Stakeknife victims ‘in limbo’ as talks with Brit Govt fail
CONNLA YOUNG, Irish News, May 20th, 2026
RELATIVES of people killed by Freddie Scappaticci and the IRA’s Internal Security Unit have been left “in limbo” after compensation talks with the British government collapsed.
Mediation headed by a senior legal figure ended in disappointment for relatives when lawyers failed to reach agreement last week.
In 2003, west Belfast man Freddie Scappaticci, a former commander of the IRA’s Internal Security Unit (ISU), was outed as Stakeknife, although his identity has not been officially acknowledged.
The ISU was responsible for hunting down and killing informers.
The activities of Scappaticci, who has been linked to 14 murders, were investigated by Operation Kenova, which published its final report last year.
It is understood the failed mediation process considered 36 cases and included some not directly linked to Scappaticci.
It has been said that of the 40 murders considered by Operation Kenova, 26 had no connection to Scappaticci.
It is believed the recent talks were abandoned after British government proposals fell short of familyexpectations.
‘No genuine desire to put this to bed’
Relative of one victim outlines anger over collapse of mediation
The mediation collapsed just days before the family of Anthony McKiernan (44), who was shot dead by the IRA in January 1988, take their case back to the High Court next week.
After he was killed the IRA claimed the father-of-four, from the Market area of south Belfast, was an informer, an allegation denied by his family.
The legal action had been stayed pending the outcome of mediation.
The case includes an application relating to the discovery of sensitive material under Closed Measures Proceedings.
While the McKiernan family’s legal team are excluded from the hearing, a special advocate will be appointed.
Some believe the state continues to hold significant information not revealed through Operation Kenova.
The outworking of the McKiernan application may be relevant to other cases linked to Kenova.
A relative of one victim last night said they felt “completely in limbo” after talks broke down. “I’m angry about it,” they said. “There seems to be no genuine desire on the part of the government to put this to bed.”
‘26 of 40 murders investigated had no connection to Scappaticci’
Solicitor Kevin Winters, of KRW Law, said that “following recent unresolved mediation we are now pushing on with all the Kenova linked cases”.
“That includes resuming previously stayed discovery applications under section 8 of the justice and security act,” he said.
“We say there is a lot of other information yet to be released which wasn’t included in the final Kenova report last December.”
Mr Winters said there may be other agents connected to the ISU.
“Many of our clients believe this sensitive material which can’t be released into the public domain may point to the existence of other ISU agents in addition to Freddie Scappaticci,” he said.
“After all, 26 of the 40 murders investigated have no connection at all to Freddie Scappaticci.
“It’s been a job to dismantle the Freddie Scappaticci-centric obsession which only served to detract from all other non-Stakeknife intelligence. Kenova, if you look hard enough, is revelatory.”
The solicitor has written to Secretary of State Hilary Benn asking for an apology for victims.
“Equally contentious is the failure by the Secretary of State to give an apology to all the families of murder victims despite a very strong plea by the chief constable.
“We’ve written to Hilary Benn asking for one and urging a public inquiry into systemic state sponsored murder by proxy ISU agents.
“Last week we received a holding reply advising the recent Supreme Court Dillon ruling had to be assessed before any final decision could be made
“In the meantime, we look forward to engaging the outstanding disclosure battles in the high court.”
The Northern Ireland Office was contacted.
Finucane Inquiry’s first hearing to take place next month
REBECCA BLACK, Irish News, May 20th, 2026
THE first hearing of a public inquiry into the murder of prominent Belfast solicitor Patrick Finucane is set to take place next month.
The 39-year-old was shot dead at his family home in north Belfast in 1989 by the UDA in an attack found by a series of probes to have involved collusion with the state.
Mr Finucane’s widow, Geraldine, and the couple’s three children have been campaigning for decades for a public inquiry to establish the extent of security force involvement.
In 2024 Secretary of State Hilary Benn announced the UK Government would establish an independent inquiry into the circumstances of Mr Finucane’s death.
Last June the government announced senior judge Sir Gary Hickinbottom as chairman of the inquiry.
Yesterday the Patrick Finucane Inquiry confirmed it will hold its first preliminary hearing in June 2026.
The hearing, that will take place in Belfast on June 10, has been described as a “procedural hearing which will provide an opportunity to introduce the public to the inquiry”.
“In particular, the chair will consider practical issues relating to the conduct of the inquiry’s investigation and future hearings,” a spokesperson said.
The hearing is set to be live streamed for those who wish to watch the proceedings online.
Sinn Féin MLA Deirdre Hargey welcomed the announcement by the inquiry.
“Geraldine Finucane has fought tooth and nail for 37 years for truth and justice for her husband, Pat,” she said.
“The fact that an inquiry will shortly begin its work is testament to the family’s strength, courage and enduring tenacity.
