argued that both are just saying the quiet part out loud, albeit in terms rarely heard articulated in such brutal ways in a public forum.

Where it becomes problematic is that this is not a series about the past, it is not a debate over who started the Troubles, it is about the future.

If either side is to convince young unionists or young nationalists not to leave for Australia or America, but stay and vote for either unity or the Union, that is where the debate needs to go.

Instead, it is a demonstration as to how every debate seems to end up in reverse at speed, instead of leaving the past in the rearview mirror.

Whether the next six episodes can deliver the same headlines as the first two remains to be seen.

One thing is for sure, Paisley and Gildernew, if they wanted, have a future in co-presenting.

They banter off each other in a way that makes the listener think that at the end of each recording, they clash gloves in an act of understanding.

But they are also edgy enough to grab controversy and headlines, making the Borderland podcast, that could otherwise be fairly pedestrian, a must listen.

He is not appearing on behalf of the party’ - DUP distances itself from Ian Paisley Jr comments 

By Mark Robinson, PA, Irish News, October 9th, 2025

The DUP has said that comments made by Ian Paisely Jr on a new podcast in which he said he would be “open” to having conversations about a united Ireland were made in a “personal capacity” and not “on behalf of the party”.

The former North Antrim MP features in a new eight-part BBC podcast discussing what a future border poll could mean alongside former Sinn Féin MP Michelle Gildernew.

During the first two episode Mr Paisley said that he was “open” to conversations about a united Ireland but that he had not yet heard any convincing arguments for constitutional change.

“I’m a democrat so I believe in the right to self-determination, and I don’t believe in the armed struggle if I don’t get my own way,” he said.

“My mind is open, I’m a true believer in Britain and this place being British.

“But if you have got persuasive arguments please present them because to date I have not heard them.”

Following comments made on the podcast, a DUP spokesperson said they wished to “make clear” that Mr Paisley was appearing in a personal capacity and not on behalf of the party.

‘Ian is no longer in public office’

“As Ian is no longer in public office, he is entitled to give his own views but he is not appearing on behalf of the party,” they said.

“The Democratic Unionist Party is not interested in engaging or being persuaded on the so-called merits of a United Ireland or New Ireland or any other label those who want to pursue that aspiration might put on their latest project.

“We believe in the Union and we are not open to taking part in discussions about a new Ireland and we will not be enticed by honeyed words designed to convey an impression that Unionists would be welcomed and openly accommodated in a United Ireland.”

The spokesperson added that the inevitability of a united Ireland is “total rubbish” and said they would continue to “promote the benefits of the United Kingdom”.

During a guest appearance on the podcast, former Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said that he differed with successor Micheál Martin in that he doesn’t believe “total reconciliation” should be a requirement before pushing for a border poll.

“There will always be people who are not reconciled for one reason or another but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t pursue it,” he said.

“I don’t think we should put up an artificial barrier towards a border poll.”

However, he added that he didn’t believe it was the right time to set a date for a reunification referendum.

The Irony Lady... Thatcher united both sides here — in hatred 

JOHN LAVERTY, Belfast Telegraph, October 9th, 2025

For obvious reasons, we haven't heard much from Margaret Thatcher recently, but that's about to change. She was lauded at this week's Tory conference courtesy of life-size cardboard cut-outs (“Get Your Picture Taken With Maggie!”), decorative gift mugs and even an exhibition of her most famous outfits.

And next week there will be a series of events to mark what would have been the 100th birthday of the UK's first female prime minister, who died in 2013 aged 87.

No commemorations, however, will be held here — but why not? After all, the so-called 'Iron Lady' united the good folk of Northern Ireland — albeit in mutual loathing of her.

Nostalgic Tories apart, the passage of time hasn't been kind to Thatcher, but long before she was booted out of office by her own party in 1990, her name was already mud here.

This is the woman, after all, who refused to show any flexibility over the granting of political status for republican prisoners, leading to 10 of them ultimately starving themselves to death in the Maze.

It led to an incandescent, revenge-fuelled IRA plotting to kill her at the 1984 Tory conference. Four delegates died and many others were seriously injured in that Brighton explosion, but Thatcher walked away unscathed.

By then, her standing within unionism was at an all-time high. With this uncompromising leader of 'the Conservative and Unionist Party' at Number 10, Northern Ireland really did appear to be “as British as Finchley”.

To coin another one of her famous phrases, the lady was seemingly “not for turning” in the face of republican violence yet, just over a year after the Brighton atrocity, she signed the Anglo-Irish Agreement.

At least republicans knew from the start that Thatcher hated them.

Unionists felt betrayed

Unionists, however, felt wilfully betrayed, a feeling expressed by 100,000 of them attending the legendary “Never, Never, Never”/Ulster Says No rally in Belfast.

The Iron Lady had morphed into The Irony Lady; she'd eventually feel ashamed of handing the Republic a consultative role here, yet it paved the way for the Good Friday Agreement — and the release of 'political prisoners' like Patrick Magee, who had tried to murder her in Brighton.

Thatcher had assumed the Anglo-Irish Agreement would, among other things, stymie Sinn Fein — the seeds of whose political prominence can easily be traced back to Thatcher's behaviour during the hunger strike.

Instead, she unwittingly created a direction of travel which, today, is undermining the very Union she championed.

Not only that, but her hawkish Euroscepticism created a strain of right-wing Conservatism that would lead to Brexit — and further isolation of Northern Ireland, but not Finchley.

The guffawing that followed her memorable quips, such as the one about Northern Ireland's first Secretary of State William Whitelaw — “every prime minister needs a Willie” — soon evaporated, with no one on this side of the Irish Sea laughing any more.

Thatcher basked in the slanted biography of a grocer's daughter who rose to the top despite the snobbery and sexism of Westminster.

The numerous dramas about her life, however, tend to gloss over Margaret Hilda Roberts' career gaining significant traction after her marriage to besotted multi-millionaire and Tory grandee Denis Thatcher.

He wasn't the only man who was putty in her hands; French president François Mitterrand described her as having “eyes like Caligula and the mouth of Marilyn Monroe”, while former BBC political correspondent John Sergeant chipped in: “She'd put her hand on my arm and I'd tend to weaken...”

US president Ronald Reagan was among the many other powerful men reduced to quivering wrecks in her presence.

In an interview with Thatcher, Terry Wogan said of male media interrogators: “They don't make any concession to the fact you're a woman”, to which Thatcher replied: “Why should they? I don't make any concession to the fact that they're men.”

Yes, the man-children clearly doted on the matron, and Maggie was undoubtedly both charismatic and courageous — but most of what she introduced back then is doing us immeasurable harm now.

Disastrous policies

The UK is still paying dearly for her disastrous policies, most notably the unforgiveable squandering of North Sea oil proceeds.

Norway, which kept theirs, is now one of the richest countries on the planet, with a sovereign wealth fund worth hundreds of billions.

Thatcher jettisoned economic equality and encouraged eyewatering top-line earnings and yuppie era excess, thus promoting a “them and us” culture which has bedevilled Britain ever since.

The out-of-control credit boom — which led to that catastrophic global economic crash in 2008 — was the inevitable result of Thatcherism/Reaganomics-inspired deregulation.

Her sale of council houses at knockdown prices was extremely popular — especially with landlords who snaffled up so many of them — and only the bravest Tory would defend the unique, horrendously cheap privatisation of the water industry, which she made irresistible to investors by writing off debt and subsidising investment.

