The current deputy lord mayor of Belfast, councillor Paul Doherty, has left the SDLP with immediate effect, following a council motion on the erection of a Bobby Sands statue in Twinbrook.
A motion proposed by People Before Profit councillor Matthew Collins ‘in support of Pro-Palestine hunger strikers’ has passed at a special meeting of Belfast City Council. The motion has been criticised by the DUP for not relating to ratepayers, and by Alliance for giving less than two hours notice to councillors.
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.”
New mayors and deputy mayors have been appointed throughout Northern Ireland, as the eleven councils go through the process of announcing their leadership teams for the 2025/26 term. We go through each council in NI.
A pilot plan to allow large stores to open for longer on Sundays in Belfast has been passed by Sinn Fein and Alliance councillors. It received opposition from the DUP, SDLP, UUP, Greens, TUV and PBP – but an amendment to defer the decision was voted down.
Belfast City Councillor JJ Magee has had the whip restored by Sinn Féin following an investigation by the Northern Ireland Local Government Commissioner for Standards, their national chairperson Declan Kearney has confirmed.
First Minister Michelle O’Neill’s special adviser and Sinn Féin councillor on Belfast City Council, Cliódhna Nic Bhranair, has stepped down from her role on the council to focus on her job at Stormont, according to reports from Belfast Media Group.
Natasha Brennan has been selected as Sinn Féin’s new councillor for the Balmoral District Electoral Area (DEA) on Belfast City Council, to replace Geraldine McAteer, who is stepping down after nearly ten years service.
Following the resignation of Ross McMullan from Belfast City Council, Alliance has selected Hedley Abernethy as their new Ormiston councillor.