“In what will undoubtedly be a difficult and challenging period for the entire Finucane family, I want to send them my full support and solidarity. They continue to inspire families across the north who are searching for answers for their loved ones.”
Misleading video of DUP MLA removed by Sinn Fein youth
REBECCA BLACK, Belfast Telegraph and Irish News, May 20th, 2026
A misleading video targeting DUP MLA Pam Cameron posted on social media by the youth branch of Sinn Fein has been removed.
The clip posted by Ogra Shinn Fein on Friday shows Ms Cameron appearing to criticise her party colleague Communities Minister Gordon Lyons during a meeting of the Stormont Communities Committee.
It shows Ms Cameron reading out quotes from committee chairman Colm Gildernew's social media during the meeting.
They included a reference to a “desperate shameful act by a Communities Minister who's clearly determined to make Irish invisible”, but left out the context of Ms Cameron criticising the comments.
The caption read “Fair play to the DUP for calling out Gordon Lyons over the Irish language”, and included the line “Disclaimer: This is not AI”.
It came during a fractious debate over funding for the Northern Ireland Place-Name Project.
Ms Cameron, a former junior minister in the Executive Office, said the clip was a “complete misrepresentation of the actual facts”.
She told the Assembly on Monday: “The post described the statement as not AI, implying it was therefore factual. The post has received many comments and views and its intention is clearly to bring negative unwanted personal attention toward me, it's to intimidate, to humiliate, to gag me, and Mr Speaker it will do nothing of the sort.”
She made a direct appeal to First Minister Michelle O'Neill to ensure the video was removed.
Yesterday, Sinn Fein MLA Linda Dillon confirmed Ogra Shinn Fein had removed the video.
“Clearly, it was tongue-in-cheek and never intended to cause offence,” she said. “There is a huge degree of frustration from young people in response to the DUP's anti-Irish agenda but there is an onus on all political parties to use social media responsibly.”
Ms Cameron welcomed the removal of the video.
In a statement she said: “Robust debate is integral to democracy but misrepresentation and deliberately twisting the facts undermines it.
“The video should not have been posted in the first place and it is disappointing that it required significant media coverage and a letter to Michelle O'Neill before action was taken. However, I welcome that action was eventually taken and I hope that this incident will be an opportunity for reflection on both this video and the wider behaviour at last week's Communities Committee meeting.”
The revolution isn’t over – and could get even nastier
ALEX KANE, Irish News, May 20th, 2026
ONE lesson learned from Brexit is that the UK Parliament, after 43 years of being tied into the joint sovereignty project that is the EU, proved itself comprehensively incapable of coping with a choice made, and made alone, by the UK electorate.
It didn’t help, of course, that David Cameron – still, I think, the worst prime minister in my lifetime – hadn’t even bothered his arse to game-plan for the possibility of a Leave victory.
Let’s be brutally honest: the mess we have been in since 2016 is entirely down to Cameron’s stupidity.
He included the referendum in the 2015 Conservative manifesto, and then went ahead with it because he thought he couldn’t lose; meaning that he thought he would quash the anti-EU ERG MPs within his own ranks, as well as finishing off the electoral challenge from Nigel Farage and UKIP.
Yet within hours of the referendum result, he took the easiest route available to him and scarpered; leaving his party to try and clean up his recklessness, as well as lumbering it with one pretty duff successor after another.
Meanwhile, Nigel Farage has manoeuvred himself into spitting distance of Number 10.
Not because of any particular electoral brilliance, but because Labour and the Conservatives have been flailing about like drunk squirrels while singularly failing to notice that Brexit triggered a revolution rather than just a bit of a surprise.
The Conservatives, quite a few of whom hadn’t reconciled themselves to the UK joining the EU in 1973, imploded. Labour dithered between 2016 and 2024 before pulverising Rishi Sunak, then in turn imploding.
Starmer has been reduced to the sort of foaming zombie who appears in cheap sci-fi films and it’s increasingly difficult to tell whether there are, in fact, any human elements left in him.
You would have thought, after a decade of this political grotesquerie, that we were due some grown-up government; particularly from one with a whopping effective voting majority of 165 (when you exclude the non-voting Speaker’s team and Sinn Féin).
But no. Starmer, after the recent elections, is the parliamentary equivalent of road kill and clinging on until someone comes along to shovel him off the road.
The hand on the shovel
Bizarrely, the person most likely to be handling that shovel isn’t even an MP at this point; although someone, an MP who is barely known outside his own front door, has stood down and cleared the way for a by-election.
Call me old-fashioned, but I miss the days when, barring illness or death of the incumbent, you only became prime minister when you led your party to a general election victory.
“The most astonishing thing about the last decade is that both Labour and the Conservatives have failed to understand, let alone acknowledge, that the revolution triggered in June 2016 is still ongoing
Nowadays it’s the Pac-Man approach to power: chase the prime minister for a while, eat him and replace him.
So, what happens next? Well, it looks like Labour is planning to swing behind a return to the EU.
