:Looking IN

Friday, July 9th, 2010
Photographer Donal McCann explains how picturing homelessness on Belfast’s streets changed his attitude to the problem. There was something about the eyes of Belfast’s homeless people that really drew Donal McCann close to them. Some revealed sadness, others real hope. Twenty black and white portraits from the project with them were displayed at the Waterfront Hall’s ‘Looking In’ exhibition during June. He was invited by a friend involved in the Welcome Organisation to take some photos to document its work with rough sleepers. Welcome’s volunteer teams find people who are...[full story]

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Posted in Homepage Stories, Housing, Social, Voluntary | No Comments »

:Who lived in Number 10?

Friday, July 9th, 2010
The lives of 15 residents at the humble Belfast address. Five labourers, a flaxdresser and a driller called 10 Downing Street their home over the course of a century, further research by agendaNi has revealed. The modest terraced house off Belfast’s Shankill Road shared its name with the UK’s most powerful address from 1863 to 1981 but the site now lies deserted. The Belfast and Ulster Street Directories, held by the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland, list the heads of households in each street of the city for most years of the late 19th and 20th centuries. Downing Street...[full story]

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Posted in Homepage Stories, Social, Westminster | No Comments »

:Bloody Sunday truth

Friday, July 9th, 2010
Following the release of the Saville report, agendaNi summarises the reactions of leading political figures and clergy. A heartfelt apology from the British Prime Minister heralded the long awaited arrival of the Saville Report into the events of 30 January 1972: Bloody Sunday. “I never want to call into question the behaviour of our soldiers and our army who I believe are the finest in the world,” David Cameron said. “But the conclusions of this report are absolutely clear … What happened on Bloody Sunday was both unjustified and unjustifiable.” The report, which concluded...[full story]

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Posted in Justice, Legal, Politics, Social | No Comments »

:Outside the system

Friday, July 9th, 2010
MLAs are being given a cold shoulder as they try to help constituents with immigration problems. Ryan Jennings reports. Nearly 150 immigration cases have been taken up by elected MLAs in the last two years but UK Border Agency officials still close the door on their queries. As previously reported by agendaNi and now substantiated by a freedom of information request, Assembly representatives must pass on all immigration cases to an MP. The information shows that MLAs’ enquiries to the agency must first go through an MP or UK Government Minister before they are dealt with by the agency. Correspondence...[full story]

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Posted in Assembly, Legal, Politics, Social | No Comments »

:Churches make fair banking call

Friday, July 9th, 2010
Northern Ireland’s banks will meet church leaders after their claim that financial institutions were profiteering at the expense of small businesses. Poor lending, increased charges and unfair treatment of customers were among the accusations made by the leaders of the four main churches. Businesses had approached the Church of Ireland’s Archbishop of Armagh, Rev Alan Harper, who led the initiative. His call was supported by Cardinal Seán Brady, Presbyterian Moderator Dr Norman Hamilton and Methodist President Rev Paul Kingston. “I and my colleagues have been collecting examples...[full story]

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Posted in Business, Economy, Finance, Social | No Comments »

:Freedom from the past

Friday, July 9th, 2010
As Alcoholics Anonymous celebrates its 75th anniversary, Meadhbh Monahan finds out about a local member’s personal experience with alcoholism and how the organisation operates in Ulster. “Sometimes people think that to be an alcoholic you have to be a down-and-out, but that is not the case,” says the Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) spokesman. Alcoholism is a world-wide disease that affects all ages, sexes and creeds, he contends. Initially created in Ohio in 1935, AA was established in Dublin in 1946 and came to Belfast in 1948. It currently operates on an all-Ireland basis with approximately...[full story]

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Posted in Health, Social, Voluntary | No Comments »

:Moving off the comfort funding

Friday, July 9th, 2010
Northern Ireland must use EU funds as a ‘springboard’ not a ‘sofa’, according to Economic and Social Committee member Jane Morrice. Since September 2006, Jane Morrice has been one of Northern Ireland’s two members on the European Economic and Social Committee. The committee (see page 108) represents Europe’s civil society, and she sits in its ‘various interests’ group. Having been a North Down MLA from 1998 to 2003, Morrice explains that, rather than a political role, committee membership means being part of the “wide-ranging variety of expertise” across the EU. Her...[full story]

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Posted in Europe, Finance, Politics, Social | No Comments »

:The public arena

Friday, July 9th, 2010
Tighter rules on public protests will restrict the quality of democracy, contends John O’Farrell. Politics must be a public activity rather than for private consumption. These are days in which the political class constantly worry about the viability of their trade. The general election just saw another slide in participation from the electorate in Northern Ireland and few expect next year’s Assembly elections to buck the trend. Oddly, however, the pattern of non-voting stalled in England, widely believed to have been part of the ‘Clegg factor’, as the young felt enthused at...[full story]

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Posted in Assembly, Politics, Social | No Comments »

:Conversational politics

Friday, July 9th, 2010
The implications of a changing media world on political discourse were discussed by Conall McDevitt and Mark Devenport at an agendaNi ‘Digital communications and New media’ seminar. Meadhbh Monahan reports. The relationship between the media and politicians has historically been fraught with tension. With the advent of new media platforms such as twitter, facebook and blogging, a space has been created for “an entirely new type of politics” and a modern and efficient way for the media to hold public representatives to account. In addition, citizens, businesses and organisations...[full story]

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Posted in Assembly, Media, Politics, Social | No Comments »

:Commissioner for Older People Bill

Friday, July 9th, 2010
  Purpose: to set up and give power to the Older People’s Commissioner’s office. In its 2005 manifesto, the DUP said the idea of an older people’s commissioner “to combat ageism” should be discussed. This was followed up by a debate in the pre-devolution Transitional Assembly on 19 December 2006 when MLAs called for a commissioner to be appointed. Ian Paisley and Martin McGuinness gave the idea a ‘green light’ almost exactly a year later, on 18 December 2007, but a lengthy period of consultancy and public consultation was to follow. A May 2008 Deloitte report supported...[full story]

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Posted in Assembly, Politics, Reform, Social | No Comments »

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