28/02/2012

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:00:14. > :00:19.Good evening, this is BBC Newsline with Noel Thompson and Donna

:00:19. > :00:22.Traynor. The headlines this Tuesday evening:

:00:22. > :00:26.An 83-year-old man is hit in the face with an iron bar as he and his

:00:26. > :00:29.brother are robbed for the third time.

:00:29. > :00:32.We're getting ready for a big influx of tourists this summer -

:00:32. > :00:35.but what's to be done about our decaying towns?

:00:35. > :00:38.No shift in the number of people smoking, but the Health Minister

:00:38. > :00:41.has a vision for a tobacco-free society.

:00:41. > :00:50.Ovarian cancer is killing over 100women a year - campaigners say

:00:50. > :00:58.society needs to be more open about the disease. We speak about breasts,

:00:58. > :01:01.we speak about testicles, so why can't we speak about ovaries?

:01:01. > :01:05.The cab down his arm for this year's International 200 and some

:01:05. > :01:07.of the top road racers are here in the BBC -- the countdown is on.

:01:07. > :01:16.And tomorrow, hopefully a few brighter intervals again but, like

:01:16. > :01:20.today, they could be pretty Good evening.

:01:20. > :01:23.An 83-year-old man was hit in the face with an iron bar by a gang of

:01:23. > :01:26.men who ransacked the house he shares with his 81-year-old brother.

:01:26. > :01:29.This is the third time the pensioners have been robbed and the

:01:29. > :01:31.police had supplied security devices to the house.

:01:31. > :01:38.Our district journalist Francis Gorman has been talking to the

:01:38. > :01:41.Murtagh brothers at Lurganare Cross on the outskirts of Newry.

:01:41. > :01:47.Jimmy and Patsy Murtagh at home today, still coming to terms with

:01:47. > :01:51.their latest ordeal. Around teatime last night, a gang of masked man --

:01:51. > :02:01.men forced their way into the home. Jimmy it remembers being afraid we

:02:01. > :02:02.

:02:02. > :02:10.heard noises from the kitchen. thought, what is that? There was

:02:10. > :02:15.too much thumping. And that put me up. And I knew, I was expecting

:02:15. > :02:21.trouble. I knew then. But I didn't see them until they came it, and I

:02:21. > :02:26.knew when they left tools and will, I was in trouble. The gang ran spat

:02:26. > :02:30.-- ransacked the house and in 50 minutes, made off with the

:02:30. > :02:33.brothers's pensions and wallets. The imagine you are in your room

:02:33. > :02:39.and five men walk into your room with balaclavas and one of them

:02:39. > :02:49.carrying an iron bar. It is very frightening. It is terrible. I had

:02:49. > :02:50.

:02:50. > :02:55.a big stick and one fellow was very big. Well over six foot. And he was

:02:55. > :03:02.thin. And I made at him with the stick and he grabbed it and he

:03:02. > :03:06.pulled a knife, and he bawled at 1/4 to my chest. -- Paul Kidd and I

:03:06. > :03:11.caught it. After they were rocked the second time, the brothers got a

:03:11. > :03:14.panic button. Patsy usually wears it around his neck, but last night

:03:14. > :03:16.it was unfortunately on his dressing table.

:03:16. > :03:20.Derelict and half-finished buildings that blight our towns and

:03:20. > :03:23.cities - many are the ugly consequences of the property crash.

:03:23. > :03:32.Today, the Assembly has been trying to come up with ways to tackle the

:03:32. > :03:35.problem. So many may be available,

:03:35. > :03:39.especially for count among -- along the north coast, so they can

:03:39. > :03:44.prepare for the Irish Open in Portrush this summer.

:03:44. > :03:48.The council hoped this derelict hotel in Portrush will soon be

:03:48. > :03:53.demolished. Today, it is an unwanted eyesore, just one of

:03:53. > :03:56.several buildings left rotting in the property downturn. Here are on

:03:57. > :04:03.the north coast, there is added incentive to deal with these blots

:04:04. > :04:13.on the landscape. The Irish golf championship -- Irish Open Golf

:04:14. > :04:14.