Wes Streeting, who resigned as health minister and has thrown his hat into a – so far – non-existent ring, says if he becomes prime minister, a reset of relations – which is the poke-you-in-the-eye code for rejoining – will be his direction of travel.
Not good news for Andy Burnham, whose greatest challenge, if he is selected as the by-election candidate, will be from Reform. He is, as it happens, pro-reset of relations, too, but didn’t really want it to become the stick with which Farage will now beat him during the campaign.
Reform, of course, will be incredibly happy. Farage will probably do quite well over the next three years by saying that five British governments in a row (maybe six, if Starmer is dumped) have failed to deliver Brexit, failed to honour the referendum result, failed to provide stable government and failed to deal with a host of societal and economic problems, not least of which is immigration.
Indeed, the most astonishing thing about the last decade is that both Labour and the Tories have failed to understand, let alone acknowledge, that the revolution triggered in June 2016 is still ongoing.
Which also means that both have failed to quell the revolt against the traditional political/electoral establishment and will, as a consequence, continue to suffer blow after blow. They’re both losing former core parts of their voting base to the same party, yet they don’t understand why.
The only thing that will change the dynamics would be a showdown between the various factions on the right.
Rupert Lowe, Ben Habib and Tommy Robinson don’t like Farage. Advance UK and Restore Britain could, if they got their act together for the general election, damage Reform.
Restore has already announced a candidate for the pending by-election and Advance has endorsed her.
That said, it may be too late. Those who want someone other than a Labour or Conservative prime minister probably see Farage as the best option.
The revolution will continue. It may even get much nastier than it has been up to now.
Murder victim was ex-heroin dealer - murder suspect related to UDA leader
ALLISON MORRIS, Belfast Telegraph, May 20th, 2026
NICKY GORDON WAS ATTACKED AT EAST BELFAST APARTMENT BLOCK A WEEK AGO
The victim of a fatal assault in east Belfast was previously convicted as part of a high-profile crackdown on the supply of heroin in Northern Ireland, with undercover officers involved in the sting.
Nicholas 'Nicky' Gordon, was rushed to hospital after being attacked at an apartment block in the Holywood Road area in the early hours of Tuesday, May 12. He died of his injuries earlier this week.
Police have now opened a murder investigation.
While it was said to be an attack by criminal elements known to police, one of those arrested in connection with the murder is a relative of a notorious UDA man. Gordon, who is originally from Ballymena, has been known to police for over 20 years and had been living in east Belfast.
He was a one-time close associate of Noel Johnston, the feared hardman, who was said to have first introduced heroin to Ballymena in the 1990s.
Johnston fell to his death from a third floor flat during a PSNI drugs operation in October 2021.
In his early days as one of the most notorious and feared drug dealers in Northern Ireland, he recruited a number of younger dealers, among them Nicky Gordon.
Yesterday two people — a man and a woman — arrested on suspicion of aggravated burglary with intent to commit grievous bodily harm in connection with Gordon's death were released unconditionally.
The 51-year-old was attacked by a number of intruders who entered the apartment where he was staying and subjected him to a savage attack.
Two men, aged 25 and 31, arrested in Scotland on suspicion of murder on Monday, were returned to Northern Ireland for questioning. One of them is a relative of a well known UDA leader. However, sources say that the attack was in relation to a fallout among criminals involved in previous altercations and not paramilitary linked.
The PSNI said their enquiries are continuing, and have asked anyone with information to contact them.
Gordon was well known to police, having convictions dating back over 20 years.
Heroin ring
He was one of a ring of heroin dealers rounded up in the biggest ever crackdown on the killer drug — one of almost 20 suspected dealers lifted following dawn raids by police in Operation Galiot in 2002.
Two years later, and with an address at Moat Road in Ballymena, he absconded from Magilligan Prison after being granted temporary home leave and was for a time on the run from authorities.
Operation Galiot's early morning round-up of dealers came after undercover police infiltrated a heroin gang.
Undercover officers had spent almost five months gathering evidence against dealers based in Ballymena and south Belfast. Gordon had already skipped the country by the time of the raids, in February 2002. But he was arrested a short time later in Wales and returned to Northern Ireland to stand trial.
He was handed sentences totalling eight years at Ballymena Crown Court in 2003, when he was convicted of two counts of supplying heroin and two counts of offering to supply heroin.
A number of other similar charges were left on the book.
Sources who knew the victim said he spent only short periods of his adult life free of drugs and crime, and was in and out of prison throughout his life.
They added that his addiction made him “do terrible things on the people who loved him most”.
“Nicky knew he was basically ageing out of the world he lived in, most of his friends are dead, he was one of the last Ballymena crew still standing.
“He'd talked recently about trying to get his act together, he did try from time to time, but he never got that chance”, they added.