Result: £74bn syphoned off for shareholders, a debt mountain of £69bn and the sort of environmental carnage that gives Feargal Sharkey nightmares.

Thatcher is also the prime minister who granted knighthoods to serial paedophiles Cyril Smith MP and Jimmy Savile — despite being strongly advised against such a move on both occasions.

After Thatcher was nominated for the Finchley seat in 1959, an Evening Standard headline read: “Tories Choose Beauty”.

Who knew Beauty would become such a beast?

‘English nationalism poses as great a threat to the union as Irish nationalism’

JOHN MANLEY, POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT, Irish News, October 9th, 2025

ENGLISH nationalism now poses an equal, if not greater, threat to the union with Britain than its Irish counterpart, according to Mike Nesbitt.

The Ulster Unionist leader said he is concerned that a Reform UK administration in Britain would reassess the Treasury’s multi-billion subvention to Northern Ireland.

“Unionism has always looked over its shoulder at Irish nationalists as the threat, arguably the threat now is English nationalism,” he told The Irish News.

The Strangford MLA is expected to use his speech at Saturday’s UUP conference to criticise Nigel Farage and politicians in the north who align themselves with the Reform UK leader, whose party currently has a double-digit lead over Labour in the polls.

“I’ve seen some individuals who have been complimentary about people like Nigel Farage, in a way that I find extraordinary for a unionist,” Mr Nesbitt said.

In August, DUP MP Sammy Wilson backed Mr Farage’s suggestion that Reform UK would look to renegotiate the Good Friday Agreement as part of its plan to stem unauthorised immigration.

Flag of St George not a Union flag

Mr Nesbitt recalled that on a visit to Westminster, former Tory deputy chairman Lee Anderson, who defected to Reform last year, was “running around with his team with little flag of St George lapel badges—not the Union flag”.

“And that’s before the more recent sort of explosion of the use of the flag in public places,” he said.

The UUP leader said Mr Anderson’s fellow Tory-to-Reform defector Douglas Carswell was also “having an attack on the Scottish block grant in the terms I have feared for a long time I would hear about here”.

“What if an English nationalist MP starts saying ‘that’s a new acute hospital in my constituency; that’s bobbies on my beat; that’s classroom assistants for the children of the people who elected me’—then there’s a problem,” he said.

“I’m going to have no allegiance to Reform.”

Mr Nesbitt said “immigration is good” but that there is problem with what he termed “illegal immigration”.

“I have said many times, because it is true: without our international colleagues, the health and social care system in Northern Ireland would collapse—I repeat, it would collapse,” he said.

“You also look at the fishing fleet who are totally dependent on international colleagues, as are our big agrifood producers who cannot attract local people to work.”

But he said illegal immigration was a “big problem—and it’s a law and order problem”.

“If you have made your way to France, why do you need to come any further?” he said.

“France is not a tyrannical, despotic state, so yes, there is a problem with illegal immigration. I want us to be compassionate. I want us to be sensible and recognise the benefits of immigration and of multiculturalism, but I think we’ve kind of lost the run of it.”

TUV's undeliverable demands could bury Stormont warns Nesbitt

UUP LEADER ALARMED BY RISE OF ENGLISH NATIONALISM AND ITS CONSEQUENCES FOR THE FUTURE OF THE UNION SUZANNE BREEN

Mike Nesbitt has said that the TUV's political demands are “not deliverable”, and that if Stormont collapses again, it is never returning.

Speaking ahead of his party's annual conference in Belfast at the weekend, the Ulster Unionist leader expressed concern about the shift to the right “in unionism and globally”.

In terms of a threat to the Union, he said English nationalism “scared” him as its advocates could eventually decide that Northern Ireland's £19bn block grant would be better spent in their home constituencies.

In a wide-ranging interview with the Belfast Telegraph, Mr Nesbitt said that “in principle”, a contest to replace him when he steps down as leader might be a healthy practice for his party as its last four leaders had been elected unopposed.

He said he was prepared to consider co-operating with other unionist parties in the next Assembly election in some constituencies where “solid evidence” was presented that seats had been lost in 2022 because too many unionist candidates had run.

Asked about the rise of the TUV, Mr Nesbitt said there had always been “a reactionary element in unionism”, and his party conference's theme was “hope through prosperity”.

He said: “We need a unionism that tries to make Northern Ireland better now. Back in the 1980s, unionists said we could do nothing until we got rid of the Anglo-Irish Agreement.

“After 1998, the DUP said nothing could be achieved until we got rid of the Good Friday Agreement, and now we're being told this and that can't be done until we get rid of the protocol and the Windsor Framework.

“If we want an excuse, there is always one in reach. What the TUV is asking for is not deliverable. If Stormont collapses, then it is gone and never coming back.

“It would take a negotiation on the scale of the Good Friday Agreement in 1998, and in the day of social media and shock jock traditional media, there is no prospect of that.”

The UUP leader said that, if the Stormont institutions collapsed, “we'd be handing power back to London and politicians we can't trust”.

He said there was the risk of a “significant role for Dublin”. He pointed to the legacy deal announced last month by the two governments, with Secretary of State Hilary Benn standing beside Tanaiste Simon Harris.

The UUP leader said he wished to bring back the “hope” that had existed in Northern Ireland following the Good Friday Agreement.

Back then, it had been believed “all the money being spent on security would go into making life better”, but “too many people haven't got a whiff of that”.

Mr Nesbitt said: “Prosperity would protect our place in the UK. If people feel financially secure, if their children and grandchildren are well educated, if they have access to first- class public services, especially regarding health, if their standard and quality of life is good, then who on earth is going to vote for the uncertainty of constitutional change?”

Asked how it was possible for Northern Ireland to be prosperous when finances in London were ultra-tight, Mr Nesbitt said: “Northern Ireland needs to generate more money. The days of Northern Ireland going to the Exchequer and presenting an exceptional case because of the Troubles are long gone.”

The UUP leader said that unionism had “for centuries looked at Irish nationalism as the biggest threat to our place in the Union”. He believed that Scottish nationalism “has had its day, I wouldn't worry about it”.

He added: “But English nationalism, oh boy, that really scares me. If they think our £19bn block grant could be invested in their constituencies, that could develop momentum.”

The UUP joined the DUP and TUV in opposing Belfast City Council's new Irish language strategy in what many observers saw as a hardening of the party's position.

Mr Nesbitt revealed he had told Sinn Fein that republicans could make a gesture to help him defuse tensions over the Irish language.

“What would help change the conversation would be if people admitted that the Irish language had been used as a cultural weapon when statements were made in the past that every word in Irish was equal to a bullet,” he said.

“If there was an acknowledgement that this had been a mistake, then it would create an environment that would help me.

“I'm not afraid of the Irish language or culture. I'm the only MLA who has worn a sports top representing the whole of the island of Ireland. I was a 400m hurdler for my school team in the 70s, and I won a medal for it. You don't get many unionists who can say that.”

The UUP leader doesn't believe that the Stormont institutions will collapse before the next Assembly election. “There are some individuals who want to bring them down, but those on both sides who could push the nuclear button recognise that it would be a huge strategic mistake,” he stated.

Mr Nesbitt said that while there were a few MLAs who would like the Executive to crash, they weren't enough to do damage. “They're an irritant, but like the oyster shell gets pearls, we need an irritant. It keeps us on our toes,” he added.

