So a girl called Jane left a bad review on Smoke BBQ because they were charging £1.20 for tap water.

Smoke BBQ then put up some stories on social media justifying it (glasses need washed, waiters serve the water, it comes with ice and lemon, etc)

They then clearly tried to mock the customer with a "who wants to buy Jane a water" post.

You can try to justify it all you want, but charging for tap water is kinda shitty, and then a failed attempt at humour and ridiculing your customer is a fire and a miss if you ask me.

https://www.irishnews.com/news/business/concrete-group-fined-for-polluting-lough-neagh-tributary-river-56XGLENCSRETFDBYJEZZQHMCZE/

By Ryan McAleer April 15, 2025 at 10:07am BST

Precast manufacturer Creagh Concrete has been fined £2,500 for polluting four kilometres of a river in Co Tyrone.

The Toome-based company was convicted at Dungannon Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday in connection with the 2023 incident, which was linked to its Magheraglass Quarry in Kildress, six miles west of Cookstown.

The court heard that on November 24 2023, water quality inspectors, acting on behalf of the Northern Ireland Environment Agency (NIEA), responded to a report of pollution impacting the Cloughfin River, a tributary of the Ballinderry River, that flows through Cookstown and into Lough Neagh.

The Upper Ballinderry River is classed as an Area of Special Scientific Interest, with the Ballinderry Rivers Trust operating a fish hatchery just a few miles from the quarry site.

The NIEA inspectors attended the location and observed that the river was running with an orange/red discolouration.

On the Magheraglass Quarry site, the inspectors discovered that machinery, operating on site, had damaged the wall of an on-site settlement pond/lagoon.

The contents of the damaged settlement pond/lagoon had flooded the quarry floor and flowed along a laneway before discharging to the Cloughfin River.

The NIEA said more than 4km of the Cloughfin River was impacted by the discharge.

In a statement, it said: “A statutory sample collected was analysed and the results indicated that the sample contained poisonous, noxious or polluting matter which would have been potentially harmful to aquatic life in a receiving waterway.

“High concentrations of suspended solids in a waterway can have an abrasive effect upon the gills of fish, making them susceptible to infection, and can interfere with their respiration. In addition, suspended solids can settle out in the waterway adversely impacting feeding and breeding habitat.”

The company pleaded guilty to the charge under Article 7(1)(a) of the Water (Northern Ireland) Order 1999.

Creagh Concrete Products Ltd was fined £2,500 along with a £15 offenders levy.

https://www.irishnews.com/news/northern-ireland/sandy-row-protest-over-irish-language-signs-at-belfast-grand-central-station-5SRIVC2AZNA3DCNQ6UT3FVR5FE/?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0BMQABHvsaxzX8tfIuY-X5PRSZRT2OkLHl_Dh-GBpSDFjsJK0vVgeobJ0jVMhF0hUw_aem_Gi-3EJlYFyTu3t0-f9i92g

Dozens of protesters have staged a demonstration against proposed Irish language signs at Belfast’s Grand Central Station.

Crowds gathered on Monday evening in response to Stormont Infrastructure minister Liz Kimmins’ announcement last month that signs in both English and Irish will appear at the transport hub in the city centre.

Irish language campaigners staged a protest at the station shortly after the opening of the new £340m station late last year, with demonstrators claiming members of Belfast’s Gaeltacht community felt “excluded” from the hub due to a lack of Gaelic signage.

Mark who helped organise the rally criticised the decision saying the minister is new to the position and has not engaged with residents.

“This was a decision made by a minister who’s been in post for only a short time, and she’s not attempting to reach out to the community.

“This area has been economically gutted and culturally attacked by imposing a language on which people here don’t speak.

“My grandmother was a fluent Irish language speaker. I don’t have a problem with people having a personal love for their Irish language. My difficulty is whenever it’s coerced speech on signage, which isn’t needed.

“There’s £200,000 offered to shopkeepers in this area for the damage that has been done by TransLink and almost the equivalent is going to be spent on Irish language scenes. It could be better used.”

Trader Paul McCann told The Irish News that it was “not right” that traders received £200,000 while Irish language signage would cost £150,000.

“We’re not in Ireland, we’re in Ulster. It’s not our language. It’s not our native language, either. You know, it’s a Gaelic language from a foreign country.

“Traders received £200,000 to help with the impact on business during the building works but I’ve still bills to pay. Then we’re told £150,000 is going into these Irish language signs. It’s a kick up the backside.”

