29/09/2016 BBC Newsline

The headlines this Thursday evening: A court hears a man used a breeze

block to attack his father, whose body was found in a car boot.

Human rights abuses in Bahrain lead to a call for a Belfast

firm to suspend training security forces there.

The 92-year-old who's a full time carer for her son

Sometimes you have it a bit hard, trying to get him sorted out, you

know? You have to do everything for him at times. But I would be without

him. It keeps me company! -- I would not be without him.

sailed into choppy waters with a name change.

Join me at this arts centre opened in the name of Seamus Heaney.

Join me live from Hazeltine in Minnesota.

And after a really breezy day today, it's a cooler night to come.

Hello and welcome to this evening's programme.

A 44-year-old Lisburn man has appeared in court charged

Gerard John Mulligan is accused of killing his

It's alleged the victim was struck on the head with a breeze block.

BBC Newsline's Mark Simpson was in court.

Accused of killing his father. 44-year-old Gerard John Mulligan was

arrested on Monday evening shortly after his father's body was found.

It was discovered in a Vauxhall car at the family home in the Lisburn.

After being arrested, Gerard John Mulligan gave a number of police

interviews. One of the officers gave evidence in court. He told the

court, you does admit to striking in some way his father with a breeze

block. Whether that was intentional or not, we did not get a chance to

press that. The court heard that he went to his father's house to fix a

car on Monday, but they had an argument and what was described as a

heated exchange between the father and son. The son later called his

partner and when she arrived, she found him covered in blood. His

partner asked whether the blood come from? He said, I've murdered my dead

-- my dad and he is in the boot of the car. The court was told the Sun

took an overdose of the prescription drugs after the death of its father

and had been taken to hospital twice since his arrest for treatment and

for a psychiatric assessment. But he was considered well enough to appear

in court today. The hearing lasted 20 minutes. During that time,

Mulligan only spoke twice, once to confirm his name and then wants to

confirm he understood the murder charge against him. He was refused

bail. He will appear in court again on October the 24th.

An international human rights group has called on a Belfast-based

company owned by Invest NI to immediately suspend a contract

Reprieve says police and prison officers in the Gulf state

systematically torture and abuse Government opponents.

It wants Stormont to hold an inquiry into the company's work.

Our Home Affairs Correspondent Vincent Kearney reports.

Anti-government protests take place regularly in Bahrain and often

turned violent. During the so-called Irish Spring five years ago,

pro-democracy protests were met with top please action. Teams working for

a Company based in this building in Belfast city centre have been

working in the country for the past three years. This is a fully owned

subsidiary of Invest NI. Last year, the UK Foreign Office awarded it a

?900,000 contract to help reform of the security forces in Bahrain.

They've worked with the police and prison services as well as the

office of the ombudsman whose job is to investigate allegations of

torture. A report published today by international human rights group

Reprieve said all those organisations are guilty of

systematic abuse. The global community, NGOs, the United Nations

and other governments are clear that the human rights situation in

Bahrain is dire. Bahrain prisons and police are widely reported to be the

places of incredibly brutal torture. There is no suggestion that staff

are encouraging such behaviour. But Reprieve has called on the company

to suspend work in the country until the Government ratifies the United

Nations protocol against torture. It also wants a Stormont inquiry. Among

a series of questions, the BBC asked is... How do they respond to the

court by Reprieve to suspend all is working Bahrain? Would they support

or cooperate with a Stormont inquiry to its work in Bahrain? They didn't

answer those questions directly. It did though and as others in a

statement saying it has worked over half of the places in Bahrain since

2013. It's the UK's package of technical assistance to Bahrain is

and line with recommendations from the UN and Bahrain. They said their

work was focused on sharing the Northern Ireland experience to

strengthen various oversight mechanisms. Invest NI said it is

appropriate for NI-CO to reform these states. But efforts fail. The

engagement is intended to prove that abysmal human rights situation in

Bahrain and it's not working in effect, because it is worsening. The

reprieve report also criticises the Stormont Executive, accusing Nemtsov

of not properly overseeing NI-CO's working Bahrain.

Two men found liable for the Omagh bomb in a civil case have

had their claim that the action against them was unfair dismissed.

Liam Campbell and Michael McKevitt had brought their case

to the European Court of Human Rights.

