DUP leader Gavin Robinson says Deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly will quit joint engagements with First Minister Michelle O’Neill - but he won’t be pulling her out of the executive.

The DUP's party officers met on Thursday to discuss their options.

Before the meeting, Upper Bann MP Carla Lockhart published a letter to the party making it clear – that if it didn't pull Emma Little-Pengelly out of the executive, she would take her "own course".

Lockhart insists that Michelle O’Neill must be removed from office over Sinn Féin's part in the Drumcree protests, but the party leader has now stopped short of that.

Ciarán Dunbar is joined by Belfast Telegraph’s Political Editor Suzanne Breen.

DUP: Lockhart set to walk as Robinson fudges forcing O'Neill out 

 When Richard Moore was 10 years old a British Army captain shot him in the face with a rubber bullet. 

The Derry School boy lost his sight completely in an instant but twenty years ago Richard met Charles, the soldier who shot him, and forgave him. They have been friends ever since. 

Richard grew up to establish the charity Children in Crossfire in 1996 with the goal of supporting vulnerable children growing up in the crossfire of poverty and injustice. 

His work has brought him close the Tibetan spiritual leader, the Dali Lama. 

 Richard Moore joined Ciarán Dunbar to talk about his life and work. 

Richard Moore: Forgiving the British Army officer who took his sight 

Islandmagee is a quiet civil parish on the east coast of Northern Ireland. 

But in 1711, a newcomer to the area begins to have fits, regurgitates pins and buttons, and suddenly dies. 
In the weeks following her death, eight woman and one man are found guilty of witchcraft at a local Courthouse – one man is executed. It was the last witchcraft trial in Ireland.  

Olivia Peden speaks to Dr Andrew Sneddon of Ulster University, and Martina Devlin, the author of “The House where it happened” about this mysterious event.

This podcast was originally published in October 2023.

Revisited: The witch trials of Islandmagee

On the 30th of October 30, 1976, two Belfast Telegraph delivery men Charles Corbett and John Maguire were shot dead in north Belfast. 

John Maguire's ten-year-old son witnessed his father's murder.  The boy himself was wounded in the leg.  

The men were gunned down by very young members of the UVF.  

One of gunmen apologised – but fifty years later he couldn't even remember their names.  

Liam Tunney tells the story.  

The murder of two Belfast Telegraph delivery drivers, 50 years on  

A judge has dismissed an Orange Order against the Secretary of State’s decision to ban the Drumcree parade from going down the Garvaghy Road.  

But Mr Justice Scoffield said those against the march should take “no particular joy in the outcome”.  

He said that a lawful decision-making process has established the lodge’s right to parade in law. 

He also told the court that Sir Chris Bryant’s decision was lawful but highly regrettable that it happened in the circumstances it did. 

And he threw some shade on nationalist protesters saying, “the law does not apply only when you agree with it”. 

Ciarán Dunbar was joined by Allison Morris. 

Judge dismisses Orange Order challenge but warns against "joy in the outcome"  

Incidents of violent drug-debt intimidation are rising in Ireland – and the methods are becoming more concerning and elaborate.

Brutal enforcers are now using 'disappearing' video technology on social media platforms to capture and distribute graphic footage of torture.

The targeted aggression goes beyond those allegedly in arrears, with innocent friends and family members increasingly caught up in the cruel crossfire.

What are the gardaí doing about it?
Is there a class issue at play?
And what about the incidents we're not hearing about?

Fionnán Sheahan is joined by Irish Independent Southern Correspondent Ralph Riegel to examine a terrifying new trend in Ireland's underworld.

How torture videos are escalating drug debt intimidation in Ireland  

The Upper Bann MP Carla Lockhart has been to the forefront of Northern Ireland's politics ever since the re-emergence of the Drumcree Parade issue.  

The DUP-woman has stridently defended the rights of Orangemen to march down the Garvaghy Road in the face of nationalist opposition.  

She has been clear - the DUP must get Sinn Féin's Michelle O'Neill out of power over her actions in the Garvaghy protest.  

The problem is, the party leader Gavin Robinson disagrees – so what happens next? 

Who is Carla Lockhart, what are her options, and how does this affect unionism? 

Ciarán Dunbar is joined by Professor Jon Tonge and by Belfast Telegraph reporters Claire Dickson and Andrew Madden.  

Carla Lockhart: Is she going to leave the DUP? 

Jeffrey Donaldson was doing paid work for the ministry of defence in Africa even as acute political turmoil was engulfing his party at home in Northern Ireland. 

Why was the then DUP leader undertaking sensitive work in dictator-led Cameroon just a week after he himself collapsed Stormont in 2022? 

Why was he helping sell arms in Egypt alongside a British general? 

Why did a special forces officer say he’d worked with Donaldson before? 

Profound political questions remain over who all the now convicted paedophile was working for – alongside concerns about whether he had access to children in developing countries. 

Sam McBride joined Ciarán Dunbar.  

Jeffrey Donaldson: Dark questions over ex-DUP leader’s curious African shadow career 

The Burkes are back, but this time it's not Enoch grabbing the headlines, it's his sister Ammi.

In 2019, Ammi Burke was dismissed from her role at one of Ireland’s most prestigious law firms, Arthur Cox, after just over three years with the company.

Seven years, multiple legal battles and countless court appearances later, Ms Burke wants her job back. She and her former employer are facing off at the Workplace Relations Commission.

So, what exactly happened between the two sides? And why is a dispute that began years ago still rumbling on in court today?

Tessa Fleming is joined by court reporter Seán McCárthaigh as Ammi Burke takes on her old employer.

Ammi Burke: Solicitor's legal showdown with her former employer

Jeffrey Donaldson received a 15 year sentence in prison for his crimes. He was given 11 years for rape against Victim B and four years for all offences against Victim A, to be served consecutively.
The former MP and ex-DUP leader was sentenced in Newry Courthouse on Thursday morning.
However, later on Thursday after the Lady Chief Justice confirmed Donaldson will actually walk free in seven-and-a-half years.
That is because the crimes were committed before the law changed in 2008, so he will automatically be entitled to 50pc remission of his sentence.
He was found guilty of 18 child sex abuse charges, including rape, in June.
Donaldson is trying to win an appeal, and his denials were an aggravating factor in the sentencing.
However, as it stands, the 63-year-old will emerge from prison as a 78-year-old pensioner.
Ciarán Dunbar spoke to Allison Morris outside Newry Crown Court.

Jeffrey Donaldson given 15 years - but will be out in seven 

The BelTel brings you some of Northern Ireland's top journalists, Allison Morris, Sam McBride and Suzanne Breen to name but a few, giving you the inside stories behind what is in the news. Presented by Ciarán Dunbar, the Bel Tel investigates, debates and informs every Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

The BelTel

Social links:

395 clip(s)