Mr Nesbitt denied that the atmosphere around the Executive table was toxic. “I'm pleasantly surprised at the collegiality,” he said.

“There are tensions, but such tensions exist in single parties: look at the Labour Government or the Conservative Opposition at Westminster.

“And we have four parties here not just with different constitutional preferences but with different views on social policies. Of course we could function better, but I think it's remarkable that we're functioning at all.”

In 2016, Mr Nesbitt famously declared “Vote me, get Colum” as he argued the UUP and SDLP could deliver a new middle ground in Northern Ireland.

Asked for his view of the SDLP now, he said: “I admire that they pretend they set out to be in Opposition when the reality is they didn't get the votes to be in government. In Opposition, they are overreaching to be relevant and consequential.”

There has been widespread speculation about a unionist pact for the 2027 Assembly election. Mr Nesbitt said he was prepared to consider co-operation in constituencies where there was “solid evidence that seats have been lost because too many unionists have stood”.

However, the basis for any negotiation “has to be that it's good for the UUP as well as other parties, and it has to be good for unionism”.

In July, Mr Nesbitt shocked many in the UUP - including senior figures - when he told the Give My Head Peace podcast he would be making a decision on his future plans as leader in January 2026.

It is highly unusual for a leader, especially once who had taken up the reins only 11 months earlier, to open up the conversation about ending their political career.

Mr Nesbitt denied it was an odd move for him to make. He said he had been “very happy as a backbench MLA cruising to retirement in 2027” when circumstances led to him becoming first Health Minister and then UUP leader.

He said January was the “natural” time for him to decide if he would remain at the helm of his party.

“Our AGM when the leader is elected or re-elected is in March. The timing would also give any new leader 14 months in the job ahead of the May 2027 Assembly elections,” he explained.

The UUP leader said he would be almost 70 when that election was held. Some in the UUP now suspect that Mr Nesbitt's podcast announcement was a deliberate attempt to indicate to “certain figures in the party” they needed to decide on whether they want to become leader as he is not prepared to “shoulder the load for ever and a day”.

But did he effectively make himself a lame duck leader? “No, absolutely not. I made it clear before I took on the leadership that I would be doing it my way,” he said.

“Harold McCusker once said the UUP wants a leader, but it doesn't want to be led. I was always determined to be a leader who led. Once I was endorsed, I was going to make decisions.”

The three UUP leaders preceding Nesbitt — Doug Beattie, Steve Aiken, and Robin Swann — were elected unopposed.

Asked if he believed there would be a leadership contest if he decided to step down in January, Mr Nesbitt responded: “I think that, as a matter of principle, contests are good. Tom Elliott was up against Basil McCrea in 2010, and it was myself versus John McAllister two years later.”

Whether or not there would be a contest if he decided to quit would “depend on who is around and who has an appetite for it”, he added.

Mr Nesbitt defended the fact that he has a lower profile than other party leaders here. “In my first period as leader, my only other duties were as Strangford MLA. My profile second time round was never going to be as high because of my role as Health Minister,” he said.

“As Ulster Unionist leader, I can delegate. I can't delegate as Health Minister. It is an all-consuming job. Health accounts for 30% of all the Executive departments communications. I have to read the paperwork and sign it off. All the big decisions about strategy come to me.”

Mr Nesbitt said he believed he had steadied the ship internally since he became party leader. His focus had been behind the scenes. “It's a lot more stable now. Our finances are a lot better than at any time since I've been a party member,” he stated.

“I've done stuff that won't attract a single vote, but without which we wouldn't have a solid base to attract votes at the next election.”

The UUP leader said he had built a “small team of young, vibrant, keen people” in his party's press and policy department. However, former Ministry of Defence press officer Gary Hill, who took up a senior position in the UUP press team in the summer, left recently after just two months in the job.

When asked about this, Mr Nesbitt said: “It's not the first time that someone has been in a role and it hasn't worked out. I'm sure it has happened in the Belfast Telegraph too.”

Just one of the UUP's nine MLAs is female, and the UUP leader acknowledged the lack of women in its ranks was a significant issue. He said he was working with former MLA Sandra Overend, who is a party officer, to address that.

Former UUP leader Doug Beattie didn't attend last year's party conference after his resignation in the wake of “irreconcilable differences” with senior party figures.

The Upper Bann MLA is due to speak at Saturday's gathering. Mr Nesbitt said it was “good to have Doug back”. He said that, as the person who had recruited Mr Beattie into the UUP, he had long been an admirer of his.

Asked how he viewed new North Antrim MLA Jon Burrows, the UUP leader described him as “thoughtful, intelligent, and he's hit the ground running like Usain Bolt”.

The real problem isn’t a lack of Irish – it’s the woeful state of Belfast and our politicians

MÁIRÍA CAHILL, Irish News, October 9th, 2025

ANOTHER week, and yet another row over the Irish language. Like a never-ending political poc fada, it’s a constant game of cultural one-upmanship hurled into the long grass.

This week, the row’s nucleus is Belfast City Council’s decision to adopt an Irish Language Policy. Sinn Féin described it as a “historic moment”. The Alliance party welcomed it. The DUP and TUV have threatened legal action, the latter claiming subjugation of unionists.

So far, so predictable. Where is all the money coming from? Belfast City Council raised its rates to almost 6% in February 2025. At the time, Sinn Féin councillor Ryan Murphy stated: “The council has also been impacted by ongoing external pressures, including inflationary and pay pressures.” Good to know they’ve had a good old rummage down the back of the civic sofa, since. The policy will cost over £2 million to implement. Were taxpayers told the cost before the council agreed?

Is breá liom an Gaeilge. Is cuid thábhachtach dár n-oidhreacht í, do ndaoine náisiúnaithe agus d’aontachtaithe. Like many people, though, I’d rather our councillors, most of whom wouldn’t survive in a school debating society, focused on ensuring that litter is cleaned, and that all the holes that people keep tripping over are finally filled in, instead of the high wire stuff. Look around Belfast city centre. Is nobody ashamed of the state it is in, compared to other cities? Will people be more inclined to save crumbling buildings or empty overflowing boscaí bruscair when they are bilingual?

Belfast City Council’s own website states: The Statement of Accounts for 2024 – 2025 has not been concluded and published by the date of 30 September, as required by The Local Government (Accounts and Audit) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2015, Part 4, Regulation 10.” Why are councillors not shouting all over the media about this instead? Don’t ratepayers deserve the same level of headline-grabbing activity when scrutinising where their money is going?

Shameful levels of inequality

Meanwhile, up on the hill, Stormont’s politicians (most of whom wouldn’t survive in a school debating society, either), are under pressure from nurses, who are seeking pay parity with their counterparts in England, Scotland and Wales. The health service, to which I have recently been a regular visitor, is in a deplorable state. Last month, Department of Education data showed levels of inequality that Stormont should be ashamed of. Twenty-six per cent of pupils are entitled to free school meals. The Department of Communities’ figures illustrate that in 2023/2024, 20% of children live in absolute poverty. The gap in educational achievement at GCSE level for pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds is understandably wide.

