Sinn Féin MP Mickey Brady has welcomed the release of heating grants this month to vulnerable citizens. The Newry and Armagh MP said, “This month has seen the beginning of £200 heating grants being paid directly into accounts of vulnerable citizens. “I want to commend Communities Minister Deirdre Hargey for her […]
Fisheries Minister Edwin Poots MLA wants NI fishermen to get their fair share of additional fishing quota secured by the UK from the EU. The Department of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) has recently closed a consultation seeking views on how additional fishing quota secured from the EU might be distributed […]
Economy Minister Diane Dodds has announced over £1million of funding for the Health Innovation Research Alliance Northern Ireland (HIRANI). HIRANI works closely with Northern Ireland’s two universities, public sector bodies and local industry to act as one voice to enable the life and health sciences sector to collectively promote and strategically position itself […]
New figures from the Public Health Agency (PHA) show that the Take Home Naloxone programme saw naloxone administered 180 times in 2019-20 and was successful in reversing an opiate overdose in over 91% of cases. Naloxone, supplied in a small syringe, is injected intramuscularly and can be administered by anyone in an emergency […]
The introduction of rapid testing for Northern Ireland hauliers heading to France has been welcomed by Health Minister Robin Swann and Infrastructure Minister Nichola Mallon. With immediate effect, freight drivers are able to book online to access the established asymptomatic test sites at Queen’s University (Whitla Hall) and Ulster University (Belfast, Jordanstown, Coleraine […]
The USPCA has launched its latest fundraising challenge ‘Trek for Tails’ which encourages the public to put on their walking shoes and clock up the miles on their favourite local walking route, in a bid to raise vital funds for the charity. Participants are invited to select one of the challenge’s four targets […]
Health Minister Robin Swann has announced additional funding of £1.65m for hospices in Northern Ireland. The funding, which is non-recurrent, is part of additional Covid-19 funding for 2020/21. This is in recognition of the impact of Covid-19 and the additional costs that hospices face as they continue to provide palliative and […]
Communities Minister Deirdre Hargey has confirmed that she is allocating an additional £150,000 to Business Improvement Districts (BIDS) to assist them with their operational costs. This latest announcement brings the total additional investment in BIDs throughout the pandemic to £450,000. BIDs are developed, managed and paid for by the business sector. […]
A review of the alternative awarding arrangements for CCEA qualifications in summer 2020 series has been published. The report, which was produced by Deloitte, highlights a number of key findings and is available on the Department’s website. Education Minister, Peter Weir said, “I welcome the publication of this review and the […]
Slieve Gullion Cllr Oonagh Magennis has expressed ‘serious concern’ that DAERA has not bid to the Department for Finance for any of the additional COVID funding which was announced by the Finance Minister. “At the recent committee, Sinn Fein’s Agricultural spokesperson, Declan McAleer MLA, asked what bids the Department had made in response […]