Relatives of some of the 29 people killed took the landmark

No one has ever been convicted of murder in connection

The BBC understands that 150 temporary staff at the US

firm Concentrix in Belfast are to be let go tomorrow.

The job losses are linked to the decision by HMRC not to renew

a call-handling contract with the company.

Concentrix says the staff involved had been due to finish

in August and were recruited on a short-term basis.

The finance minister Mairtin O'Muilleoir says he intends

to contact the Treasury about the job losses.

The parent of a primary school child says his daughter was only inches

away from being injured when part of her classroom ceiling collapsed.

It happened during lessons at Killyleagh Integrated

It's understood the collapse was caused by a leaking pipe.

Pupils were moved to a spare classroom following the incident

The school phoned me and told him the ceiling had collapsed. Ice would

have sent plasterboard would have been about two or three feet or a

foot or so wide. But the whole was about four feet or more. So quite a

big hole. On his damaged all the computers and everything else in

there. This week, we've been looking at how

people can be carers well past retirement age and what help

is available to help them Tonight I've been to meet someone

who must be one of Northern Jenni Hull is 93 on her next

birthday. Her son Martin,

who has Down's, is 57. Jenni Hull and her son Martin are

always together. For the last 30 years, is just been the two of them

since Jenny's husband passed away. Martin was diagnosed with dementia a

year ago and that means some days can be pretty tough. He's very

depressed. He cries just for nothing. There's times you have to

feed him his food. Sometimes you have it a bit hard, trying to get

him sorted out, you know? You have to do nearly everything for him at

times. But I wouldn't be without him. He keeps me company. But thank

God. I do my best. Her best has been more than good enough, given the

close relationship she has with Martin. It is hard to believe she

was born in 1924 and hadn't even heard of Downs syndrome after his

birth. Her only real break is when carers from a charity come to mind

to let Jenny do her shopping and get her head. I don't want people to

come if I can do it myself. What about what'll happen to Martin in

years to come, what sort plans have you made? Well, we're trying to get

him into a home. But he won't be an one as long as I live. Is being

suggested Martin goes into the home for a week so he gradually get used

to be away from his mother. She told me she would ring me when she wants

him to go for the week, but it'll break my heart. Last time he went

away for a week, it nearly killed me. I will deal with everything when

it comes. For the time being though, they will continue to enjoy their

life together. Quite a lady. The commission has told the Greater

Ardoyne Residents' Collective that if I do that protest can't come out

of Ardoyne on to the Crumlin Road, while a second protest on Saturday

has been restricted to know more than 60 people.

An increase in numbers of students going to study in England.

A row has broken out after a fisheries protection vessel

had its Irish name replaced with an English translation.

It was done as part of a refit after the DUP minister who controls

the department said she'd adopted a single language policy.

Here's our Agriculture and Environment Correspondent,

It was back in the summer when the fisheries protection vessel was

renamed. It had been called an Irish densities purchasing 2010, but with

a brand-new ministry in the charge of a different party, change was a

foot. So as well as a scheduled service and paint job, it became

Queen of Ulster. A direct translation. Is disappointed, I

think. I think it's disrespectful to the vast number of people from all

sections of society that speak the Irish language. Agriculture and

environment ministry said hers was a new department with a fresh identity

and logo and adopted a single language policy. That meant drinking

various pieces of equipment into line. We asked to speak to her, but

she wasn't available. Is not the first time this particular vessel as

been in the headlines. Back in 2010, when it was bought new and unnamed

by the then Sinn Fein agriculture minister, the DUP was not happy.

They said giving it an Irish name made it difficult for emergency

radio transmissions. They also questioned whether it broke rules on

neutral work environments. They were told the title was cosmetic and the

boat had its own sign for identification and the name didn't

reach equality commission guidelines. Several smaller

fisheries vessels still have Irish names, at least for now.

There's been an increase of almost 20%

in the number of local students going to university in England over

That's according to the body which handles university

Our Education Correspondent Robbie Meredith joins me now.

How many students are going across the water to study and do

These statistics from the commission surveys and show the increase in the

number of students beginning degrees at English universities. In 2013,

3430 local students were accented English universities. Visscher, that

has risen to 4060 students. If you add in Scotland and Wales, almost

five and a half thousand students from here headed across to Great

Britain to study this September. I've been looking at figures for the

last six years and this is the highest number. Do they come back?

