23/01/2017 BBC Newsline

This is BBC Newsline and these are the headlines

The attempted murder of a police officer in Belfast.

The Chief Constable describes the gun attack as reckless.

The other members of the community where it a massive risk as well and

the people who did this did not care whether or who they murdered last

night. Michelle O'Neill is the new Northern

leader of Sinn Fein Whenever I was growing up in Tyrone

as the teenager, if anyone had ever said to need that some stage in the

future I would be leading Sinn Fein in the north I probably would not

have believed them. What more do we know about Michelle O'Neill? I have

come to her home village in County Tyrone.

The biggest local manufacturer of wood pellets here shared

information about tariff changes in the RHI scheme before

A man who sexually assaulted young girls in a public swimming pool

Ireland look to some new faces in the Six Nations as Ulster

And we've got some rain on the way later tonight,

but that should keep the frost away. I'll be back with a full forecast.

Last night's gun attack on a police patrol was at a busy petrol

One of the officers was wounded in the arm and is said to be

The Chief Constable has described the shooting as reckless.

In a statement released in the last few minutes,

the police say they've recovered several bullets from other cars that

Images taken in the immediate aftermath of the shooting. Packed

with cars underlines just how busy the garage was at the time.

Automatic gunfire was spread across the forecourt, first aid equipment

still the ground. This is the security operation afterwords. A

police officer with his weapon aimed towards the main road. The policeman

was hit twice in the arm, he had an operation this morning and will

require further surgery. The Chief Constable spoke to the media shortly

after visiting him in hospital. We as police officers are citizens in

uniform. This officer was a member of the community. He was attacked

but other members of the community were at risk as well. The people who

did this did not care who they murdered last night, albeit it was

clear that the attack was aimed at the police officers on duty. The

shooting happened at around 730 last night. The area was still busy with

people, among them this eyewitness. We were coming around the corner and

shots were going off. We didn't know it was shot first, we thought it was

fireworks. It was consistent and I knew something was wrong. The

officer's body armour might have saved him from something more

serious. Dissident republican I being blamed. It was also described

as reckless. This threat against officers has been severe for some

time. We cannot be complacent about the nature of this type of attack

but it does concern me that others are trying to take advantage of the

political instability taking year at Stormont. A short time ago this

image was released of what the police think was the card used in

the attack. They are appealing for witnesses. -- car.

Our home affairs correspondent Vincent Kearney is with me now.

The officers were among customers, including children.

How fortunate were all in that station?

They were very fortunate indeed. This is a very busy forecourt, lots

of cards. These weren't small calibre handguns. High velocity

shots fired from an assault rifle. When they hit the target, they do an

incredible amount of damage. The police have said the body armour

worn by this officer was sent off for forensic investigation and it

was said that the bullet hit the armour. He was very fortunate

indeed. It does an incredible amount of damage these bullets.

The Justice Minister is concerned this attack may be being linked

What's the police service's assessment of that?

The police have always been concerned dissidents will try to

fill the political vacuum. We are not working on the bases this was

something organised quickly on the spot due to the collapse of the

assembly. We have to remember this is the series of attacks in Belfast

in recent years. There have been attacks and attempted attacks using

AK-47 rifles, home-made rocket launchers, home-made bombs, it is

the latest in a pattern rather than a one-off. The Chief Constable

George Hamilton said he does not believe this is opportunistic that

something well planned. Those who carried out this attack are likely

to have been watching these police officers for some time looking for

signs. The properly carried out some kind of dry run to check afterwords.

Not the kind of attack planned very quickly in response to what happened

in Stormont in the past week or two. Police will be concerned that this

has been in the planning for quite some time. Thank you.

Sinn Fein's Michelle O'Neill said today she is "following in

The current Health Minister is replacing Martin McGuinness

as the party's leader north of the border.

At a news conference this afternoon she said she had never been afraid

of a challenge and never afraid to act.

BBC Newsline's Mark Simpson takes at look at the new leader.

His report contains flash photography.

A new generation and a new era for Sinn Fein. The leadership role of

the assembly and to Michelle O'Neill. It is a big day and for me

when I was growing up in Tyrone as a teenager, if anyone had ever said to

me that at some stage in the future I would be leading Sinn Fein in the

north, I would not have believed them. I have worked with Martin

throughout all of my adult life. I have no doubt I am following in the

footsteps of the political giant. The man is a legend. He said if you

words himself. I haven't gone away, you know.

CHEERING I am overjoyed she is our leader and

overjoyed she is my leader. She will have my fullest wholehearted

dedicated and committed support. Michelle O'Neill knows that

all eyes are on her now. Her life may never quite

be the same again. She worked her way through the ranks

of Sinn Fein at Dungannon Council Here she is ten years ago arriving

in her new office at Stormont. My two kids are 13 and eight and

loving that I'm coming here today. All excited this morning and up

early this morning for money's first day at work.

