Belfast Telegraph back issues from July 2003:
Exports to south hit [Pound]1Bn mark
Jul 01, 2003; ... NORTHERN Ireland's economic bond with the Republic continues tostrengthen despite a slowdown in trade and decline in manufacturing. Though the total value of exported goods fell slightly in 2001/2002 to [Pound]7.2bn, exports to the Republic grew by more than 10%breaking the billion ...
Small firms in 'help us' plea to Pearson Insurance costs 'are crippling'
Jul 01, 2003; ... ENTERPRISE Minister Ian Pearson will today be urged to alleviateNorthern Ireland's business insurance crisis. A delegation from the Federation of Small Businesses is meetingwith Mr Pearson this evening to press for urgent Government action tocounteract the crippling effects of ...
Row as Translink axes rail service
Jul 01, 2003; ... THE Government was urged today to outline its plans for restoringpassenger services on the Lisburn to Antrim railway line. Alliance Party leader David Ford criticised the axing of thetimetabled service, which took effect on Sunday. The track will remain in situ for at least a ...
Plea for envoy in Shorts crisis
Jul 01, 2003; ... ECONOMY Minister Ian Pearson was today being urged to appoint a go-between who could help resolve the crisis at Bombardier Shorts inBelfast. The plea was made at a meeting with the Minister by UlsterUnionist representatives Sir Reg Empey and Jim Rodgers. Mr Rodgers said: "In ...
Airline backs plan for third runway
Jul 01, 2003; ... Bmi british midland today called for an independent operator to bepermitted to run a new third runway at London Heathrow. Austin Reid, bmi's chief executive officer, said the case forexpanding Heathrow was overwhelming. But, he said, competition could be introduced by allowing ...
Crime on our streets: I didn't care about the victim, only the prize It's the crime many of us fear above all else. More than 18,500 burglaries were carried out in Ulster last year - less than 10% resulted in prosecution. So who are the criminals and why do they do it?
Jul 01, 2003; ... "A burglar has no conscience," Frank says. He should know. Frank (not his real name) spent more than 25 years breaking intohomes and shops in Northern Ireland and England, ransacking rooms andrifling through drawers. He has been hauled up in front of the courts for burglary ...
Coffee break: Nostalgia's just not what it used to be BEWLEY'S Donegall Arcade, Belfast
Jul 01, 2003; ... JONI Mitchell was right: nothing stays the same. Walking into Bewley's, there was plenty to fuel my nostalgia trip -the warm smell of roasted coffee beans and cooked bacon, the eye-catching array of sticky and creamy buns, the quaint milky coffee. Was it my imagination, though, ...
Eating Out : Between Court and gaol there's food for thought Gary Law dines in the historic surroundings of old Downpatrick
Jul 01, 2003; ... THE unique setting of Downpatrick restaurant Justine's wouldprobably have the beardy blokes from Channel 4's Time Team droolinginto their soup, for it's located in what must be one of the mostdensely packed areas of historical riches in the country. Situated next door to the ...
Sweet Siobhan keeps it simple
Jul 01, 2003; ... SIOBHAN Donaghy is not your normal teenage pop wannabe. For onething she's already been there and got the t-shirt as an originalmember of Sugababes. She would also be as happy working behind the scenes and out ofthe limelight. And, perhaps most remarkably, she really is in it ...
1991 murder accused gets bail
Jul 01, 2003 ... A MAN accused of murdering a policeman in Belfast 12 years ago wasreleased on bail in the High Court today. Paul Martin Holland (34), from Jamaica Street, in the Ardoyne areaof north Belfast, was charged last Saturday after his finger and palmprints were found on plastic bags ...
Webber's 'whistle' set to blow in
Jul 01, 2003; ... REMEMBER Hayley Mills as the wee girl in Whistle Down the Wind whohears a man taking the name of the Lord in vain and decides thatJesus Christ has returned to earth? Well, it was a tearjerking line in a good movie which is now amusical by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Jim ...
School ties have bound us mums together
Jul 01, 2003; ... IT all started in P1, the first day of school. Having got over the fear of walking into class to deposit the big(though still very small and vulnerable) daughter, I managed to leavethe school grounds in one piece, if not a weeping wreck. They were the longest three hours since ...
