Other News In Brief

Alliance Welcomes Royal College of Physicians Report

The Alliance Party has welcomed a Royal College of Physicians report on the experience of consultants working in the Northern Ireland healthcare system.

Health Spokesperson Danny Donnelly said that the report reinforces the need for comprehensive workforce planning to ensure posts are filled and conditions are improved.

Speaking ahead of the launch of the report at Stormont, the East Antrim MLA said: "It is well known that workforce planning is a significant weakness of the health and social care system currently, and the number of consultants reporting issues with workloads, excessive hours and gaps in rota reinforce just how important it is to fix this.

"The vast majority of consultants in Northern Ireland routinely work above contracted hours and very few are in control of their workload. This has an impact not just on the consultants themselves, but on standards of patient care and patient safety."

Paula Bradshaw MLA added: "This is an issue, therefore, which has a potential impact on all of us. It is vital that we put in place systems to ensure that vacancies are filled and that, consequently, workloads are reduced to a reasonable level and pay and conditions are enhanced.

"We can see clearly from this report that consultants are keen to work within the system and that they see their roles, justifiably, as a vocation. However, currently, the system is letting them, and their patients, down."

DUP Welcomes Additional Funding For Special Schools

DUP Education spokesperson Diane Dodds has welcomed an additional funding of £5 million pounds for maintenance in Special Schools but has indicated that this is only a small step forward in addressing need.

The Upper Bann MLA said: "In September I invited the Head of the Civil Service Jayne Brady and Dr Mark Browne and Linsey Farell from the Department of Education to visit Glenveagh Special School to see for themselves the conditions generally. I now understand that the Department has been able to re-profile £5 million of funding to address the pressing maintenance issues in special schools.

"However this is only a small step forward. In recent weeks I have visited schools where the general state of buildings is simply not acceptable. This includes essential health and safety maintenance or in many cases repairs promised and simply not completed. This funding will only address the most pressing need.

"The Department of Education must address need in this sector. Some time ago they indicated that there was a need to build more Special Schools but this has not materialised despite years in the planning. Too many of these schools are overcrowded making it very difficult for the children with emotional and behavioural difficulties. Perhaps planning a separate budget for new build of Special Schools would increase its importance.

"This year has seen unprecedented problems in placing children with Statements of Educational Need. The Department and EA must address this planning failure and make sure it is not repeated. It is unthinkable that more parents would be put through the same degree of stress. I will be raising this again with Dr Browne at our October meeting. It is time that the Department told schools and parents how they intend to proceed.

"Special Schools nurture and teach our most vulnerable children and young people. Staff deal with very complex issues. They are unfailing in their care and support for children and families. It is unfair that they have to do this in facilities that are far from adequate."

SDLP Calls For Work To Begin On Casement Park

The SDLP have stated that construction work on Casement Park must begin as soon as possible ahead of Euro 2028.

The party's Sports Spokesperson, Justin McNulty made the comments after Turkey dropped out of bidding to host Euro 2028, leaving Britain and Ireland as the sole contenders to host the tournament.

Casement Park in Belfast has been designated as one of the host stadiums for the sporting tournament.

Newry & Armagh MLA Mr McNulty hopes everyone will pull together and "do whatever's necessary" to get the stadium ready for Euro 2028.

In a statement, Mr McNulty said: "Euro 2028 must be the catalyst to green light Casement and get it built. We need the stadium ready for the 2028 tournament and for that we need to see construction work begin as soon as possible. Casement has been left dormant for too long, this stadium will be a game changer and a fitting state of the art new home for Ulster GAA."

SDLP West Belfast councillor, Paul Doherty, said: "This is incredibly exciting news for this area with the potential to host European Championship games at a redeveloped Casement Park in the heart of West Belfast. The redevelopment of Casement Park has been an important issue for people here locally who have been left in limbo by the constant delays to this much needed project.

"A modern stadium of this magnitude will be utterly transformational for West Belfast, creating jobs, attracting investment and allowing us to host major sporting events like the Euros and concerts alongside the GAA calendar. I will be working with everyone involved in this project and local residents to ensure that any concerns are addressed and that the finished Casement is a huge success for this area."