“Like many people, though, I’d rather our councillors, most of whom wouldn’t survive in a school debating society, focused on ensuring that litter is cleaned, and that all the holes that people keep tripping over are finally filled in

Simultaneously, The Executive Office has failed to implement an anti-poverty strategy or deliver redress for those affected by the Mother and Baby Home scandal. There are almost 50,000 people on the NIHE waiting list. Lough Neagh’s green sludge is one of the greatest scandals of our time. Where is the strategy on race?

Verbal conjurors trading in illusion

Stormont is heavy on power, light on plans, and brilliantly effective at parliamentary prestidigitation when it comes to delivery. The best trick? How to make your money disappear into black holes without coming up with action to stave it.

So, we see numerous strategies from politicians, but little to show for it.

Just watch when they’re under pressure. Behold, taxpayers, here’s another cultural rabbit to pull out of the hat. The United Ireland illusion: where politicians on both sides can hide behind the magician’s cloak. As quick as one can say Abra Kadabra — or should that be Abra Cabra — an image is conjured and crafted for whichever tribe it suits. So, soundbites of an idyllic life south of the border, or a dystopian unionist nightmare, are uttered. Then, off the media go, dutifully reporting on something far off in the distance, while there are many more pressing issues at hand to tackle, and little accountability for each failure. How’s that for executive over-sleight?

When did we all develop a Northern Irish version of Stockholm syndrome, doffing our caps to dysfunction and captive to politicians who don’t deliver? Why, to add insult to injury, do we reward them with a vote come election time and put them in again to inflict the same nonsense on us?

By far, our biggest societal failure is the inability to grapple with sectarianism. Belfast Council has a Good Relations Strategy, part of which states it will have shared and connected spaces that encourage cross-community interaction, and shared services designed through co-design and social innovation.

Putting an Irish language sign on Shankill Leisure Centre, or the uniforms of people working in it isn’t going to do it, folks. Anyone who thinks this type of action will foster or persuade people to have a grá for Gaeilge, is deluded.

Belfast’s cultural wars internationalised

JOHN BRESLIN, Irish News, October 9th, 2025

SUPPORTERS of the people of Gaza lined the centre of three miles of the Falls Road in west Belfast yesterday evening.

Protesters against the continued Israeli military offensive against Gaza began gathering just before 5pm at points between Milltown Cemetery and the International Peace Wall.

An estimated 800 people took part in the protest, which was organised or supported by a coalition of Pro-Palestinian groups, including Gaels Against Genocide, Mothers Against Genocide and Irish Artists for Palestine.

Organisers had called for people to come “all out for Gaza”.

The protest took place as negotiations continued in Egypt to end the war, with those close to the talks suggesting progress was being made.

Talks are focused on securing a ceasefire, exchanging hostages and prisoners, allowing more aid and co-ordinating a timetable for a withdrawal of Israeli forces.

Banner celebrating October 7 attack ‘despicable’ says DUP

ALLAN PRESTON, Irishnews, October 9th, 2025

Protesters take part in a black flag white line picket from Milltown Cemetery to the International Peace Wall in west Belfast yesterday

THE DUP has condemned a pro-Palestinian banner displayed in Belfast city centre this week as “glorifying terrorism.”

North Belfast MLA Phillip Brett said he was “appalled and disgusted” by the banner, which featured a picture of an armed militant and the slogan “Palestine has a right to resist.”

“This despicable act, carried out deliberately on the second anniversary of the barbaric Hamas attacks of October 7, is an affront to every decent person in Northern Ireland,” he said.

“It represents not solidarity with the Palestinian people, but an endorsement of hatred, division, and terrorism.”

The Hamas-led attack in southern Israel killed 1,200 people and took 251 hostage.

The retaliation in Gaza by Israeli forces since then is estimated to have killed over 67,000 and wounded nearly 170,000.

Mr Brett added: “The world watched in horror as innocent men, women and children were slaughtered, kidnapped and brutalised by Hamas terrorists.

Justifying atrocities ‘utterly shameful’

“That anyone in our city would seek to celebrate or justify those atrocities is utterly shameful.

The banner appeared in Belfast city centre

“The timing of this banner’s erection is no coincidence – it was designed to provoke, to offend, and to normalise extremist ideology on our streets.”

The republican group Lasair Dhearg have claimed responsibility for the display, stating online that activists scaled the scaffolding of the building on Great Victoria Street to mark the October 7 “uprising in Palestine.”

Video footage of the stunt showed several members wearing face coverings and yellow vests with the group’s name.

The PSNI was been contacted for a response.

Mr Brett said the “disgraceful display” was an attempt to “import international hatred” and to undermine peace and mutual respect.

“Those responsible for putting up this banner do not speak for the people of Belfast,” he said.

Arrest calls after masked mob protests outside Justice Minster Naomi Long's house

By Iain Gray, Belfast News Letter, October 9th, 2025

There have been calls for arrests and prosecutions after a 40-strong mob, many of them masked, staged a demonstration outside Naomi Long’s family home.

The Justice Minister said last night’s incident, which protesters reportedly livestreamed on social media, crossed a line into “bullying and intimidation”, adding it was “threatening and wholly unacceptable”.

Her husband, Belfast councillor Michael Long, stated that in 25 years in politics “no one has protested at our house” – and said that for the first time in 12 years, a police car had to sit on guard overnight in case of attack.

Leading figures from across Northern Ireland’s political spectrum have roundly condemned the incident, with UUP leader Mike Nesbitt calling for the protesters to be hauled before the courts.

Stating he’s “shocked, horrified and depressed” by the events of Wednesday night, the Health Minister stated: “We live in a democracy; in a democracy, you will see things you don’t like. You’ll hear things you don’t agree with. You’ll be upset by decisions politicians make.

“There are acceptable ways to express your opposition. Intimidation is not one of them. I hope the PSNI have gathered enough evidence to lead to prosecution.”

And DUP Lord Peter Weir described the incident outside the Longs’ house as “unacceptable and must be condemned”.

He stated on social media: “A lot of us will disagree with each other on a range of issues, but protesting outside the homes of those we disagree with is simply wrong.”

Turning up as a mob at my home just isn’t on’

Posting on social media site X, formerly Twitter, Mrs Long stated: “Over the last 25 years I’ve been in front-line politics, I’ve engaged with people from all backgrounds and perspectives. I’ve been open to debating and discussing issues, whether we agreed or not.

“Turning up as a mob, some in masks, at my home just isn’t on.

“That line was crossed last night. It isn’t engagement and it isn’t legitimate protest to turn up at my home, disrupt my neighbours, my family and place pressure on police.”

SDLP leader Claire Hanna said her part “sends sincere solidarity” to the Longs after “the disgraceful scenes outside their home”.

“The SDLP will always stand against those who seek to use violence or intimidation,” she said. “There can be no place for it in our politics or our society.

“There will always be political disagreement, particularly in a place with as fraught a history as this, but to turn up outside a politician’s home and try to intimidate them is sinister and entirely wrong.”

A PSNI spokesman confirmed an investigation is under way after the police “attended a protest outside a property in east Belfast on Wednesday evening”.

Added the spokesman: “An evidence-gathering operation was in place and we will now review the footage and consider if any potential offences were committed.”

The Police Federation of Northern Ireland, a body representing the force’s rank and file, replied to Mrs long on X stating: “We totally condemn this and the detrimental impact it has had on your home life.”

First Minister Michelle O’Neill stated on X that she sent solidarity to the Longs over the “absolutely disgusting” incident, adding: “Turning up at someone’s home is intimidation, not protest. It is never acceptable.”

