:00:00. > :00:12.Hello and welcome to BBC Newsline. A split has opened in the ranks of the
:00:13. > :00:15.NI21 party after it decided to drop its unionist designation. Deputy
:00:16. > :00:20.leader John McCallister and some election candidates have publicly
:00:21. > :00:26.criticised the move. Martina Purdy has this report.
:00:27. > :00:33.Once inseparable at Stormont they made common cause, quitting the
:00:34. > :00:38.Ulster Unionist Party and setting up NI21, but there was a problem. John
:00:39. > :00:41.McCallister wanted to keep the unionist voting designation at
:00:42. > :00:45.Stormont and the leader, Basil McCrea wanted to drop it. When the
:00:46. > :00:50.leader got his way yesterday, the deputy made his way to the
:00:51. > :00:55.Newsletter, branding the new party dysfunctional. I voted against. I
:00:56. > :00:58.think it muddies the waters unnecessarily. I don't think it is
:00:59. > :01:03.helpful. I don't think it clarifies any position. But the party's euro
:01:04. > :01:08.candidate and the leader say dropping the unionist label makes
:01:09. > :01:12.sense. The decisions that have been taken are consistent with what the
:01:13. > :01:15.aims of the party were. We think they were done for the right reasons
:01:16. > :01:20.and I am a little disappointed that things have happened in the way that
:01:21. > :01:26.they have happened. Members of NI21 joined the row on social media.
:01:27. > :01:29.Council candidate, Annette Holden backed the deputy, writing Basil
:01:30. > :01:35.McCrea should be finished before the weekend is out. Another council
:01:36. > :01:40.candidate backed the leader, accusing John McCallister of pure
:01:41. > :01:45.dinosaur politics. This is a disaster on the cusp of an election,
:01:46. > :01:49.24 hours before an election when your deputy leader said your party
:01:50. > :01:53.is dysfunctional and that he doesn't trust anyone and everyone has been
:01:54. > :01:57.sidelined. If you don't define that as a political disaster, I have no
:01:58. > :02:04.idea how Basil McCrea would define a disaster. It was June last year that
:02:05. > :02:08.NI21 launched itself, so its first brirt day is approaching and voters
:02:09. > :02:13.will decide tomorrow whether it is worth celebrating.
:02:14. > :02:18.The PSNI say they're investigating a hate crime motive after a Pastor at
:02:19. > :02:20.the Whitewell Metropolitan Tabernacle in North Belfast
:02:21. > :02:26.described the Islamic faith as heathen and satanic. A spokesman for
:02:27. > :02:27.the Belfast Islamic Centre has described the remarks as
:02:28. > :02:35.irresponsible. Mervyn Jess reports. The Whitewell Metropolitan
:02:36. > :02:39.Tabernacle on the Shore Road has regularly attracted hundreds of
:02:40. > :02:46.people to its Sunday services and many of them come to see this man,
:02:47. > :03:05.Pastor James McConnell. Last Sunday he spoke to them about the Islamic
:03:06. > :03:10.faith. Islam is heat hen. The remarks have been described as
:03:11. > :03:13.irresponsible. If an educated person listened to that message, they might
:03:14. > :03:18.do something and break the law. He should be answerable to that. So if
:03:19. > :03:22.anyone is being attacked or hurt in Northern Ireland, he would be
:03:23. > :03:27.responsible for that. Over the years, Pastor McConnell has
:03:28. > :03:31.been forthright and outspoken on his views on religion, but what he said
:03:32. > :03:35.here on Sunday night caused a controversy after it appeared on the
:03:36. > :03:41.church's website. Today, he told me they stood over every single word of
:03:42. > :03:47.it. You don't see that as being hateful or hate crime? No. It is not
:03:48. > :03:54.a hate crime in any way. What is it then? I'm condemning what they
:03:55. > :04:01.believe in and what they believe in is from Satan. There is some good
:04:02. > :04:07.people in the Muslim community and I want to say to them, but I don't
:04:08. > :04:11.trust them and I'll tell you why. Even the good people? Even the good
:04:12. > :04:19.people and I'll tell you why because they are ruled by Sharia law. Meet
:04:20. > :04:25.people from that religion. See what they believe. While the Pastor is
:04:26. > :04:29.unretentant, the police say they are aware of an incident on Sunday and
:04:30. > :04:31.inquiries are continuing wheel l while a hate crime motive is
:04:32. > :04:39.investigated. Rory McIlroy has broken off his
:04:40. > :04:42.engagement to the tennis player, Caroline Wozniacki just days after
:04:43. > :04:44.sending out their wedding invitations. At a news conference
:04:45. > :04:51.before a tournament today, the golfer said the decision was mutual
:04:52. > :04:57.and amicable. Mark Simpson reports. They were the golden couple of
:04:58. > :05:02.international sport. It was a very public romance and a high-profile
:05:03. > :05:11.engagement only last month, they were showing off the ring. Sure,
:05:12. > :05:14.yeah. A big surprise? It was, yeah. I need to play well at the end of
:05:15. > :05:20.the year. All smiles then, but today, a very different Rory McIlroy
:05:21. > :05:25.confirmed the news of the break-up. You know, it was mutual and
:05:26. > :05:31.ammicable and we both thought it was the best for both of us. It is time
:05:32. > :05:41.to move on and I think I've said all that I need to say and there is no
:05:42. > :05:47.good time to sort of end a relationship, I guess. I'm not going
:05:48. > :05:50.to lie, it's going to be very difficult, but like I think, you
:05:51. > :05:53.know, I'm no different to anyone else. Everyone has been through
:05:54. > :05:57.break-ups and it is very, very different, but I'm here to try and
:05:58. > :06:02.concentrate on this week and you know, answer questions about golf
:06:03. > :06:07.and I'm, that's what I'm going to do. The wedding invitations went out
:06:08. > :06:12.at the weekend, but the relationship has always had its ups and downs. In
:06:13. > :06:17.a statement, Rory said he wished Caroline well for the future. He
:06:18. > :06:23.said his future focus was now solely on golf.