Well, they've also risk -- recently released apps and they find in 2014

and 2015, fewer than a third, 31.5% to be exact of the Northern Irish

students who graduated in England, Scotland and Wales return home to

work. So the figures suggest a substantial majority of students

leave here to study do not actually come back.

A social worker has told BBC Newsline that often the toughest

part of her job is not knowing what lies behind the front

door of a family she's been asked to help.

Her comments follow a survey of social workers which reveals how

many are working additional unpaid hours in order to meet

400 social workers replied to the Online survey.

Our Health Correspondent Marie-Louise Connolly reports.

Don't be worried about it. Things have been going well. Offering

reassuring words to a mother under pressure trying to keep the family

together. Most social workers tend to have around 15 cases at any given

time, each one as complex as the other. A tough day would be the

unexpected. I'd make a call to a family home, knock on the door and

not really know what I'm going to find behind that door. I may get

into a family home and find chaos. A parent who may be under the

influence of alcohol or has maybe been subject to domestic violence

the night before. Children who are distressed as a result of that

incident, children as young as babies in cots. To meet demand,

social workers say they're having to work additional unpaid hours. There

are also vacant posts across all the health trusts. They're contributing

to the health and social care system a saving of 11 million pounds a

year. They are also dealing with ongoing excesses of bureaucracy,

very burdensome amount of paperwork. They are also a significant number

of vacancies in social work teams across Northern Ireland. They want

an updated IT system and any vacant post immediately filled. We try and

do what's best for a child and to help them. That's a fulfilling and

rewarding bit of social work. The departments of health said it is

listening and working towards making the profession better for everyone

concerned. Three years after the death

of the Nobel Laureate Seamus Heaney a new arts centre dedicated to him

is being officially It's on the site of the former

police station in Bellaghy, the village in south Derry

where the poet grew up. Good evening from Seamus Heaney's

home plays. That's what they're called this centre dedicated to the

most famous son. It was not chosen just reflect the location, but also

because his home place was a source of inspiration for so much of his

life's work. Behind me, his family, friends and local dignitaries,

including the first and Deputy First Ministers have gathered for the

official opening ceremony which is going to happen in a few minutes.

Earlier, when they were putting finishing touches to the centre, I

had a walk around with Brian McCormack, a nephew of Seamus Heaney

who manages the centre. Brian, when people come through the doors,

what'll they discover? The first thing they will discover is they'll

get a real insight into Seamus Heaney and his life and works. They

will learn about the people and places that meant so much to him and

they will feel fully immersed in that world that Seamus Heaney

himself spent so much time. They will feel part of it and that's

something we want to ensure the visitor gets a real sense of him and

the area that he grew up in and returned to time and again for his

works and gave him so much inspiration. How many people are you

hoping to get through those doors? Have you a target for visitors?

We've set a target of 35,000 visitors in the first year and we

are confident that we can achieve those numbers. People already come

to a Bellaghy to visit the grave and that is something we want to develop

and with this building, they will have a chance to experience more of

what Seamus Heaney was about and his work. You have such a collection of

papers, artefacts, photographs... What stands out for you? Probably

for me the section that I like best is the people and place within

there. You get a chance to find out more about his family and also the

landscape that meant so much to Seamus Heaney. Also, very

emotionally or allowed an opportunity to hear him read his

works and I think that'll be a powerful experience for people to

come into this building to hear that very famous voice read those works

in the area that meant so much to him and in the building that's been

dedicated to his legacy. Treating it to its first new snorkel in the

newly opened ink bottle. Giving rest then an angle to ingest, giving us

time to look together and away from our parting... Summit of the books

and photos here in the centre had been donated by Seamus Heaney's

family. This area represents his study, the study he had at home,

including his old fax machine. Earlier, I spoke to Chris Heaney,

one of his sermons, to get his impression of the finished centre.

-- one of his sons. It is stunning, beautifully done and sensitively

done. Having seen it and then had about ten minutes to think and

reflect on it, the great thing is, it is all rooted in the work.

