General

In welcome news the Northern Ireland Executive are to use the High Street Task Force to engage with the public in a bid to improve the high streets up and down the country. They want to hear what the public think about their experience on the high street and how to make them more welcoming …

Executive To Engage With The Public On How To Get The High Street Buzzing AgainRead More

Hotel owners in Northern Ireland are urgently calling for more support as the festive season approaches. They are requesting more assistance from the government as well as hoping that the public will support their businesses by booking with them as a critical period approaches. The Hotel Industry Has Been Particularly Hard Hit As we know …

Hotel Owners Call For More Support As Christmas ApproachesRead More

The Northern Ireland Executive have set out their plans to deal with Covid-19 over the coming winter in a bid to contain the infection rate of the virus, but at the same time keeping the economy ticking over as smoothly as possible. The plans include using Covid status certifications in high risk settings if required …

NI Executive Lays Out Their Covid-19 Winter PlanRead More

The Northern Ireland Tourism Alliance (NITA) has urged that the proposed Holiday-At-Home voucher scheme be given more funding. At present there is £2 million set aside to run this scheme, but the NITA believes that a lot of people would miss out on these vouchers and be disappointed if the funding is not increased. With …

Calls For Holiday-At-Home Scheme To Be Given More FundingRead More

Economy minister Gordon Lyons has said that over 160,000 pre-paid cards have been sent out to members of the Northern Ireland community so far, with another 50,000 all ready to be shipped out. The pre-paid cards, as part of the high street voucher scheme, can be used to purchase £100 of products from local businesses. …

Over 160,000 Pre-Paid Cards Delivered So FarRead More

Latest statistics from the purchasing managers index (PMI), which is produced by Ulster Bank, show that inflationary pressures are ramping up for businesses in Northern Ireland. The September survey showed a return to an alarming trend, after a brief slowdown in inflation in August, with prices moving up at a rate not seen since this …

Inflation A Concern For NI BusinessesRead More

Not surprisingly bus and coach companies were sectors that were particularly hard hit by the Covid-19 pandemic. They are also sectors that are struggling to recover, as the tourist industry in Northern Ireland has been very slow to pick up once more. Coach companies rely on tourist trade, taking them to various landmarks and attractions …

Coach Companies Face Hard Winter As Many Operators Close To CollapseRead More

After a welcome holiday on paying stamp duty, introduced when we came out of the first major Covid lockdown last summer, it has now returned to its regular pre-pandemic levels here in Northern Ireland and England. I am sure if you moved house during this stamp duty holiday you were very grateful for this cut, …

Stamp Duty Returns To Pre-Pandemic LevelsRead More