IDF flags put up in Co Derry village linked to fighter jet parts manufacture

CONNLA YOUNG, Irish News, October 9th, 2025

THE appearance of “despicable” flags of the Israeli military in a mixed Co Derry village has been condemned.

The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) flags were erected in the Castledawson area in recent days.

One of the flags has been hung from a lamppost at a junction close to the village, while a second has been hoisted in the village itself.

An Israeli flag has also been put up at a junction close to an engineering firm linked to the production of fighter jets used by Israel.

Last month pro-Palestinian protesters took part in the ‘Mid Ulster March Against Genocide’ from Magherafelt to Castledawson, forcing the closure of the main Derry to Belfast road for a time.

A protest was then held outside local firm Moyola Precision Engineering.

Campaigners say the well-known company produces component parts for F-35 fighter jets used by Israeli forces to target civilians in Gaza.

Saoirse O’Neill from the Mid Ulster Ireland Palestine Solidarity Campaign said: “The shameful flying of IDF flags follows a historic UN ruling that Israel has committed genocide in Gaza, perpetrated by the IDF.

“The people of mid-Ulster have been steadfast in their opposition to genocide.

“This petty display follows a large march in mid-Ulster where people from all backgrounds united to voice their horror at the genocide and protest local factory Moyola Precision Engineering creating parts for warplanes that bomb children.”

Ms O’Neill said the “despicable flags are not representative of Castledawson or the wider area”.

“Our communities are united against genocide, and this unity is clearly a frightening prospect for those who have hung them.”

A spokesman for Moyola Precision Engineering said the firm “does not supply, or has ever supplied, any Israeli companies with parts or services”.

“Despite the references that some are making to multi-year historical funding from Invest NI, Moyola has never received funding from Invest NI or other government bodies in support of the F-35 program, either directly or indirectly,” the spokesman said.

“At all times in its history, Moyola has contributed multiple times more to the economy in corporation tax, rates, employers’ national insurance and employment skills compared to the government support that it has received.”

 ‘We’re still Christian’, church insists amid threats of arson

PAUL AINSWORTH, Irish News, October 9th, 2025

SIGNS LEFT ON CHURCH AFTER FALSE RUMOURS IT WAS TO BECOME A MOSQUE

A CO Antrim church has insisted its premises is to remain a place of Christian worship after it was targeted with vandalism and a “sinister” threat warning it would be “burnt out”.

Police said they are liaising with Carrickfergus Community Church over the threat, which was left in the grounds written on a piece of paper.

The church, which hosts community events including a weekly ‘baby bank’ providing families in need with items including clothing and nappies, is pleading with locals to help by “correcting any misinformation” spread about them. It is understood local speculation has led to false rumours that a mosque may be planned for the site.

Located in Carrick’s Bridewell Drive area, the church had a new fence recently erected, but the structure was damaged in two separate incidents of vandalism over the past week.

On Tuesday, the note was discovered on the grounds, with the scrawled message ‘fence down or church burnt out’.

The non-denominational church is facing local rumours about its future, a spokesperson revealed in a social media post.

It is understood the false rumours have led some to believe the fence is the first stage in construction of a mosque.

No mosque is planned for the area.

In a Facebook post, the spokesperson said: “Yesterday, we celebrated the installation of our new fence round our green space we’ve owned for the past 18 years. Sadly, behind the scenes whilst our new fence was going up we’ve experienced blatant vandalism and this morning a very serious threat has been made against us.

“We believe there are rumours going round that we are no longer a Christian church and we can assure everyone that this is 100% not true.

“We always have been and remain committed to the Christian faith and practises.”

The spokesperson said further rumours had suggested there was to be a “new building on the newly fenced off green space”. “Again we can assure everyone that this is 100% not true…we’re excited to have a green space and we’re looking forward to summer community activities.”

Church asks for help in stopping untrue rumours

They added: “Please help us by correcting any misinformation you hear – and as always, we welcome visitors to our Sunday services so anyone can come along and see for themselves how Jesus is the centre of all we do.”

East Antrim UUP MLA John Stewart said the targeting of the church was “absolutely disgraceful”, and he had visited its pastor to show support.

“I can’t even begin to think what would possess anyone to threaten a local church or their congregation in such a sinister way,” he said.

“Carrickfergus Community Church is at the heart of the local community. The services and support they provide to people from all across the town and further afield are invaluable.”

He added he spoke with the church pastor “to offer my support to him and the entire Community Church congregation”.

“Our thoughts are with them all at this deeply worrying time,” he said.

“I would appeal to anyone with any information about this to please come forward.”

Mid and East Antrim Alliance councillor Aaron Skinner said: “This is a fantastic community church that also delivers vital services such as the baby bank.

“It’s disgusting that anyone would target it in this way and I would urge anyone who knows who’s behind this to contact police.”

PSNI Neighbourhood Inspector Colin Ash said: “A report was received on Tuesday morning, 7th October that a letter threatening to burn a church in the Bridewell Drive area, was located within its grounds.

“We’re investigating a link between the threat and two reports of criminal damage caused to newly installed fencing at the church reported to police on Friday, 3rd October and Monday, 6th October.

“Enquiries are ongoing to determine a motive and who was responsible – we’re also continuing to liaise with the church regarding this matter.”

Translink faces annual loss of up to £30m

JONATHAN McCAMBRIDGE, Irish News and Belfast Telegraph, October 9th, 2025

TRANSLINK is facing an operating loss of up to £30 million in the current financial year, MLAs have been told.

The public transport operator group chief executive Chris Conway said the situation could see the company left with cash reserves of less than £10 million – equating to one week’s costs.

Mr Conway told Stormont’s Infrastructure Committee that the power sharing executive had to decide on what funding is available for public transport and “what level of service it can afford to operate”.

He told MLAs that for the past decade resource funding for Translink had been below what is required in its public service obligation (PSO), but that this would normally be supplemented by additional funding from monitoring rounds throughout financial years.

He said: “In 2024/25 there was limited monitoring rounds funding and this meant that the PSO funding requirement for bus and rail services was not able to be met in whole.

“This PSO funding is for the socially necessary services that we run where the fares don’t cover the complete cost of running the service.

“Therefore, Translink, while continuing to deliver those services, made an operating loss of around £16m last year.”

He said the funding for public transport in 2025/26 had “reduced in real terms”.

Mr Conway added: “Therefore, based on Translink continuing to deliver the current bus and rail services, we will make a further significant loss this year.

Unsustainable subsidies

“And our cash reserves will reduce to what I would consider a financially unsustainable level.”

Mr Conway said the company is “doing all it can” to manage costs and maximise revenues”.

He said: “This is obviously a very critical issue for the public transport network.

“I think it is important now at Executive level there is a decision taken on what funding is available for public transport and therefore what level of service it can afford to operate and maintain on an ongoing basis.”

Committee chairman Peter Martin asked what the implications were for future years if more funding is not made available.

Mr Conway said: “It can’t continue even this year.

“The loss we would be forecasting for this year is between £25m and £30m.

“That would take our cash reserves down to below £10m.

“That is about one week’s worth of our costs. That is not sustainable to have that low level of cash.”

He added: “Take the weekend we have just had with Storm Amy, we have had teams out dealing with damage across the network.

