The idea of someone hacking a plane in less than a minute might sound like the plot from an unrealistic Hollywood blockbuster. 

But a terrifying new study has revealed how this could be achieved, using a device the size of a 10p coin. 

Scientists from the University of California San Diego have developed a custom hardware device that can take over the communications between two key onboard computers. 

One computer is the flight management computer, while the other is the computer that displays this flight path information in the cockpit.

To take over these crucial systems, all hackers would need to do is plug the device into a port inside the plane’s belly. 

According to the researchers, an attack of this sort would take less than 60 seconds to carry out on a Boeing 737 either parked at a gate or in an airport hangar.

‘We believe we have made a strong case that time–limited physical access (e.g., 60 seconds) represents a realistic goal for a motivated attacker,’ the researchers said.

‘The consequences of even such short access can be significant (and hence worthy of attention).’

Typically, physical access to an aircraft is not considered a major cybersecurity risk. 

However, in their new study, the team set out to understand whether or not an attacker with physical access to a plane could exploit its systems.

‘Our goal with this research is to alert the aviation community to this class of risks, so they may be appropriately mitigated well before they become dangerous,’ said Aaron Schulman, one of the senior authors of the work.

While studying a Boeing 737, the team discovered an unused maintenance port in the plane’s Electonics and Equipment (E&E) bay, which houses key electronic systems. 

The bay can be found under the plane’s nose – and crucially, it can be reached from the ground, and isn’t locked. 

‘What we found in our work, is that there’s a plug that is deep in the E&E bay, that if you open the door, and get inside, you can then touch from the ground,’ Mr Schulman explained.

‘And if you attach something to that plug, it actually gives you full control over the entire flight management computer.’

This port contains two ‘buses’ – communications systems that carry information and instructions between the flight management computer and the computer displaying the flight path information.

Scientists from the University of California, San Diego, have developed a custom hardware device that can take over the communications between two key onboard computers. One computer is the flight management computer, while the other is the computer that displays this flight path information in the cockpit

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While studying a Boeing 737, the team discovered an unused maintenance port in the plane’s Electonics and Equipment (E&E) bay, which houses key electronic systems. The bay can be found under the plane’s nose – and crucially, it can be reached from the ground, and isn’t locked

These buses, called ARINC 429, operate on decades–old systems – and lack any modern security features.

For that reason, it was fairly simple for the researchers to design and build a small hardware device to take over the buses.

In simple terms, the device sends out a strong signal that can overpower genuine transmissions.

This allows it to secretly send new instructions to the plane’s computers while hiding the fact that anything has been changed.

During a demonstration, the team showed that the implant could reroute a plane in flight, or modify key data about weight, balance and temperature – which could lead to an unsafe takeoff.

‘The pilot doesn’t have any knowledge that something is going on,’ Mr Schulman said.

‘So it’s a very covert and inconspicuous type of control that you can have with this kind of attack.’

The researchers decided to focus on the Boeing 737, as it is one of the most used aircraft in the world.

However, before you panic about your next holiday, the researchers reassure that their hacking device is staying under lock and key.

Mr Schulman added: ‘All of the authors of this paper routinely travel on Boeing 737 aircraft and expect to continue doing so.’

Three sisters and a seven-year-old boy were on their way to Dublin Airport ahead of a family wedding in Britain when they were seriously injured in a head-on collision. 

Alma and Niamh Kinsella, in their 30s, their younger sister Ella Hendricken, in her 20s, and her nephew were travelling in a Hyundai on the M9 in County Kildare when the horrific crash occurred on Sunday morning. 

Their vehicle collided head-on with a high-powered BMW, which was allegedly stolen, driving southbound on the northbound carriageway shortly after 3am. 

All five of the teenage boys – reportedly aged between 15 and 17 – travelling in the BMW died and were today identified on social media as Kamil Pustkowski, Joe Carthy, Jeremy O’Brien, Alex McCarthy and Jack Kennedy.

The four family members riding in the other vehicle all remain in hospital. Alma and Niamh are said to be in a critical condition, while their younger sister and nephew are receiving treatment for serious injuries. 

Alma and Niamh are thought to have been sat in the car’s two front seats when the crash occurred, with Ella sat beside her nephew in the back. 

All four of the family are from the Carlow area of south-east Ireland and had been making their way to the airport to attend a wedding in England. 

Father Tom Little, from a parish in Carlow, said today that the family of those who suffered injuries are ‘bereft with sadness’.

