Roman Catholics have been advised to stop donating to the human rights group Amnesty International because of its support for abortion in certain circumstances.

The Minister for Health, Social Services and Public Safety has said he wants to ensure there is support for people who want to live independently in their own homes. Michael McGimpsey was speaking at a conference in Belfast where the role of new technology in assisting people to live at home was explored.

Carers in Northern Ireland face a future of debt, worry and health problems, a leading carers’ organisation has warned. Carers Northern Ireland was responding to a UK-wide survey of 3,000 carers.

Sex offenders’ membership of the Orange Order will be automatically terminated under a new policy. “The last time we updated our internal discipline procedures there was no such thing as the Sex Offenders’ Register,” said Grand Secretary Drew Nelson.

The grounds of the Northern Ireland Children’s Hospice are to be transformed into a wildlife area with the help of a Big Lottery Fund windfall.

The Ombudsman has criticised a former health board for mishandling efforts to get three siblings into foster care.

A woman and her child who face being deported from Northern Ireland back to Cameroon have arrived back in Belfast.

The country’s biggest children’s hospital, Our Lady’s Hospital for Sick Children in Crumlin, has claimed that 159 job cuts are being sought by the Health Service Executive. The hospital says the job cuts would have a devastating effect on services and result in unacceptable safety risks.

The Government has vowed to slash the length of time children must wait for help with speech difficulties – promising no-one will wait longer than 13 weeks for assessment by 2009.

President Mary McAleese today insisted Ireland must reject the arrogance of those who restrict the lives of disabled people.