Hillsborough is well known as a picturesque and historic Georgian village. There's a great atmosphere here with our busy main street shops, cafes, pubs and businesses. We are very lucky to live in such an idyllic and desirable village and we must do everything to protect this.  Every summer for at least six weeks this idyllic village is covered with flags; this damages the villages reputation and is viewed by many from all political persuasions as a cheap and tacky eyesore which is tribal and perhaps even threatening - none of which is in keeping with the welcoming nature of the village we all love living in.  I propose that there needs be to a change to the number, size, distribution and the length of time these flags are flown. We can achieve a satisfactory outcome for all with mutual understanding and mature discussion.  Please support this petition to preserve the beauty and community values of Hillsborough. 

Thales is complicit in supplying Israel’s drones for use in its genocidal campaign against the people of Palestine. It is heavily interlinked with Elbit Systems to do so. Thales also provides other indirect supports to the Israeli military & intelligence services. Politicians across Ireland should be rejecting all such applications, investments & state support for firms complicit in genocide & warmongering, alongside divestment & ending government support. To add insult to injury, this development comes downstream of Thales receiving a £1.6B investment deal from the British Treasury for missile production in the North of Ireland. The plans form part of a £100m spend from Thales to expand their facilities regionally. When workers & the public services they rely on are on their knees we are seeing warfare instead of welfare. We need homes, healthcare, not bombs! We must spread word as to Thales complicity and to prevent the applications succeeding due to flying under the radar. A mass campaign involving many people makes it less likely they can succeed.

Here are some of the main reasons why this application should be rejected: Health Incinerators are a known source of harmful and persistent pollutants, many of which are bio accumulators that have well documented links to a range of respiratory, cardiovascular, reproductive and immune system related illnesses. Agriculture & Fisheries The development is proposed in a location surrounded by lands used for grazing livestock and cultivating crops. As above, given the potential emissions there are serious concerns about the potential impact on animal health and the food chain, especially considering the proposal to handle medical and veterinary waste. The proposed site is located in the Blackwater valley close to the Blackwater River - a popular angling resource that outfalls to Lough Neagh. Natural & Built Heritage The site is in an area with a rich biodiversity and historical heritage: close to Milltown & Benburb local wildlife sites; Benburb village; Milltown Valley Heritage Centre; Ulster Canal; Benburb Priory & Castle; and the Battle of Benburb battle site. Economics The development has the potential to adversely impact: property valuations; future residential planning; and the well-established agricultural economy and tourism potential in the area. Traffic The site can only be accessed via single lane roads that are already in poor condition and busier than ever before. Development would increase the pressure on the traffic infrastructure and related road safety. Nuisance The proposed 24/7 operation presents potential risk to the health and well-being of local residents due to noise, vibration, stress, as well as odour and vermin commonly associated with such installations.    Further information can be viewed at: Website: www.raincampaign.co.uk Facebook: www.facebook.com/rainbenburb Instagram: www.instagram.com/rain_campaign

Sand dredging is killing Lough Neagh. First-of-its-kind research linked commercial sand dredging of Lough Neagh to the toxic blue-green algae blooms, habitat destruction and more. This kind of mining causes irreversible damage to the Loughs' precious ecosystem. Meanwhile, dredging and construction companies are profiting from Lough Neagh’s destruction.  And the Earl of Shaftesbury - owner of the Lough’s bed and banks - earns a royalty fee for every tonne of sand the companies extract. When the SDLP minister ignored environmentalists and legalised dredging in 2020, they argued that legalising would be benecifial, however recent news has shown gross violations far beyond limits. The more these companies mine Lough Neagh for sand, the more this damage multiplies, and with the Shaftesbury Estate having a contract with the mining industry up until 2046, this could go on for decades more.  Stormont has acted on mining before. Earlier this year, it passed legislation banning filthy fracking - only because of relentless pressure from people and grassroots group. We call on Infrastructure Minister to ban sand dredging today. Demands for an independent enquiry into the effects of sand dredging have been ignored. Studies have identified deep scars, including 17 metre cavities and long-term disruption to sediment systems, which can release stored nutrients, potentially exacerbating algal blooms. We reiterate our campaign demands for a moratorium on extraction of our finite glacial sand in Lough Neagh. 🚨 Join the March for Lough Neagh, Sunday May 17th, 12:30pm, The Battery Bar to Ardboe High Cross!! 🚨 And join the Film Festival & Conference in Lurgan the weekend beforehand saveloughneagh.com

