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Business Campaigns Community Cost of Living

Budget Energy Tariff to Increase By 4%

Budget Energy is set to increase its electricity tariff by 4% from 15 January 2026. A typical Budget Energy credit customer will see their annual electricity bill rise by around £47 per year and a typical prepayment customer will see their top-up costs rise by around £46 per year. Raymond Gormley, Head of Energy at […]

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Business Campaigns Community Constituency Cost of Living Government Infrastructure Newry Newry and Armagh Stormont

Newry: Temporary “Grace Period” For Festive Parking

Infrastructure Minister Liz Kimmins has delivered a festive boost to Lisburn and Newry by introducing an hour’s grace period for people parking in the on-street parking spaces within the Controlled Parking Zones (CPZs). This means people will have up to one hour to return to their cars following the expiry of their paid parking event […]

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Armagh Campaigns Community Constituency Cost of Living Government Newry Newry and Armagh Politics South Armagh Westminster

Child Benefit U-Turn Welcome, But More Needed – Dáire Hughes MP

Sinn Féin MP for Newry and Armagh, Dáire Hughes, has welcomed HMRC’s U-turn in the issuing of letters suspending Child Benefit payments to families that have done nothing wrong.  Dáire Hughes MP said; “We welcome HMRC’s change of approach, recognising the staggering failure of their practices and their commitment to reinstate Child Benefit payments to […]

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Campaigns Community Constituency Craigavon Daisy Hill Government Health Newry Newry and Armagh South Down Stormont Upper Bann

McNulty Calls for Full Public Inquiry Into Cervical Cancer Screening Scandal

On Monday 3rd November, the Assembly considered a motion highlighting the lack of transparency and immense delay in investigating the cervical cancer screening scandal by the Department of Health and the Southern Health and Social Care Trust. SDLP Newry & Armagh MLA Justin McNulty has echoed the call for a full public inquiry to uncover the […]

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Campaigns Community Constituency Craigavon Daisy Hill Health Newry Newry and Armagh South Down Upper Bann

Southern Trust Apologises for Cervical Screening Scandal

The Southern Trust (SHSCT) and the Public Health Agency (PHA) have published three new reports* on cervical screening. The reports, which are available on both organisations’ websites, provide important independent analysis of the complex issues relating to the historical delivery of the cervical screening programme in the SHSCT from 2008 to 2021. Dr Stephen Austin, […]

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Campaigns Community Constituency Cost of Living Government Newry Newry and Armagh Politics Westminster

Grant: Chancellors Statement a waste of Time

Ms. Grant commented after the Chancellor’s early morning press conference this week said, “What a waste of time as it turned out to be uneventful, with heavy emphasis on business, defense, and the national debt. These are all the reasons traditionally given when the working class is about to be shafted. Ms. Grant continued it […]

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Campaigns Community Constituency Cost of Living Newry Newry and Armagh

Grant Slams Rising Food Costs

Nicola Grant Workers Party representative has hit out at the massive rise in food inflation over the past five years. The cost-of-living crisis has left millions of workers and their families struggling to put food on the table, food inflation having risen by 38% over five years, leaving working-class people unable to provide even the […]

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Campaigns Community Constituency Daisy Hill Government Health Newry Newry and Armagh Politics Stormont

Saoradh Newry: The System Has Failed – Workers Rise!

Saoradh stands firmly with the health unions and the countless frontline workers now balloting for strike action across the occupied Six Counties. We extend our full solidarity to all those who keep our hospitals and care services running, the very backbone of our health system. These workers have endured years of underfunding, chronic understaffing, and […]

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Campaigns Community Constituency Daisy Hill Downpatrick Government Health Politics South Down Stormont

SDLP Accuses Health Minister of ‘Dithering’ on Nurse’s Pay!

SDLP Opposition Health Spokesperson Colin McGrath MLA has accused the Health Minister of dithering over nurses’ pay. He challenged the Minister during health questions in the Assembly on Monday. It comes as the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) ballot members on strike action. South Down MLA Colin McGrath said: “The Finance Minister raised the hopes […]

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Campaigns Community Cost of Living Government Politics Stormont

Minister Announces £12.4m Jobs Programme For Benefit Claimants

Communities Minister Gordon Lyons has announced a new £12.4 million employment drive to support working age benefit claimants into work. JobStart will seek to build new connections between employers and workers, creating work opportunities while tackling economic inactivity, right across Northern Ireland. Communities Minister Gordon Lyons said: “JobStart is the biggest jobs programme of its kind, […]

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Campaigns Community Consumer Council NI Cost of Living

SSE Airtricity Standard Variable Tariff to Increase by 4%

Northern Ireland’s second biggest energy supplier, SSE Airtricity, is set to increase its standard variable electricity tariff by 4% from 1 November 2025. A typical SSE Airtricity credit customer on a standard variable tariff will see their bill rise by around £45 per year. Raymond Gormley, Head of Energy at the Consumer Council said: “From […]

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Campaigns Community Daisy Hill Dáil Éireann Government Health Stormont

Health Minister Expands EU Treatment Scheme

Health Minister Mike Nesbitt has confirmed the launch of Phase Two of the £10 million Waiting List Reimbursement Scheme, delivering on the commitment made when the scheme was first introduced in June. Patients in Northern Ireland who have been waiting one year or more for hospital treatment will be able to reclaim the cost of […]