16/03/2016 BBC Newsline

A murder investigation begins after a prison officer dies

11 days after being injured by a dissident republican bomb.

A budget-day surprise as the Chancellor announces

Northern Ireland is to get an air ambulance.

The budget also delivered a spending boost to the Executive -

New plans for the redevelopment of Casement Park

Also on the programme tonight: We meet a deaf man who spent more

than 50 years living in a hospital but is now living near his family.

He had no life, compared to what he has now.

On the day football's Euro 16 trophy came to Belfast,

the Northern Ireland manager signs a new four year deal.

And find out what the weather has

in store for St Patrick's Day later in the programme.

Police have begun a murder inquiry into the death of prison officer

Adrian Ismay after a postmortem examination found that he died

as a direct result of the injuries sustained in a dissident republican

Our home affairs correspondent Vincent Kearney reports.

Friends and neighbours have rallied round the family of Adrian Ismay.

When news of the 52-year-old's death was announced yesterday,

the suspicion was that his heart attack was the result of injuries

suffered when a bomb exploded under his van

Today, a postmortem confirmed that was the case.

It's understood the postmortem concluded that Adrian Ismay's heart

It says that clot was a direct result of injuries sustained

in the bomb explosion here 12 days ago.

As a result of those findings, the police have now launched

One man has already appeared in court and been charged

He's expected to be brought back to court within days for that charge

The Director-General of the Prison Service met

the officer's family this afternoon, shortly after it was confirmed

that his death was the result of the bomb attack.

They are absolutely devastated by what has happened. I spent time with

his wife and one of his daughters. There are lots of people at the

house supporting them, wider family, friends and neighbours, but they are

beyond shock at what has happened. Sue McAllister also said claims that

a small number of dissident republicans in Maghaberry had

celebrated news of the death and taunted prison staff by smoking

cigars in the exercise yard of their wing had

been substantiated. I felt very angry, as did many of my

colleagues, angry that people were behaving that way, but we encounter

challenging behaviour I a small number of prisoners every day and

deal with it professionally, it is our standards that prevail and we do

not do to behaving that way in response.

Adrian Ismay will be buried on Tuesday.

The Chancellor has unveiled his budget and with some extra money

and moves on corporation tax, plus a lot of measures

which will impact on household incomes, it's the focus of a lot

We'll hear more about those in a moment but first,

Marie-Louise Connolly reports on what might arguably be the most

eye-catching element locally - ?4 million worth of funding

for an air ambulance that could be up and running within months.

helicopter like this will be landing very soon in Northern Ireland. While

the timing of the news came as a surprise, what was even more

surprising was that it was the Chancellor making the announcement.

The funding comes from fines imposed on banks for rigging interest rates

used for lending money. We will use over ?4 million

from Libor fines to help establish the first air ambulance service

for Northern Ireland. The campaign for an air ambulance

has been long and fraught. A charity was dissolved after it got into

financial difficulties. The issue laid dormant until last year until

it was put on the agenda after Doctor John Hinds was killed in an

accident, having told the BBC weeks before he died that a medical

Ambulance Service would be a game changer. We know other services like

this have reduced trauma deaths up to 40% and that is what we are

missing. The campaign received another call and elliptical backing.

It must be centrally located, around Aldergrove airport, and able to

reach time when most of the accidents occur, which is in the

East. While it was George Osborne's budget that gave the air ambulance

Project permission to land here, it will be up to Simon Hamilton to work

out the finer detail like location, staffing and longer term funding.

That is to be announced on Monday and we understand the service could

take off soon as happy of the money is available in the 2016 budget.

The budget also delivered a spending boost to the

Changes to tax thresholds will also put money in people's pockets.

Our business correspondent Julian O'Neill is here

Stormont sees good news in this budget.

It will get an extra ?223 million over the next four years.

The tax-free allowance is rising to ?11,500 from next year -

a move the government says will make people ?182 a year better off.

And despite all the pre-budget speculation, fuel duty is frozen,

and along with it so is the tax on beer, spirits and cider.

Pre-budget there had been much talk of a first increase in fuel duty

But no, another freeze and one greeted enthusiastically at this

The transport industry work pleasantly surprised by the

announcement. We anticipated a 1p increase would have resulted in

additional costs around ?470 per year for vehicles like this.