She later became Agriculture Minister and clearly impressed

So much so that she was given the Health Ministry

at the last election, a spot she seemed to relish.

I am just delighted. She says she is also very proud to come from County

Tyrone and this is her home village. People in the village who know her

and let's leave that everyone does say she has three interests, her

family, the local GAA club and of course politics. She comes from a

strong Republican family in east Tyrone and as popular here. All the

best. Sinn Fein councillor runs the local pub. There is no better person

for the job. I think Arlene Foster needs to watch yourself. Michelle is

very capable. When it comes to crisis management, Michelle O'Neill

now faces her biggest challenge. The biggest manufacturer of wood

pellets in Northern Ireland has confirmed that it shared information

about proposed tariff changes in the RHI scheme two months before

they were officially announced. Balcas, based in Ballinamallard,

County Fermanagh said there was "nothing

sinister" in the move. It said it was not aware at any

stage that the information it had Here's our agriculture

and environment correspondent, Company-mac is a big player in the

wood pellet business and makes and sells 150,000 tonnes of boiler fuel

every year. In County Fermanagh and Scotland. It is an industry leader.

Now it's emerged in July 2015 it circulated information that had been

given about proposed changes to the tariff several months before they

were publicly announced. Last week, the permanent Secretary of the

Department for the economy doctor Andrew McCormick said e-mails he had

been sent anonymously should the industry knew in advance about the

changes. He said that information appear to have come from officials

in his department. The consequences are very serious because this shows

there was premature awareness of the potential for the tariff to be

reduced and the message went within the sector quick. The BBC has seen

two e-mails apparently circulated within the renewables industry in

July 20 15. Today, company-mac confirmed one of them had been

written by a member of its management at a time when

departmental officials were working on plans to make the scheme less

profitable. In the e-mail, the manager passed on information to one

renewables company which apparently came from another and were said to

have spoken to a senior departmental official. The Balcas manager said...

Referring to the possibility of a two tier tariff, the manager

added... Following questions from the BBC

about the e-mail, Balcas and a statement this morning and said it

was passing on information from the department that was responsible in a

scheme that had been heavily promoted. The company underlined at

no time was that information presented as confidential.

Acknowledging that serious error in the scheme led to the potential for

abuse, it said... We asked the Department for the economy if any

action had been taken in respect of its official named in the e-mail. A

spokesperson said as the issue was under investigation it would be

inappropriate to comment. Assembly Members have been debating

the Economy Minister's plan to cut the projected ?490 million loss

to the public purse Our political editor Mark Devenport

is at Parliament Buildings. Is there any conclusion

yet to the debate about the renewable heat scheme,

Mark? No. This was a scheme at the start

debating last week when they thought the Secretary of State Michael

Stoney assembly quickly. They got extra time and were able to adjourn,

come back to the debate. Simon Hamilton's ideas today. They started

at half past 12 today. During the course of the day we heard the

special adviser came up with the basic idea of cutting the cost of

this scheme which is projected to lose ?490 million but will be a lot

less of the adopted these regulations. We heard from the

former minister Jonathan Bell who was talking about special advisers,

he was accusing DUP rises of delaying the closure of the scheme.

He said the study about the senior GDP special adviser Timothy

Johnston. Members on the DV benchers to my left kept open because Timothy

Johnston's brother was installing the boilers. I am not getting into

who is what family member was in Stormont. If these members to the

left have information they are not going to try and felt it through me,

they've got to stand up and tell it like I had to stand up and tell it.

We got a complete denial from the DUP that allegation from their

former minister. They said Timothy Johnston's brother does not and

never has installed boilers, does not reckon the sector and has not

been involved in any renewable heat incentives. We challenged Mr Bell to

produce a shred of evidence outside the chamber.

DUP figures have previously declared interests in the scheme.

What's the development this evening with the Ulster Unionists?

Over the weekend, Jim Wells said four of his relatives were

recipients in the scheme. Tonight the Ulster Unionist Party said the

aunt and uncle of the MLA were also recipients in their family business

and they said a former Ella -- MLA had a wood pellet boiler in his

family business as well. The new Sinn Fein leader,

how is her appointment likely to go down with Sinn Fein,

their supporters and other It certainly seemed to energise the

Sinn Fein supporters gathered in the gallery here at Stormont when the

announcement was made. It was presented as a generational change.

