The UK Government provides funding to Northern Ireland primarily through the Block Grant to the Northern Ireland Executive, calculated via the Barnett Formula (with a needs-based adjustment to 124% of comparable English spending per the Interim Fiscal Framework). This forms the core of the Executive’s Departmental Expenditure Limit (DEL) for resource (day-to-day) and capital spending.Additional […]
“If we are serious about reducing real‑world costs for families on both sides of the Lough, the honest choice is to stop paying for the same fuel‑sensitive ferry again and again—and start owning a bridge that can pay for itself” A fuel‑hungry ferry gets more expensive every time oil and operating costs spike, while a […]
The Man Who Would Not Accept No for an Answer James McMullan said it plainly in 1999: “The ferry is only a stop-gap service — a bridge is the answer.” He was a former Ards Borough Councillor, speaking to the Belfast Telegraph after yet another attempt to privatise the loss-making ferry had collapsed. He cited […]
The Narrow Water Bridge project, spanning Carlingford Lough (also known as Newry River estuary) between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, is located in a sensitive estuarine and coastal environment. This area includes designated conservation sites, migratory species, and protected habitats, leading to rigorous environmental assessments and strict mitigation requirements during planning and construction. […]
Casement Park Cutting Casement to 15–20k capacity: Why It Sounds Sensible — But Probably Isn’t ‘Let’s strip this right back’. ‘Cut the size to matching funding pot available !’ People hear:“Make it smaller and we’ll save money.” On the surface, that sounds logical. Fewer seats = cheaper build.But stadium economics don’t work like a garden […]
Strangford Lough Crossing — Practical Community Outcomes: 25 Towns and Villages The report covers communities across both Local Government Districts in the following geographic groupings: Immediate crossing communities: Portaferry and Strangford — with detailed reference to the 848 cancelled sailings recorded in the Ards and North Down Borough Council Annual Report 2024/25 and the 34% […]
Strangford Lough: Healing a Damaged Balance Between Land, Sea and Communities Strangford Lough has some of the strongest environmental protections in Europe – MCZ, SAC, SPA, Ramsar, ASSI, AONB, Geopark – yet the story on its shores is one of communities and landscapes slowly weakened in the name of “progress”. Environmental law has saved the […]
A bridge of hope in a new era Across the world, leaders are talking about a turning point—a moment when old certainties are fading and free societies must renew their foundations if they want to stay secure, prosperous and confident. For us around Strangford Lough, those foundations are not abstract: they are the roads our […]
Pathways to the Future: When Institutions Must Adapt or Communities Pay the Price Strangford Lough Crossing Campaign www.strangfordloughcrossing.org A recent article in The Irish News featured Fr Eugene O’Hagan, one of the celebrated singing trio The Priests, reflecting on the future of parish life in the Down and Connor Diocese. His observations, candid and unvarnished, […]
Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy bridge, New Ross, County Wexford , Ireland, opened 2020. New Ross bridge build cost is £106M in 2026 prices, which, if base cost for SLC + Narrows site specifics + approach roads/car parking + Professional Fees, say, £300M + forms the cost figure being reported at present across the spectrum of SLC/ […]