The man in charge of the Stormont chequebook also has a little more

There are pressures that this 223 million will give some element of

relief, which I think ministers in the new executive will welcome.

Income tax thresholds are changing next year.

The amount on which no tax is paid is increasing and the 40p rate

16p is being added to a pack of 20 cigarettes and one of the budget's

big headlines is a new sugar tax on soft drinks in two years' time,

with a slice of the revenue raised coming back to Stormont.

More beneficial for the money to go some very useful and maybe reduced

sugary drinks, though most people will still buy them. It is a good

idea and workable, if it goes back into the economy, it's a good idea.

Our leaders are in the US promoting local corporation tax. The

Chancellor will announce a new rate by 2020, which makes it easier for

the indicative to pay for. A further 3.5 million pounds of savings are

required in the next four years, and it is hard to see storm and escaping

a share of the pain. As one economist put it, a spoonful of

sugar tax to help the austerity go down.

Our Business and Economics Editor, John Campbell,

So we heard the Chancellor saying the rate of corporation tax

Does that spoil things for people campaigning to have it reduced here?

One of the major at things the First and Deputy First Minister had been

doing in the US is selling the reduced rate of corporation tax from

2018, which gives us an advantage as an investment location. A few years

ago it would have been a big advantage because the UK rate was

28% but now in 2020 the UK rate will be just 17%, so that advantage has

diminished over time although it is still within the death of the

indicative to cut it further, as low as 10%. What about the new panel of

advisers to help with US investment? Invest Northern Ireland already have

people in the east and West Coast of the US looking for investment

opportunities, but as part of the renewed push this week, the First

and Deputy First Minister wants best friends in corporate America to make

Northern Ireland's case. One of them is Sean Kelly, a West Belfast man

who is now in KPMG, the other is a Limerick man now based in Silicon

Valley. It is helping some of those doors, also on a day to day business

bringing awareness in Northern Ireland that it is a place to invest

in, and when companies want to make a decision they are looking at

cities around the world and being in front of a leader in Silicon Valley

and saying, have you considered Belfast and Derry as an option?

But a trip very much overshadowed, would you say, by the death

That was raised at a meeting the ministers had with President Obama

last night but when I spoke to them afterwards they had said they would

not be diverted and would continue with their push to attract

investment and build on the fresh start agreement.

Gerry Adams didn't get into the main White House St Patrick's function

No, this is an event Mr Adams has been too many times, the main Irish

American inventor in Washington, he had an invite, his colleague Mary

Lou McDonald got him without hassle and Martin McGuinness was already

inside the Gerry Adams was told there was a security issue and he

had to wait for 90 minutes, eventually somebody texted him and

said President Obama had already spoken so he decided to leave. I

will speak to him later about that. We have also asked for a reaction

from the White House that have not heard anything back yet.

The GAA have accepted that the new Casement Park

in Belfast may not get the 38,000 capacity they wanted.

In a significant move today, they said they were working

on a new design, and would hold a lengthy public consultation before

?6 million has already been spent on the Casement Park project, much of

it on this new design for a 38,000 capacity stadium. Now the GAA is

having a rethink. Planning permission has been overturned,

concerns have been raised about safety and today the GAA official in

charge of the project promised changes, saying there would be an

entirely new process and that the capacity had not been predetermined.

He promised a 20 week consultation. It is believed this model will still

be the basis of the new design. A member of the Stormont committee

which has been scrutinising the project said today the GAA had

significantly soft and its position and he welcomed it. I think that is

progress, people need to be realistic about this. We cannot get

certification around the stadium with the capacity being talked about

without approval from Belfast City Council, without the statutory

agencies agreeing and expertise of the safety authorities, so I am glad

that is going to happen. Residents nearby will have their say. We

always felt consultation was lacking, especially the last time

there was no consultation, with all these meetings, but no meaningful

consultation where we had an input, we would like an input. There is a

lot riding on the new Casement. Ulster GAA want a new provincial

stadium. The Irish authorities are watching carefully to, as they want

Casement for their 2023 World Cup bid. But all those watching the

project will have to be patient. The planning process is slow and with no

guarantee of success. Still to come on the programme:

Some Holywood stardust in support Still to come on the programme:

Some Hollywood stardust in support Bring the trophy home, boys. Up the

Rory 's! The Education Authority

is to suspend plans to cut in half the number of hours children spend

in nurseries in special schools, That review was requested

by the Education Minister John O'Dowd, who called

the EA's decision "flawed." They plan to reduce provision

from four and a half to two Our Education Correspondent

Robbie Meredith reports. These children at Tor Bank special

school spend two and a half But a plan by the Education

Authority to extend that to all special school nurseries led

to a rebuke by the Minister. They have to come forward with a

decisive position in relation to the future of special needs education in

the nursery sector but this decision is flawed.

