Infrastructure Minister says she will not give up on A5 renovations
Kimmins also paid tribute to the 'Enough is Enough' campaign group who represent the families of those who have died on the road, saying that the court's decision will be "heartbreaking".
There has been 57 deaths recorded on the A5 since 2006.
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Belfast Telegraph
12 hours ago
- Belfast Telegraph
PSNI seize knife and drugs from Glider passenger in west Belfast
A flick knife and drugs were seized from a passenger on the Glider bus in west Belfast on Friday, police have said. A spokesperson for the PSNI said officers from the Safe Transport Team had been conducting patrols on board the Glider network. "During our patrols many people commented how they were pleased to see Police on board services due to ongoing anti social behaviour concerns,' they said. 'Whilst on board, officers detained one male passenger for a search and located a small quantity of Class B Drugs and more concerningly, a flick knife. "The dangers of carrying a knife are self explanatory and can some times lead to tragic consequences. The male will now be investigated for these offences.' It comes after Infrastructure Minister Liz Kimmins outlined plans in February to extend the Glider service to north and south Belfast. As part of the development, there will be more 'bus priority measures' in the city. And there is anger after two elements of the scheme were dropped for now, with plans to run the Glider to Carryduff, and separately to Glengormley, not proceeding. The full scheme will not be completed until 2030 at the earliest. The Glider service of tram-like buses opened in September 2018. It currently runs from the McKinstry roundabout in west Belfast to Dundonald park-and-ride in east Belfast via the city centre. A second line connects the city centre to the Titanic Quarter. Ms Kimmins said the Glider 'has been a huge success' and has helped transform and modernise public transport services in east and west Belfast. She said extending the service to the north and south will bring 'the benefits of the Glider service to communities living along this route'. But there was anger after plans to extend the service beyond Cairnshill Park and Ride to Carryduff, and separately to Glengormley, were dropped. Ms Kimmins said that funding and feasibility studies led her to conclude "that any extension of the Glider service beyond Cairnshill Road Park and Ride towards Carryduff is not economically viable at this time but will be re-examined when further development along this route is realised'. She also said that 'significant congestion within Glengormley', as well as the pending public realm scheme and limited funding 'make it challenging to extend the service into Glengormley'.
The Herald Scotland
7 days ago
- The Herald Scotland
If Labour and SNP won't push for change, populists will
What mainstream parties lack is the bite. The impetus to be unashamedly radical with the powers of the parliament to introduce wealth taxes on income, property and assets. But there's some new players in the game. 'New' is perhaps stretching it a bit given Jeremy Corbyn is hardly a fresh face to political proceedings. But his new party may be. And in the other corner, we have the Reform steam train pulling into town. Announced a few weeks ago by former Labour MP Zarah Sultana, the ex-Labour leader and Ms Sultana look set to lead a new left leaning political party. We have few details, if any, on the policy platform this party will stand on. We don't even have a name. But that's hardly been a barrier when, according to YouGov, 18% of Britons would consider voting for them already and other polls put them neck and neck with Labour at a UK level. Will voters flock to a new party led by Jeremy Corbyn? (Image: PA) That tells us two things that should send alarm bells ringing in Labour HQ. Firstly, yes, polls are fickle and being the party of government is never a popularity contest but if you're neck and neck with a party of no-name and the haunting spectre of your ex-leader is looming large over you, you've got some serious reflecting to do. Secondly, in the process of that reflection, the penny may finally drop that appeasing the right-wing of the electorate isn't where electoral salvation will be found. Becoming a pale imitation of the Tories or Reform, with the Prime Minister himself cosplaying their patter with his 'island of strangers' immigration speech – words he has since admitted regret over – won't turn his ship around. Read more Roz Foyer: It's been abundantly clear that working people are searching for a radical solution to their ills. Look at the rallies that we saw the length and breadth of the country during the cost-of-living crisis demanding an urgent solution to sky-high bills, increasing inflation and rising mortgage payments. The Enough is Enough movement lit a fire in folks' bellies. The momentum was there. The people turned out. Rallies in every city and town, from village hall to community centre, clearly looked for an alternative to what is being served by mainstream politicians in Westminster and in Holyrood. It was a tremendous, heartening collective of energised working class people looking for an alternative, but rallies alone can't maintain the momentum, and those who turned out in their thousands drifted back to either voting for one of the mainstream or not voting at all. Perhaps this new project can be different. Time will tell. But this could have implications as we hurtle towards the Scottish Parliament elections next year. Scottish Labour and the SNP now find themselves at a crossroads. They can either step forward with a bold, progressive vision that speaks to working people, or retreat into the familiar comfort of caution. If they choose the latter, they risk not only losing ground to Reform UK on the right but potentially ceding space on the left to a new political force that may well speak the language of trade unionists, campaigners and working-class communities more vociferously than they do. For