A UNIONIST "summit" organised by the Orange Order has flopped after just a handful of people turned up.

The Shared Heritage, Shared Future event took place in Edinburgh on Thursday, billed as a "significant summit" which would bring together voices from Northern Ireland and Scotland to "celebrate the deep historical and cultural connections between our communities while looking towards greater co-operation in the future".

It was organised in response to the landmark meeting in Cardiff by the leaders of the Celtic Alliance, where they signed a memorandum of understanding demanding that the UK Government allow them to hold referendums on independence.

READ MORE: **Irish president Ca

Luke Butterly.

More than 93% of unionist parades went ahead without any restrictions over the past decade, it can be revealed.

Of the 22,679 notified unionist parades that took place between April 2016 and March 2026, only 1,454 (6.4%) had any conditions imposed on them by the Parades Commission.

Unionist parades accounted for 63% of the 35,692 parades that took place in the past ten years.

Republican parades made up 909 (2.5%) of the total, and 12,104 (34%) were classed as ‘other’, which covers everything from Pride parades to vintage car rallies.

The Parades Commission has come under intense scrutiny after the High Court quashed its decision to restrict this year’s Drumcree parade, r

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Department for Communities insists ‘oversight’ responsible and expects supplementary judgement based on new information will highlight Minister’s input

By Alan Erwin

August 26, 2026 at 5:21pm BST

The Stormont Executive remains in collective breach of a clear legal obligation to implement an Irish language strategy, a High Court judge has ruled.

Mr Justice McAlinden made the third declaration of its kind against the power-sharing administration but declined to issue an order compelling it to deliver a blueprint.

He also identified illegality and irrationality in an alleged failure by Communities Minister Gordon Lyons to respond during a cross-departmental process.

However, a spokesp

Pledge made within weeks at time schools are waiting years for essential works

Garrett Hargan

Education Minister Paul Givan has been urged to explain how a proposal was made to allocate £30,000 to a football club to cover its shortfall for a synthetic pitch — when his own official said it is only used on a limited basis by schools.

Communications obtained by the Belfast Telegraph show the Department of Education (DE) gave its approval for the allocation of £30,000 to the Education Authority (EA) towards a synthetic floodlit football pitch for Richhill AFC in Co Armagh.

That decision came weeks after Mr Givan visited the club on March 4 2026 and it requested a “£30,000 contribution fr

Hard to see what's going on but appears to be roughly in the middle. Probably best avoided.

Police have advised motorists that the Lecky Road is now clear this morning after part of the road was blocked due to debris on fire in the area.

August 15th bonfire materials were removed in the early hours of Wednesday morning from the Bogside area of Derry.

Police were in attendance during the removal of pallets from under the Lecky Road Flyover.

The PSNI and Department of Infrastructure have been approached for comment.

https://www.derryjournal.com/news/emergency-incident/bonfire-materials-removed-from-bogside-area-of-derry-8910516

FLEADH Cheoil na hÉireann bid farewell in the early hours of Monday morning with performance from winning Senior Céilí Band at City Hall Gig Rig

Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann came to a close at Belfast City Hall with a rousing performance from the Lissadel Céilí Band, this year’s winners of the Senior Céilí Band competition.

Audiences watched on as the band, whose members hail from Sligo, Mayo, Cavan, Westmeath and Tipperary, brought eight days of music, colour and friendship at the world’s biggest celebration of Irish music and culture to an end. 

Earlier, Campbell College Bugles, Pipes and Drums took to the stage, followed by Each Time the Song is Sung, a multi-cultural showcase from host b

Downing Street persuaded Panorama to cut an exposé on the shooting of an unarmed boy in Derry in 1972

Anne Cadwallader

The very highest levels of the British government secretly exerted pressure on the BBC to censor a film about the army killing an unarmed child in 1972.

Official documents, recently discovered by the Pat Finucane Centre, also show the British Army was aware, shortly after the killing in Derry, that the boy had been killed at “point blank” range by an immensely powerful machine-gun.

However the Ministry of Defence falsely informed an inquest into his death that he was shot from 25 meters away by a soldier who thought the boy was armed.

The case revolves around the sh

By Laura Hogan

The British Security Service MI5 and the Police Service of Northern Ireland have been ordered to pay damages to journalist Vincent Kearney for illegally accessing his phone data.

The Investigatory Powers Tribunal (IPT) made seven findings that authorisations to access, retain and use Mr Kearney's phone data were not in accordance with the law and disproportionate.

M15 and the PSNI have each been ordered to pay £10,000 in damages.

It is understood that this is the first time M15 has been ordered to pay damages to a journalist.

Speaking today, Vincent Kearney welcomed the judgment.

"This is a tremendous victory for journalism and an affirmation of the duty and legal ri