Other NI News In Brief

Father Bailed Over Son's Murder

The probe into the violent death of 32-year-old Kevin Fletcher, who was found stabbed to death following what police said was a frenzied attack at his flat in Castle Street, Armagh, on 3 September has led to the victim's dad being charged with his killing. His father, also called Kevin, of Drumarg Park, Armagh, spoke only to confirm his name and to say he understood the charges when he appeared in court this morning to be then released on bail to appear in court again later this month. The 60-year-old was arrested in the city on Wednesday morning by officers from the PSNI's Serious Crime Branch and was in the dock in Newry Courthouse on Friday morning.

Basque Peace Sought

A Sinn Féin delegation including MEP Bairbre de Brún and Alex Maskey MLA are in Spain to visit the Basque Country to take soundings on the opportunities presented for developing the peace process following terror group ETA's statement declaring a ceasefire. Speaking from the Basque Country Mr Maskey said: "This visit to the Basque Country is at the invitation of the Abertzale. Sinn Féin has been engaged with the situation in the Basque Country for some time. We are keen to share our experiences of peace building in Ireland with people here and take soundings on the ground in the wake of the recent ETA statement. Our experience is that inclusive dialogue is key to political progress in conflict resolution. In Ireland, that was the point at which progress tilted in the direction of becoming irreversible."

Poots Reveals Recycle Funding.

Stormont Environment Minister Edwin Poots is adding £1million to boost recycling. The funding is for projects that will reduce waste to landfill through recycling or reuse activity. In addition to allocating £2.83million capital funding to the 16 successful recipients of Round 1 of the Rethink Waste fund, the Minister announced an additional £1million for a second round of funding. The Minister made the announcement at the Household Waste Recycling Centre in Ards Borough Council. Ards Borough Council has been offered a grant of £154, 000 to purchase new roll on/roll off skips and compactors to compact timber at a number of Household Waste Recycling Centres in the Council area. This will enable an additional 1,875 tonnes of waste wood to be recycled over three years. It is estimated that the 16 successful projects will divert 12,000 tonnes of waste from landfill each year, which will reduce the burden on ratepayers who would otherwise meet the costs of treating this waste.

NI Students 'Content'

Students in Northern Ireland continue to enjoy a better university experience than their UK counterparts. Results of the sixth National Students Survey once again show that local students believe their overall experience at University to be more satisfying than their United Kingdom counterparts, with 83% of respondents in Northern Ireland being satisfied with their course compared to 82% across the United Kingdom. Responses from the 2010 survey have indicated a rise in student satisfaction at St Mary's University College (94%) and Queen's University Belfast (85%), with St Mary's performance being particularly noteworthy as it was ranked fifth out of 292 UK institutions. Students in Northern Ireland were particularly content with the level of academic support (75%), available learning resources (83%) and personal development (82%).

Eldery Care Fillip

The NI Health Minister Michael McGimpsey has officially opened the new day care facility for elderly people in the Enler centre, Ballybeen. The centre will provide 50 day care places for senior citizens in the area and is the health component of a larger £3.3m community development project. Opening the centre, Mr McGimpsey said: "My department has invested £2million into the Enler Project which will make a tremendous difference to the lives of older people living in the Ballybeen community. The new centre will provide high quality, modern and more accessible facilities for elderly people, especially those with mobility problems." The day centre offers an improved range of services, including hairdressing, laundry facilities, and health promotional activities such as cookery, chiropody and life skills.

Landscape Expert For HLM

HLM Architects has appointed a new landscaping expert in its Belfast office. Jonathan Assorto-McIlwaine has joined the practice from RPS Planning and Environment, also in Belfast, where he was involved in a range of major landscaping projects throughout Ireland, ranging from city centre public realm to large housing developments and motorway construction projects. He has specialised in landscape management and before joining RPS worked at Bradford MDC and McIlwaine Landscape Architects.

(BMcC/KMcA)