Catholic or Protestant background 'irrelevant' to the job says Police Federation boss as he rejects any return of 50:50
Catholic Protestant ratio 'irrelevant' says Police Federation boss
By Adam Kula, Belfast News Letter, May 20th, 2026
Whether would-be police officers are Catholic or Protestant is “irrelevant” says the head of the Police Federation NI, as he strongly rejected any notion of a return to 50:50 hiring – something which SDLP and Sinn Fein figures have called for.
Liam Kelly made the comments in a speech he delivered this afternoon at the federation’s 54th annual conference.
He also attacked the “rush to criticise” officers, with some politicians only to be heard “bemoaning, criticising and condemning” the police, and complained of “half-hearted” backing for the force from some quarters (though he did not mention any parties by name),
Mr Kelly, in a copy of the speech shared with the press in advance of his address, said: “Of course, the service could have more from a Catholic background in its ranks, but if there’s an indifferent political approach taken by some parties, combined with community opposition and a terrorist threat to those who take the brave decision, it’s little wonder there’s a reluctance to raise heads above the parapet and come forward."
At present, about 67% of officers are “perceived Protestant” and 31% “perceived Catholic”.
To re-introduce 50-50 would "be an arbitrary and rather crude attempt at social engineering” that would foster “understandable resentment”, said Mr Kelly.
“The merit principle must prevail in favour of something that would build in bias and one-sidedness,” he said.
“There regrettably remains an unhealthy focus on the religious background of our officers that is not replicated in any other sector.
“In line with all other public services, our officers should be selected on the basis of their skills and attributes to do the difficult job.
“Their religious background is not only irrelevant to them but also to the public when they are responding to calls for help and service.”
Mr Kelly said he is “bluntly" making the call for people to do “their bit in a more vocal and assertive way to promote a career in policing”.
"Too often, there’s a rush to criticise, but when it comes to giving wholehearted encouragement and unequivocal endorsement of a career in policing, quite a few usually vocal spokespeople develop a case of laryngitis,” he said.
He added that some can “only be heard when bemoaning, criticising and condemning”, and should “take the principled step to end half-hearted support for policing; it’s time for all of them to get off the fence”.
Devolution ‘disastrous’ for policing
Mr Kelly also went on to say: “Devolution was meant to be a boost, a better way of delivering accountable government.
"In our experience, instead of being a positive step, it has been disastrous.”
That is because “policing has struggled to make it on to the agenda” in the Executive “in any meaningful way,” whilst Westminster has “washed its hands” of the issue of policing.
He spoke about policing numbers, saying that in November 2001 there were around 7,500 full-time officers serving a population of 1.69 million people, but “today, with a population now exceeding 1.93 million, the actual number of officers disgracefully stands at 6,315” (and that “when you remove student officers from this total, the figure slides down towards 6,000”).
Mr Kelly also said that the legacy of the Troubles “continues to be a millstone” around the force’s neck, and that the total bill for handling historic cases “could top £875m, with a significant amount of that expected to be going into the coffers of legal firms”.
On the exit of Marie Anderson as Police Ombudsman, he said “it is no secret we had a difficult, tense relationship, specifically with her, and we eagerly await the appointment of her successor to see if those burnt bridges can be rebuilt”.
He also praised the BBC’s recent documentary Peelers for showing the danger which officers face, and made reference to the justice minister’s plans to introduce legislation “to provide for higher sentences for assaults on any person who is providing services to the public”.
Mr Kelly criticised the idea of “amalgamating our officers into a wider group of public-facing workers,” adding: “All assaults are wrong but, with the greatest respect, we strongly feel that an assault on, for example, a retail security guard, cannot on any level be legally assessed of being equated with attacking a police officer doing their duty.”
The Police Federation is the de facto trade union to which all officers belong, though they cannot take industrial action.
£40m paid out in PSNI data breach with hundreds of claims still to come
CONOR SHEILS, Irish News, May 20th, 2026
AROUND £40 million in compensation has been paid to over 5,000 police officers and staff caught up in the 2023 PSNI data breach – but the cost to the public purse looks set to spiral as hundreds of claims still remain unresolved.
Belfast firm Edwards Solicitors has confirmed that payments of £7,500 each were processed in re-cent days to clients who accepted a Universal Offer made by the PSNI.
Police Federation for Northern Ireland chair Liam Kelly welcomed the payouts, describing the action as “of historic proportions”.
“We worked hard with our legal representatives to get this compensation across the line. Under the terms of what was agreed, each officer will receive £7,500,“ he said.
“The sums were processed on Friday and yesterday (Monday) and for the vast majority of officers, this brings to an end a legal action of historic proportions.
“I’m grateful to all who invested time and effort in agreeing the scale of compensation and the speedy manner in which payment was delivered. I particularly welcome the fact that the PSNI made a Universal Offer that greatly helped to accelerate payment.
Compensation has been paid to over 5,000 police officers and staff caught up in the 2023 PSNI data breach
“There are other claims still to be processed where personal circumstances were different involving officers who could be more readily identified or worked in sensitive roles in the service.
