Other NI News In Brief

Postal Strike 'Disputed'

The Communication Workers Union has said that postal staff voted three to one in favour of national strike action, with 61,623 out of a total of 80,830 workers who voted saying they wanted to strike. However, Royal Mail said almost six out of 10 of the total number of postal workers across the UK did not in fact vote to strike. Management also "condemned" the plan to strike as "deplorable and irresponsible", saying it would drive away customers and undermine confidence in the postal service. See: Vote For Mail Strike Questioned

Road Death Sadness

SDLP Newtownbutler councillor Fergus McQuillan has offered his sympathies to the family of Ryan Parker, 20, who was killed in a one-vehicle motorcycle collision on the town's Concession Road on Wednesday evening. Police said his black Suzuki motorcycle was the only vehicle involved in the accident and are keen to hear from anyone who saw it travelling from Clones towards Newtownbutler. Cllr McQuillan, a friend of the Parker family, said: "I am deeply saddened by the untimely death of Ryan Parker and wish to offer my condolences to his family and friends. This is a terrible tragedy for the Newtownbutler area. Mr Parker was well-known and well thought of and had the rest of his life to look forward to and enjoy."

Blaze Site 'Illegal'

The tyre depot near Londonderry where a fire has been burning since Sunday night was storing them illegally. It did not have the licence required by environmental law to store a large number of tyres. The BBC has reported that before the fire broke out, a criminal investigation was already being held into why so many tyres were being stored there. Firefighters arriving to tackle the blaze on Sunday found four separate fires across the one-acre site. It is thought as many as half a million tyres were being stored there.

Adams Wants 'Truth'

The Sinn Féin President Gerry Adams has launched the party's proposals on 'Truth Recovery'. Mr Adams said that he would call on Republicans to participate and play a full role in an Independent International Truth Commission. "Sinn Féin have long called for the establishment of an Independent International Truth Commission to deal with the causes and consequences of the conflict. The proposed 'Legacy Commission' is not an independent international truth recovery process," he said, suggesting it has to have the confidence of the community. "It needs to be independent of the State, combatant groups, political parties, civil society and economic interests," he insisted, yesterday.

Cottage Industry

Established with support from Invest Northern Ireland, a development of five-star self-catering cottages close to the Giant's Causeway has achieved almost 100% occupancy in its first summer trading. Situated within the Causeway Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, the three high quality cottages were converted from an original 19th century farm courtyard in a £500,000 investment. They boast uninterrupted sea views and have proved popular with visitors from across the UK, the Republic of Ireland, continental Europe and the USA. Invest NI offered £57,000 towards the investment in Bayview Farm Cottages.

Student Departures Denied

Employment and Learning Minister, Sir Reg Empey, has dismissed claims that there was an 'exodus' of Protestant undergraduates from NI choosing to study elsewhere. Speaking in Parliament Buildings after a motion to discuss the migration of school leavers was dismissed, the Minister said: "We are losing fewer students today than we did 20 years ago. The total numbers of school leavers from Protestant and Catholic communities leaving to study in Great Britain are very similar. In 2006-07 there were 1,137 Protestant and 1,105 Catholic school leavers and in 2007-08 there were 1,142 Protestant and 1,060 Catholic school leavers choosing to study at universities in Great Britain," he said, noting that it is likely that there are now more students from a Catholic background, rather than a Protestant background, choosing to study outside NI.

Aid For Ballymena Estate Project

Around £56,000 has been made available for an Entrance Feature Project in the Ballee area of Ballymena. This project involves the provision of one distinctive entrance feature into the Ballee estate and the erection of seven smaller scale features to define each of the disparate areas within the estate. Announcing the funding, NI Social Development Minister Margaret Ritchie said: "The improvement of social conditions in our most deprived neighbourhoods is essential to the creation of safer environments and shared futures for the local people who live there.

(BMcC/GK)