🥳 Happy 80th Birthday to our Dolly! I’m looking forward to spending some time with the folks at the Imagination Library later this week!

Redemption Song is one of those books I return to often for a much needed dose of optimism. In today’s post-factual world I’m incredibly glad that a South Belfast man is holding the powerful to account - fair play to Niall Stanage for continuing to ask difficult questions, and speak truth to power.

I know y’all are too smart and fabulous to fall for distraction politics. There are 14,500 people on the housing waiting list in Belfast. Those trying to distract you are running our public services in to the ground.

Just leaving City Hall. We had v useful meeting w/ Council officers about bin collections. All outstanding missed bins are now flagged for collections, but most have been collected by now. Cleansing teams also been flagged for streets where uncollected bins have resulted in rubbish everywhere.

The Air Ambulance is currently at Cherryvale, following an incident nearby. Please give emergency services the space to do their work. My thoughts are with those involved.

Happened to find myself on Hill Street this afternoon, well after the loading zone hours were finished. The vehicle breaking the “pedestrianisation” is a Department for Infrastructure van… Set. Up. To. Fail.

🎄 CHRISTMAS DONATION DRIVE 🎄 DATE 📅: Saturday 13th December 2025 LOCATION📍: QUB Library Car Park TIME 🕰️: 12pm-6pm In the spirit of solidarity, the Global Shapers Belfast Hub will be collecting donations for Foodstock, Storehouse, Belfast and The People’s Kitchen this holiday season! #Belfast

🎄I’ve been asked by quite a few people this past fortnight when the Christmas trees are coming back to Rosario Youth Club - well you’re in luck this Sunday!

🌹 Beautiful morning in Ballynafeigh to mark a new milestone for Rosario and Ulidia. The Roses will take on a new long term lease of the pitches here from Belfast City Council - something we’ve been working to support for a long time.

Efforts to sectarianise poverty are a cheap attempt to deflect from the NI Executive’s own failings and the DUP Communities Minister’s paltry Anti-Poverty Strategy. Stormont isn’t working for people - it has to urgently address that.

🚦 As a local representative you should always try to bend over backwards for your area, but the same can’t be said for what local infrastructure should do… These pedestrian signals at the junction of Rosetta Road and Knockbreda Road have been reported in to DfI…

Make sure to drop in to St. George’s Market over the coming weeks! There’s so much on offer and we’re so lucky to have this in Belfast.

Trans Day of Remembrance is an important moment to reflect on those Trans members of our community who we’ve lost in the past year, the continued struggle against persecution, and to recommit ourselves to building a society where people are free from prejudice. A very powerful ceremony in City Hall.

We charge Belsonic a little bit extra for Ormeau, for park improvements. We’re expecting ground to be broken soon on some of the projects this has already funded, like the Dog Park. Last night Gary & I were at a drop-in session to discuss more ideas with residents to invest this in.

From licensing, to education, to migration - this month the worst elements of the DUP proving again they’d be prepared to make us into Gilead just to try and see off the TUV. Culture war dross.

Amidst all the excitement of the Christmas market - don’t forget St. George’s Market is full of festive delights too, and plenty of opportunities to pick up locally crafted gifts 🎁

Keen to see the detail on implementation - but glad to see Finance Minister is at least listening to our repeated calls to end rates loopholes for dereliction. Council is doing great things with the Vacant to Vibrant scheme, but we need to tackle deliberate dereliction.

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Disappointing that this change will only be for England. For the price of less than a cup of coffee a day, tourists could help cities like Belfast to fund very real improvements in street cleansing, green spaces and annual events like Halloween or Christmas. #LatteLevy

Just heartbreaking coverage this morning on Radio Ulster about the tragedy in Dundalk. An entire community in mourning after the loss of five young lives.

🎄 Big night for Belfast! Wishing a wonderful evening for everyone here for the Christmas lights switch-on tonight! The Christmas Market is open, and it’s lovely to see the festive cheer return to the city.

Do you have any questions for Translink? Gary and I are meeting them tomorrow to discuss a range of issues from bus fares, to reliability, to the Durham Street works and the next phase of Grand Central Station. Drop your questions in the comments.

Reduced bus fares will mean reduced traffic congestion in Belfast. That’s why we need to build a campaign right across the city to reduce fares, just like we did to secure night buses.

🚦 Build Our Crossing! A great turnout on a cold morning for a community conversation about our shared frustration with DfI, and their failure to build the Knockbreda Road crossing which was promised five years ago.