Alex McCarthy was one of the five boys who died in the collision in County Kildare on Sunday morning

Joey Carthy also died in the crash on the M9 motorway

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Jeremy O’Brien was one of five teenagers to lose his life in the collision 

Kamil Pustowski was one of five teenagers to die in the collision

Jack Kennedy was the fifth teenage boy to lose his life in the crash yesterday 

He told the Irish Times: ‘It is a terrible, sad event. It’s very hard to comprehend what’s happened. Everybody is hoping that those that are injured will make a full recovery.’ 

It emerged earlier on Monday that the five youngsters who passed away may have stolen the BMW which later crashed.

The vehicle had been spotted in several areas near Kildare and County Carlow before the smash happened – and police are trying to verify whether the boys are part of the ‘Lucky Dip’ burglary and car theft gang in Dublin.

It is also being probed whether they were part of a number of attempted robberies of cars in the same region over the course of the night. All five of the dead were masked when the gardaí came upon the grisly scene. 

Post-mortem examinations will soon be carried out to establish a cause of death.  

The Garda Representative Association (GRA) said its members were ‘all in shock’ after the ‘horrific incident’.

GRA vice-president John Joe O’Connell said: ‘This involved a stolen BMW that drove – trying to evade gardaí – the wrong way down the M9 and then a head-on collision occurred with this car of a family heading to Dublin Airport on holiday for a few days.’

Mr O’Connell explained the BMW had earlier failed to stop for gardaí and that it was his understanding that an instruction was given not to pursue the vehicle as it travelled the wrong way down the M9.

Asked if this was normal, he told RTÉ’s Morning Ireland radio programme: ‘It would be standard practice, and the command and control centre would be dictating what happens in a live environment – but the members in the cars have to make a split-second decision.’

Mr O’Connell said there were ‘numerous gangs’ of boys and young men ‘trying to outdo each other’ in social media videos depicting interactions with Gardaí, pursuits and wrong-way driving.

‘Our members are not going to follow down that route – we’re damned if you do and damned if you don’t, that way,’ he said.

The Kildare-based representative said the GRA did not ‘know what the exact answer is’ to address the problem, but added: ‘There’s not one member of An Garda Síochána [the national police] trained in pursuit – never mind in dealing with cars going down the wrong way.’

Mr O’Connell said gardaí also face internal sanctions, discipline and possible criminal offences when they decide to chase in pursuits. He said gardaí cars have also been rammed by stolen vehicles. 

Mr O’Connell said there was a need to ‘look at the sentences’ when these cases come before the courts, as he criticised those partaking in wrong-way driving as ‘playing Russian roulette with their lives and everyone else’s lives’.

He urged parents to talk to their sons about the potential consequences of getting into a stolen car ‘for the craic and the clicks’.

Friends and family took to social media in the aftermath of the crash to pay tribute to the teenagers who lost their lives. 

The scene on the M9 after a BMW smashed into the Hyundai on the M9 motorway

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In a social media post, a cousin of Joe Carthy and Alex McCarthy said: ‘Rest in peace to my two cousins Alex and Joey.

‘May you get a best bed in heaven, watch over your mother and father and brothers and sisters at this hard time. Left away to soon.’

In a separate post, she added: ‘God give your family the strength to get through this difficult time.’

Sharing pictures of Carthy wearing a balaclava, another cousin said: ‘Never in a million years would I ever (have) thought it would come to this Joe.

‘The thought of us never seeing you again. No matter where you were, you always put a smile on anyone’s face. Forever 15, my cousin.’

Meanwhile, a family friend said of Carthy: ‘Only a baby with his whole life ahead of him, most mannered little boy you were Joey.

‘Too good for this big cruel world, watch over my James he’s heartbroken over you. Your poor father and mother, Joey.

‘Please God give them this strength to get through this. Rest easy champ.’

A friend of Kamil Pustowski wrote: ‘My heart is broken, you’re gonna be missed so much by everyone. Rest in paradise, God is going to give you the best bed up there.’

A cousin of Jeremy O’Brien said: ‘RIP to my cousin. (He) was like a brother. (May) God give you the bed in heaven, you’ll be missed.’

Garda Commissioner Justin Kelly has described the head-on collision between junctions three and four as ‘horrific’ and warned that ‘in some cases’ vehicles are being driven on the wrong side of motorways for social media likes.

The previous weekend, nine people were injured in a head-on collision on the M50 in Dublin with a car travelling in the wrong direction on the motorway.

Jason Arday’s family have spoken out at a London vigil honouring the former Cambridge University professor who died last week.

He died days after resigning from his role as a professor at Cambridge, one he took on in 2023 as its youngest-ever Black professor.

The 41-year-old academic had faced criticism concerning his PhD thesis, other work, and accounts of his personal achievements.

