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Around 2,000 protesters blocked an Orange Order parade from passing along the predominantly nationalist Garvaghy Road in Portadown on Sunday, despite the procession having received legal approval. Members of Portadown District Loyal Orange Lodge No 1 assembled at Drumcree Church but were unable to complete the disputed section of the route. Orange Order members remained at Drumcree on Monday morning as political and community representatives sought a resolution.

The Parades Commission had permitted the procession to use Garvaghy Road for the first time since 1998. A judge temporarily suspended that decision on Saturday, but the restriction was overturned during an early morning court hearing which concluded shortly after 2am on Sunday. The Drumcree parade became one of Northern Ireland’s most contentious disputes during the 1990s, with nationalist residents opposing an Orange Order procession through their area.

First Minister Michelle O’Neill and Sinn Féin president Mary Lou McDonald joined protesters on Garvaghy Road, while DUP leader Gavin Robinson expressed support for the Orange Order and said that the legal decision should be respected. Northern Ireland Secretary Sir Chris Bryant appealed for calm and compromise. The PSNI said that its operation had prevented violence and disorder, although evidence was being gathered to identify any offences. Protesters dispersed after midnight after being told that a process would begin to address the dispute, with further talks expected on Monday.

STORY

Darren Anderson, who falsely presented himself as a doctor and aristocrat while operating under several aliases, has been jailed for four years following a series of fraud and theft offences. Anderson, of Gamston in Nottinghamshire, was sentenced at Nottingham Crown Court after businesses and individuals suffered estimated losses of £205,455 through his activities across 13 companies during 2022 and 2023. He was also disqualified from acting as a company director for a further 15 years.

The court heard that Anderson made 106 unauthorised direct debit payments worth £79,488 using the bank details of a debt recovery company. His other activities included leaving more than £46,000 in unpaid rent on a hairdressing salon, failing to pay for £15,000 of equipment and leaving a manager with £600 in unpaid wages. He also provided false evidence of payments, submitted inaccurate company accounts and left debts of more than £27,000 after renting a cottage in Derbyshire, from which he later stole furnishings.

Anderson had previously been disqualified as a company director under the names Miles Prestland-Windsor and Timothy Ahlbeck, but continued controlling companies while banned. The Insolvency Service said he had seven previous convictions covering 41 dishonesty offences since 2002 and had used fictitious employees and senior managers to make his businesses appear more credible. The agency is now seeking to recover fraudulently obtained funds under the Proceeds of Crime Act.

STORY

Councils in England will be able to intervene after a home has stood empty for six months under reforms to Empty Dwelling Management Orders. The present qualifying period is two years, meaning local authorities will be permitted to act eighteen months sooner when a property has been left unused.

An order allows a council to take over the management of a privately owned empty home and return it to occupation for up to seven years, while the owner retains ownership. The application process will also be simplified by removing requirements to provide evidence about matters including antisocial behaviour and community support for intervention.

The Government says the changes will help prevent vacant properties falling into serious disrepair and make better use of existing housing. Ministers are considering additional reforms after figures cited by the Government showed that around 300,000 homes have been empty for the long term, although the effectiveness of the policy will depend on councils making greater use of the orders.

STORY

The Government has announced a new equity loan scheme intended to help first time buyers in England purchase newly built homes with deposits of 2.5 per cent. Your First Home is expected to provide a Government backed equity loan worth 20 per cent of the property value, reducing the size of the conventional mortgage required.

The equity loan will include an initial interest free period and will be available only on homes sold by participating developers. Ministers say the scheme will be targeted through household income limits and local property price caps, while developers will be expected to contribute towards its costs.

Chancellor John Healey will confirm the full terms, cost and implementation timetable in the Budget on 28 October. The Government says registration will open by the end of 2026 and argues that the scheme will address the deposit barrier while supporting demand for new homes during a difficult period for housebuilders.

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Prime Minister Andy Burnham has pledged to put a plan for a universal social care service before voters at the next general election. He said care should operate on principles similar to the NHS, with services free at the point of use and the cost spread across the population.

Burnham said the detailed proposal would include a precise explanation of how the system would be funded. He acknowledged that the plan could require difficult or unpopular choices, but said the present system was unfair and placed unsustainable pressure on families and the health service.

The Prime Minister does not intend to introduce the new system during the current Parliament, with the next general election due by mid 2029. His commitment leaves the final design and tax implications unresolved while placing social care reform at the centre of Labour’s programme for a possible second term.

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The Government has announced that British shipyards will build three new floating docks for the Royal Navy submarine service and a new marine research vessel. Chancellor John Healey said the projects formed part of a new age of industrialisation intended to support skilled employment, strengthen national security and create work for smaller British businesses.

The floating docks will be procured through a competition restricted to the United Kingdom and installed at HM Naval Base Clyde. The facilities, known collectively as Programme Euston, will be used for inspections, upgrades and repairs across the current and future nuclear submarine fleet, preserving a capability that ministers regard as strategically important.

The separate research vessel will replace the ageing RV Cefas Endeavour and is expected to enter service in the early 2030s. It will monitor fish stocks and pollution, map the seabed and use technologies including automation, robotics and artificial intelligence. The Government has not yet named the shipyards that will receive the work.