Peatlands must come first. Northern Ireland should introduce an immediate moratorium on industrial-scale development on peatlands until a comprehensive assessment and mapping programme has been completed and robust protections are in place. Peatlands are vital natural allies in the fight against climate change. They are among the most carbon-rich ecosystems on Earth, storing carbon that has accumulated over thousands of years. Although they cover only 3% of the world’s land surface, they store more carbon than all the world’s forests combined. When peatlands are drained, excavated, or disturbed, they can release this stored carbon and become a source of emissions rather than a natural climate solution. All peatlands should be protected, whether they are pristine, damaged, degraded, or in recovery. Degradation should not be used as a justification for further destruction. Instead, damaged peatlands should be restored wherever possible, recognising their importance for biodiversity, water quality, flood management, archaeology, and climate resilience. Developers should not be permitted to rely on mitigation, compensation, restoration proposals, peat reuse, or biodiversity offsetting to justify development on peatlands. Once peatland is disturbed, its ecological, hydrological, and carbon storage functions can be permanently altered, and replacement cannot replicate what has been lost. Peatlands are not vacant land waiting for development, they are living ecosystems that have taken thousands of years to form and are part of Northern Ireland’s natural heritage. The presumption should always be protection and restoration, not industrialisation. Northern Ireland’s peatlands are ancient, irreplaceable, and essential. They must be assessed, protected, and restored for future generations, not sacrificed for short-term development.

Under the current leadership team, our council has presided over a series of costly failures that demonstrate fundamental governance breakdown: The Mourne Gateway Project • Initial proposal for Slieve Donard rejected by National Trust due to environmental concerns and failure to properly engage with public • Announcement of intention to relocate project to Kilbroney Forest Park made without public consultation or formal approval from elected representatives •  Repetition of fundamental governance errors; e.g., failing to obtain landowner permission before making public announcements or committing budgets • Wasting at least £1.35m on failed attempts, and putting £30m of funding from Belfast Region City Deal at risk • Newry and Downpatrick Flood Response • Inadequate preparation despite known flood risks • Delayed and insufficient emergency response to affected residents and businesses • Failure to distribute financial support to flood victims • No evidence of lessons learned or improved emergency protocols Newry Civic Hub • Ongoing cost overruns beyond initial budgets • Submission of incorrect planning applications by the Council as planning authority • Use of confidential legal advice to bypass public scrutiny • Inability to demonstrate value-for-money or explain site selection process • Repeated dismissal of public concerns, including over 2,600 letters of objection Warrenpoint Port  • Multi-year failure to address documented public health nuisance • Inability to enforce existing environmental regulations • Ongoing impact on residents' quality of life without resolution These project failures are not isolated incidents but evidence of systemic problems within our council, namely: • Lack of Transparency: Routine use of "confidential" designations to avoid public accountability • Inadequate or Non-Existent Community Engagement: Major decisions announced without meaningful consultation or recognition of ratepayers’ needs • Poor Financial Management: Millions squandered on unviable projects without adequate due diligence • Disregard for Expert Advice: Proceeding with projects despite widely documented environmental, technical and governance concerns The current council leadership has demonstrably failed in their duty to manage public resources responsibly and serve community interests. We therefore call upon the councillors of Newry, Mourne and Down to: • Pass a vote of no confidence in the council leadership • Establish an independent investigation into council governance failures, with the final report being made available to the public • Implement urgent transparency measures to prevent future abuse of confidential procedures The time for excuses has passed. We demand action now.

We oppose the current move to privatise 2 Royal Avenue as a profit making venue.  In recent years community organisations in Belfast have hosted free events in 2 Royal Avenue because it is a child friendly, accessible and affordable city centre space. Our organisation Reclaim the Agenda have held events from meetings to exhibitions, dance workshops to children’s story time - bringing people from all walks of life together.  Many people also use 2 Royal Avenue as individuals, calling in for a catch up with friends or a safe place for children to play during a break from shopping.  We welcome the plans for an LGBTQIA+ Hub in 2 Royal Avenue, and commend MayWe for the diverse range of events they have facilitated. Belfast City Council must now build on this work, and ensure 2 Royal Avenue remains as a community hub in the centre of Belfast. 

