Northern Ireland News for July 2012

Northern Ireland News, Jul 31, 2012
McGuinness: 1972 Claudy Attacks Were 'Appalling'
Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness has said the Claudy bombs, which killed nine people exactly 40 years ago, were "appalling" and "wrong". A number of people were also seriously injured in the J...
Northern Ireland News, Jul 31, 2012
Northern Bank Makes Gloomy NI Economy Predictions For 2012
Northern Bank has downgraded its 2012 economic forecasts for Northern Ireland, predicting that the economy here will grow by just 0.1% for the rest of the year. The estimate has dropped from 0.3% aft...
Northern Ireland News, Jul 31, 2012
Antony Gormley's Beckett Tree Is Up In Time For Festival
British sculptor Antony Gormley's latest creation “Tree for Waiting for Godot" has been "planted" in the Grand Yard at Castle Coole, Enniskillen. The“ planting” of “Tree” marks the first event of the...
Northern Ireland News, Jul 31, 2012
'Regulate Psychotherapy' Call From First 2012 Belfast Pride Event
An award-winning journalist has called on the UK government to regulate psychotherapy in a bid to stop controversial gay 'cures'. Patrick Strudwick was speaking at Belfast's Europa Hotel last night. ...
Northern Ireland News, Jul 31, 2012
Former Hunger Striker Wins Contempt Of Court Appeal
Former republican hunger striker has avoided jail after overturning a contempt of court judgement. Thomas McFeely, who was declared bankrupt in Dublin yesterday, successfully appealed the judgement, ...
Northern Ireland News, Jul 31, 2012
A5 Improvement Project Gets Go-Ahead
A £330m roads improvement project for the A5 has been given the green light. Roads minister Danny Kennedy said the project – the longest road scheme ever undertaken in Northern Ireland – could go ahe...
Northern Ireland News, Jul 31, 2012
Drunk Driver Sentence For Trying To Ram Police Car
A drunk driver who tried to ram a police car and then told officers he hoped they were blown up has been banned from driving for five years, the BBC has reported. Carl Dougherty, 29, must also serve ...
Business News, Jul 31, 2012
Byrne Slams AIB Bank Closures
Fianna Fáil Senator Thomas Byrne has said that South Meath has suffered a double blow with the new that two AIB branches are to close. In addition to this thousands of local mortgage holders will b...
Northern Ireland News, Jul 31, 2012
90 Jobs At Risk In Lisburn Bottling Plant
Up to 90 jobs are at risk at a Coca-Cola bottling plant in County Antrim, the BBC has reported. The US-based drinks giant plans to outsource its Northern Ireland distribution to another company, as p...
Recruitment News, Jul 31, 2012
Bridging The Gap For Graduates
Employment and Learning Minister, Dr Stephen Farry, has today acknowledged the success of the Department's Bridge to Employment programme which has seen over 60 non IT graduates recruited to IT positi...
Northern Ireland News, Jul 31, 2012
George Best's Former Home To Be Let Out To Tourists
The childhood home of Northern Ireland's most famous footballing son has been sold and will become a guest house. Visitors will be able to sleep in the small Cregagh bedroom where Best spent his chil...
Northern Ireland News, Jul 31, 2012
Thousands Jailed For Avoiding Court Fines
More than 2,000 people were jailed last year in Northern Ireland for not paying fines. The number of people jailed for missing their payments has risen by 76% in the two years since 2010, when a repo...
Northern Ireland News, Jul 31, 2012
Other NI News In Brief
Author Maeve Binchy Has Died Tributes have poured in to Irish author Maeve Binchy, who has died at the age of 72 after a short illness. Binchy sold more than 40m books in her lifetime, in a t...
UK National News, Jul 31, 2012
Woman Lured Men Into Killing Her Husband
A 45-year-old woman who promised sex to two men if they murdered her husband has been jailed for life. Clifford Collinge, 61, died in October 2011 after suffering 46 injuries. His wife Charlotte Col...