“This will come as enormous relief to thousands of colleagues who had the worry of personal security for themselves and their loved ones.”
The August 2023 breach occurred when a junior PSNI staff member accidentally published a spreadsheet in response to a Freedom of Information request.
A hidden tab within the file contained the surnames, initials, ranks, roles and service numbers of all 9,483 serving officers and civilian staff — around 345,000 pieces of personal information.
Dissident republicans were subsequently confirmed to have accessed the data, with 300 attempts made to view it before it was removed.
In the aftermath, officers reported significant stress and security concerns, with some relocating and others installing additional home security.
Rachel Powderly, representing Edwards Solicitors, said the case was groundbreaking in its scale.
“The prospect of dealing with the claims on a case-by-case basis was neither realistic nor practical. This would have prolonged matters for years with no guarantee of outcomes,” she said.
But the £40 million paid out in recent days represents only part of the picture.
£119 million ring fenced
The executive ring-fenced £119 million from its budget to cover the total costs of the breach including compensation, legal fees and associated expenses after the UK Treasury declined to cover the costs.
Several hundred claims still remain live for officers who declined the Universal Offer.
Mr Kelly said those involve officers “who could be more readily identified or worked in sensitive roles in the service” – individuals whose circumstances mean the flatrate settlement was considered inadequate.
Ms Powderly acknowledged the £7,500 figure could not resolve every case.
“We were always clear that there could be no ‘one size fits all’ approach to settlement, but this compensation figure has been accepted as fair and reasonable for the majority of those affected,” she said.
The PSNI has accepted liability for the breach.
The police force declined to comment further when contacted by The Irish News, citing ongoing proceedings.
‘Nothing off the table’ in responding to Celtic disorder
CRAIG PATON, Irish News, May 20th, 2026
NOTHING is off the table in the Scottish Government’s response to the disorder of Celtic fans, Justice Secretary Angela Constance has said.
Thousands of fans descended on the Trongate area of Glasgow on Saturday to celebrate the side’s 3-1 win over Hearts which won the league on the final day. According to Ms Constance, more than 900 police officers were called in to deal with the unrest, with two sustaining serious injuries.
Responding to an urgent question on the issue, Ms Constance said government, footballing authorities, clubs and councils should “step up” to deal with what is becoming a recurring issue, particularly in Scotland’s biggest city.
“My view is that, now, nothing should be off the table,” she said.
“I will do what I can within my powers, as will any minister in this government, but no solution should be off the table. We need to get on the same page and prevent that disorder from happening in the first place.”
She urged all of those involved in stemming similar disorder to “get a grip and get on the same page”.
The two officers who were seriously injured were attacked, according to reports, while providing medical help to a member of the public.
Ms Constance was blunt as she addressed those who had not yet been arrested for crime perpetrated as part of the disorder.
“It is important that we all work together to ensure that police do indeed have the tools of the trade,” she said.
“Our police force, I have to put on record and commend them, are very good at following up on disorder. Those who think they have walked off free, should just be wary of any celebration, because I know that Police Scotland will leave no stone unturned in bringing those people who have been on the wrong side of the law to justice.”
Scottish Labour MSP Paul Sweeney told the BBC that Glasgow City Council should create nearby fan zones to divert supporters away from the celebrations which have become a regular feature when Celtic win the league, causing damage and unrest in the city centre.
The council, however, dismissed the entreaties from Mr Sweeney, but Ms Constance appeared to agree, telling the Labour MSP: “I have to respectfully disagree with some commentary from Glasgow City Council.”
Heads of state lead by example on Anglo-Irish relationships
Pro Fide et Patria, Irish News, May 20th, 2026
THE relationship between Ireland and Britain has taken many twists and turns since the Anglo-Irish Treaty ended the War of Independence in 1921, but it is fair to say that it has seldom been stronger and more positive than it is today.
It was entirely appropriate that President Catherine Connolly took the opportunity provided by her meeting with King Charles at Buckingham Palace on Monday to extend an invitation for a state visit to Ireland next year, which she said he had “graciously accepted”.
The formal engagement for the King comes after his late mother, Queen Elizabeth, made the same trip 15 years ago this week, in historic circumstances .
“ It was entirely appropriate that President Catherine Connolly took the opportunity provided by her meeting with King Charles at Buckingham Palace on Monday to extend an invitation for a state visit to Ireland next year which emphasised the warmth of the understanding which has developed between the neighbouring countries.
Her arrival in 2011 was the first by a British monarch since the initiative involving her grandfather, George V, a century earlier, five years before the Easter Rising and when the whole of Ireland was still part of the United Kingdom.
There were many uncertainties about how her four-day programme would unfold, but it turned out to be memorable at every level, with the obvious spirit of mutual respect with her host, President Mary McAleese, a key factor throughout.