Today, officials told a Stormont committee the plan was on hold.

Until the EA board has the information they require, we are not

moving forward with it. They were also quizzed

about whether the Minister had been informed of their

decision in advance. I cannot understand how the Minister

didn't know. Do you know how he did not know? You would have to ask the

Minister. Mr O'Dowd said he first learned

of the move when it was reported The body which represents many

special school principals says they want extensive consultation

during the review. I think you have to listen very

carefully to the children, to their parents, to the staff and to the

governors of each and every one of those schools. They know what is

best for the children and your responsibility is to provide the

best education for them. Education Authority officials also

told the committee the review would be carried out

within a short period of time. The appeal court in Belfast has

ruled that Stormont's Health Minister - not the UK

Health Secretary - should decide whether a lifetime ban

on gay men giving blood in Northern Ireland

should be lifted. In England, Scotland and Wales men

are allowed to give blood if they have not had

sex with another man The court dismissed an earlier

ruling that the former Health Minister Edwin Poots had

acted irrationally or with apparent And, by a 2-1 majority,

the judges said maintaining the lifetime ban was contrary

to European law. Ten years ago we revealed on BBC

Newsline that more than 300 patients were in Muckamore Abbey Hospital

who should have been living I've been to meet one of those

who've been resettled Joe McCartney was placed

in Muckamore in County Antrim He's almost 56 and this is the first

time Joe McCartney It's the first time he's

done his own laundry or had That's because he spent 53 years

living on a ward in Muckamore hospital, sent there

aged just three. They just put him in Muckamore Abbey

and he was there for Special care nursing is a discipline

and an art, demanding definite qualities.

He also had some behavioural problems.

His family say their mum was heartbroken but when she died

when Joe was nine, it was generally accepted that he stay there.

His family say it was a difficult life as Joe's problems seemed to get

It was a bit rough, Jo self harmed a lot. You wouldn't want to see his

scars. Every time we got a phone call

we thought that was it. We thought we would have

been taking him home. Life today, though,

is completely different. Since he moved out of Muckamore,

all of his self-harming has stopped. He shares this house

with three others - a supported housing scheme run

by the local health trust We weren't there 50 years ago

so we don't know what the motivation was but I suspect it was the best

thing at the time but with It's not the kind of thing that

would be acceptable nowadays. Joe's brother and sister now get

to visit every week instead of twice a month - a much closer

family connection. You know, he never

had all that before. He'd no life, that's the truth,

he'd no life in Muckamore As we were leaving, Joe made a card

to thank us for coming. His family are relieved to see him

happy and settled. But they, and the professionals

working with him, wonder if his life would have been different had he not

been sent to hospital That's lovely. Thank you so much,

that's beautiful. A much happier life for Joe.

On the day the Euro 2016 trophy came to town,

the Northern Ireland manager signed on the dotted line.

The European Championship trophy is on a tour of the some

of the countries which will play in the finals this summer.

By coincidence on the day it came to Belfast, Michael O'Neill signed

a new four-year contract to remain as Northern Ireland manager.

The conundrum for the IFA is if O'Neill has a successful

European Championships, can they hold on to his services?

He's guided his team to a first major tournament in 30 years.

Today Michael O'Neill signed a new four-year contract

That means if a club want O'Neill as their manager,

and the compensation figure is agreed, O'Neill could leave.

One thing football has taught me is never to plan too far ahead. There

is flexibility in the contract but might only priority is to develop

these players and hopefully continue to do a good job. What does

flexibility mean? It means in terms of the contract, if a club wants to

avail of my services they will have to avail -- negotiate with the IFA.