House and home: The heights of luxury
Jul 01, 2003; ... LIAM and Jacqueline Mullan were thinking of their 'rocking chair'days when they built their dream home near Coleraine. Ashbourne House on the Islandtasserty Road might only be fiveyears old but its style and ambience hark back to a grander moreelegant era. "My wife and I had ...
Keane drama star cast
Jul 01, 2003; ... IT'S going to be a Father Ted reunion when BBC Radio 4 payshomage to celebrated writer John B Keane on what would have been his75th birthday Monday, July 21. For both Ardal O'Hanlon and Frank Kelly who were in the smash hitIrish comedy series are coming together again that ...
Celebrations after 'oldest bird in world' flies in
Jul 01, 2003; ... A GROUP of Co Down conservationists were today celebrating afterthey discovered what might be the oldest seabird in the world. George Thomson, a volunteer bird ringer on the Copeland BirdObservatory, was catching and ringing some of the Manx shearwaters onthe Observatory Island, ...
What's on in your area? Your best guide to entertanment and going out
Jul 01, 2003 ... BELFAST Grand Opera House: Youth Opera Northern Ireland presents TheMikado on Tuesday; Noddy Wednesday- Saturday. Tickets from TicketShop on 9024 1919. The Lyric: The Blind Fiddler runs until July 5. Box office 0289038 108. Duke Of York: Donal O'Connor traditional ...
Help in the darkest hours The crises and human dramas that need the intervention of a social worker don't all fit into the 9-5 Monday to Friday office routine. The bleak hours of the middle of the night are often when help is most urgently needed. That's where Hilary Kerr and her colleagues in Northern Ireland's only social work emergency duty team come in
Jul 01, 2003; ... How big is the team and what hours do you cover? At the moment we are running with four full time staff and maybesix or eight locum staff but we're hoping to recruit very soon. We have to have two social workers on a shift and the teams coversall hours outside the standard ...
Integrated role for Baroness
Jul 01, 2003; ... LEADING community activist Baroness Blood has been appointed to akey fundraising position within the Integrated Education Fund. The Shankill community worker was today named Chair of IEF'sCampaign Executive and will now lead a bid by the charitable trust toraise millions of pounds ...
Overcoming prejudice to inspire her pupils
Jul 01, 2003; ... JULIE Graham is an inspirational teacher. Respected by both herpupils and teacher colleagues, she has overcome great obstacles toget to where she is today - teacher of English at Hunterhouse Collegein Belfast. The 28-year-old was recently honoured at the annual TeachingAwards ...
Report card: Pupils rewarded for attendance
Jul 01, 2003 ... YEAR 10 and 11 pupils at Corpus Christi College in Belfast havetaken part in an 'attendance challenge'. Over 130 pupils managed to match or improve on their schoolattendance during the summer term. As a reward, the young people were recently taken on a day out andbarbecue in ...
Balance appreciated
Jul 01, 2003 ... FURTHER to the letter from D. Ferguson (June 24) I am also fromthe Coleraine area and also have been paying my television licenceover the years. I am not in the privileged position to have RTE and thank BBC forthe balance. I'm glad to hear Mr Ferguson enjoyed his bike race on ...
Will employees share in Viridian's success?
Jul 01, 2003 ... IN his reply Robin Greer, Viridian Corporate Communication Manager(Writeback, June 27) should have addressed both issues the issuescontained in the letter from Feeling The Pinch who laid emphasis onthe directors' salary increments and his favour or inclination topublic ...
Will tennis treat be ruined?
Jul 01, 2003 ... I WONDER if BBC-NI could let the public know whether or not itwould be worthwhile watching all of Wimbledon this year. The men's final is usually on the last Sunday of the tournamentand I would very much look forward to watching it. However I, and many others, watched the ...
Unwarranted interruption
Jul 01, 2003 ... I AGREE with D. Ferguson (Writeback, June 24) and I too protestregarding the decision to interfere with the schedule programmes onsporting events. I was enjoying the athletics in the Europe Cup from Paris on BBC2on Sunday, June 22, expecting to watch from 2.20pm to 5pm as ...
View is disputed
Jul 01, 2003 ... I DISAGREE with the view of Kevin McKinney (Writeback, June 27)that 44% of the population of the six north eastern counties ofIreland are 100% Irish. The fact that the religious make-up of 44% of the people ofNorthern Ireland may be Roman Catholic does not make the ...
