Alliance MLA John Blair has said slavery is a global and local problem which must be eradicated completely, ahead of Anti-Slavery Day 2020. Highlighting a recent UN report which outlined the extent of modern day slavery, Mr Blair said it was no longer acceptable to sit back and do nothing, whilst an estimated 29 million […]
Serious questions need asked and answered after an Audit Office report showed owners of some renewable technologies were being paid “excessive subsidies” from people’s electricity bills, Alliance MLA John Blair has said. The report showed those who own standalone turbines and anaerobic digesters get higher payments than those in GB. It stated while they accounted […]
Alliance Environment spokesperson John Blair MLA has said we should mark Clean Air Day by renewing our commitment to improving air quality and reducing air pollution across Northern Ireland. Clean Air Day sees hundreds of events across the UK to highlight air pollution being the largest environmental health risk facing people, with Belfast seeing toxic air […]
Alliance Agriculture spokesperson John Blair MLA has said he is seriously concerned after a warning it is ‘almost impossible’ to have post-Brexit checks in place at ports and airports here by January. Mr Blair was speaking after Department for Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs Permanent Secretary Denis McMahon appeared at the Assembly’s DAERA Committee, where […]
Alliance Environmental spokesperson John Blair MLA has said it is deeply troubling to learn the UK Government did not include Northern Ireland when assessing a framework to combat climate change. Speaking during today’s meeting of the Assembly’s Department for Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) Committee meeting, Mr Blair quizzed DAERA officials on the Government’s […]
We need to create legally-binding targets to protect our environment, Alliance MLA John Blair has said. The party’s Environment spokesperson was speaking after the RSPB NI charity criticised the Executive for failing to hit targets set to prevent biodiversity loss, with 37 of 42 goals not met. South Antrim MLA Mr Blair said while the […]
Alliance Policing Board member John Blair has said he is “extremely concerned” after images from a bonfire in the Londonderry area show poppy wreaths and flags being burnt. John said: “Derry has already witnessed scenes of violence this summer – scenes no-one wants to see under normal circumstances, never mind in the middle of a […]
Alliance Policing Board member John Blair MLA has condemned those behind an attack on the PSNI which saw 26 officers injured. The attack took place while police protected contractors removing bonfire material in Distillery Street in West Belfast. Petrol bombs and other missiles were thrown. “This sort of behaviour is utterly unacceptable and I condemn […]
The potential loss of 80 jobs at the National Trust is a major blow, Alliance MLA John Blair has said. Mr Blair was speaking after the organisation announced it had opened a consultation on proposals to make 1,200 staff redundant, with potentially 80 of those expected to be locally. It has said the coronavirus pandemic […]
The Alliance Party has backed plans for a specific Climate Change Act for Northern Ireland, adding it is essential this is acted on immediately. The Party’s Environment spokesperson John Blair MLA was speaking in the Assembly on Tuesday, after weeks of consistently raising concerns over the Departments seemingly pushing action on climate change to the […]