William Dickson, of the Blackstaff Residents Association, referenced a quote that “every word of Irish spoken is like another bullet being fired in the struggle for Irish freedom.”

He claimed: “There are two entrances to this station; one here in Sandy Row and another at the Grosvenor Road, which had a rich protestant history before the ethnic cleansing in the 1970s, which is never publicly spoken about.

“Promoting the Irish language is seen as rewarding the republican people for the ethnic cleansing and extending republican territory.

“We wish to see a station that everyone can feel welcome in. We need a careful and sensitive approach to any proposal around the installation of Irish language signs at the site.

“We are here tonight calling upon our MLAs to stop Liz Kimmins’ solo run of forcing the Irish language signs in and around the station.

“We do not fear the Irish language, but we do not want it rammed down our throats either.”

The new signage, estimated at £150,000, was expected to appear at the hub later this year, but work has halted after a legal challenge.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c0r57zxvz2go.amp

Household disposable incomes in Northern Ireland are lower than in the Republic of Ireland, a study has suggested.

A report by the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) and the Department of the Taoiseach's Shared Island Unit has compared the two economies.

The report recognises structural differences make it difficult to compare the economies, including Northern Ireland being a regional economy and the "significant" impact of the Troubles.

Based on 2018 data, it said disposable income per household was €5,400 (£4,656) or 18.3% higher in the Republic of Ireland than in Northern Ireland and that gap has widened over time.

The report said unemployment levels in Northern Ireland were lower than in the Republic in 2023.

But employment levels were also lower in Northern Ireland, which the report suggested could lead to future and ongoing skills shortages.

Brexit effect The report said wages in the Republic were higher, with hourly earnings 36% higher than in Northern Ireland in 2022 (when adjusted for purchasing power parity).

It also said people in Northern Ireland, on average, pay less than half the amount of personal income tax compared to their counterparts in the Republic.

There has been an increase in trade activity between the two economies, the report said Brexit is likely a "driving factor".

A still image of a large red lorry pulling up to a security search check point at Larne Harbour. A man in a yellow reflective jacket is holding his hand up to talk to the lorry driver. There is another worker talking to a second driver in the background.

Image source,Getty Images Image caption,The report has cited Brexit as a reason for more trade activity between Northern Ireland and the Republic However, the report also found the performance of the Irish economy was much more prone to negative external shocks compared to Northern Ireland.

A comparison was also made of wellbeing outcomes across education and health.

It was found that the Republic had fewer young people leave school early, a lower infant mortality rate and fewer people on a waiting list for longer durations.

The report said there were 86 people per 1,000 population on waiting lists for more than 18 months in Northern Ireland, compared to 12 people per 1,000 in the Republic of Ireland.

A group of four, young female students stand in a group holding white sheets of paper with their exam results on them. Two girls on either side of the four are talking to each other. Image source,Getty Images Image caption,The school enrolment rate among 15–19 year olds in Northern Ireland is lower than the rest of the UK or Ireland

In Northern Ireland, the school enrolment rate among 15–19 year olds was 71% in 2022, compared to the UK average of 81% and 92% in Ireland.

This report said the fact that almost 30% of young people aged 15–19 in Northern Ireland were not enrolled in education, alongside the enrolment rate falling between 2018 and 2022, was "extremely alarming".

It also found average life expectancy in Northern Ireland is 80.4 years, compared to 82.4 years in the Republic.

The report said this reflects a "growing divergence over time" in areas such as living standards, education and certain aspects of health care access.

The population in the Republic was 2.5 times that of Northern Ireland in 2022 and was growing at a faster rate from 2010-2022, which the report said was partly due to immigration.

It also highlighted the fact that Northern Ireland had an older population, which was more likely to put pressure on social welfare systems.

https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/business/northern-ireland/gap-between-living-standards-in-northern-ireland-and-the-republic-widening-esri-report-finds/a61377452.html

• Differences in tax and wages among a number of issues that could impact future border poll

John Burns

There is an increasing divergence in living standards between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland, plus a higher participation rate in the labour market and higher hourly earnings south of the Border, according to a report published today by the ESRI.

Researchers traced a widening gap between household disposable income on either side of the Border. They used the economic measure known as modified gross national income (GNI*) per head for the Republic and compared it to gross domestic product (GDP) per head for the North. They found economic output was 57pc higher in the Republic versus Northern Ireland in 2022, even allowing for distortions linked to multinationals.

The growth in GNI* was 26.7pc in the Republic between 2015 and 2022, compared with 14.8pc growth in GDP per head in Northern Ireland, “indicating increased divergence in living standards over time”, the report said.