Coursing clubs playing part in preservation of the hare
Jul 01, 2003 ... THE view of Lord Laird and the images shown in the BelfastTelegraph on June 21 about hare coursing were misleading in someareas. The pictures of greyhounds chasing a hare were taken from an openmeeting in England, probably the Waterloo Cup. In park coursing, as happens in ...
Shoukri jailed for six years Loyalist's conviction is new blow to UDA
Jul 01, 2003; ... THE feud-riven UDA was dealt another blow today when its northBelfast 'brigadier' was sent to jail for six years. Andre Shoukri, known as 'The Egyptian', was caught in possessionof a pistol and 30 rounds of ammunition in Rathcoole estate duringthe loyalist feud last ...
Speed cameras blitz on drivers Campaign launched to slash death toll
Jul 01, 2003; ... ULSTER'S motorists face a tough new anti-speeding regime today aspolice unveiled the first fixed cameras aimed at trapping law-breaking drivers. Although police said the aim of the cameras is to slow motoristsdown, senior officers warned the number of detections they can carryout ...
FBI agent in McKevitt case 'a bankrupt'
Jul 01, 2003; ... FBI agent David Rupert told the Special Criminal Court today thathe "tried to steer clear of crime". The former trucking company boss said that he was never arrestedfor a criminal offence apart from two cheques that bounced and thosecharges were dismissed. "I tried to operate ...
Wake-up call for beauty Queen
Jul 01, 2003 ... THE newly-crowned Miss Northern Ireland was today celebrating witha presidential style breakfast at Belfast's Europa Hotel. Diana Sayers, a 21-year-old law student from Saintfield, Co Down,beat off stiff competition from some of Ulster's most beautiful youngwomen to take the title ....
Funerals of five horror crash victims tomorrow
Jul 01, 2003; ... THE funerals of five people killed in an horrific crash outsideNewry will take place tomorrow. Requiem Masses for Margaret McArdle (60), and her daughter Siobhan(26), will take place at St Colman's church, Annaclone, and for RitaHaughey (60) at St Colman's church, ...
Woman's weight op tale of horror
Jul 01, 2003; ... A 27-stone Ulster woman told today how her dream [Pound]2,500 bidto dramatically lose weight had become an agonising 11-yearnightmare. She spoke out after the Belfast Telegraph highlighted the case of37-stone Londonderry man Patrick Broadbent. Norma Lynch was among the first ...
Tories blame Tele for Sanders' furore
Jul 01, 2003; ... A DELEGATION of Peterborough Tories will today bid to save theirformer council leader Neville Sanders from being thrown out of theparty - by blaming the Belfast Telegraph for his fall from grace. The group is to travel to London to appeal to party chiefs at ahearing on behalf of ...
Funerals for road victims
Jul 01, 2003; ... THE funerals of five people killed in an horrific crash outsideNewry will take place tomorrow. Requiem Masses for Margaret McArdle (60) and her daughter Siobhan(26) will take place at St Colman's Church, Annaclone, and for RitaHaughey (60) at St Colman's Church, ...
Uncertain unionists playing wait and see The UUP split has left many members unsure of which way to turn as Political Correspondent Chris Thornton reports
Jul 01, 2003; ... PHONE calls to many Ulster Unionists these days are marred by thesame background noise. Listen carefully and you may recognise thecreak of the fence beneath them. With their party in flux as never before, there is a very realsense that some influential party members are carefully ...
Man for trial over death drive charge
Jul 01, 2003; ... A BELFAST man appeared in court today to face a charge of causingthe death of a Co Down grandmother by dangerous driving during a henprank organised by group of workmates. Brian Robert McGill, from Merok Drive, is charged with causing thedeath of 52-year-old Ballywalter woman Joan ...
Judges slam Finucane probe
Jul 01, 2003; ... THE Government failed to properly investigate collusion betweenthe security forces and the killers of Pat Finucane, the EuropeanCourt of Human Rights ruled today. Sweeping criticisms of the investigation into the Belfastsolicitor's murder were made in the court's 25-page judgment, ...
Men to sue after police raid homes
Jul 01, 2003; ... TWO Belfast men whose homes were raided today as part of a majorpolice operation against dissident republicans have vowed to sue ongrounds of "harassment". Gerard O'Hara, from the Ormeau Road, and Stevie Moore, from RodenStreet, woke this morning to find police officers swarming ...
