Other NI News In Brief

Markets Alert Was 'Hoax'

A security alert in south Belfast this morning has been declared as a hoax. Army bomb experts were called to the Markets area at about 7am on Thursday morning to examine a suspicious object. The police said that one controlled explosion was carried out on the object after both Friendly Street and the car park beside it were cleared. They have since been reopened.

Nightclub Death Reaches Court

A man has been court today charged with the manslaughter of another male outside a nightclub in mid Ulster. Christopher Murphy, from Tullagh Drive in Cookstown, is accused of the manslaughter of 31-year-old Conor McCusker from Ballinderry. He suffered fatal head injuries following an incident in the James Street area of the town during the early hours of Sunday morning. The Ballinderry man was out with his brother Niall, the Vice Captain of the Derry Gaelic football team. A PSNI spokeswoman confirmed the charge against a 21-year-old male related to the death of Mr McCusker. See: GAA Player's Death Probe Begins

PMS Wasn't Regulated, Says FSA

The financial regulator, the FSA, has said that the failed Presbyterian Mutual Society broke the law in the way it was being run. However, the FSA said it will not take a case against any of those involved in running the society after it found, in effect, it was operating as a bank without the necessary authorisation. Nearly 10,000 savers were hit by the collapse of the society, which was put into administration last November. The FSA have been investigating the circumstances which led to the collapse while the Prime Minister is also currently refusing to consider helping investors in the Society until he sees a report investigating its problems. The First Minister Peter Robinson told the Assembly he discussed the matter with Gordon Brown earlier this month.

PM To Hear Plea On Visteon

A local politican, the South Belfast MP Dr Alasdair McDonnell is to meet Gordon Brown to discuss the plight of workers at the Visteon plant in west Belfast. Dr McDonnell raised the issue at Prime Minister's Questions in Westminster on Wednesday. "I asked Gordon Brown what help and comfort he could offer to the Visteon workers who have lost not only their jobs, not only been denied their right to decent redundancy terms, but also their pension rights due to contrived arrangements," he said, noting that Gordon Brown has offered to meet him to discuss Visteon.

See: Visteon Settlement Rejected

Bank Holiday Postal Arrangements Revealed

Postal arrangements over the Bank Holiday on 4 May 2009 have been announced. There will be no deliveries or collections on Monday, 4 May. Full normal service will resume on Tuesday, 5 May. Post Office branches will be closed on Monday, 4 May and will reopen on Tuesday, 5 May. There will be no Parcelforce deliveries or collections on Monday, 4 May. Full normal service will resume on Tuesday.

St Pat's Day Cost Revealed

The price tag on policing the violence in south Belfast on St Patrick's Day cost over £35,000. Riot police were called to Carmel Street in the Holylands after drunken youths vandalised a car and then threw cans and bottles at officers. A total of 19 people were arrested and two members of the police force injured. See: Saint's Day Success, Despite Students' 'Riot'

£200m Ballymena Masterplan Launched

A regeneration masterplan for Ballymena town centre, estimated to be worth around £200m to the local construction industry, has been unveiled. Announcing the scheme, Social Development Minister Margaret Ritchie said no town centre can afford to be complacent in the current tough economic conditions. She stressed the importance of a clear vision for urban areas, and sound plans as to how that vision is achieved. The town centre masterplan lists 41 initiatives which will help direct Ballymena's regeneration over the next 10-15 years. These initiatives range from the identification of key development sites, improved public realm, measures to positively influence perceptions of the area's safety to improved sustainable transport.

(BMcC/JM)