:04:14. > :04:19.Championship is on its way to an Manage its potential. There is a

:04:19. > :04:23.scheme planned to improve derelict site on the north coast. Time is

:04:23. > :04:30.limited, so I can't do grandiose schemes but we can cosmetic to make

:04:30. > :04:33.some of the derelict buildings Blakelock -- look more attractive,

:04:33. > :04:38.so the images can be beamed around the world during the Irish Open.

:04:38. > :04:43.don't think it will make a lot of difference to tourists coming up.

:04:43. > :04:49.But but it this way, a cosmetic job is not very good because it doesn't

:04:49. > :04:53.last very long. This project shows what is possible. This is an old

:04:53. > :04:58.hotel, still unoccupied, but with Cantle intervention its appearance,

:04:58. > :05:02.at least, has been given a makeover. In Belfast, the local council has

:05:02. > :05:09.also been active, forcing the dereliction of a derelict property

:05:09. > :05:14.that also once stood here. It is a problem the MLA once addressed.

:05:14. > :05:18.There are issues of health and safety around those sides, and also

:05:18. > :05:22.of illegal dumping it, so we have to make sure the Minister speaks to

:05:22. > :05:26.officials within councils to try and less than the gap with regards

:05:26. > :05:30.to legislation and give them the powers to be able to go in and

:05:30. > :05:34.force developers to actually tidy up those sites. So it is not just

:05:34. > :05:39.the north coast problem. Neglected buildings are a feature of many

:05:39. > :05:47.towns. Portrush and its surrounding area could be poised for special

:05:47. > :05:48.treatment. The plight of people living on

:05:49. > :05:50.half-finished housing developments is another growing problem.

:05:50. > :05:54.Developers running into financial trouble, disappearing and leaving

:05:54. > :05:56.so-called "ghost estates" in their wake. And no organisation prepared

:05:56. > :06:00.to complete the work. Residents say it's not just about a

:06:00. > :06:03.lack of services, there's the danger to their children. Their

:06:03. > :06:07.fears were intensified with last week's drowning of a toddler on a

:06:07. > :06:14.ghost estate in Athlone in County Westmeath.

:06:14. > :06:18.Kevin Sharkey reports from Ripley Crescent in Portadown.

:06:18. > :06:23.It didn't look like this in the brochure. And now the developers

:06:23. > :06:27.have gone. Some houses never built, and the outside of the others never

:06:27. > :06:34.finished. But the bills keep coming. The Post man one of the few

:06:34. > :06:39.services willing to come into this estate. Residents must drag Benz to

:06:39. > :06:45.a nearby road. The lorries will not come in here, too dangerous. The

:06:45. > :06:49.residents say it is dangerous for them as well. Manholes are sitting

:06:49. > :06:54.Open over there. The fences are not complete, you can't let your

:06:54. > :06:58.children out to play without being supervised. Coming into the warm

:06:58. > :07:01.weather, what are you meant to do, let them out or keep them in?

:07:01. > :07:07.Residents that have too many answers to the problems, but they

:07:07. > :07:11.do know what is needed. We need street lighting, it is extremely

:07:11. > :07:15.important to make it safe. We need the area tidying up and the roads

:07:16. > :07:19.finished. Ideally, we would like the whole site finished and with

:07:19. > :07:26.all families so we don't feel so vulnerable and isolated. You can

:07:26. > :07:31.feel vulnerable and you are living in pitch black on a derelict site.

:07:31. > :07:34.So the danger remains, but who should be doing something about it?

:07:34. > :07:39.This organisation, the Health and Safety Executive of Northern

:07:40. > :07:43.Ireland, has a role, but only while construction is still under way.

