Alistair Bushe, Editor
Dear Voornaam,
July will hopefully be seen as a landmark month in the fight against Covid-19 in Northern Ireland.
The number of deaths and new cases had already dropped dramatically during June, and the trend continued into July, to the extent that the end of the month saw the Province go more than a fortnight without a single death being attributed to the virus.
July was also the month where lockdown measures were further eased. It was particularly encouraging to see socially distanced crowds being allowed back to watch sport, an issue particularly close to my heart, as I wrote here, when they were initially prevented from watching grassroots sport.
However, we can’t afford to be complacent as a recent surge in cases around various countries shows. We have also seen regional spikes in the Province too, with an outbreak at Moy Park revealed by our reporter Niall Deeney in this article.
The drop in cases didn’t mean that coronavirus wasn’t at the forefront of our news agenda, however. The fall-out from the Bobby Storey funeral right at the end of June continued into July, with our political editor Sam McBride revealing in this superb analysis piece how the funeral breached at least 10 public health guidelines.
Deputy editor Ben Lowry, in one of his well-read Saturday columns, also contributed to this highly-charged debate, writing that the episode proved that the Ulster Unionists should now go into opposition because the appeasing of Sinn Fein will not stop.
One of the issues that prompted the most debate on the News Letter’s online platforms was the introduction of the blandly titled Executive Committee (Functions) Bill at Stormont.
Without doubt, the News Letter, through Sam McBride, led the way in our coverage of this crucial bill, which Sam wrote on July 18 would see the most significant changes in how the Executive has operated since the St Andrews Agreement 14 years ago if it was voted through.
At the core of the issue was how the bill would give greater powers to individual ministers, something which the DUP had previously opposed, as outlined in this comment piece by its former special advisor Richard Bullick.
The issue came to a head on Tuesday, July 28, as Sam revealed that 11 DUP MLAs had actively abstained by voting in person in both lobbies., despite the imposition of a whip ordering them to vote in favour of the highly significant bill.
The bill has gone through Stormont, but the unprecedented DUP backbench rebellion it sparked could yet lead to repercussions for Arlene Foster’s leadership of the party.
Take care, and stay safe.
Alistair Bushe,
Editor