It will be a challenging time over the next three teams first Michelle

O'Neill she will have to go and fight an election campaign and it

will be interesting to see how the party divvies up the various demands

between manifesto launches and debates between her and other senior

members. Tonight another women party leader of the Alliance party

congratulated Michelle O'Neill saying she trusts she is willing to

work with others and see stability restored in these institutions.

Michelle O'Neill answered, thank you, I am committed to making the

institution worked on the basis of equality, respect and integrity.

You're watching BBC Newsline and still ahead:

The families of three children with a muscle wasting disease

want to know why they haven't access to a potentially life changing drug.

A man has appeared in court charged with murdering a woman

Anita Downey was found dead at a house on Friday morning.

Louise Cullen reports from the court.

charged with murdering Anita Downey. to Lisburn Magistrates' Court to be

David Lyness, with an address at Toberhewny Hall in Lurgan,

spoke only to confirm his name and that he understood the charge.

The solicitor told the court there would be no bail application today.

The police were called to a house in Toberhewny Hall

in Lurgan in the early hours of Friday morning.

There, the body of Anita Downey was found and a murder

No further details were given in court and Mr Lyness

He'll appear again by video link in Craigavon next month.

A man died in an overnight car crash on the dual carriageway

No other vehicle was involved in the incident near Ballyrobert.

A 94-year-old woman has died in a house fire in County Armagh.

Fire crews were called to Bay View in Jonesborough at around half

The police say it's thought the fire was not started deliberately.

In County Down, the Fire Service says a fatal blaze at a flat

A man died in the fire at Ardmillan Crescent in Newtownards.

A man who sexually assaulted three young girls in a public swimming

pool in Enniskillen has been jailed for seven months.

Cristian Diaz, who is 35 years old and originally from Spain,

moved to the town two years ago to improve his English.

Here's our south-west reporter Julian Fowler.

This is the man who abused three young girls while they were

swimming, arriving at court accompanied by his sisters.

The parents of his victims were also in court to see him sentenced.

As one mother told me afterwards, "He came

in here as Cristian Diaz, he's going out as a registered sex offender."

He touched the children, who were aged nine, ten and 11,

in three separate incidents two years ago at the Lakeland

The judge said the swimming pool was a place "where children should

have been able to feel safe and where parents allow

He said the attacks had left the girls "understandably confused,

distressed and upset at what had happened to them."

A defence lawyer said that Diaz had described what had happened

"as the greatest mistake of my life."

Diaz was given a 14-month sentence, half to be served in prison,

and was put on the sex offenders register for ten years.

The parents of the three children watched as Diaz

shrugged his shoulders before being led away in handcuffs.

They thanked the police and also paid tribute

to their young children, saying that they were very brave

to come forward and should be very proud of themselves in helping

to stop further harm to members of the public.

An inquest is being held into the death of an 81-year-old

woman who was critically injured in a fire at a care home.

She was regularly given cigarettes and a lighter and supervised.

Kathleen Fegan was at Owenvale Court in west Belfast.

Kathleen Fegan was 81 and died any fire at Owenvale Court care home in

2012 which the police said was accidental. She had been living in

the year -- care home for six months. At the time of her death,

here at the home was provided by the Saint John of God Association. The

inquest was told on a number of occasions Kathleen Fegan was seen

smoking in areas she wasn't meant to be including her bedroom. The

inquest also heard that she burnt her underwear and trousers and left

cigarette buts burning in her bedroom then. Despite this, she was

regularly given more than one cigarette at a time and a lighter.

Giving evidence today was brother Michael who was acting manager at

Owenvale Court care home between 2010 and January 20 12. The coroner

enquired as to the appropriateness of simply having a conversation

about the dangers of smoking in a bedroom with a woman who had

dementia. Brother told the court he believed all steps were taken to

protect Kathleen Fegan. Asked if she fully understood the smoking rules,

her brother replied no. -- brother Newman replied, no, she was not able

to understand the rules. The inquest continues tomorrow.

The families of three children who suffer from a severe

muscle wasting disease want the Belfast Trust to tell them why

they're being denied access to a potentially life changing drug.

Another child has already started the treatment, which at present

Our health correspondent Marie-Louise Connolly reports.

Three-year-old Caoilte Fitzsimmons has spinal muscular atrophy or SMA

type 1, whcih means her breathing and mobility

She's one of four children in Northern Ireland who have it.