There's so much poetry here. It comes back to that, the work. And

that was so gratifying. How emotional has it been for your

family to see this tribute to your father and his work? But there was a

poet and as a person? They can't but be emotional. It is. There are times

when it does hit you. As you walk around the centre, you can see many

things that you as a family have donated to the permanent exhibition.

As anything standout for you, that epitomises your father? One I do

like is his briefcase. And the detail on that, there's a slightly

battered Aer Lingus sticker. He was a traveller as well as a local. That

would have been his just a companion throughout, so that's one of the

things that I like very much. His briefcase with the little address

sticker. For those who visit, those who knew -- know your father's work

and those who are new to it in coming to Bellaghy, what would you

them to take from this exhibition and from the centre? That is a

tricky one. I don't think it is up to me to tell people what they'll

take. I hope they'll take some of the poetry. And his poetry and

writing are at the core of this centre. Opinion may be divided at

the moment about a new road in this area, but there's a general

consensus that this is a fitting tribute to great poet in his home

place. Of this area, he said I love that ground. Those behind the centre

are hoping that visitors will feel the same.

On the eve of the Ryder Cup, tensions are beginning to bubble up

Stephen Watson is there for BBC Newsline.

Apologising to be done on both sides.

American player Phil Mickelson forced to say sorry

for comments he made about one of his former captains.

European player Danny Willett sorry for an article

written by his brother, who was less than complimentary

In essence, I suppose it spices things up as the teams prepare to go

head-to-head for the greatest prize in team golf.

Be writing for one final day of practice before the matches get

under way for real or tomorrow. Both sides have had to deal with

controversy, but the American captain has always been confident of

the spirit of the Ryder Cup remaining intact. I know that Darren

and I, between now and the start of the matches, will have some moments.

And during the matches we will. But I guarantee that on Sunday, we will

be having a cigar together and somebody will be happy and somebody

will be not. Darren Clarke would be happier right now with his family

and friends here to see the biggest moment of his golfing career. What

CB like the last few months at home? It has been all go. Very proud and

all the work is putting over the last couple of months. To see it all

pay off now the pairings and all the events going on, it all seems to be

going really well. It's been an awesome week for us all as a family,

just to be here and be part of it. It's fantastic. Heap played in five

Ryder Cup, the last one a decade ago as he helped Europe to an emotional

victory just weeks after the death of his wife to breast cancer. The

captain back then is delighted that Darren got to follow in his

footsteps. Darren will captain from his heart. He knows the feeling and

how to play his field and I'm sure he'll do a great job. Have you a

good feeling? Yes, it will be a good match and be interested to see how

they get on but the teams together. And now with six rookies on their

side, Europe will need big performances from their experienced

players if they are to win a record fourth Ryder Cup in a row.

The first matches will be revealed shortly.

The opening ceremony gets underway in about three hours.

Darren Clarke also make his opening speech and he been practising that

bit very hard in our very own Newsline studio over

Now lets get the weather, with Geoff.

It was windy last night, but that is easing off and I will be the case

this evening and overnight. Gradually, those showers will ease

off and we will see temperatures dropping away. It will be quite a

chilly night, down into single figures. Maybe a bit cooler in rural

spots. It sets us up for another day of sunshine and showers tomorrow,

but again, that theme of the weather getting cooler and feeling a little

more like Autumn is one that continues. We go through the day

again with showers. They are always working their way in from all and it

during the day. If your looking for a brighter weather, that will come

across the eastern half of Northern Ireland. Always the risk more of the

showers further west. Temperatures everywhere a little down on today's

values, 12-13d. Maybe 14 degrees weather sunshine is most prevalent.

Through Friday evening and start of the week and, gradually those

showers will fizzle out on what is going to be another rather chilly

night. It means we could start the weekend with a little bit of mist

and murk, but it will burn the back quite nicely in the morning. Any of

that early rain will gradually fizzle out and dry up and become

brighter, though never terribly warm, 13 degrees. Enjoy Saturday and

also Sunday morning, because by the time it get to next week, this

weather front comes towards others and it will park over us on Monday

and Tuesday. Before that, Sunday looks like a promising day. It is

going to be drier ride through most of the daylight hours. You'll notice

the breeze picking up a new west later on, that's the sign of this

weather front starting to work its way in. Come Monday, that'll be

parked firmly over us and it could be sat there for 48 hours or so.

Police are forecast for the weekend is looking good.

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