The only difficulty is the focus. It is not unusual to have compensation

clauses Elton, Michael is protected, we are protected but he has signed

for four years, we are looking forward to working with them.

Compensation clause is interesting, what is that amount? We will not

talk about amounts in anyone's contract, my clause or anyone's, but

those are normal in the football world.

Today the European Championship trophy was in Belfast and one former

Liverpool player and manager believes O'Neill could be hot

If you wish to go to France in the summer and Northern Ireland put a

good show on, by that I mean being organised, maybe getting draws

against some big teams, he would create a lot of interest.

It's the price of success, but if clubs are talking

about your manager, then it's not necessarily a bad thing -

especially if you've signed a new four-year deal.

The manager has called two new faces into the squad for the friendlies

against Wales and Slovenia later this month, Peterborough United

defender Michael Smith and QPR striker Conor Washington

After he rode a hat trick of winners yesterday and at Cheltenham,

which the bookmakers didn't enjoy very much,

Ruby Walsh followed up today with just one more victory.

He took the honours in the opening race of the day, winning the Novices

But he had to settle for second place in the big race of the day as

the Nicky Henderson trained horse romped to victory.

When Cushendall go to Croke Park tomorrow to try to win their first

All-Ireland club title, their hurlers will have the backing

of Holywood - California that is, not County Down.

Liam Neeson is one A-list celebrity who'll be cheering on the Ruairi Ogs

when they take on Na Piarsaigh of Limerick.

He's even appeared in a promotional video made by the men

Bring the trophy home, boys. Up the Ruairis! I wonder who this will go

to next. Tomorrow's match in Croke Park

is extra special for one Cushendall's star player

Neil McManus and his father Hugh, who is recovering from a heart

attack, make the trip knowing they have medical science

and a good neighbour to thank. It's a walk they thought they might

never take again, a few months ago when Hugh McManus became unwell and

ambulance was 45 minutes away. A phone call from his son and a fast

responder intervened. The first responder sat with me and we had a

conversation and he had his differ but later and I then had a cardiac

arrest, and the person looked after me and got me sorted out until the

ambulance arrived. The first responder service is vital to world

communities who live that distance away from a emergency services. You

have about a three or four minute window between cardiac arrest and

needing to be different related. Without that service we would have

an empty chair at our dinner table. Father and son are now trained in

administering CPR. We know that out-of-hospital cardiac arrest,

there are 1400 and Northern Ireland but less than 10% survive because

people do not know how to do CPR at the time of the collapse, so we are

encouraging people to learn how to do work and hopefully save lives. It

puts forth in, ahead of tomorrow's All-Ireland final, they already have

reason to be tactful -- in perspective.

Ryan Farquhar will ride a factory Superbike for the Tyco BMW team

Now with the weather forecast, here's Cecilia.

No complaints this week, look at that for a picture. This is White

Rock speech this morning, a lot of places had a slow start but we got

there eventually, most places saw some sunshine and on that satellite

sequence you can see the cloud being nibbled at, but the best of the

sunshine over Donegal, up towards the north coast and parts of the

West, where we saw temperatures of 11 or 12. We will see something

similar tomorrow but hopefully the sun will be out quicker. Tonight

will get cold again in parts of the West, temperatures dropping to

around 2 degrees. There will be a mix of mist, fog and low cloud, so

to begin Thursday it will be great and misty but it should get sunnier

at the day was on. A lot of people will be of so maybe having a light

in in the morning. Mid-morning onwards we will see that greatness

being nibbled away and in Belfast tomorrow afternoon it looks decent

for the Carnival, temperatures around 10 degrees, plenty of dry

weather and sunshine. Temperatures generally tomorrow afternoon should

hit ten or 11 but in a few spots it will be cooler, maybe nine or 10

degrees. The average for this time of year is nine, so with sunshine

and light winds it will still feel pleasant and it is a big sporting

date for schools so looks good for the finals in Belfast. Tomorrow we

will hold onto clear skies so it will get cold and chilly, with areas

of frost to begin on Friday. For the rest of the week, we still have

pressure and light winds, Friday starting off cloud, gets off cloud

and sunshine, the weekend looking largely dry but maybe a little bit

cooler. Now, in our earlier story about the gay blood case we had said

the judge said the lifetime ban was contrary to European law but we

should have said that the judge