“We had over 30 trees down on the network, we had chainsaw crews out, we had all sorts of staff out getting services back up and running.

“That is a lot of unbudgeted cost and loss of revenue during that time.

“If you don’t have the cash reserves, you can’t deal with those situations.”

Compo for mother and baby home survivors 'should double to £20k'

REBECCA BLACK, Belfast Telegraph, October 9th, 2025

Compensation for victims and survivors of mother and baby homes should be doubled to £20,000, a Stormont committee has heard.

Phoenix Law solicitor Claire McKeegan warned MLAs scrutinising a draft bill that a “derisory” sum risks inflicting further harm on the victims and survivors.

She was speaking at the Executive Office Committee at Stormont which is scrutinising the Inquiry (Mother and Baby Institutions, Magdalene Laundries and Workhouses) and Redress Scheme Bill.

More than 14,000 women and girls are thought to have passed through institutions which were run by the Catholic Church, religious orders, some Protestant denominations as well as the state.

Many were found to have been mistreated, held against their will and forced to give up their children for adoption.

The Inquiry and Redress Scheme Bill was introduced at the Assembly earlier this year.

The bill is to establish a statutory public inquiry and a statutory redress scheme, with a payment of £10,000 to be made to eligible claimants, and a £2,000 payment to eligible family members on behalf of a loved one who has died since September 29, 2011.

The committee heard from legal professionals yesterday, with calls to increase the payment to £20,000 and extend the timescale for those who qualify to 1922.

Ms McKeegan said it is an issue that touches one in five families across Northern Ireland.

Clients dying waiting for justice

“Sadly many of our clients have died waiting for justice, survivors must be given access to records at long last, this has been denied to them for decades,” she told MLAs.

She raised the current time limits in the bill as an issue, saying the date for posthumous claims should not be cut off in 2011.

“Those who died before then are cut out... this issue has caused a huge amount of hurt across the survivor groups, they are united on that, it is interpreted by them as cruel, arbitrary and cost-cutting, and it will be subject to legal challenge... If that could be resolved now it would avoid further cost and further delay of the inquiry and redress,” she told MLAs.

“Compensation is also an issue that has been raised by survivors in their consultation responses. Fifty-four per cent of those who responded to the public consultation disagreed with the £10,000 standardised payment.

“This has been lifted from the Historical Institutional Abuse payment scheme, and is long out of date.

“Those recommendations were made in 2017, and the sum must recognise these are women who were abused, had their children taken away and a minor assault claim would attract a much higher level of damage.

“Our clients have said at least £20,000... when you look at not only being incarcerated in an institution where all your rights have been eroded, you've been verbally and physically assaulted, and then suffer the further indignity of having your child removed from you.

“Redress is supposed to be something which acknowledges wrong and assists the affected person to move on with their life, and if it becomes derisory in any way that just adds to the harm.”

Man accused of being gunman in dissident feud murder refused bail

Irish News, October 9th, 2025

A PAINTER and decorator suspected of being the gunman in a dissident republican feud murder must remain in custody, a High Court judge has ruled.

Hugh Black (51) is accused of killing Danny McClean in north Belfast back in February 2021.

Prosecutors claimed he also acted as the “spotter” in a separate bid to assassinate taxi driver Sean O’Reilly earlier this year.

Refusing his renewed application for bail, Mr Justice O’Hara said police and prosecutors should be given more time to prepare their case.

Black, of Rosehead in the city, faces charges of murder and attempted murder in connection with the two shootings.

Both attacks are believed to have been carried out by dissident republican faction Oglaigh na hEireann (ONH) as part of an internal group conflict.

Danny McClean was shot dead in north Belfast in February 2021

Mr McClean (54) was gunned down as he sat in a car parked on the Cliftonville Road.

CCTV footage from the area showed a figure with a distinctive walking style emerge from a Vauxhall Vectra, jog across to the victim’s Audi Q2 and open fire, previous courts heard.

Mr McClean was shot at least four times in the head and torso before the killer left the area.

Expert gait analysis provides “moderate support” for claims that Black was the gunman, according to the prosecution.

A partial vehicle registration plate match with a Vectra car registered to the defendant also forms part of the case against him.

Black was initially arrested in the aftermath of the shooting but then released unconditionally at that stage.

Detectives have now linked him to the separate attempt on the life of Mr O’Reilly.

Two gunmen targeted the 49-year-old at a cab at Bell Steel Manor, west Belfast on February 23.

One of the pair opened fire while he was in his Skoda Octavia taxi, leaving him seriously injured from bullet wounds to his shoulder blade and collarbone.

His accomplice is believed to have brandished a faulty second weapon which jammed without firing.

Both pistols were discovered stashed in nearby hedges following the attack.

Ballistic examinations confirmed one of the guns had also been used to murder Mr McClean four years earlier.

Based on disputed CCTV evidence, police claim Black was collected and acted as a look-out in the bid to kill Mr O’Reilly.

Crown counsel Sarah Minford told the court yesterday: “We say he was a spotter on that day earlier this year.”

Denied bail

With the two gunmen still at large, she argued the defendant could interfere with the ongoing investigation if he was released on bail.

Black, who denies any involvement in either shooting, mounted a fresh application based on delays in the case advancing to any trial.

Defence barrister John Mackell insisted his client has not been linked to the attacks by any forensics or eye-witness accounts.

Instead, he contended the charges are based on disputed CCTV analysis and old circumstantial evidence.

“It appears to be a dusty bouquet of old roses, presenting something known largely in February 2021 which has been polished up and presented as information to ground a prosecution,” Mr Mackell submitted.

But Mr Justice O’Hara identified no significant change of circumstances to warrant releasing Black.

The judge said: “I do not think it would be appropriate to grant bail at this stage. I will allow more time for the investigation to develop.”

No prosecution of Police Ombudsman Marie Anderson over 'reported domestic incident' two years ago

By Adam Kula, Belfast News Letter, October 9th, 2025

Police Ombudsman Marie Anderson will not be prosecuted, says the PPS, in a decision which was over two years in the making.

She had been reported for potential offences of perverting the course of justice and misconduct in public office in relation to what the PPS calls a “reported domestic incident" in Holywood, Co Down, in September 2023.

On June 9 a file had been sent to the PPS about the case.

On June 17 it was announced she was taking a leave of absence from the role because "current commentary is detracting from the focus of that work".

Now the PPS has said: “After careful consideration of a file submitted following an investigation led by West Midlands Police into alleged actions by the Ombudsman, it was concluded by prosecutors that there was no reasonable prospect of conviction for any criminal offence.”

The PPS statement quoted Stephen Herron, Director of Public Prosecutions, as saying: “This was a complex and sensitive matter which was given careful consideration by a team of senior prosecutors and highly experienced independent senior counsel.

“This case has understandably generated significant public interest and speculation – much of which was factually inaccurate.

“The events of September 2023 that led to this investigation were undoubtedly difficult. The evidence shows that PSNI engaged with the Ombudsman with care and sensitivity, and their investigation was conducted properly and in good faith.

“The central allegation in this case was that the Ombudsman had misconducted herself in public office and / or attempted to pervert the course of justice through her interactions with police who were investigating the incident referred to above.

“The legal threshold for both offences is high. In assessing whether the Test for Prosecution was met, prosecutors considered all of the relevant facts and circumstances including the particular context in which the interactions took place;

"Contemporaneous records made by police in relation to what was said by her;

"And the evidence from senior police who spoke directly to the Ombudsman during key stages of the relevant events.