The queen’s speech at an official dinner in Dublin Castle made a significant impact, particularly when she offered her deep sympathy to everyone who had suffered during the enduring conflict between Britain and Ireland.
She opened her landmark address, which lasted more than eight minutes, by saying in Irish ‘Uachtaráin agus a chairde’, and displaying a sensitivity over cultural issues which appears to be beyond the grasp of some of those who would claim to her most loyal subjects north of the border.
Her itinerary remarkably included a wreath-laying ceremony at the Garden of Remembrance in Dublin to honour those who died for Irish freedom, as well as a trip to the headquarters of the GAA at Croke Park which was also rich with symbolism.
The same parity of esteem was very much in evidence during the inaugural state visit to Britain by President Michael D Higgins in 2014, and was also present in Belfast yesterday when King Charles recognised the importance of the city hosting Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann for the first time later this year.
No-one would pretend that tensions between the Dublin and London governments, including over legacy questions, are confined to the past, and the debate over a possible Irish unity referendum remains very much on the agenda, but the maturity and thoughtfulness of successive heads of state on both sides of the Irish Sea has already taken us a long way and more is capable of being achieved.
Burnham could beat Farage in UK general election, poll suggests
KATE DEVLIN, Belfast Telegraph, May 20th, 2026
Andy Burnham has a better chance than Keir Starmer of winning a general election against Nigel Farage's Reform UK, new polling suggests.
The Greater Manchester mayor beats the Reform UK leader in head-to-head polls by 14 percentage points, pollsters More in Common (MIC) found.
The findings will be a boost to Mr Burnham's supporters, who argue that he has to replace Mr Starmer to prevent Mr Farage becoming prime minister.
But MIC also warned that a potentially “dangerous” Brexit row within Labour could cost Mr Burnham his chances of winning the Makerfield by-election, where he has been chosen as Labour's candidate, and with it the chance to challenge Mr Starmer for the keys to 10 Downing Street.
In order to have a chance at the Labour leadership, Mr Burnham must first win the parliamentary seat, which voted to leave the EU in 2016 and where the other front-runner is the pro-Brexit Reform UK.
Labour has moved the writ for the election, firing the starting gun for a contest likely to be held on June 18.
In a briefing on this month's election results, which triggered the crisis in Labour's leadership, Luke Tryl from MIC said that in a straight head-to-head, Mr Burnham would beat Mr Farage by 14 percentage points, albeit with “lots of don't knows”.
Mr Burnham also performed about 10 points better than Mr Starmer against Mr Farage. But Mr Tryl said: “This is a hypothetical. One thing always to remember is [as Mr Burnham has done in Manchester] when people go outside of Westminster, they tend to do better. But he performs about 10 points better than the prime minister against Farage.”
A head-to-head poll also does not capture how voters would vote in a potential general election where they would also be judged on their party's record and manifesto. However, it is likely to be seized on by Mr Burnham's supporters as evidence that he would have more chance of beating Mr Farage and Reform UK than Mr Starmer.
Labour's internal war over rejoining the EU risks costing Mr Burnham his hopes of returning to parliament, Mr Tryl said. Makerfield's Leave vote in 2016 makes it a “prime Reform target” and a seat “which is tailor-made” for Mr Farage's party, he said.
But, he added, a “Burnham bounce”, based on his personal popularity, was worth an estimated 20 points in the polls, making him the “narrow” favourite to win the constituency next month.
However, there remained a “big question about Brexit, and how much does it hurt” candidates, Mr Tryl added, as he emphasised the importance of what the current row within Labour signifies.
“If looking at rejoin is taken as a sign [by voters in Makerfield] that people in Westminster and the Labour Party, in particular, have now decided to move on from the lessons of the 2016 vote, that is more dangerous,” he said. (© The Independent)
Donaldson trial ‘on track’ to start next week, judge says
FREYA McCLEMENTS, Irish Times, May 20th, 2026
The trial of former DUP leader Jeffrey Donaldson (pictured) on charges of sexual offences is “on track” to begin next week, the judge in the case has said.
During a brief hearing at Newry Crown Court yesterday, Judge Paul Ramsey said his “intention” was to begin swearing in the jury next Tuesday.
Both the prosecution and defence confirmed they were ready for the case to start.
Jeffrey Donaldson (63), with an address in Dromore, Co Down, previously pleaded not guilty to 18 offences – one count of rape, four of gross indecency with or towards a child and 13 counts of indecent assault on a female, on dates between 1987 and 2008.
His wife Eleanor Donaldson (59), of the same address, faces five counts of aiding and abetting in connection with the charges faced by her husband. She denies the charges.
The couple were not in court yesterday as neither defendant was required to attend. The trial, which was due to begin in March 2025, has already been postponed twice due to a deterioration in the mental health of Eleanor Donaldson.