Dangerous and depressing rhetoric from the Royal Black this weekend. Everyone will see the “overrun” comment for what it is. Hysterical language like that must be challenged. ’Twas grace that taught my heart to fear,   And grace my fears relieved…

𝐌𝐢𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐁𝐢𝐧𝐬 - Dromore Street, Reid Street, Ardenlee Gardens please keep your black bins out. Crews today couldn’t get access to your alleyways today but will try again tomorrow.

Rosetta Drive residents - please keep your bins out for collection tomorrow. The lorry couldn't get in to your street today due to parked cars.

Disgraceful attack on telecomms infrastructure in our area tonight. Wilful damage of services that people need to contact support or emergency services, as well as staying in touch with loved ones, studying, or doing business. Conspiracy theory nonsense cannot be tolerated.

There isn’t a single day of the week when I don’t feel like screaming into the void about the casual re-popularisation of Fascism.

The racist vigilante thuggery taking place is unacceptable. It’s making our public spaces unsafe for everyone. I’ve called for an urgent meeting of the Policing and Community Safety Partnership (PCSP) to address this problem and put questions to the PSNI and Justice Dept.

I see the TUV are getting hot and bothered about Drag Queen Storytime. I await the inevitable resignation of their Belfast Councillor from their Council appointment to the Grand Opera House Trust, where Drag has been at the heart of Panto for decades…

Closing the stable door after every horse has bolted - the Environment Minister and NIEA announcing a criminal investigation into the asbestos in South Belfast, months after they knew it was an urgent concern and that people could be exposed because of the bonfire.

Blue bin collection issues in some of the Looplands today. Please keep your bin out so that teams can get to it tomorrow. Thankfully, there are fewer missed collections here than there used to be, but occasionally it's still a problem.

Orange lodge which opposed GAA presence at children’s sports camp hosts loyalist band which took part in UVF parade

Words failed me when I was contacted about this. @eastbelfastgaa.bsky.social are probably one of the most active and successful integration efforts in the East of the city. Those who continue to oppose them, and particularly the kids involved, are mean-spirited dinosaurs.

Finally starting to get to sleep in this heat and then the thunder rolls in 😅

From the point I first became aware of asbestos at this site, my priority has been to protect people’s safety. It’s utterly reckless to encourage people to attend this bonfire tonight. Huge questions remain for the NIEA and their complete absence over the past few weeks & months.

11pm Statement from NIEA confirming more asbestos found on the Broadway site. The safest thing anyone can do is to stay away - don’t put yourself, or your family at risk. Don’t listen to those who’d encourage you to take that risk for the sake of petty politics.

Lots happening at same time and all clear as mud, but v clear to me that there is a significant public health risk from asbestos at the Monarch Parade site. Where is NIEA? Where is the Environment Minister? Where is the public safety and health message? Where is common sense?

I will not be deterred from my work as a Councillor by the very blatant & dangerous attempt tonight to paint a target on my back. I am just one of many elected representatives who articulated concerns for people's health, and their safety in relation to the Monarch Pde bonfire.

Months ago, when the asbestos at Monarch Parade was first brought to my attention, I pushed for a Council injunction to get the land owner and NIEA to remove it. NIEA dragged their feet from that point on. The last minute mess we’re in today is a direct result of that tardiness.

The primary consideration about the Broadway bonfire should be the risk to people’s health & safety. I am aware of untrue, potentially defamatory remarks posted about me on Twitter, and I have sought legal advice.

[Stares at the LCC 👀]

86 fucking years old.

[Photo Thread] Up in Ballymena for the first @meapride.bsky.social Parade (28/06/25)

Shabbat Shalom to everyone who recognizes that the safety, freedom & thriving of Jews and Muslims are bound up together — in Israel & Palestine, across the five boroughs, and in many other beloved places.

You know, in a time when politics feels increasingly bleak, there’s great power in seeing Zohran Mamdani, a Muslim, and Brad Lander, a Jew, stand hand in hand at an election victory rally in the most famous city in the world and talk about a vision for the future.

In the words of Nelson Mandela: it always seems impossible until it’s done. My friends, it is done. And you are the ones who did it. I am honored to be your Democratic nominee for the Mayor of New York City.

Zohran at the rally for trans youth on february 8 ❣️ he was polling single digits.

Good Morning Ulster is currently discussing Winston Irvine. Even after his arrest there was significant pressure brought on party group leaders in Belfast to meet him and ‘Building Cultural Networks’ about bonfires. I refused, outright.