Other News In Brief

Alliance Calls For Urgent Clarification On NI Budgets

Alliance has called for urgent clarification on budgets for the forthcoming financial year after a major charity placed their employment services staff on 30-day redundancy notice.

Mencap NI took the decision to inform the employment services staff, who train people with disabilities to support them into work, they will be made unemployed from March 31 due to the lack of information from local Departments or the UK Government's Shared Prosperity Fund on the charity's funding from April 1.

Strangford MLA Kellie Armstrong, Chair of the Assembly's All-Party Group on Learning Disabilities, said it was disgraceful Mencap had been forced into the move.

"The last thing Mencap wanted to do was to put staff in this horrendous and upsetting situation, or to leave so many people with learning disabilities with no support in only a few weeks," she said.

"Northern Ireland has the highest level of unemployment of people with disabilities. For months I have listened to officials from the Department for Communities talk about how we need to help them into employment. Yet here we are with one of the largest employment support services preparing to make this move, closing the door on a major support mechanism to do exactly that.

"Those stopping the restoration of the Executive need to get real. This impasse is leading to job losses and the removal of fundamental support for the most vulnerable people in society. It is disgraceful Mencap has been forced into this move.

"Everyone was aware the ending of the European Social Fund due to Brexit would be a disaster and we're now seeing the outworkings of that, with vital services being ripped away. The Secretary of State and Departmental Permanent Secretaries need to come together to put a funding plan in place, in order to prevent hundreds of people with learning disabilities from being disadvantaged."

43-Year-Old Charged Over £300,000 Cannabis Seizure

A 43-year-old mans has been charged in connection with the seizure of suspected cannabis worth an estimated £300,000 in south Belfast.

The seizure was made during the search of a car that was stopped in Harberton Drive on Saturday 25 February.

The man was charged with a number of offences including possession of a suspected class B controlled drug and possession of a suspected class B controlled drug with intent to supply.

Ulster Bank Return Are Sponsor For 2023 Balmoral Show

Ulster Bank has announced its return as principal sponsor for the 2023 Balmoral Show.

2023 will mark the 14th year for Ulster Bank at the helm of the event which will come to life at Balmoral Park, Lisburn from 10-13 May 2023, offering a celebration of the very best in food, farming, and rural life.

With less than 100 days until the show, representatives from Ulster Bank and the Royal Ulster Agricultural Society (RUAS), gathered to make the announcement and officially kickstart the countdown to this year’s event.

Visitors can expect the usual mix of live music, shopping opportunities, and the chance to sample some of the region’s finest food and drink over a jam-packed four days.

As always, agricultural and livestock displays will take centre stage with world-class livestock displays, shearing spectacles, equestrian competitions, machinery exhibits and rural demonstrations.

2023 will also see the return of some of the show’s most popular attractions including the hotly contested best-dressed competition and the healthy horticulture village which showcases the very best of Northern Ireland produce.

Rhonda Geary, Operations Director with RUAS said, "With less than three months to go until we open the gates to the 154th Balmoral Show, plans are well underway to build on the success of last year and grow the event even further.

"In 2022, we had over 100,00 visitors attend the show from all over Northern Ireland and beyond and we are confident that this year’s programme will attract an even bigger audience across the four days with so much to see and do for families, foodies, and farmers alike.

"With the support of our partners in Ulster Bank, we are focusing heavily on making this year’s Balmoral Show the most sustainable event to date and are looking forward to showcasing all of our enhanced environmental features as the agrifood industry comes together to support this mission."

Cormac McKervey, Senior Agriculture Manager with Ulster Bank, said that Ulster Bank was proud to support the Balmoral Show once again.

"The Balmoral Show is the biggest event in the local agri calendar, and it is as important as ever that we come together as an industry to celebrate and recognise the enormous contribution this sector makes to the local economy.

"Ulster Bank has been principal sponsor of the Balmoral Show since 2009 and while there has been lots of changes to the show and the industry during this time, our message to farmers has remained the same. We want to support our local agri sector and have the tools and expertise required to champion this potential.

"We are ready to work with the team at RUAS to ensure that this year’s Balmoral Show is a memorable one and hope to provide a place for famers and producers to come together and share experiences over the course of the four days in May."