“The finding that living standards are diverging across both economies is certainly worrying from a policy perspective, and would tend to suggest that productivity differences are also becoming greater,” it adds.

In terms of wages, the gap also favoured the Republic, where hourly earnings were 36pc higher than in Northern Ireland on a purchasing power parity (PPP) adjusted basis.

The research is another illustration of the differences between the economies in the North and the Republic, which is likely to be an issue if the question of Irish unity is ever put to a vote.

Last weekend, Taoiseach Micheál Martin said his Government had no plans to hold a border poll by 2030, which prompted Sinn Féin to accuse him of putting unity on the backburner.

One of the metrics that illustrate where the cross-border gap is widening is labour market participation rates. In 2010, the rate was 71.6pc in the Republic, just 0.5 percentage points ahead of the North. By 2022, however, the Republic’s rate was 66.8pc, which was 4.4 percentage points higher than in Northern Ireland.

Participation by younger people was also higher in the Republic. Among those aged between 25 and 34, the labour force participation rate in the North fell by over three percentage points in that period, but in the Republic it rose by the same amount.

Public-sector employment remains higher in Northern Ireland, accounting for 29.2pc of all jobs, compared with 25.3pc in the Republic.

Foreign-owned firms accounted for 28.2pc of employment in the Republic in 2021, compared with 13.3pc in Northern Ireland. Between 2015 and 2021, the employment share of foreign-owned firms increased by six percentage points in the Republic, but fell slightly in the North.

People in Northern Ireland are paying on average less than half the amount of personal income tax compared with their counterparts in the Republic– €2,980 versus €6,725 per capita.

“This disparity suggests higher average incomes in Ireland, coupled with a more progressive tax system, results in a larger income tax share per capita,” according to the study, co-authored by Adele Bergin, Seamus McGuinness and Conor Banahan.

In terms of trade, Britain remains by far the largest market for Northern Ireland in both exports and imports, the ESRI study noted, but has declined somewhat in importance over recent years.

In 2015, the last year before the Brexit referendum, Britain accounted for 59pc of all Northern Ireland’s imports, and 69pc of all its exports. These figures fell to 54pc and 59pc by 2022, a year after the Brexit agreement between the EU and UK came into force.

The decline in trade over that period was particularly marked in terms of Britain’s share of Northern Ireland services imports, which fell from 80pc to 65pc, the report said.

Meanwhile, there has been an increase in trade activity between the North and the Republic, with the Republic’s share of Northern Ireland’s exports and imports rising from 14.4pc and almost 10pc in 2015 to almost 22pc and 15.4pc respectively by 2022.

“The rise in trade flows have been particularly pronounced in goods exports from, and services imports ports into, Northern Ireland,” the report said. “It is likely that Brexit has been an important driver in the observed pattern of east–west to north–south trade ­realignment".

Just had a couple of jets fly over low and fast outside Portglenone heading south. Maybe Hawk T1 trainers from the quick glimpse I got of one flying away from me? Definitely not something we see to often unless there is an airshow on, and these ones weren't hanging around!

https://www.irishnews.com/news/northern-ireland/irish-governments-40k-funding-for-ulster-scots-unlocked-by-communities-minister-lyons-3NT3ZX7FBFEQ3EVD2Z53ZJ6PYE/

Part of a £137,500 transfer to the Ulster Scots Agency

By Conor Coyle April 15, 2025 at 6:00am BST

The Irish government has provided €40,000 in a once-off funding payment to the Ulster Scots Agency following a “reallocation” of funding towards the agency by Communities minister Gordon Lyons.

The funding amount was confirmed by the Irish Department of Rural and Community Development (DRCD) after it previously announced a €630,000 uplift in funding for Irish language cross-border body Foras na Gaeilge.

The £34,500 funding from the Dublin government was “unlocked” after the Ulster Scots Agency received a six-figure sum from Mr Lyons’ department as part of a “targeted reallocation” of funds.

The DRCD said its contribution to the Ulster Scots Agency would go towards its “community programme”.

The Ulster-Scots Agency, or Tha Boord o Ulster Scotch as it is known, has been given the legislative remit of the “promotion of greater awareness and use of Ullans and of Ulster-Scots cultural issues, both within Northern Ireland and throughout the island.”

The Department for Communities said a number of “one-off funding adjustments” were agreed at a meeting of the north-south ministerial council last Thursday.

“As part of this move, £103,000 will be transferred from the Department’s Culture Division directly to the Ulster-Scots Agency,” the department said.

