Spouse Murder Charges

After the shock discovery of a woman's body in Portadown on Friday, the victim's husband has appeared in court in Craigavon charged with her murder. Christopher Harper, 45, from The Manor in Portadown, is accused of killing his 40-year-old wife Suzanne at their home. He made no reply when the charges were put to him and no bail application was made ahead of his next appearance by video link next month.

East Belfast Alert Ends

Twenty people who had to leave their homes after a suspicious object was discovered at Campbell Park Avenue in east Belfast have now been allowed back after a midnight security alert was declared an elaborate hoax. The item, which was found close to a house, was examined by army bomb experts and the people were able to return to their homes between about 4am. East Belfast Alliance MP Naomi Long has condemned those behind the incident: "Hoax alerts like this cause real disruption and the actions of those behind them are extremely irresponsible. It is despicable that people had to leave their homes because of this and it must have been very distressing for residents in the area. I would appeal to anyone who can help police with their investigation into this to contact them immediately," she said.

Crash Victim 'Critical'

An accident involving a car and a motorcycle on Main Road in Cloughey shortly before 3pm on Sunday has left two people seriously injured. A woman, who is believed to have been the pillion passenger on the motorbike, is in a critical condition in hospital with "life-threatening injuries". The man who was riding the bike was also seriously injured, while the woman driving the car suffered minor injuries.

Parade Anger

Sinn Fein are to meet the police to discuss their concerns about the policing of a loyalist parade in Rasharkin on Friday night. Police re-routed the contentious parade without it being cleared by the Parades Commission. It happened after the parade was initially delayed by nearly three hours because of a security alert. The police said they reversed the route of the parade to prevent further delays.

Paddy's Trail Boosted

Down District is set to receive £7 million worth of additional investment to make improvements to the area's renowned St Patrick Christian Heritage Trail. As part of the project Down District Council has been asked to contribute up to £200,000 towards the cost, which will include improvements to Saul Church, Slieve Patrick, the Saint Patrick Centre, Down Cathedral, the Down County Museum, Saint Patrick's Grace, the Down Arts Centre, the Downpatrick and Ardglass Railway and Downpatrick Cultural Development Plan.

Bid For Offaly Airport Project

Construction jobs will be 'flying' into Co Offaly soon as Dublin and district benefits from the construction of another airport. A plan to build an international airport in Co Offaly has cleared the first hurdle after a decision by An Bord Pleanála to grant it strategic infrastructure status. The decision means the developers of the proposed airport at Tubber will be able to apply directly to the planning board and will not have to submit an initial application to the local authorities. The planned €200 million development, 20km east of Athlone and 80km west of Dublin, is a private initiative led by Tullamore-based architect, Patrick Little.

Quarry Pollution Fine

A Co Armagh quarry business was fined £750 plus £31 court costs at Armagh Magistrates' Court last week. George Emerson, c/o Norman Emerson Group Ltd, Ardmore Road, Derryadd, Craigavon, was fined for making a polluting discharge to a waterway. On 17 November 2009, a Water Quality Inspector, acting on behalf of the Northern Ireland Environment Agency, observed a waterway severely polluted with suspended solids. The source of the polluting discharge was traced to the Emerson Group quarry at Lisbane, Tandragee.

Carrick YMCA Gets Boost

Tenders are now being sought by the YMCA for the construction of a new premises in the seaside town of Carrickfergus. The new building will be in Irish Quarter West and will include a single-storey general activities hall and two ground floor shop units as part of a three-storey elevation. The contract period is anticipated to be 12 months commencing in November 2010.

(BMcC/GK)