:07:43. > :07:46.Once the Bill does leave, irrespective of the reasons, they

:07:46. > :07:55.have no responsibility -- the builders. That Leeds residents like

:07:55. > :08:00.this with few options other than to tread carefully. -- it in Leeds

:08:00. > :08:03.The Former First Minister Lord Bannside has been discharged from

:08:03. > :08:06.hospital where he was receiving treatment for heart problems. It's

:08:06. > :08:09.understood Ian Paisley was well enough to walk out of the Ulster

:08:09. > :08:12.Hospital in Dundonald last night. He spent more than a week in

:08:12. > :08:15.intensive care. In a statement issued this morning, Baroness

:08:15. > :08:17.Paisley thanked the staff at the hospital for their care and all

:08:17. > :08:20.those who had offered prayers and support.

:08:20. > :08:23.The number of people smoking has not dropped for the last five years,

:08:23. > :08:27.but the Health Minister says he's still aiming to create a tobacco-

:08:27. > :08:30.free society. Edwin Poots has launched a ten-year

:08:30. > :08:39.strategy to help people stop smoking and prevent others from

:08:39. > :08:44.taking it up. Chris Page reports. Attitudes towards smoking have

:08:44. > :08:48.changed a lot since the 1960s, when most people lit up frequently. It

:08:48. > :08:52.is now much less common habit but recently, the number of smokers has

:08:52. > :08:58.stopped falling. 24% of people in Northern Ireland smoke, that

:08:58. > :09:01.proportion has not reduced in the last five years. Smoking causes

:09:01. > :09:06.around 2,300 deaths every year and the cost to the health service is

:09:06. > :09:14.huge. Hospital spent �190 million treating smoking-related illnesses

:09:14. > :09:20.in a year. -- 119. The Health Minister hopes to bring down of the

:09:20. > :09:24.percentage of smokers to 15%, meaning they would be around

:09:24. > :09:27.130,000 fewer smokers. It is not just about stopping people smoking,

:09:27. > :09:31.it is about reducing the number of people starting to smoke and

:09:31. > :09:35.protecting those that living environments where there are

:09:35. > :09:39.smokers, such as children in cars. A so this week, cigarette vending

:09:39. > :09:44.machines will be effectively banned. And sides like this will become a

:09:44. > :09:49.thing of the past. -- sites like this. Large shops will have to

:09:49. > :09:52.remove tobacco despise. They will be banned in small shops from 2015.

:09:52. > :09:57.There will also be a consultation on whether smoking Inkatha should

:09:58. > :10:02.be made illegal and the Health Minister is suggesting smoking ban

:10:02. > :10:05.could be extended to some outdoor places. Many people complain of

:10:05. > :10:10.people smoking outside the front doors of shopping centres and

:10:10. > :10:13.hospitals. That is something we will be looking at. Doctors say it

:10:13. > :10:18.is particularly important the message gets through to young

:10:18. > :10:22.people. We are seeing patients coming in in their twenties and

:10:22. > :10:25.thirties with heart attacks, which seems ridiculous but it happens and

:10:25. > :10:29.his unfortunate the more common than we would like to think. There

:10:29. > :10:32.may be a long way to go, but the minister believes a tobacco free

:10:32. > :10:35.society is possible some time and that is his ultimate aim.

:10:35. > :10:38.And lots of people have been engaged in some pretty energetic

:10:38. > :10:40.debate on this subject on our Facebook page. If you want to join

:10:40. > :10:50.Facebook page. If you want to join in the address is on your screen.

:10:50. > :10:52.

:10:52. > :10:56.You can also follow us on Twitter Still to come on the programme: We

:10:56. > :11:00.are in Uganda to help -- see how help from here is offering a

:11:00. > :11:04.brighter future. And we start the countdown to the

:11:04. > :11:07.international North West 200 here in the BBC.

:11:07. > :11:12.Ovarian cancer kills around 120 women here every year - that's

:11:12. > :11:13.about twice the number of road deaths. Because the symptoms are

:11:13. > :11:18.often confused with non-life threatening conditions, diagnosis

:11:18. > :11:21.can come too late. To raise awareness and save lives,

:11:21. > :11:25.a local charity wants women to start talking as openly about their

:11:25. > :11:32.ovaries as they do about their breasts. With the story, here's our

:11:32. > :11:37.Health Correspondent Marie-Louise Connolly.

