By Kevin Henry

THE RECENT comments by the Northern Ireland Minister for the Environment Sammy Wilson, “that preference should be given to people from Northern Ireland” when employers are advertising jobs shows the complete inability of local politicians to deal with current economic crisis.

Hands off our health service

By Pat Lawlor, health worker RVH Belfast

IN 2007, the Northern Ireland Executive introduced its Programme for Government for health. It was heralded as a means to enhance the health and well-being of the people of Northern Ireland into the next decade.

It has become obvious to all that this was a lie, as cuts, closures and job losses are now being implemented across the health service. All the political parties in the NI Executive have agreed to carry out £700 million cuts in health.

By Peter Hadden

An attack on all Unison members

THE RIGHT wing leadership of Unison has gone ahead with the expulsion of RVH nursing convenor, Pat Lawlor (right), from the union.

The grounds given to justify this expulsion were that Pat, who is a member of the Socialist Party, sent an email giving support to striking Classroom Assistants and criticising the failure of the Unison leadership to back that strike.

By Owen McCracken

MANY TRANSLINK workers face an uncertain future after bosses refused to rule out job losses as part of a £11.5 million package of cuts to bus services in Northern Ireland.

By Gary Mulcahy

FIGURES RELEASED in January reveal Northern Ireland has seen the biggest annual rise in unemployment in 37 years. 12,000 extra people were without work in 2008 compared to 2007, with the total number officially unemployed now standing at over 36,000.

By Sarah Mair

LAST WINTER, over 500 elderly people in Northern Ireland died of the cold because they could not afford to heat their homes. This shocking statistic, which the utility companies want to hide from people, shows the real consequences of rising energy bills.