Anas Sarwar, if he wishes to be the next First Minister and stave off the threat of Reform and a potential challenge from a new left project then he must act as the workers' champion. [[Scottish Labour]] must show that it is ready not just to manage [[Holyrood]] but to lead in the interests of Scotland's working-class. That it will build a Scotland where workers' rights are protected – through the devolution of employment law; where unions are seen as partners in progress, not problems to be sidelined; and where public services are fully funded and [[pub]]licly owned. Is it time for John Swinney to reflect on the SNP's current policies? (Image: Gordon Terris) For John Swinney, if he wants to be seen as more than a First Minister that steadied the ship, then he must be bolder. In an era of low-growth and stagnant living standards it isn't enough to be all things to all sides. You can't bring down energy bills while giving unconditional support to the private companies that run our energy system. You can't bring down rents while exempting developers from rent controls; and you can't build first-class [[pub]]lic services while cutting more than 12,000 [[pub]]lic sector workers. It's about offering hope. Hope means confronting inequality. It means redistributing wealth. It means building homes, raising wages, investing in care and green unionised jobs and giving people real power over their lives and communities. It means collective bargaining, workplace democracy and an end to exploitative employment. If Labour and the SNP won't lead that charge, then others will. We're already bearing witness to it. Reform has stolen some of the clothes of the left. Farage's bombastic promises on re-opening mining pits and nationalising steelworks, whilst pledging to reinvigorate high streets and bring jobs into local communities that have been left behind by deindustrialisation, is striking a chord with folk who, otherwise, were disposed to voting for left-leaning parties. Read more Roz Foyer: Now, of course, this is the quintessential privately educated, super-rich career politician trying to speak the language of working people. But understandably when someone who isn't Labour, Tory or the SNP promises the world to folk who are feeling disenfranchised or sick of politicians not delivering change, people will gravitate. The message is therefore simple: to those drafting Scottish Labour's and SNP's 2026 manifesto: you are running out of time to show you're serious. You can't defeat the far-right by chasing their rhetoric. Nor can you dismiss demands from the left as irrelevant. The only path forward is to offer a vision worth voting for: a Scotland of fairness, dignity and collective strength. Roz Foyer is the general secretary of the STUC
Belfast Telegraph
11-07-2025
- Belfast Telegraph
Strike action threat could derail golf fans heading to The Open in Portrush
Around 280,000 spectators are expected at the North Coast venue over the tournament and practice days, which will be the biggest sporting event ever to be held in the country. The Transport Salaried Staffs' Association (TSSA) has said strike action is planned for Friday and Saturday, July 18-19, for some of its members, which could halt Translink's rail service to the town. Strike action is part of an ongoing pay dispute with Translink. An offer to settle, received on Wednesday from Translink, was rejected by members, with services across Northern Ireland set to be affected. Members who work in supervisor grades (including railway controllers), as well as clerical, management, professional and technical grades (MPT), overwhelmingly voted for both strike action and action short of a strike. Within supervisor grades at NI Railways, over 90% voted in favour of strike action, with similar results in other areas, including Ulsterbus and management grades at NI Railways, with over 80% support. 'We are keen to meet Translink to resolve the ongoing disputes for all our members,' said TSSA general secretary Maryam Eslamdoust. 'However, so far, the company has only made an inadequate offer to the supervisor grades and completely ignored our clerical and MPT members. This is not the way to resolve a pay dispute. 'I met the Infrastructure Minister, Liz Kimmins, last week to impress the urgency of this issue. 'Regrettably, it seems that both Translink and the minister are sitting on their hands and hoping that these disputes will go away. That's simply not going to happen. 'Ultimately the responsibility for any disruption during The Open rests with Translink and the minister. 'All we are asking for is the same deal that has been offered to other staff in Translink. The company is trying to fob us off with less, but TSSA members have shown, with their overwhelming support in the ballot for strike action, that they are not prepared to accept that. 'TSSA urges Translink to return to the table immediately with a fair and meaningful offer for all our members. Otherwise, we'll see them on the picket line.' If the industrial action goes ahead, it would involve widespread disruption to rail services, not just in Portrush. Who is Rory McIlroy and what is golf's Career Grand Slam? Translink has planned special buses and trains to Portrush, while maintaining approximately 13,000 services a day across the network. The first official practice day at The Open is Sunday, with the four-day championship teeing-off on Thursday. About 300 Translink workers are in the union, which issued a warning last month that events such as The Open could be impacted if members take industrial action due to no settlement having been agreed. A Translink spokesperson said: 'We continue to engage with our trade union TSSA to reach an agreement that will not impact passenger services.' 'The union and Translink are still in negotiations in the hope a resolution can still be found ahead of next week's tournament. 'Thousands of golf fans are expected to travel from the Republic of Ireland, with the more frequent train service to and from Dublin making transportation to and from the venue easier.'