:11:37. > :11:43.An increasing number of women are having to access information on

:11:43. > :11:46.ovarian cancer. Around 120 die from the disease here every year.

:11:46. > :11:51.Difficult to diagnose, the statistic is not improving. This

:11:51. > :11:55.woman was given the news for years ago. A few years before that, I had

:11:55. > :12:00.been diagnosed with irritable bowel syndrome and the symptoms got worse

:12:00. > :12:04.and I had severe abdominal pain and a lot of tummy bloating, so I was

:12:04. > :12:08.taken into the hospital and initially they thought it was

:12:08. > :12:15.appendicitis, but after scans and tests, they discovered it was a

:12:15. > :12:19.tumour on my ovary, which turned out to be cancer. This is one of

:12:19. > :12:24.the services we provide for ovarian cancer patients. This charity in

:12:24. > :12:28.Belfast is the only ovarian Cancer Support Centre in the UK. I want

:12:28. > :12:34.the public to not be embarrassed about talking about gynaecological

:12:34. > :12:37.cancers. In 2002, Maureen Clarke's daughter died from the disease. She

:12:37. > :12:42.says greater funding and even awareness of symptoms which include

:12:42. > :12:46.back and pelvic pain, and even feeling follow-up, are vital.

:12:46. > :12:50.old statement is in the male population, this is a female

:12:50. > :12:54.problem, a woman's problem, but it's not if you have a loved one

:12:54. > :12:59.diagnosed with ovarian cancer. And we need to speak out more about

:12:59. > :13:03.ovarian cancer. We speak about breasts, we speak about testicles,

:13:03. > :13:09.so why can't we speak about ovaries? During Edyta's treatment,

:13:09. > :13:14.test revealed she has also a career of a genetic Bell condition. That

:13:14. > :13:24.is information the family prefer to convert rather than shy away from -

:13:24. > :13:24.

:13:25. > :13:31.- confront. For females, it would been ovarian, for males, it would

:13:31. > :13:36.be bell. We are regularly screened. So far, genetic testing is proving

:13:36. > :13:39.effective. The majority ovarian cancers are detected at a late

:13:39. > :13:43.stage, which is hard to treat, but is it is picked up after their

:13:44. > :13:48.early stage, it is much more and it -- if it is picked up early, it is

:13:48. > :13:51.more easy to manage. Part of the success behind the Breast Cancer

:13:51. > :13:55.awareness campaign has been transforming it from a taboo

:13:55. > :14:00.subject to one that is openly discussed and even used as a theme

:14:00. > :14:09.for open air concerts and marathons. Now those involved in ovarian

:14:09. > :14:13.cancer and bowel cancer are calling It is believed a body found in a

:14:13. > :14:19.river in County Donegal is a man who escaped from police custody in

:14:19. > :14:21.Strabane last year. A digger driver discovered skeletal remains near

:14:21. > :14:25.the River Finn in Lifford this morning. They are believed to be

:14:25. > :14:30.the remains of 22-year-old David Colhoun. He went missing ten months

:14:30. > :14:35.ago, running off during a transfer between police cars. It could take

:14:35. > :14:40.place two weeks to identify the body, David's father says he is

:14:40. > :14:46.sure it is his son. I am shocked, but relieved, it is coming to a

:14:46. > :14:53.close. Sand, but we knew he would - - we would get in some day. He was

:14:53. > :14:58.there, we were right all along. Republic waters have been at --

:14:58. > :15:02.waters have been asked how much say they should have in the economy.

:15:02. > :15:09.The Government is encouraging I guess boat, seemed it is vital to

:15:09. > :15:14.rebuild the country's reputation. - - the yes board. The no camp,

:15:14. > :15:19.including Sinn Fein, say it could condemn the Republic to austerity.

:15:19. > :15:23.How big a surprise was this referendum today? It was widely

:15:23. > :15:28.suspected of this treaty was boarded Trust -- specifically to

:15:28. > :15:32.avoid Ireland having to have a referendum on this issue, but the

:15:32. > :15:36.Attorney General advised that, because the treaty is unique, a

:15:36. > :15:43.referendum was necessary. The treaty is designed to tighten

:15:43. > :15:48.budgetary controls are crossed the eurozone states to avoid a repeat

:15:48. > :15:51.of the current debt crisis. Financial sanctions would flow from

:15:51. > :15:56.Brussels to Dublin where those rules to be breached, leading to

:15:56. > :16:01.concerns that too much financial control would be given to Brussels.