UK National News, Jul 31, 2012
Teenager Arrested After Malicious Olympics Tweets
A teenager was arrested yesterday in connection with abusive and threatening tweets sent to diver Tom Daley. A user under the name @Rileyy_69 sent a string of messages to the 18-year-old diver, who n...
UK National News, Jul 31, 2012
Disabled People Worry About ‘Benefit Scrounger’ Discrimination
With a month to go to until the Paralympics, new research by disability charity Scope shows that almost half (46%) of disabled people feel that attitudes towards them have worsened in the last year. ...
UK National News, Jul 31, 2012
BP Profits Slump
BP has reported a sharp fall in profits in the second quarter of the year. This comes after the oil giant was forced to cut the value of a number of its key assets. The replacement cost profit was $...
UK National News, Jul 31, 2012
Civil Partnerships Booming In UK
The number of civil partnerships in the UK has soared, provisional ONS figures found. Data released by the Office for National Statistics showed that the numbers of people entering into civil partner...
UK National News, Jul 31, 2012
PM Stopped And Asked For ID On Olympics Journey
A soldier on Olympics duty stopped the Prime Minister and asked to see his identification. David Cameron praised the serviceman for being "on his marks" as he made his way back to Downing Street afte...
UK National News, Jul 31, 2012
London 2012 Tube Route Hit By Fire Alert
A vital London Underground line to the Olympic Park has been part-suspended over a fire alert. All services going to Stratford on the Central Line are ending at Liverpool Street due to a fire risk at...
UK National News, Jul 31, 2012
Government 'Failing To Invest' In Diabetic Foot Care
There are over 80 hospitals in England and Wales that do not have the specialist diabetes footcare teams that are widely recognised as being important for preventing diabetes-related amputations. The...
UK National News, Jul 31, 2012
Beattie Thrilled With Olympic Triumph
Six years of sacrifices were validated at Earls Court early on Tuesday morning when Grace Carter's block earned Great Britain's women volleyballers the nation's first-ever Olympic victory. They came ...
UK National News, Jul 31, 2012
Other UK News In Brief
Olympics Chiefs Vow To Catch Cheats Organisers at the London 2012 Olympic Games have said their drugs testing programme is strong, emphasising: "If there are cheats, we will catch them." It c...
UK National News, Jul 30, 2012
Black Footballer Was Racially Victimised, Tribunal Rules
A black football player who was dismissed by his club was racially victimised, a tribunal has ruled. Mark McCammon, 33, claimed Gillingham FC fined him for not showing up in heavy snow and refused to...
UK National News, Jul 30, 2012
Decapitation Brothers Jailed For Life
Two brothers who shot a man dead, decapitated him and set his body on fire have been jailed. The body of John Grainger, 33, was found in Wellington Street in Stockport on January 26. His head was fo...
UK National News, Jul 30, 2012
Policewoman Jailed After Cancer Lies
A police officer who pretended her daughter had cancer in order to take time off work has been jailed for 18 months. Rachel Hewitt, 39, of Ash Grove, South Elmsall, West Yorkshire, admitted fraud and...
UK National News, Jul 30, 2012
Tickets Go 'Back In Pot' After Weekend's Empty Seats
More Olympic tickets will go back on sale after rows of empty seats were visible at the weekend's events. Organisers Locogs said an initial 3,000 tickets - including 600 gymnastics tickets - were "pu...
UK National News, Jul 30, 2012
Reform Calls After Disability Benefit Boom
New figures show six times as many people claim disability benefits as live in Manchester, the Sun newspaper has reported. The record 3,226,790 claimants means 33 new people are signing up for Disabi...
UK National News, Jul 30, 2012
London Olympics Opening Watched By Billions
The Olympics opening ceremony on Friday night was watched by an estimated four billion people around the world. It has been hailed as a low-budget masterpiece in contrast to the mass spectacle that o...
Northern Ireland News, Jul 30, 2012
Shooting Victim 'Issued Death Threat' Before Being Killed
A man who was shot dead alongside his wife had allegedly issued a death threat to one of the people accused of the killings. The High Court heard the allegations, which relate to the deaths of Hugh M...