Latest news with #DougBeattie
BBC News
21-07-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
'Significant increase' in inmates sees rise in cell sharing in NI prisons
Northern Ireland prisons have a "high density" of inmates, with cell sharing at Maghaberry jail on the increase in order to deal with space 40% (567) of prisoners at Maghaberry share cells, a practice referred to as comes as a new report for the Council of Europe (CoE), the human rights watchdog, notes a "significant increase" of prisoners in Northern is primarily driven by remanding people into custody before conviction or sentencing. Ulster Unionist MLA Doug Beattie said members of the Prison Service have contacted him recently to raise a number of claimed there are "rising tensions" at Maghaberry, partly due to "low staff levels".The Prison Service said newly trained officers have been deployed to the jail, with a further class of recruits set to join them in two weeks' Ireland's prisoner population currently stands at 2,139, which is up by more than 200 on a year largest prison, Maghaberry, has 1,470 inmates, 737 (50%) of whom are being held on remand. Last year, Maghaberry had to re-open a disused cell block to increase its CoE report describes Northern Ireland as having a "high prison density".But it did not define the situation as overcrowding - this is when there are more than 100 inmates per 100 on data for 2023-24, it said Northern Ireland had 86 prisoners per 100 places.A spokesperson for the Prison Service said: "Whilst challenging, the prison population in Northern Ireland has not yet exceeded available capacity, and we continue to prioritise safe, decent, and secure custody."The Prison Service is working with partners across the justice system to identify actions that can be taken to reduce the current population, with a particular focus on remand."Every day prison staff perform their challenging roles with dedication and professionalism."
Belfast Telegraph
18-07-2025
- Politics
- Belfast Telegraph
Devastating Afghan data breach a huge failing by Government, says former Army captain Doug Beattie
An Ulster Unionist MLA who served three tours in Afghanistan has slammed the Ministry of Defence's massive data leak that resulted in thousands of Afghans being secretly relocated to the UK as 'a huge failing'. Doug Beattie, who was awarded the Military Cross for his actions in Afghanistan, said the breach was 'devastating' for the thousands of Afghans who helped UK forces against the Taliban.
Yahoo
02-07-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Former UUP leader 'beaten badly' in Army for being Irish
The former Ulster Unionist leader Doug Beattie has said he was "beaten badly" by instructors for being Irish when he joined the Army at the age of 16. Beattie became a soldier in 1982 and served three tours in Afghanistan with the Royal Irish Regiment (RIR). Originally from Portadown, Beattie became a UUP assembly member (MLA) in 2016 and was leader from 2021 until last year, after an internal row prompted his resignation. He said bullying he endured during his early years in the armed forces had a huge impact on his life. Speaking to BBC News NI's Red Lines podcast, Beattie said he joined the military as a teenager, after his mother died and his father struggled with alcohol addiction. He said he went to Somerset to do his initial Army training, where he faced discrimination because of his background. "Because I was an Irishman - and I've always been an Irishman - I was beaten badly by instructors, by people I was looking up to," he said. "I found myself bullied quite badly, it doesn't matter that I was a unionist or my father was a military man. "The fact I came from Northern Ireland meant I found myself being bullied and beaten quite a lot and that had an effect on my life as a young man." Beattie also spoke to the podcast for the first time about how the furore over his resignation as party leader unfolded last summer. He stepped down as leader after an internal row over the selection contest to replace Robin Swann as the UUP's North Antrim MLA after he became the MP for South Antrim. Beattie said he had wanted a female candidate to replace Robin Swann, saying the party had a "lack" of women in high-profile jobs at Stormont, and that he was "prevented" from bringing in another candidate he preferred over Colin Crawford, who was selected by the party's North Antrim association to take on the role. The Upper Bann MLA said when that happened, he felt it was "clear I could no longer influence the party". "People who weren't supporting me made what I was doing really difficult to stay on... the truth was I had no choice," he added. "I put in a letter of resignation, I didn't go to anyone I just went to the party chair. Then I was persuaded by the MLA group to withdraw it, I went back to withdraw and the party chair said no, they put it to party officers who said 'we're not letting you withdraw it, the letter stands'. "The bottom line is I stepped down, I found my place back in the party as an MLA and that's where I'm working now." Beattie admitted the affair had left him "bruised" after three years in charge, but said he would like to run for the assembly again in the next election scheduled for May 2027. He acknowledged that the UUP was a "broad church", which sometimes made the party "impossible to lead when you're trying to appease every level". "It's a fair criticism... it's never been easy to be leader of the UUP regardless of who it is," added Beattie. He was replaced as leader by Mike Nesbitt, Stormont's Health Minister, who also previously led the party from 2012 until 2017.