:16:01. > :16:06.Ireland has a history of rejecting EU treaties, what would happen if

:16:06. > :16:10.they produced a no this time. -- this time?

:16:10. > :16:15.Yes, that is right, and there are genuine fears something like that

:16:15. > :16:20.could happen again, after years of austerity there is support for

:16:20. > :16:26.Europe -- the support for it Europe in the Republic has weakened, and

:16:27. > :16:32.there are fears of a public backlash. F Ireland voted no, the

:16:32. > :16:36.treaties could still go ahead because it only needs to be

:16:36. > :16:42.ratified by 12 of the 17 euros on members. But, Ireland would no

:16:42. > :16:47.longer get a financial assistance from the other members. His bete --

:16:47. > :16:50.expect a lot of this debate to revolve around Ireland somehow

:16:50. > :16:55.being bribed to pass this referendum. Another view is that

:16:55. > :17:05.this is a great opportunity for I went to press for debt reduction as

:17:05. > :17:06.

:17:06. > :17:09.quid pro al for ratification. -- quid pro -- quid pro quo.

:17:09. > :17:12.Assembly members want to build greater links with a country more

:17:12. > :17:17.than 4,000 miles away, a place devastated by civil war.

:17:17. > :17:22.20 years ago, Uganda was a failed state, and although it has been

:17:22. > :17:26.transformed with a booming economy, millions remain in poverty. MLAs

:17:26. > :17:32.want to build on the work of charities and stretches, helping

:17:32. > :17:39.people in the north of the country. Our reporter travelled there to

:17:39. > :17:45.find out how arrogant is offering hope to a brighter future in Uganda.

:17:45. > :17:52.Kampala, the capital of Uganda, on the shores of Lake Victoria. A mix

:17:52. > :17:55.of prosperity and poverty. In the market you can buy Irish. The main

:17:55. > :17:59.-- that is the name the Ugandans have given to potatoes. Travel

:18:00. > :18:08.north across the river Nile and you are in our region devastated by

:18:08. > :18:13.conflict. Until a few years ago, a population the size of Northern

:18:13. > :18:16.Ireland where refugees in their own country, living in camps as the

:18:16. > :18:20.Government fought the rebel soldiers of the Lord's Resistance

:18:20. > :18:25.Army. The work of local aid agencies is helping to transform

:18:25. > :18:31.the lives of those who have returned home. One-third of the

:18:31. > :18:36.family's we work with would have a cash income of about �40 per year,

:18:36. > :18:40.so if you put that in perspective, it is less than �1 per week. It is

:18:40. > :18:45.often the simple things that are most effective. Many ways been

:18:45. > :18:53.spent on kerosene for lamps, but one think Uganda has freely and

:18:53. > :18:58.abundance is sunshine, and these solar lights are at it. Every time

:18:58. > :19:02.you need a family they say, before, I spent my money on kerosene, I

:19:02. > :19:06.have the solar lights and I am now spending my money on school fees,

:19:06. > :19:12.tools for the farm or medical services for my family, or I am

:19:12. > :19:15.saving a bit of money. consequences of a spark can be

:19:15. > :19:19.devastating, but there have been a no fires this year where solar

:19:19. > :19:24.lamps are used. There have been other benefits to health and

:19:24. > :19:29.education. The local school has reported the best exam results in

:19:29. > :19:33.that district. The children in primary and secondary schools are

:19:33. > :19:40.taking their exams and they're using it for reading effectively at

:19:40. > :19:46.night, under the solar lamp, and it also improves on their academic

:19:46. > :19:52.performance in school. The long- term aim is to help those who have

:19:52. > :19:54.relied on aid to help themselves. This work has been supported by the

:19:54. > :20:02.Partnership for National Development, which has provided

:20:02. > :20:06.funding to end the years of darkness in this part of Africa.