“It was concluded that the evidence was insufficient to establish that the Ombudsman was either acting or purporting to act as a public officer at the relevant times;

"Or that she misconducted herself or attempted to pervert the course of justice through anything she said or did in response to police enquiries.”

Man cautioned

Little has been publicly confirmed about the “incident” at the heart of the case, but it involved a male receiving a caution for the offence of common assault.

The PSNI requested that West Midlands Police lead an investigation into separate allegations against the Ombudsman, relating to her conduct during the early stages of the PSNI investigation.

An initial file went to the PPS in September 2024, with a full file following in June 2025.

It is understood that to qualify as an offence of misconduct in public office, someone “acting as” a public official must have “willfully neglected” to perform their duty or “willfully misconducted” themselves “to such a degree as to amount to an abuse of the public’s trust” – and that this must be “without reasonable excuse or justification”.

Perverting the course of justice requires the suspect to have done something which has “a tendency to pervert” or which is “intended to pervert” the course of public justice.

We'd never have done deal if we thought Cushnahan was being paid

SAM MCBRIDE, Belfast Telegraph, October 10th, 2025

FRANK DALY TELLS COURT HE WOULD HAVE SEEN INVOLVING FORMER BANKER IN SALE OF NORTHERN LOANBOOK TO US VULTURE FUND AS A SIGNIFICANT CONFLICT OF INTEREST, AS DEFENCE TEAM SPEAKS FOR THE FIRST TIME

The US vulture fund that bought Nama's Northern Ireland loans would likely never have been allowed to do so if it had been known that Frank Cushnahan stood to make money from the deal, Nama's former chairman has said.

Former banker Cushnahan, whose trial continued yesterday at Belfast Crown Court, is accused of having been in line for half of a £7.5m 'success fee' for the transaction which ultimately happened in 2014 — something he denies.

Yesterday, the first witness in what's likely to be a three-month trial, former Nama chairman Frank Daly, told the jury he first heard of Cushnahan's role in the wider sales process in October 2013.

The National Asset Management Agency (Nama) was the Republic's 'bad bank' which took on bank loans effectively nationalised by the Irish state and placed under Nama's care after the 2008 financial crisis.

Cushnahan was a member of Nama's Northern Ireland Advisory Committee (NIAC) but is also alleged to have been secretly helping major US fund Pimco to bid for Nama's Northern Ireland loans, then worth more than a billion pounds.

Mr Daly told jurors that this involved “a significant conflict of interest” for Cushnahan, but he never told Nama about that.

In early 2014, Pimco approached Nama to tell it that Cushnahan was in line for one third of a €16m 'success fee'.

Almost immediately after Nama was told that, the deal fell apart. But quickly another US fund, Cerberus, made a similar bid, using the same law firm, but this time with the insistence that Cushnahan wasn't involved.

Frank Hugh Cushnahan (83), of Alexandra Gate in Holywood, is charged with fraud by failing to disclose information and fraud by false representation.

His co-accused, former solicitor Ian George Coulter (54), of Templepatrick Road in Ballyclare, faces two charges of fraud by false representation, and charges of making or supplying articles for use in fraud, removing criminal property, and transferring criminal property.

Both men deny all the charges.

Mr Daly was Nama's founding chairman, serving for four years from 2009.

He said there had been a request from the Stormont Executive to the Irish Government for it to have a representative on Nama's board, given that some of Northern Ireland's biggest property developers' loans were under its control.

Stormont request for member on NAMA Board rejected by Dublin

The Irish Government rejected that but agreed to set up NIAC, Mr Daly said, so Nama could better understand its impact on Northern Ireland.

It was, he said, “a political decision” due to the sensitivities of the Irish state taking decisions which would have such a major impact north of the border.

Mr Daly said it was clear from the rules under which the committee operated that conflicts of interest had to be declared and confidential information couldn't be divulged.

Members of NIAC were warned in writing: “For the avoidance of doubt, each member agrees and undertakes not to disclose any confidential information received in their capacity as member to any person, except as required by law.”

He said of the NIAC members: “I regarded them as having essentially the same obligations as members of the board of Nama […] in terms of confidentiality, disclosure and all of that.”

The jury was taken through multiple minutes of NIAC meetings where no declarations of interest were made by Cushnahan in relation to working with funds looking to buy Nama's loans.

Around early October 2013, Nama became aware of Pimco's interest in buying all the Northern Ireland loans in one fell swoop.

Mr Daly said that at this point it had not marketed the loans for sale or even considered selling them as a lump transaction.

He said that almost as soon as someone in Nama was told Cushnahan was in line for payment, it was escalated to him as chairman.

He said that broad strategy was discussed at the NIAC, so Cushnahan would have been aware of the organisation's thinking at a high level.

Pimco's approach was discussed at the NIAC on 7 October 2013, where Cushnahan was present.

Mr Daly said: “I would have expected them [anyone involved] to have immediately raised their hands and said, 'I have knowledge or connection or some involvement'.”

Crown counsel Jonathan Kinnear KC asked: “Why?”

Clear conflict of interest

Mr Daly replied: “Because in my view, it would have been a clear conflict of interest on the part of the individual.

“We were discussing a particular proposal that had come to Nama. If somebody there had knowledge or awareness or involvement in that proposal, I would have expected them to […] make a disclosure of interest.”

The minutes of the meeting recorded that the chairman “reminded members that this matter was extremely politically sensitive and that absolute confidentiality was required”.

A month later, on November 7, 2013, Cushnahan sent a letter of resignation to Nama, saying the “principal reason” was his “family priorities” and age.

Mr Daly said: “If it had emerged that in relation to the tender of Pimco, which we were at that stage minded to accept because they were the highest bidder, that a member of the NIAC was getting a success fee in relation to that sale, I think that would have raised questions about the integrity of the sale”.

He said it may even have opened them up to challenges from unsuccessful bidders if they'd known what had happened.

The minutes of a Nama meeting at that time showed that it discussed whether Pimco's bid was “fatally flawed” because it “might have benefited from insider information as a result of Frank Cushnahan's involvement”.

Mr Daly said that if Cushnahan declared what was happening, he would not have allowed him to have any role in the meeting where Pimco's bid was discussed because it was “a significant conflict of interest”.

He said that if Cushnahan had been involved with Cerberus, and they were aware of that, it would have been a matter for the board to decide, but that as chairman of the board, “I would have had no doubt that we would not have gone ahead with the sale to Cerberus”.

Yesterday afternoon, the defence spoke for the first time, with Cushnahan's barrister, Frank O'Donoghue KC, beginning his first cross-examination, which will continue today.

Mr O'Donoghue put to Mr Daly that the Northern Ireland loans involved a range of property, from hotels to shopping centres, housing estates, and development land.

He said that Mr Daly had a “unique position of having seen the aftermath of the spending spree” in the Republic.

Mr Daly described the Celtic Tiger as a period of vastly increasing wealth which involved “people losing the run of themselves”.

Cushnahan's barrister put to him that as people of modest means speculated on property, “we created a generation of people who had things called property portfolios — all based on lending by the banks in an overheating economy”.

Throughout yesterday afternoon, Cushnahan's barrister sought to simplify the complexity of the Irish property boom, crash and banking crisis for the jury — many of whom are young and who Mr O'Donoghue acknowledged may not even remember the crash.