:06:24. > :06:31.Two men have been injured in trouble outside a pub in Belfast. The police
:06:32. > :06:34.say they received reports of a disturbance in Great Victoria
:06:35. > :06:36.Street. The men were taken to hospital, but their injuries aren't
:06:37. > :06:42.life threatening. Two men have been arrested.
:06:43. > :06:44.The Queen's Baton has been to some of Northern Ireland's most
:06:45. > :06:48.spectacular sights on its second day here on the way to the Commonwealth
:06:49. > :06:52.Games in Glasgow. It began the day at Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge on the
:06:53. > :06:54.North Coast before moving on to the Giants Causeway. It was particularly
:06:55. > :06:57.warmly welcomed on Rathlin Island where one long-time resident was
:06:58. > :07:08.thrilled to have witnessed the spectacle. This is marvellous. I'm
:07:09. > :07:16.glad I lived so long to see it happening. Looking ahead to BBC
:07:17. > :07:19.Newsline tomorrow evening at 6.30pm. We're focussing on something that
:07:20. > :07:23.many families are having to deal with at this time of the year and
:07:24. > :07:25.for that Donna has gone back to school. Tens of thousands of young
:07:26. > :07:29.people are sitting exams at the moment. It can be a stressful time
:07:30. > :07:31.for them and their families. On tomorrow's programme, I will be
:07:32. > :07:34.talking to some pupils about how they cope with the pressure and I
:07:35. > :07:39.will be getting some practical advice.
:07:40. > :07:42.In sport, members of Ireland's victorious Six Nations rugby squad
:07:43. > :07:45.enjoyed a special Stormont reception this evening. It's the first time
:07:46. > :07:58.the team has been received at the seat of government. The coach said
:07:59. > :08:04.it was an honour for the club to be invited. We were out on the step,
:08:05. > :08:09.the sun is very warm. Looking down the avenue, it's absolutely, it is
:08:10. > :08:15.just impressive and it is great to be up here.
:08:16. > :08:21.Great sunshine not just at Stormont, but what's in store for the rest of
:08:22. > :08:27.the week? Here is Geoff. We have a change in the weather on its way for
:08:28. > :08:30.tomorrow. We've got a few showers overnight, but they will be dying
:08:31. > :08:34.out and mainly, it is a dry night, but we have got clear skies so the
:08:35. > :08:39.temperatures drop away, lows of six or seven Celsius. Tomorrow, we
:08:40. > :08:42.really notice the change. A cloudier, cooler day with plenty of
:08:43. > :08:46.rain around. This is the picture. Not too bad to begin with through
:08:47. > :08:51.the morning. Some brighter spells across the east t earn half of
:08:52. > :08:54.Northern Ireland. We will start to see the showers picking up and it is
:08:55. > :09:01.down to this low pressure system that is gradually working its way up
:09:02. > :09:06.across the British Isles. We are in the side of the main weather event
:09:07. > :09:11.that is going to bring lots of rain across England. A yellow weather
:09:12. > :09:16.warning in place with warmer air behind it. That system will bring
:09:17. > :09:19.showers across the eastern half of Northern Ireland in particular and
:09:20. > :09:24.as we go into Thursday afternoon, some of the showers could be quite
:09:25. > :09:27.sha indeed and the temperatures down on what we have seen today. As we
:09:28. > :09:31.head into Friday, well Friday is going to be a drizzly old start to
:09:32. > :09:36.the day. Grey and cloudy to begin with. 11 or 12 Celsius. So cooler
:09:37. > :09:41.again. As we look towards the weekend, and the Bank Holiday
:09:42. > :09:44.weekend, well it is improving. A little bit too far out to say for
:09:45. > :09:51.Bank Holiday Monday, but the signs are looking quite good.
:09:52. > :09:57.That's it for now. You can keep up-to-date with news online and
:09:58. > :09:58.follow the team on Twitter. Good night.