:20:06. > :20:09.And on tomorrow's programme, we hear from the victims and survivors

:20:09. > :20:12.of the Lord's Resistance Army, including a former child soldier

:20:12. > :20:18.forced to take part in the massacres.

:20:18. > :20:23.Next, some of the world's top road racers are at the BBC tonight as

:20:23. > :20:29.the countdown to this year's North West 200.

:20:29. > :20:35.Thanks very much indeed. Tonight here at the BBC we are looking at

:20:35. > :20:38.the exciting plans of the extensive coverage this year across radio,

:20:38. > :20:41.online and television, and BBC Newsline will be live from the

:20:41. > :20:46.North West 200, as well, shall casing of these machines and some

:20:46. > :20:49.of the best road racers in the world. One of the best is home-

:20:49. > :20:53.grown - Alastair Seeley is the current British Supersport champion,

:20:53. > :20:56.and his success in the North West 200 over the last few years has

:20:56. > :21:00.helped him earn a place in the Sports Institute of Northern

:21:00. > :21:04.Ireland. As Niall Forster will find out, he works as hard off the track

:21:04. > :21:08.as on it. From a superbike to an exercise

:21:08. > :21:12.bike, Alastair Seeley has adopted a different approach to his

:21:12. > :21:17.preparations for the new season. The guys I am not against, they

:21:17. > :21:21.will train just as hard, so I have to push beyond that and train

:21:21. > :21:24.harder. When I get on the grid, the first round, I can look around and

:21:25. > :21:31.say to the guys, I have trained harder than you come and it will

:21:31. > :21:36.pay off in the race, hopefully. And to achieve more success, he is

:21:36. > :21:41.pushing himself through the pain barrier.

:21:41. > :21:46.The dead list to start with, we are now up to 120. We will keep pushing

:21:46. > :21:52.that up, it is basically a lot of arm, shoulder and backward. It is

:21:52. > :21:57.all the upper half and torso. With the North West 200 around the

:21:57. > :22:05.corner bomb Alastair has his sights set on a new personal best.

:22:05. > :22:09.North West 200 is fun, but it gets serious on race day. I want to win

:22:09. > :22:13.five races and be the second man to do it since Philip McCann. As long

:22:13. > :22:18.as I can feel stronger on the bike and fitter come the end of the

:22:18. > :22:24.season, standing on the top step. And if he does, although hard work

:22:24. > :22:30.will be worth it. Philip McCann, who holds that

:22:30. > :22:35.record, is with me. Alastair tries to -- is trying to

:22:35. > :22:39.equal your record of this year. How good it -- is it to have a rider

:22:39. > :22:43.from Northern Ireland there? It is superb, there is a lot of

:22:43. > :22:47.pride, we have a lot of people from across the world coming to try and

:22:47. > :22:50.win a our Irish road race, and it is great we have a man to pick out

:22:50. > :22:54.the a truly defending those big races.

:22:54. > :22:58.Last year was a bit of a washout at the North West 200, one race and

:22:58. > :23:02.then an oil spill put paid to any racing at the end of the day, a

:23:02. > :23:06.bomb scare, as well. This year at the hope is it can get back on

:23:06. > :23:11.track, bigger and better. I think it will, organisers are

:23:11. > :23:17.putting a lot of work in. I believe we cannot have bad weather another

:23:17. > :23:20.year. No matter what, this year will be better than last. The want

:23:20. > :23:27.the BBC and the organisers are putting in, they have reorganised

:23:27. > :23:30.the racing so we have two days of practice, then we have all day

:23:30. > :23:33.Saturday, I think we are in for a superb North West 200.

:23:34. > :23:39.That extra racing on the Thursday night, is that important for the

:23:39. > :23:44.riders to give them more race time? Yes, lots of practice in, to put

:23:44. > :23:48.two races in on Thursday night is the will to that dream. Every rider

:23:48. > :23:53.wants to ride more when he comes to the North West 200, so the line-up

:23:53. > :23:57.on Saturday will be even more competitive than ever. The I keep

:23:57. > :24:00.their much indeed, enjoy the rest of the evening.

