Aurla King has been announced as the Social Democratic and Labour Party’s new councillor on Newry, Mourne and Down District Council, following the resignation of Gareth Sharvin, who is resigning after almost 15 years of service.
Paul Givan has scrapped transgender guidance in Northern Ireland schools, after he wrote to the Education Authority (EA) on Friday. A new policy statement now states that ‘boys’ and ‘girls’ refers to biological males and females respectively. Read his statement in full.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer continues his reshuffle and Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the Northern Ireland Office, Fleur Anderson, has been sacked. Matthew Patrick gets his first ministerial job and will join Hilary Benn in Belfast.
MLA for Fermanagh and South Tyrone, Deborah Erskine, has announced she will be taking some time away from the Assembly after receiving medical advice. The DUP MLA emphasised that she will not be stepping down and will return ‘when ready’.
Sinn Féin has announced that Luke Meenehan has replaced Conor Maskey as councillor for the Castle DEA (District Electoral Area). Maskey says he will “take on other roles within the party.”
A former senior PSNI officer is set to take up the role of Assembly Commissioner for Standards after he was selected by the Northern Ireland Assembly Commission. Mark McEwan will replace Melissa McCullough after her term ended.
Foyle MP Colum Eastwood will not be running in the Irish presidential election later this year as it is “not the right time to stand” according to BBC News NI. The former SDLP leader was planning on running as an independent candidate with support from political parties.
The Education Minister has acknowledged that almost three in ten, or 28%, of pupils are not achieving the expected levels of literacy and numeracy by the time they leave primary school. New literacy guidance for schools will be issued, supported by a targeted programme of teacher professional learning, the Minister said.
Tributes are being paid to former Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) MP Martin Smyth, who has died at the age of 94. He represented South Belfast from 1982 until 2005, and was the grand master of the Orange Lodge between 1972 and 1998, during most of the Troubles.