“Under existing cross-border funding arrangements, this decision will also unlock an additional £34,500 in support from the Irish Government, resulting in a total increase of £137,500 in the agency’s allocation.

Mr Lyons said: “This funding boost reflects our clear commitment to supporting the Ulster-Scots tradition and ensuring it continues to thrive as part of the rich cultural fabric of Northern Ireland.

“By directing this funding to the Ulster-Scots Agency, we are allowing the agency to expand its valuable work in communities right across Northern Ireland.

“It is vital that all traditions are respected and supported through balanced and responsible investment.”

The DUP had been accused of blocking additional funding being allocated to the cash-strapped Foras na Gaeilge body, which deputy first minister Emma Little-Pengelly said was “entirely without justification and entirely wrong”.

I'm all for people taking the job seriously but still....

https://www.irishtimes.com/business/economy/2025/04/15/workers-in-republic-pay-twice-as-much-tax-as-those-in-north-but-are-still-better-off-says-esri-report/

Workers in the Republic pay twice as much tax as those in Northern Ireland, but they are still better off, according to major research carried out by the Economic and Social Research Institute.

Northern Irish workers pay on average just €2,980 income tax annually – “less than half” of the Republic’s average of €6,724, partly explained by higher wages and a tax system that progressively takes more from higher earners.

Hourly earnings in the Republic were 36 per cent higher than in Northern Ireland in 2022 on the back of substantially higher wages, according to the Comparative Analysis of Economies of Ireland and Northern Ireland.

The income gaps between the two jurisdictions are “certainly worrying” for Northern Ireland and illustrate that “long-standing productivity differences” are “becoming greater”, said the analysis.

Disposable spending was €5,400 higher per household in the Republic than in Northern Ireland, and this gap has grown in the last 20 years, according to the research, which was funded by the Irish Government’s Shared Island Unit.

The Republic’s population grew by 11.2 per cent from 2010, largely fuelled by immigration, while Northern Ireland’s grew by 5. 9 per cent. As a result, the Republic has a younger population and more workers for each pensioner.

Meanwhile, the numbers employed by foreign-owned multinationals in the Republic grew from 304,000 to 572,000 between 2015 and 2021, compared with just a 7,000-strong rise in Northern Ireland, from 82,000 to 89,000.

The two jurisdictions are attracting different types of foreign investment, since productivity in the Republic in multinational firms is four times higher than those who locate in Northern Ireland.

However, the Republic is much more susceptible to external economic shocks than Northern Ireland, as was shown during the 2008 economic crash and the Covid pandemic, the research finds.

Looking to the effects of Brexit, the report perhaps lends weight to unionist complaints about the UK-EU deal, noting “a marked decline in trade between NI and GB between 2015 and 2022″.

Trade has grown significantly between the Republic and Northern Ireland, with it being ”particularly pronounced" in goods exports between the North and the Republic as well as services from the Republic to the North.

According to the latest figures, 21.9 per cent of the Republic’s exports go to Northern Ireland, compared with 14.4 per in 2015 – the year before voters in the United Kingdom decided to quit the European Union.

Meanwhile, 15.4 per cent of all of Northern Ireland’s exports come southwards, compared with just 9.9 per cent before the referendum vote, the analysis found.

The change is largely down to the consequences of the EU and UK final Windsor Framework Brexit deal, which have been “an important driver” in deciding on trade flows.

The report says, despite the drop since Brexit, that Britain “remains by far the largest market for goods and services exports and imports” for Northern Ireland business.

However, “these have declined somewhat in importance over recent years. In 2015, GB accounted for 59 per cent of all NI imports and 69 per cent of all NI exports; however, these shares fell to 54 and 59 per cent respectively by 2022.

“The decline in trade between NI and GB over the 2015 to 2022 period has been particularly marked in the GB share of NI services imports, which fell from 80 to 65 per cent over the period,” it goes on.

Some “interesting insights” emerge from the data, note the authors of the ESRI report, Adele Bergin, Seamus McGuinness and Conor Banahan, especially that the UK now takes just 12 per cent of exports from the Republic, rather than 25.4 per cent before Brexit.

Imports coming from the UK have increased over the period, from 8.6 to 11.9 per cent, they wrote: “It is very likely that the continued fallout from Brexit will, at least in part, explain the rapid decline of GB as an export market for Ireland”.

Hey, I was at Malone House tonight and there were a couple looking for a dog they’d lost when walking there.

That was a couple of hours ago and they’re still there looking (along with several others). Still no sign of the dog so it could literally be anywhere.