Rents surged by highest level on record after new rules
COLIN GLEESON, Irish Times, May 20th, 2026
Rents grew by 4.4% between December and March, Daft.ie report finds
Rents saw the largest quarterly increase on record after they surged by 4.4 per cent between December and March as the Government’s new rent control system came into effect, a new Daft.ie report shows.
The biggest shake-up of rent regulations in a decade came into force at the start of March when landlords were permitted to reset rents to market rates in between tenancies.
The new rules, which overhauled what had been existing rent pressure zone legislation, mean landlords can increase rents by 2 per cent or the rate of inflation, whichever is lower. Tenants now also enjoy greater security of tenure, with new six-year tenancies of “minimum duration”.
The report from property group Daft.ie showed rents rose as much as they did over the whole of 2025 between December and March, climbing 40 per cent above pre-Covid levels, 75 per cent above their Celtic Tiger peak and 81 per cent higher than 10 years ago.
Annual rent inflation rose to 7.8 per cent in the quarter – a rate last seen in August 2023, and up from 4.1 per cent a year ago. The average monthly rent nationwide for a two-bedroom apartment was €2,176.
In the cities, rents were up 18 per cent year-on-year in Galway, 13 per cent in Cork, 10 per cent in Limerick, 8 per cent in Waterford and 6.9 per cent in Dublin.
Outside the cities, the rate of rent inflation was close to 8 per cent in Leinster, Munster and in Connacht-Ulster.
The increase in rents since Covid has been uneven across the country, up 23 per cent in Dublin but 86 per cent in Connacht-Ulster.
Trinity College Dublin economics professor Ronan Lyons, who wrote the report, said the surge in rents over the quarter “stands out” even against the volatility seen during the pandemic and the inflationary period of 2022.
“This sharp surge in rents coincides with the new rent control system,” he said. “A key feature of the new rules is the ability to reset rents to market levels when a tenancy ends.
“For landlords whose rents had been constrained by earlier rules, this represents an opportunity to realign rents with prevailing market conditions. The scale of the increase suggests this opportunity has been taken up widely, where tenancies have recently turned over.”
The report also showed there were 2,374 homes available to rent nationwide on May 1st, which represented a reduction of 4 per cent from a year previous, but an increase on the 1,200 homes that were available on January 1st.
Third lowest availability
It was also the third lowest availability total for the start of May since the series began in 2006. Availability remains well below pre-pandemic norms when there were typically over 4,000 homes to rent at any one time.
Lyons said the overall availability of rental housing remains “very limited”, with the result being the price effects of the new system have appeared “more quickly and more clearly than any increase in supply”.
“It remains to be seen whether the new framework will influence investment and supply decisions – the initial impact has been to bring about an increase in market rents larger than any seen over the past 25 years,” he said.
Commenting on the report, Sinn Féin housing spokesperson Eoin Ó Broin said the “dramatic surge in market rents is a direct consequence of the Government’s decision to allow landlords to reset rents between tenancies” and called for an immediate ban on rent increases.
He said renters were already struggling with rising food and energy costs.
All not so quiet on the Western Front – the 16th Division’s fate in trenches
Denis McClean, Irish Times, May 17th, 2026
May 1916 was a tough month for hundreds if not thousands of Irish families coming to terms with the loss of a loved one.
Many died on the streets of Dublin during the short-lived Easter week rebellion. As the executions of the rebel leaders got under way, telegrams were arriving by the score to all corners of the country advising that a loved one had died on the Western Front.
My great-grandparents, Kate and John McGreal, received one such telegram informing them that their 20-year-old son, Patrick, had died on Saturday, April 29th, the day Patrick Pearse surrendered.
He had been encouraged as a Waterford teenager by his local MP John Redmond to join up in support of Home Rule and “a just war”. Patrick probably read Redmond’s September 1914 speech to the Irish Volunteers at Woodenbridge, Co Wicklow, in the local Munster Express.
“It would be a disgrace forever to our country, and a reproach to her manhood, and a denial of the lessons of her history, if young Ireland confined their efforts to remaining at home to defend the shores of Ireland from an unlikely invasion, and shrunk from the duty of proving on the field of battle that gallantry and courage which has distinguished her race through all its history,” said Redmond.
Stirring words to the teenager who duly enrolled in the 8th Battalion of the Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers to become part of the 16th Irish Division. After initial training in Fermoy, he left Ireland for good in September 1915 for a further three months’ training in England.
According to the Western Front Association, the training was poor and “consisted of route marching and limited target practice – and weapons were in short supply”. After a royal inspection by Queen Mary on December 2nd, they sailed for France on December 18th.
He spent his first Christmas away from home camped out in a sea of mud on the infamous Loos salient in northern France.
The 16th Division was under the command of Maj Gen William Hickie, a Tipperary man who supported Home Rule and would become a member of Seanad Éireann. Hickie reported to a staunch Ulster Unionist, Sir Henry Wilson (assassinated by the IRA in 1922), who inspected what he called “Johnnie Redmond’s pets” a few days before Christmas.