Mr Daly repeatedly and simply said “that is correct” as Mr O'Donoghue asked him to confirm how mortgages work, how the Irish economy boomed, and a series of other elements which make up the background to the deal in question.

At one point, Mr O'Donoghue said to the witness: “Can you just explain to the jury what the interbank wholesale market is?” The trial continues.

'Jewish booking agents tried to poach us, they loved it' - Kneecap manager Lambert

DARRAGH NOLAN,  Belfast Telegraph, October 9th, 2025

RAPPERS GOT HUGE SUPPORT AFTER ROW OVER 'FREE PALESTINE' CHANTS AT COACHELLA

Kneecap's manager Daniel Lambert has said the group were being poached by Jewish booking agents following their performance at Coachella earlier this year.

At the end of their set at the US music festival in April, the west Belfast rappers expressed support for Palestine and led pro-Palestine chants in the crowd.

It led to calls for band members Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh, Naoise Ó Cairealláin and JJ Ó Dochartaigh's US visas to be revoked and drew criticism from festival organisers and figures in the music industry, including Sharon Osbourne.

Speaking to the Indo Sport podcast, Mr Lambert, who is also chief operating officer of Bohemians Football Club, said the response of the Coachella aud­ience was surprising and “everyone in the tent was chanting 'Free Palestine'”.

“There was stuff afterwards like 'Jewish people ran from the tent'. All lies. I was standing beside two Jewish booking agents who were trying to poach us. They loved it.

“Afterwards, we met other bands who were playing. The lads were really unbelievably well-received, by the festival organisers, other bands and the audience.”

He said the pro-Israel organisation Creative Community for Peace “sought to destroy Kneecap”.

“They made a couple of assumptions: one, that the lads don't have the level of intelligence that they do; number two, that we wouldn't get the level of professional support we got, as in a leg­al team; and three, I suppose that we weren't smart enough as a group - and I include all of the people who work with Kneecap in that. That we would fold, that we would just not be able to cope.”

The organisation has been contacted by the Irish Independent for comment.

Reflecting on the terrorism case brought against Ó hAnnaidh, also known by his stage name Mo Chara, Mr Lambert said the charge was “ludicrous”.

Ó hAnnaidh was charged in May after allegedly displaying a flag in support of Hezbollah, which is a proscribed terror organisation in the UK, at a concert in London last November.

The case was thrown out by a court last month following a technical error in the way the charge was brought. However, prosecutors have said they will appeal against the decision.

Mr Lambert said the Creative Community for Peace group decided to “take the band down” following the Coach­ella controversy, but ultimately failed.

Kneecap were seen as “edgy” working-class young men by “establishment people”, Mr Lambert said, but as soon as they “overstepped the mark and said something that the establishment didn't want them to say, they tried to 'kill' them”.

After footage from a 2023 concert emerged showing one member of the group saying “The only good Tory is a dead Tory. Kill your local MP”, the group apologised to the families of Jo Cox and David Amess, both MPs who were murdered.

Mr Lambert said the comment was “a total joke” with “no intent” behind it.

“If you were to take out comedian sets and pull one line and debate that on a news show, it takes on an entirely new context,” he said.

“I think the lads were right to apologise, if they have caused someone hurt, it's always right to apologise, inadvertently or not.”

 Close to 600 RHI boiler owners no longer engaging with officials

LIAM TUNNEY, Belfast Telegraph, October 9th, 2025

MLAS UPDATED ON PLANS TO CLOSE DOWN BUNGLED ENERGY SCHEME

Almost 600 boiler owners eligible for legacy payments under a proposed RHI closure scheme have stopped engaging with the department responsible.

The original RHI scheme, set up in 2012, incentivised businesses and farmers to switch to eco-friendly boilers by paying them a subsidy for using wood pellet fuel.

Mistakes in its design meant the subsidies were higher than the cost of the pellets, and applicants found themselves able to burn to earn.

The scandal contributed to the collapse of devolved government in 2017.

With Stormont facing an overspend of hundreds of millions of pounds, cost-control steps were taken in 2019.

Last month, Economy Minister Caoimhe Archibald told MLAs the Executive had agreed a pathway to close the scheme, with Ofgem no longer administering it from April 1 next year, meaning meters would no longer be monitored for usage.

At Stormont's Economy Committee on Wednesday, Department for the Economy officials outlined more details.

Sarah Brady, director of energy operations, and Alan Smith, lead closure officer, said they hoped a tariff uplift proposed for this winter would be in place by November 1.

They also said the legacy payment scheme would be based on boiler usage between 2017 and 2019.

Ms Brady told the meeting: “What we could have done was paid them a single closure payment, which was what was consulted on previously.

“But we examined it and we looked at it, and we felt the first and best value-for-money thing to do would be to make the closure payment annually.

“It's a legacy payment that will be made annually, provided the installation remains in use. If the installation stops being used, the payments stop.”

The officials said 1,900 boilers were currently live and accredited, operated by 900 owners. They added that 590 of the accredited owners had stopped engaging with the department. However, the department later clarified that the exact figure is 574.

Mr Smith added: “The department is going to give those participants a fair opportunity to come forward, make declarations and provide evidence.

‘We don’t know why they’ve gone’

“We don't know why they've gone, we don't know why they're inactive, so we do have to give them a fair chance to come forward and provide evidence they still have an installation, they're there and they'll generate.”

Committee chair and DUP MLA Phillip Brett questioned the officials on the banding of the payments, which would result in someone who is using a boiler to 5% capacity paid the same as someone operating to 49% capacity.

“Part of what goes into this consideration is the capital and maintenance of the machine, and they will be required to maintain their machines,” said Ms Brady.

“If the machine is broken beyond repair, the payments stop, and if the machine is out of action for over 50% of the year, we write you down, or if it's only in action for a small period of the year, we write you down.

“But other than that. your closure payment is your set amount, increasing by inflation. The payments, going forward, aren't based on heat produced; they're based on historic heat produced, and they're based on the right amount of heat for the right installation in its particular location.”

A public inquiry into the RHI scandal identified a raft of mistakes in the running of the scheme.

The investigation, chaired by retired judge Sir Patrick Coghlin, produced a 656-page, three-volume report containing 319 findings and a series of recommendations.

Ms Brady told the inquiry the number of fraudulent cases had been blown out of proportion by the media.

“The rampant fraud among the participants, you know, I think that was an exaggeration,” she said.

“I wouldn't like to say that there was rampant fraud, and I would like to say that, going forward, there will be safeguards in terms of producing evidence, producing photographs, producing records of your fuel purchase, producing records of your maintenance and a physical inspection.”

Asked by Mr Brett to clarify whether there had been any fraud identified during the period on which the department was basing its payments, Mr Smith said: “There were some participants who lost their accreditation.

“There was a very, very low level. I don't have the exact number. I would need to check. Again those people would no longer be accredited.”

The committee was told regulations for introducing the uplift should be provided by next week, while guidance on the wider closure should be available in January next year.

The scheme is expected to cost £196m over the next 10 years, with an annual cost of £17m. Some 100 inspectors are to be employed to help administer the process, with the department saying it intended to tender externally.

Those benefiting from the scheme will have to submit an annual declaration, including evidence to show how they are running their boiler, as well as submitting to inspections.