Somme wood bought in tribute to war dead Murphy gives [Pound]400,000 to preserve site
Jul 01, 2003; ... A FRENCH woodland where thousands of Ulster soldiers were killedduring the First World War is to be saved from possible destruction,it was revealed today. The Secretary of State, Paul Murphy, announced that the Governmentis to hand over [Pound]400,000 to ensure that Thiepval Wood, ...
Poet Heaney praises 'this guy' Eminem
Jul 01, 2003 ... SEAMUS Heaney has praised American rap star Eminem, calling him asinfluential in popular culture as Bob Dylan and John Lennon had beenin their heydays. The Nobel Prize-winning poet was asked by journalists at a summerschool in Norwich if there was a figure in popular culture ...
'Egyptian's' chequered past
Jul 01, 2003; ... WITH his olive-skinned complexion, stylish dress sense andbrooding good looks, Andre Shoukri cuts an unusually dashing figurein the murky underworld of loyalism. A high-profile member of the UDA, Shoukri, at 26 years of age, isone of the youngest ever leaders of the terror ...
McKevitt bid for US tape contested
Jul 01, 2003; ... ALLEGED Real IRA leader Michael McKevitt, cannot use Irish law toforce US journalists to hand over tapes of interviews with FBIinformant David Rupert, new legal papers submitted in a Chicagocourt have claimed. The new submissions also say that the information sought maybreach US ...
Olympians celebrate back home
Jul 01, 2003; ... ULSTER'S Special Olympians were today waking up at home for thefirst time in two weeks after returning triumphant from the SummerWorld Games. There were cheers and tears as competitors were reunited withtheir families yesterday at Belfast's Odyssey arena. Thirty athletes from ...
Drumcree's rector in appeal for calm
Jul 01, 2003; ... THE Church of Ireland Rector of Drumcree, Rev John Pickering,today called for calm in the run-up to Sunday's Orange service in thelocal parish church. Despite behind the scenes efforts this year by church figures andothers to broker a solution, so far there has not been ...
Sick rate for manual workers 'excessive' Ulster among top UK figures
Jul 01, 2003; ... MANUAL workers in Northern Ireland's Roads and Water Services haveamong the highest sick leave rates in the UK, a new report revealedtoday. The study by the province's Audit Office said the "excessive"absence levels had cost [Pound]2m last year. The public spending watchdog ...
Belfast starts to buzz as tourists spend [Pound]300m
Jul 01, 2003; ... VISITORS to Belfast last year spent over [Pound]300m in the city. Belfast Visitor and Convention Bureau revealed the city attracted3.6 million visitors in 2002. And between them they splashed out [Pound]316m. The figures were disclosed at BVCB's fourth annual ...
Nurse is struck off for abusing patient
Jul 01, 2003; ... A NURSE has been struck off her professional register after beingfound guilty of physically and verbally abusing an elderly patient ata nursing home in Northern Ireland. Hazel Thomson of Magherafelt allegedly squeezed the man's ear andcalled him a "dirty scumbag" while she worked ...
Mayor aims to stub out bad habit
Jul 01, 2003; ... BELFAST'S new Lord Mayor was today facing one of his greatestchallenges yet - sticking to a decision to give up cigarettes. The SDLP's Martin Morgan said he was confident he had thewillpower to stop, after watching his 20-a-day habit go up in smokeat the weekend. Mr Morgan ...
Miracle weight loss operation 'wrecked my life'
Jul 01, 2003; ... IT was a defining moment in Norma Lynch's life. While out shopping one afternoon, the Lambeg mum of four, thenweighing 32 stone, was at the receiving end of a barrage ofdisparaging remarks by a group of sniggering and gawping grown-ups. The deeply hurtful incident sparked a ...
Baby carrie: fresh appeal to mother
Jul 01, 2003; ... POLICE today renewed their appeal for the mother of 'Baby Carrie' -the newborn girl found stabbed to death in Carryduff - to comeforward. In a response to a statement from the Police Ombudsman's Office,the PSNI reissued its plea for information. Baby Carrie's stabbed body ...
Sex abuse father is jailed for fifteen years
Jul 01, 2003 ... A MAN who was convicted of raping and abusing his daughter andstep-daughter was sent to jail for 15 years today. As 54-year-old Michael Claxton was led to the cells at BelfastCrown Court, his daughters shook with emotion and were comforted byfriends and relatives. Outside the ...