:24:00. > :24:05.-- thank you very much indeed. In football, Michael O'Neill has

:24:05. > :24:13.named Steven Davis as the new Northern Ireland captain. He will

:24:13. > :24:18.lead at the side out in the friendly against Norway tonight.

:24:18. > :24:22.It was day one of his budding relationship -- this budding

:24:22. > :24:26.relationship between the captain and the manager, one fans hope will

:24:26. > :24:34.blossom in the years to come. He is a player that leads by

:24:34. > :24:36.example. He never shirks responsibility on the pitch. He is

:24:37. > :24:46.always trying to get positive performances and bring the best out

:24:47. > :24:48.

:24:48. > :24:51.of the people around him by how he O'Neill has been impressed without

:24:51. > :24:56.Davies has coped with the added pressure of captaining Rangers at

:24:56. > :25:00.club level. He knows a lot when terms of house

:25:00. > :25:05.he plays, and within the team we have a lot of readers, a lot of

:25:05. > :25:07.experience, so it is not a case of one person being the captain. We

:25:08. > :25:12.have a lot of experience and leaders in the team that could,

:25:12. > :25:15.also. If with Aaron Hughes reversing his decision to retire

:25:15. > :25:23.from international football, the manager resisted the temptation to

:25:23. > :25:27.hand him back the captain's armband. I spoke to them previously, in

:25:27. > :25:30.relation to coming out of retirement. He had no expectations

:25:30. > :25:36.to return as captain for stroppy has been extremely supportive of

:25:36. > :25:39.the decision. He recognises that it is perhaps time for someone else to

:25:39. > :25:44.take over captaincy of the team for a long time.

:25:44. > :25:49.Having been selected as -- have been selected his captain, O'Neill

:25:49. > :25:54.will wait until tomorrow to run -- name the rest of the team.

:25:54. > :25:57.The Republic of Parliament are in friendly action, as well, taking on

:25:57. > :26:02.and the Czech Republic at the Aviva Stadium. Robbie Keane will return

:26:02. > :26:06.to his side, LA Galaxy, after the game. He is in pretty good form

:26:06. > :26:12.after his recent spell with Aston Villa. He says first team football

:26:12. > :26:17.is keeping him sharp. Going to LA Galaxy and winning the

:26:17. > :26:21.championship and the first few months, that was great. It is just

:26:21. > :26:25.about playing, the more you play it the sharper and fitter you get in

:26:25. > :26:29.games. You certainly see the benefits from it.

:26:30. > :26:36.That is just about it from Black Star studios, it is not me on my

:26:36. > :26:43.own tonight, we have a pretty full house here to hear about the BBC's

:26:43. > :26:46.plans for North West 200 this year. His fans, of course!

:26:46. > :26:50.His fans, of course! Let's see what the weather is doing.

:26:50. > :26:56.The emphasis is still very much on the mild conditions, and it was

:26:56. > :27:00.exceptionally mild today, up to 16.3 Celsius earlier, almost ten

:27:00. > :27:06.Celsius above the seasonal average and closer to what you would expect

:27:06. > :27:15.at the end of May. They had some direct sunshine earlier, some parts

:27:15. > :27:19.also had some hazy sunshine. For many, it was predominantly cloudy.

:27:19. > :27:25.We will hold on to the cloud through this evening, though it is

:27:25. > :27:30.dry, as well. Through the night the cloud goes down to the hilltops,

:27:31. > :27:40.perhaps squeezing out some drizzle, some mistiness and damp air over

:27:40. > :27:45.the hills. But for most of us it staves drive. -- it stays dry. The

:27:45. > :27:50.mild weather continues tomorrow, still a lot of cloud, too, so it

:27:50. > :27:58.could be damp, up mistiness may create minor visibility issues, and

:27:58. > :28:02.any drizzle will leave with the dry weather. We will have some bright

:28:02. > :28:11.spots in the afternoon, probably parts of County Down and County