Recently in Northern Ireland Category

Amnesty International has threatened legal action if Northern Ireland becomes the only part of the UK not to ratify legal marriage for same-sex couples, reports the BBC.

A debate on whether to legalise same-sex marriage took place at the Northern Ireland Assembly yesterday, amid protests from both pro- and anti-gay marriage groups in the province.

The motion to legalise same-sex marriage was proposed by Sinn Fein. The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) has indicated it may use a Petition of Concern to veto any proposed legislation. A similar motion was proposed and vetoed last October.

A court case challenging the extension to the A5 road between Londonderry and Aughnacloy has been adjourned because the barrister representing the Department for Regional Development was not available, reports the BBC.

The legal challenge is being brought by a group of local landowners, householders and farmers, who have named themselves the A5 Alliance and who oppose the extension of the A5, which was given the go-ahead last July.

The group opposes the development of the road on various grounds and has subsequently complained about the level of compensation they will receive for disruption to their land that they feel is less than farmers would receive in the UK for similar projects.

The Northern Ireland assembly has voted down a proposal to ban private clinics from carrying out abortions in the province, reports the BBC.

The proposal was included as an amendment to a new Criminal Justice Bill and attempted to prevent private organisations from carrying out abortions. At present, organisations including Marie Stopes carry out abortions under contract.

The proposal was put forward by two Democratic Unionist and Social Democratic and Labour Party members, but was blocked by a coalition formed by Sinn Fein and the Alliance and Green Parties.

The genetic mother of a pair of twins in Ireland has won a legal case allowing her to be recognised as the mother of the twins in their birth certificate, instead of the surrogate mother who delivered the twins on her behalf, reports the BBC and RTE News.

The Chief Registrar of Births in Ireland had refused her permission to be identified as the mother of the twins on the birth certificate, despite the fact that she donated the eggs and was therefore the children's genetic mother.

The Irish Government cited its 1937 constitution to support its view that the woman who gives birth to the child must be recorded as its mother.

The series of difficult and at times violent protests in Belfast in recent weeks look set to force the Parades Commission into clarifying the law on flag protests at Belfast City Hall.

The decision by Belfast City Council to restrict the flying of the Union flag on its town hall to designated days sparked almost immediate protests from unionists who see the move as an infringement on their rights and identity.

The decision, taken in November, has sparked almost eight weeks of protests.

Authorities in Northern Ireland have announced that proposed changes to the law on prostitution and human trafficking in the region will go out to public consultation later this month.

The BBC reports that the Human Trafficking and Exploitation Bill, which has been proposed by Lord Morrow of the Democratic Unionist Party, would make Northern Ireland the leading nation in the UK on human trafficking law.

Northern Irish tourism could be boosted by a change in the law which would allow ramblers to cross over private land, effectively opening up a large number of new longer-distance walking routes which would be popular with tourists.

At present most publically owned land in Northern Ireland is available for recreation, largely due to organisations such as the National Trust.

However, there are issues with privately-owned land, where the public and tourists have no existing right of access.

Following a major report on reforming the youth justice system in Northern Ireland, plans to raise the age of criminal responsibility to 12 years old have sparked heated rows in the Irish Assembly.

The current age of responsibility in Northern Ireland is 10 years old, the same as in England and Wales, but in Scotland and the Republic of Ireland the age is 12 and in Europe it is 14.

The Democratic Unionist Party believe that raising the age would be coddling children who commit criminal acts, declaring that the action would be the "hug a hoodie" approach.

Businesses in the UK face the threat of losses and even bankruptcy in 2011 as the latest figures show the economy shrank in the last three months of last year.

Construction slumped 3.3 per cent compared with the third quarter in 2010, while services shrank 0.5 per cent.

The news sent the pound sliding and shares fell in the City.

A former store manager at Lidl initiated tribunal action for unfair dismissal this week claiming the supermarket chain unlawfully sacked him after he accidentally hit and damaged a co-worker's vehicle.

Amir Hamza, 24, worked at the company's store on Cartersfield Road, Waltham Abbey for four years. Lidl sacked him in mid-November for gross misconduct after he failed to report the damage.

When confronted about it, Mr Hamza denied he was involved, before finally confessing when he was shown CCTV evidence and witness statements.

"I didn't realise," he said. "I had a CD player on in the car and didn't notice hitting anything. When they told me they had witnesses, I said fair enough and took responsibility."

A senior council executive sacked during cancer therapy launched claims for libel, unfair dismissal, disability discrimination, and sex discrimination against her former employer this week.

Jeanette McGarry earned £123,000-a-year as director of housing environmental and neighbourhood services (HENS) at Stoke-on-Trent City Council.

Shortly after assuming her position in June 2009, however, she was diagnosed with breast cancer. She asked to work part-time while she completed her treatment, but the council refused and instead put her on "gardening leave".

Then, to compound matters, on the day she returned home following surgery she received a dismissal letter. The council's chief executive, John van de Laarschot, also issued a statement questioning her performance and conduct as HNES director.

A Scottish primary school teacher looks set to be struck off the teaching register after she helped set up a website advertising 'naughty schoolgirl' uniforms for adults, reports the Press and Journal.

Linda Ross, 58, of Strangs Ley, Forfar, lost her job as deputy head teacher at Dundee's Longhaugh Primary School in October 2008 after education bosses learned about her involvement with the site -- www.lindaross.co.uk -- run by her husband Vic.

Mr Ross established the website in 2007 to help teachers deal with stress and highlight the abuse they suffer.

He allowed adverts to pop up on the site, however, selling "adult" costumes and underwear. One such ad featured a model wearing a "see-through crop-top and plaid miniskirt with a matching tie and gloves", according to the Scotsman. Other items for sale included a kinky policewoman's outfit, complete with handcuffs.

The four-year battle over the inheritance of a 287-acre parcel of farming land in North Yorkshire moved to the Court of Appeal this week. The land comprises Potto Carr Farm near Northallerton and is valued at £2.35m.

The former owner of the farm, Joyce Gill, died in August 2006, aged 82. Thirteen years before her death, she and husband John Gill -- who died in 1999 -- signed "mirror wills", which stated that if one of them died the farm and all their savings would pass to the other; and upon the death of the last surviving spouse, the farm would go to the RSPCA.

As a consequence of this arrangement, the couple's daughter Dr Christine Gill received nothing.

Dr Gill challenged her mother's will, however, and last autumn Leeds High Court ruled in her favour. The court said her "bullying" and "domineering" father had coerced her mother into changing her will to leave the farm to the RSPCA.

A giddy young banker who was dismissed for gross misconduct after she boasted on Facebook about the size of her severance payout launched a legal challenge for unfair dismissal this week.

23-year-old Katie Furlong used to work as a debt officer for Royal Bank of Scotland in Telford in Staffordshire. On September 2, following the bank's takeover by Santander Group, she received a call from her manager informing her that she was being laid off and would receive a severance payment of around £6,000 ($9,500/Ä7,000)

Moments later, at 5.58pm, Ms Furlong posted the following comments on Facebook:

Guns N' Roses frontman Axl Rose has launched a $20m lawsuit against Activision, the makers of the Guitar Hero video games, according to NME.

He claims the company "spun a web of lies and deception" to persuade him to licence the Roses' tune 'Welcome to the Jungle' in Guitar Hero III.

The focus of his ire centres on Activision's alleged breach of a promise to exclude all references to the band's former guitarist Slash and his new band, Velvet Revolver, in the game.