Petition call over killer's sentence
Jul 01, 2003; ... A PETITION protesting over the sentence handed out to a woman whokilled a Protestant teenager at a sectarian flashpoint in northBelfast will be presented at Westminster today. More than 2,000 people have signed the petition calling on theAttorney General to review the sentencing in ...
Extra police patrol resort
Jul 01, 2003 ... POLICE say they have answered a call for extra police fromPortballintrae residents by increasing patrols in the resort. The move follows an impassioned plea from members of thePortballintrae Residents' Association for an improvement to what theyconsidered an "inadequate service" ...
George teams up with MPs for liver research
Jul 01, 2003; ... ULSTER soccer legend George Best was due to travel to Westminsterto kick off a new campaign to fight killer liver diseases. George and wife Alex were expected to join MPs at the House ofCommons tomorrow to launch the All Party Hepatology Group. Hepatology is the study and ...
Belfast students lift top exam honours
Jul 01, 2003; ... FOUR students from the Belfast Institute of Further and HigherEducation have lifted top accolades from the prestigious LondonChamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) examinations. The women, each from the Institute's Department of Computing andAdministrative Studies, recently ...
Funding needed to save rural bus routes
Jul 01, 2003; ... THE Republic is to look at a Northern Ireland rural transportfunding model in an attempt to save a number of bus routes in CoDonegal. The Lough Swilly Bus company, which faces the prospect of havingto cut several routes after the Dublin Government said it cannotprovide it with ...
Pensioner rescued from house blaze
Jul 01, 2003 ... FIRE chiefs today warned again of the dangers of leaving fryingpans unattended after a pensioner was rescued from a fire in his homein Newbuildings. Fire crews attended the fire at Primity Drive at 11.45pm after aneighbour noticed smoke coming from the first floor ...
DoE ignored risks, say activists Sewage pollution sparks showdown
Jul 01, 2003; ... THE DoE was today accused of not doing enough to protect Ulster'senvironment by failing to object to developments it concedes willcause significant sewage pollution. Pressure group Friends of the Earth fired the broadside ahead ofshowdown talks with Minister Angela Smith. The ...
Sections of school to be pulled down
Jul 01, 2003 ... PARTS of a Co Down high school, which has been mothballed for thepast 12 years, are to be demolished. The South Eastern Education Board has accepted a reportrecommending knocking down parts of Killyleagh High School. The decision is a blow to campaigners who have been seeking ...
Graduation 2003: Swede success
Jul 01, 2003; ... TWO friends followed a new study path to achieve the Masters ofEngineering degrees they collected at this morning's graduationceremony. Peter and Damien McCusker - who are not related - are the firststudents from the School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineeringto have ...
Dog-sled trip to raise cash for cancer charity
Jul 01, 2003; ... A UNIVERSITY of Ulster lecturer is preparing to go dog-sleddingthrough Arctic Sweden, to raise money for Action Cancer. Dr Anne Bridgen is one of 12 people due to cross the Arctic Circlefor eight days in March 2004. They will visit the Ice Hotel and hopeto see the Northern ...
Gas explosion sunk boat, inquest is told
Jul 01, 2003; ... THREE generations of a Co Down fishing family drowned in the IrishSea following an explosion on their boat, an inquest heard yesterday. Edward Michael Greene (53) from Kilkeel, his son Michael Greene(33) from Ballymartin and eight-year-old grandson Michael Greene werelast seen ...
Graduation 2003: Rally fan a model student
Jul 01, 2003; ... GRADUATIONS continued at the University of Ulster's Colerainecampus today when awards were presented to more than 600 studentsfrom the Faculty of Business and Management, Faculty of Informaticsand the Faculty of Social Sciences. Among today's graduates was Omagh man Kieran ...
Somme wood bought in tribute to war dead Murphy gives [Pound]400,000 to preserve site
Jul 01, 2003; ... A FRENCH woodland where thousands of Ulster soldiers were killedduring the First World War is to be saved from possible destruction,it was revealed today. The Secretary of State, Paul Murphy, announced that the Governmentis to hand over [Pound]400,000 to ensure that Thiepval Wood, ...
Attempted murder charge
Jul 01, 2003 ... A 35-YEAR-old man was due in court today charged with attemptedmurder after another man was seriously injured in an assault in CoDown. The man was also expected to face a charge of possession of anoffensive weapon when he appears at Newtownards Magistrates Court. The charges ...