Hickie agreed with him that he had “a political division of riff-raff Redmondites” on his hands.
20,000 dead
The early months of 1916 were spent preparing the 16th Division for trench warfare. They were deployed to the Hulluch area, which was still scattered with human remains from the Battle of Loos fought over two weeks in September and October 1915.
Loos was the first major action of the war in which the British used poison gas but with such incompetence that many of their own soldiers died in this new “fog” of war.
The experience of the battle haunted Robert Graves. He recalled in Goodbye to All That, “shells used to come bursting on my bed at midnight ... strangers during daytime would assume the faces of friends who had been killed”.
The Donegal writer Patrick MacGill served in Loos as a stretcher-bearer and wrote afterwards that war was “an approved licence for brotherly mutilation”.
The first inkling that something terrible was about to befall the 16th Division came on the night of April 23rd when a German deserter brought news of an impending gas attack. Swarms of rats invaded no man’s land as they escaped gas leaks in the German trenches.
Patrick survived the first attack on April 27th when the Germans bombarded the Irish lines at dawn and released chlorine gas mixed with smoke. The wind changed direction and blew the gas back into the German trenches. An assault was repulsed and the attack ended.
His luck ran out two days later when the German gas was carried over to the Irish lines on a light breeze and hovered over the trenches, with deadly effect.
Fr Willie Doyle, an army chaplain from Dalkey, gave an unsparing account of the aftermath in a letter home to his father.
“There they lay, scores of them (we lost 800, nearly all from gas) in the bottom of the trench, in every conceivable posture of human agony; the clothes torn off their bodies in a vain effort to breathe while from end to end of that valley of death came one long unceasing moan from the lips of brave men fighting and struggling for life.”
Doyle had himself been caught in a gas attack during the Battle of Loos and was mentioned in dispatches for his bravery. He was killed in action the following year while administering the sacraments to wounded and dying soldiers.
Patrick’s parents and seven siblings were spared the details of how he died but were simply informed by telegram that he had “succumbed to his wounds” on that dreadful day.
Patrick’s name is among those of the 20,000-war dead on the Loos Memorial. While to this day, bodies are still being recovered in the land around the Lille suburb of Loos, as far as we know Patrick’s body has never been recovered.
LETTERS, Irish News, May 20th, 2026
War in Ukraine essential to Europe’s political narrative
WHOEVER replaces Starmer as PM, Britain’s political and economic strategy will remain unchanged. Britain, in conjunction with their European counterparts, aim to establish a military build-up not seen since World War II. Most important for Europe is for the war in Ukraine to continue at all cost. This war is essential to Europe’s political narrative, that there is a threat from Russia and to justify Europe’s military build-up.
Germany will be central to Europe’s rearmament, the largest since the 1930s. Germany aims to almost double its “defence” (war) budget from today’s €150bn. Car manufacturers are to cut production towards developing new weapons systems. Conscription will be introduced to 18 to 26-year-olds – all at a cost of slashing welfare and pensions.
Under the UK’s strategic defence review 2025, Britain will increase military spending from £62bn to £73bn by the end of the decade.
There will be £15bn towards new nuclear warheads, 12 conventional nuclear submarines, 7,000 longrange weapons, upgrade Typhoons, increase troops to 76,000, and £400m to invest in UK weapons companies.
Despite Europe’s economies being on the brink of recession, the only way out of their crisis is war.
They are quite prepared to engage in a third world war in order save the imperialist/capitalist system.
For the people in the UK and Europe, stopping the strategic war aims of their governments is central to world security.
HARRY HUTCHINSON, Mid Ulster Trade Union Council
An unpalletable truth - Truth about the pallet business
MY big brother was a trier. An experienced HGV driver, he would often deviate from his chosen profession to flights of fancy to make his first million. One such venture was pallets.
To give him his dues, he knew his way around a HGV lorry and had years of experience of transport, logistics and warehouses.
He acquired the necessary curtain-sided lorry and that was the start and finish of six months of wheeling and dealing in the pallet business.
Workshops across all counties bought damaged pallets and repaired them and resold them in what was a very lucrative business.
While every man was for himself, two pallet manufacturers’ goods were off limits – Canadian company Chep (who make blue pallets) and French-founded company LPR (coloured red) – the simple reason being that their business model is rental: you can’t buy red or blue pallets.
A transport company pays a monthly rental charge and has access to pallets worldwide. You’re a member of the ‘club’. So what’s my point?
Next time you see the hundreds of bonfires sites scattered across the six counties, take note that every red and blue pallet is stolen. The Irish News headline (May 12) prompted me to opine.
I don’t expect the young, impressionable builders to have morals as to the legality of their bonfire material but loyalist politicians’ silence is deafening, while the PSNI navel-gaze.
PAUL LIVINGSTONE, Belfast BT11