BBC News
02-07-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Doug Beattie: Ex-UUP leader was 'beaten badly' in the Army for being Irish
The former Ulster Unionist leader Doug Beattie has said he was "beaten badly" by instructors for being Irish when he joined the Army at the age of became a soldier in 1982 and served three tours in Afghanistan with the Royal Irish Regiment (RIR). Originally from Portadown, Beattie became a UUP assembly member (MLA) in 2016 and was leader from 2021 until last year, after an internal row prompted his said bullying he endured during his early years in the armed forces had a huge impact on his life. Speaking to BBC News NI's Red Lines podcast, Beattie said he joined the military as a teenager, after his mother died and his father struggled with alcohol said he went to Somerset to do his initial Army training, where he faced discrimination because of his background."Because I was an Irishman - and I've always been an Irishman - I was beaten badly by instructors, by people I was looking up to," he said."I found myself bullied quite badly, it doesn't matter that I was a unionist or my father was a military man. "The fact I came from Northern Ireland meant I found myself being bullied and beaten quite a lot and that had an effect on my life as a young man." 'Lack' of women in high-profile roles Beattie also spoke to the podcast for the first time about how the furore over his resignation as party leader unfolded last stepped down as leader after an internal row over the selection contest to replace Robin Swann as the UUP's North Antrim MLA after he became the MP for South Antrim. Beattie said he had wanted a female candidate to replace Robin Swann, saying the party had a "lack" of women in high-profile jobs at Stormont, and that he was "prevented" from bringing in another candidate he preferred over Colin Crawford, who was selected by the party's North Antrim association to take on the role. The Upper Bann MLA said when that happened, he felt it was "clear I could no longer influence the party"."People who weren't supporting me made what I was doing really difficult to stay on... the truth was I had no choice," he added."I put in a letter of resignation, I didn't go to anyone I just went to the party chair. Then I was persuaded by the MLA group to withdraw it, I went back to withdraw and the party chair said no, they put it to party officers who said 'we're not letting you withdraw it, the letter stands'."The bottom line is I stepped down, I found my place back in the party as an MLA and that's where I'm working now."Beattie admitted the affair had left him "bruised" after three years in charge, but said he would like to run for the assembly again in the next election scheduled for May acknowledged that the UUP was a "broad church", which sometimes made the party "impossible to lead when you're trying to appease every level"."It's a fair criticism... it's never been easy to be leader of the UUP regardless of who it is," added was replaced as leader by Mike Nesbitt, Stormont's Health Minister, who also previously led the party from 2012 until 2017.
Belfast Telegraph
27-06-2025
- Politics
- Belfast Telegraph
Equality Commission: ‘Supreme court ruling on gender has legal uncertainties for NI'
A paper released by the Commission today claims that the judgement will be 'highly persuasive' in certain aspects of Northern Ireland's courts, but there are still uncertainties of what effects it will have on NI law. In April the country's highest court unanimously ruled that the terms 'woman' and 'sex' in the Equality Act "refer to a biological woman and biological sex" following a dispute centred on whether someone with a gender recognition certificate (GRC) recognising their gender as female should be treated as a woman under the UK 2010 Equality Act – which does not apply in Northern Ireland. The judgement was made by the Supreme Court after campaigning group For Women Scotland, who wanted to overturn Scottish legislation which said 50% of members on public boards should be female, with the definition of female including transgender women. The decision made headlines across the UK, however questions remained over what the ruling meant for transgender people in Northern Ireland. The DUP's Upper Bann MP Carla Lockhart welcomed the judgment calling it 'clear and a victory for common sense', while the Ulster Unionist Party's Justice spokesperson Doug Beattie said the ruling 'has major implications for the application of the Equality legislation in Northern Ireland' which he said affirmed that 'transgender women are not women.' NI based organisation The Rainbow Project acknowledged the decision at the time. saying on a social media statement that the 'ruling is not good news' and that they watched the ruling with 'significant concern'. The paper also states that the Supreme Court Judgement didn't consider article 2 of the Windsor Framework. Article 2 of the Framework concerns the rights that are written in the Good Friday Agreement, including protections against discrimination. Geraldine McGahey, Chief Commissioner of the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland says the Commission will be seeking a Declaration from the courts to address questions regarding legal uncertainties, adding that the commission's approach towards the issues will be in the 'best interests of everyone in Northern Ireland' 'To achieve greater long-term certainty and clarity for all involved, the Commission will be seeking a Declaration from the courts to address several questions regarding the significant legal uncertainties.' 'Our equality laws do not sit in isolation; they interact with other laws and regulations for which the Commission does not have a remit. We believe other bodies and organisations will also require clarification on the legal position in relation to their own areas of work and may join the Commission in its legal proceedings.' McGahey also said that the commission hopes to avoid 'toxicity' around the debate around biological sex. The paper also contains interim information for employers and service providers. In a poll by the Belfast Telegraph in May, almost three-quarters of people in Northern Ireland agree with the Supreme Court's ruling. The LucidTalk poll found that 72 per cent of people here agreed with the Supreme Court's ruling, with 20 per cent disagreeing and 8 per cent unsure.