She has a really tough life. If she takes a cold, it could kill her. She

did take pneumonia. She was in hospital a couple of weeks ago and

was really bad. She just trips on. After years of trials,

a drug's become available Nusinersen arrived in

Northern Ireland in December. While one child has started

the treatment, the other families are calling

on the Belfast Health Trust to What's your favourite television

programme? Horrid Henry. Bye horrid Henry! We don't know what's going on

with the funding. Whether it's political. We not been told straight

answers. It's early days for this drug,

but it's understood to have been fast tracked not only due

to the severity of the condition but also because scientists

believe that the earlier these children get it,

the better impact it will have. But while their timing is crucial,

according to these families, no-one is rushing to

answer their questions. In an e-mail seen by the BBC,

a doctor tells a family For instance, to deliver the drug,

an anaesthetist, medical staff This would mean extra resources

at the Children's Hospital, The e-mail went on to say that

while the drug is free, in the future the ongoing

costs would be huge and the Children's Hospital staff

can't make that decision. It concluded that the current

instability at Stormont could mean I was angry, especially with

everything going on at Stormont just now. An election that is not even

needed. There are kids lives at risk.

The Belfast Healh Trust said the criteria around unlicensed

drugs is strict and based on clinical need.

It also said it hasn't been officially approved.

Sports next with gavin andrews and he starts with rugby.

Uncapped brothers Niall and Rory Scannell have fought their way

into Ireland's 40-man 6 Nations squad thanks to their impressive

Their provincial teammate Andrew Conway completes

Captain Rory Best is one of eight Ulster players named and is joined

The backs include Tommy Bowe, Craig Gilroy, Paddy Jackson,

Luke Marshall, Stuart McCloskey and Andrew Trimble.

And seven of those players featured in the 26 points

to 22 defeat to Bordeaux in the European Champions

Ulster finished bottom of their pool and have now lost

nine of their last 13 games in all competitions.

Ulster where playing for pride on Saturday but again it was their

inconsistency that proved to be their downfall. That is sensational

work. They showed glimpses of their attacking class. But ultimately the

French visitors powered past the Ulstermen. Is just not good enough

what is being produced there on the pitch at the moment. I don't know

why. If you think what we currently have is going to compete against the

top people. We just can't seem to do that. We have to do something

different, we can't continue to be the same mistakes. And when it came

to the crunch, it was mistakes from the home side that handed the

friendly win. Ulster have three weeks to re-evaluate and rest before

the vital pro 12 running begins. Ireland's women's hockey team have

won the World League 2 tournament in Kuala Lumpur,

beating hosts Malaysia Ulster's Zoe Wilson scoring

the third goal of the game. Ireland advance to the World League

semi-finals tournament, where their target will be

qualification for This year's McKenna Cup Final

will see Derry take on the holders Derry beat Down in yesterday's

semi-final by two goals and 12 While Tyrone overcame

Fermanagh by 14 points to 11 and Mickey Harte's side will now

attempt to win the trophy for a sixth year in a row

in what is a repeat We are coming at this again from

different places, both our teams will have changed in various places

since that game. I suppose we've learnt a lot over the last 12

months. It is just another challenge. It's almost a derby game.

It's one I'm sure the people playing against each other will do well in.

The European tour have confirmed Rory McIlroy will not be playing in

the Dubai to your next week as he continues to recover from his rib

injury. Cecilia Daly has the

latest weather details. It is on the change again. Still not

an awful lot of rain to come. It has been considerably drive. We've had

lovely sunshine over the weekend. That led to frosty nights. This

morning this is how much of County Down looked. Temperatures fell to

minus seven. This coming night it is all change because the cloud will be

increasing from the west, the breeze picking up and we've got rain coming

in mostly during the early hours, nothing too heavy that it will be

damp and blustery by the end of the night, also milder with no frost.

Milder tomorrow, no worries about scraping the car windscreen. You

will need your umbrella because that will be damp and drizzly through the

rush hour, grey and gloomy, low cloud over the health and fog over

high-level routes. From the temperatures first thing, well up

around seven or 8 degrees. Most of the persistent rain will move away

quickly, there could still be odd spot on and off during the day but

largely dry, quite breezy, breaks in the cloud up towards the north coast

but fairly cloudy skies. Temperatures will be in double

figures. We will keep that milder cloudy breezy weather. Drizzle here

and there. Temperatures staying up so no frost. On Wednesday, not an

awful lot changing, a brisk southerly wind, and blustery again.

A lot of dry weather to come and milder with temperatures up to 10

degrees. Rain threatening the west late in the day, that is a weather

front. That weather front will stay to the west of us but you will

notice there are a lot of lines on the chart which means it will

continue to be fairly windy. Not much rain to come after tonight

through the rest of the week. The wind will feel cold as the week goes

on but it was still continued to keep the frost awake and it also

means unfortunately we will have a lot of cloud in our forecast as

well. Hopefully you got to enjoy the sunshine that was around the

weekend. Some milder weather on the way. Not much in the way of rain

after tonight but very little frost. You can also keep in contact with us

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