Other News In Brief

Taggart Homes To Build 41 Apartments In L'Derry

Derry City and Strabane District Council has approved Taggart Homes' plan to build 41 new apartments in the Crescent Link area of the city.

The apartment block building will be located on the site of Target Homes' Marketing Suite which is situated to the North West of the Crescent Link Road. The site is part of the larger zone housing lands at Crescent Link known as Housing Zone H27 in the Derry Area Plan 2011.

Planning approval was previously granted on lands within the zone which include the now completed 331 residential units in a mix of detached and semi-detached homes, apartments and several neighbourhood shops.

The Marketing Suite to sell those units had a temporary planning permission which expires in January 2024.

Planning Committee Chair, Councillor Sean Mooney, said:

"This application is within the H27 zoned housing lands which has been developed into a settled and safe community since it was first defined in the Derry Area Plan 2011," he said.

"The addition of 41 new apartments to the area will help meet the high demand for private accommodation in the city, close to amenities with accessibility and convenience to one of the main arterial road routes to and from the city.

"Apartments offer an alternative to homes for people who live alone, couples and smaller families and I expect the units in the finished project to be in high demand."

Stanley Park To Be Redeveloped

Lisburn & Castlereagh City Council has announced that Stanley Park will be redeveloped which will increase leisure opportunities and boost grassroots youth and adult football.

The improvement works will include the refurbishment of the existing football pitch, buildings and clubhouse to provide a brand new facility including a community hub building and parking. An Irish Football Association (IFA) standard 3G playing surface with floodlighting is also part of the plan as well as a dedicated training and play area at the west of the site.

Alderman Martin Gregg, Chair of Lisburn & Castlereagh City Council's Planning Committee said: "This is really positive news for the people of Lisburn and Castlereagh. The area has helped produce top-quality players over the years, including the likes of Paul Ferris.

"By investing in Stanley Park and providing enhanced facilities, we hope it will become a hub for football, sport, leisure and entertainment, providing better opportunities for grassroots football, supporting jobs and bringing more people into the city centre.

"Grassroots football is the lifeblood of the sport. By providing the right facilities and extending opening hours, we are able to offer the perfect place for more young people to get involved in the sport providing health and wellbeing opportunities as well as fostering new talent and creating the football stars of the future."

SDLP Slams Home Secretary's 'Aggressive Ignorance'

SDLP Leader Colum Eastwood MP has said that British Home Secretary Suella Braverman’s comments comparing armistice day marches to parading in Northern Ireland display an ‘aggressive ignorance’ that makes her unfit for the office she holds.

Mr Eastwood described the article in The Times as 'a pound shop Enoch Powell piece'.

He said: "I have worked with British Home Secretaries with whom I have the most fundamental political differences, people who I disagree with on virtually every issue imaginable, but I haven’t doubted that in spite of our differences they were motivated by that they thought was right. I honestly can’t say the same for Suella Braverman.

"The Home Secretary's comments in an article in The Times today are so far removed from reality that it is impossible to come to any determination other than she is deliberately stoking division to bolster her own brand among the Conservative Party's right wing. It's honestly like reading a pound shop Enoch Powell piece.

"The comments comparing the proposed Armistice Day protests against the appalling bombardment of civilians in Gaza with the marching tradition in Northern Ireland are an exercise in what can only be described as aggressive ignorance. Ignorance of the conditions faced by the civilian population in Gaza, ignorance of the role of the Met police, ignorance of the complex history and traditions of marching and protest in Northern Ireland. She has managed to offend just about everyone - no mean feat in a divided society.

"The comments are far below the standard that should be expected from a senior government Minister. The only appropriate action now is her removal from office but given the systemic weakness of this government, I wouldn’t be at all surprised if she remained."