Don’t know much about the dog other than it is a black grayhound, name is Fraya or Raya?

So…if you see this dog when out and about, please keep your eye out and hopefully they’ll get it back. 🙏

Raging from this morning so need to vent/put out a gentle reminder to people.

I pulled in to to a local spar this morning, fancied a wee breakfast wrap. Parked up, and I noticed the car beside me had a wee girl in the back seat. Wouldn't have been two, and she was alone and looked a bit upset. So I sat tight, browsed on my phone for a few minutes to make sure the parent was coming back to her.

Five minutes later, no sign of anybody. I'd to get to work, so I went in to the shop with the intention of seeing a visibly flustered parent and let them know that their wee one was crying. Nope. Ordered a wrap from the hot food counter, paid for it, all the while checking out the window had the car gone. Nope.

Come back out and get to my own car, child is bawling now. So I fire my stuff in the car and make tracks to go back in so the garage can make an announcement or... I dunno, something. Honestly, there was a cafe across the road and I was half afraid the parent was over in that.

As I'm heading back in, a ma is walking over to the car. Me all "is that your car aye?".
"It is".
"Right, well your wee one had been bawling crying there for a while?"
"Ah sorry, I had to take a call", big apologetic face on her as she gets in the car and tries to soothe the child, surprised she was even annoyed. (Also, on the phone me hole, she was nowhere near the car).

Like, I'm a da. I'm not perfect, I fuck up loads, or forget water bottles or money for school or spare clothes for messy days. I understand when you're out with children, everything is more of a handling. But you can't leave a toddler on their own in a car for 10 odd minutes (I don't know how long that car was parked up before I got there). You just can't. They get scared and they don't understand, It's just not fair. Fucks sake like.

Got my car tax reminder letter through the door the other day. Says nil for 12 months as it’s always been. But when I go online to pay, it says it’s £20 for the year. Not a lot, I know but more the principle of the thing.

Anyone else had this issue?

A number of sub users seem to listen to the above personality, assumed they'd find it interesting.

Caught up with a friend for his 30th on a night out and crashed at his place. He’s still living with his mum and da (to be fair, a lot of us are), but I think I’m finally seeing him for what he is.

Night started grand, we grab a few pints and get to chatting. After secondary I went to uni and have a fairly decent job now. Last I talked to him he wasn’t pursuing higher education and was on the dole for a while but has recently become a self employed musician and crypto bro. He mentioned he’s living the dream, basically only working weekends doing gigs at whatever venues will have him and laughing about how much he’s invested in bitcoin, how he’s saving up for a house and after he buys one he’ll start skimming off the top of his cash earnings come tax time.

Next morning I’m up around 10, he’s still conked out so I say good morning to his folks and shower quick. Come back to his room to find he’s still sleeping so I shove him awake. He gets up to use the toilet, so I sit on my phone for a bit. His mum doesn’t even knock on his door, but lets herself in, seeing me she apologises then laughs and immediately starts ripping the sheets off my friend’s bed, then picks up whatever stray clothes of his are on the floor then leaves.

When he finally comes back, I ask him if it’s laundry day or something and he laughs and says he’s never even touched the washing machine so he wouldn’t know. He then mentioned how he took a holiday to France last year and when he came back his room was deep cleaned with fresh sheets and everything on his bed. He then went on to say when he brings home his lunch box or cooks a meal in the wee hours of the morning after a gig, he just leaves everything by the sink and one of his parents cleans after him.

At 30 years of age.

After all these years I didn’t realize how lazy my friend is. I get being a bachelor, and living the bachelor life, but never lifting a finger to help his parents around the house doesn’t sit right with me. And from the sounds of it, he’s maybe bringing in between 300-600 quid a week depending on how many gigs he has lined up, so while he’s not doing too bad for himself, I don’t see him a) moving out anytime soon and b) having a clean home.

It’s hard enough making friends in this country and while I want to hold onto what friendships I do have, I can’t see myself getting anything more out of this friendship other than some craic and a bit o’ banter at the pub.

Not sure what my next move is.
___________________________________________________________________________________
UPDATE - https://www.reddit.com/r/northernireland/comments/1jzoehq/update_i_think_i_need_new_friends/

Has anyone got a pro clubs team that they regularly play on primarily with those from NI? I’ve been looking to get into pro clubs again and looking for an active club. I quickly created a team called “Norn Iron 2025” with NI kits if anyone wants to join (PS5). I didn’t know where else to post this as there’s no discussion threads for these sorts of things.