The Public Inquiry into the proposed goldmine in the Sperrins was suspended on the 15th January 2025  because the Department for Infrastructure breached their planning regulations in respect of a Transboundary Consultation with the Republic of Ireland.  The Commissioner said “the Inquiry has been besieged with difficulties from the start - in relation to Abstraction licences, EIA Regulations & Roads department didn’t engage at all….The planning department of Department for Infrastructure failed to follow its own legislative procedures. I have no option but to accede to the request to suspend the Inquiry, in view of Access to Justice and Right to Participate.” With no live stream, nor access to online recording or an option to contribute remotely as an expert witness, this inquiry has been anything but public. As a result, many people cannot properly engage with the inquiry because they cannot be present every day due to work commitments, illness, childcare or other caring responsibilities. Compounding this exclusion, adults are not permitted to bring children into the public inquiry in order to attend. Given that women are, in general, the primary caregivers of young children, this restriction disproportionately affects them and smacks of misogyny. All Public Inquiries in England are recorded and available online for 5 years. Why is this not the case here? A precedent was set at the Doraville Inquiry (2019) in N.I. when expert witnesses were allowed to contribute online. When the goldmine inquiry resumes, we demand that the Planning Appeals Commission implement the aforementioned measures. 

Havelock House is one of Northern Ireland’s best-known cultural landmarks. It is also one of our most threatened buildings – developers Olympian Homes plan to tear it down to make for an eight-storey apartment block. Time is running out: Belfast City Council will decide on Olympian’s planning application in September. Its decision may end the remarkable story of the Victorian linen factory which became a television icon. As the home of Ulster Television (UTV) for almost sixty years, Havelock House had an integral role in the birth of Northern Ireland’s television industry. It was the place where iconic local series such as Teatime with Tommy, Romper Room and Good Evening Ulster were made. The building is also nationally important: it is the last surviving small station from the pioneering days of UK television. Features such as the original UTV studio are our last built record of the birth of regional television on these islands. TV history was made there. UTV was the first small regional ITV station and Havelock House pioneered a new low-cost TV production model. Its success allowed other less populous parts of the UK to have their own local stations. It was also the site of the first adult education shows on UK television, a pioneering ‘rooftop’ studio and the first satellite link-up between a UK regional station and the US. There’s more to Havelock House than television though – the building has been a familiar presence on Belfast’s Ormeau Road since 1871. After its stint as a linen factory, it became the headquarters of the All-British Trading Stamp Company, an early loyalty scheme where customers received stamps with their shopping which could be trade in for free items. The building then saw service during World War II as accommodation for soldiers who were protecting the city’s bridges from German attack. After the war, it became an engineering works and a dressmakers. Its exterior also hides a secret – beneath the plaster render applied by UTV in 1959, there is attractive polychromic brickwork and stone cut dressings similar to buildings such as the Riddell warehouse, which unlike Havelock House, have listed status. Havelock House is a versatile and historic building which stands ready for a new chapter in its remarkable story. It should the showpiece of any redevelopment of the area rather than torn down for yet another faceless apartment block. As guardians of our city’s heritage, Belfast City Council must reject any proposal for the building’s demolition and put in place an appropriate strategy for its protection.

To show the world that Belfast cares for the people who have put Belfast on top of the world stage in music.

It's been 40 years since the first integrated school was started here, but in 2022 only 7.5% of schools here are integrated schools - bringing together children from all backgrounds - Catholic, Protestant and other. But there is overwhelming demand: 71% of people here believe our children should be educated together. Stormont has commissioned a new Independent Review of Education that could change everything - but we need you to tell them integrated education matters to you so that they make recommendations to promote integrated education! Now's your chance to speak up! Email the panel members now and tell them that you want to live in a future where all our children are educated together, promoting reconciliation.

Right now, the Integrated Education Bill is going through the NI Assembly - but those opposed to integrated education are misleading schools and parents, telling them the Bill will harm existing schools - it won't. The Bill can pass if enough parties support it - and what the Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) do will be crucial. Last month, Doug Beattie, the UUP Leader, signalled his support for integrated education and said "Northern Ireland has been blighted by division.. and yet we don't take the brave steps to try and deal with that division...we need to end educational apartheid which is taking place here in Northern Ireland." We need Doug and his MLAs to support the Integrated Education Bill, and resist attempts by the Bill's opponents to sign a "Petition of Concern" - an Assembly motion that would doom the Bill. Write now and tell Doug how you feel!