A vigil was held in London’s Trafalgar Square, organised by the group Stand Up to Racism, with those close to Arday speaking at the event.

Organisers said more than 30,000 people gathered outside the National Gallery to pay tribute to the late academic; many wore black and brought flowers.

Labour MP Bell Ribeiro-Addy read a statement on behalf of his family, which said ‘the public cruelty Jason was subjected to was too much for any man to bear’.

The statement continued: ‘What has become clear over the past 72 hours is the profound impact he had on people’.

‘A selfless and gentle soul, he tirelessly uplifted others through his words and actions,’ they continued. ‘His achievements were great and we do not want misrepresentations about his character to overshadow them.’

They appealed for him to be remembered ‘for the wonderful person he was and all that he achieved’.

Other speakers included MPs Diane Abbott and Dawn Butler, along with crossbench peer Lord Woolley and director of the Good Law Project Jo Maugham.

Lord Woolley, who was a friend of Arday’s, called the criticism of the professor a ‘public execution’ and a ‘lynching’, to cheers from the crowd.

He shared how he had dinner with Diane Abbott and activistMisan Harriman just last week, during which Arday had said: ‘They’re hounding me to death’.

Lord Woolley said: ‘We held him in our arms. We told him he was loved. He held Diane’s (Abbott) hands, and he said, “I love you, but”, he said, “they’re hounding me to death, and I cannot see a way out”.’

Recalling his friend, the crossbencher called Arday a ‘wonderful man’, adding: ‘Never stole a bag of crisps. He was exonerated from plagiarism.

‘But the dogs of hell, the hounds of hell, sought to pursue any inaccuracy that they could say Jason is a bad man, Jason doesn’t deserve to be in Cambridge.

‘For them, Jason doesn’t deserve to be alive. There needs to be some reckoning. There needs to be some justice.’

During her speech, Abbott said Arday was the subject of a ‘vicious’ and ‘bitter’ campaign, by people who did not believe a black man should be a Cambridge professor.

She said: ‘He must have felt that if he resigned the attacks on him would stop, but in fact they got even worse. From his resignation to his suicide last week, was just three weeks, but the newspapers printed 249 articles about him.

‘This was a vicious campaign but it wasn’t just a campaign against the professor, it was a campaign against all of us and that’s why it is so important to come together and fight for justice for Professor Jason Arday.’

One attendee was holding a cardboard sign which read ‘249 articles in 22 days’ which is believed to be a reference to analysis of media coverage conducted by NewsCord, an AI-based media analysis company.

More than 90,000 people, including Abbott, Green Party leader Zack Polanski and presenter Jameela Jamil, have signed a Good Law Project petition seeking an inquiry into coverage of Prof Arday, which says his death followed ‘two weeks of relentless harassment’.

In addition, Sir Patrick Vernon, who played a leading role in the successful campaign to establish a national Windrush Day, set up a GoFundMe crowdfunding page, which has collected more than £170,000 in donations.

The crowd, dressed mostly in black, held flowers and signs which read ‘Rest in power Jason Arday’, and calls for ‘justice’ rang out through the square.

In their statement, the family concluded: ‘The outpouring of love, support and grief since his death mean so much to us.

‘Although it is bittersweet, now kindness is needed in life, not just in death. We’ll never know what might have been different had he experienced more of it while he was still here.’

Flowers were laid at the foot of Nelson’s Column by the vigil attendees as they left the square.

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.

For more stories like this, check our news page.

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The Government has announced that, from April 1, 2027, time restrictions on concessionary passes will be removed, allowing eligible disabled people to use buses without charge 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Currently, disabled bus passes are only valid for free travel between 9.30am and 11pm on weekdays unless a local authority chooses to fund longer hours.

The change will bring all areas of England in line with Greater Manchester, where the time restrictions were permanently lifted earlier this year.

Prime Minister Andy Burnham said: “Buses are a lifeline for so many people – making it easier to get to work, education and healthcare.

“It’s simply not right that many disabled people cannot travel using their pass during certain times of the day.

“So we’re fixing that.

“Disabled people will now have unlimited free bus travel 24/7.

“I did it before in Greater Manchester and I’m proud to do it now for the whole country.

(Image: TfGM)

“This is part of our ongoing action to bring back hope and give people some much-needed breathing space on the cost of living.”

The nationwide change is backed by £60 million in funding and is part of the Government’s broader plans to make public transport more accessible and affordable.

Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander said: “We’re putting an end to this postcode lottery, so disabled people can travel on buses for free whenever they need, wherever they live – unlocking opportunities and access to jobs, learning, and more.

“We are making this change because we’ve listened to disabled people, and we know the importance of buses to local communities.

“These passes are a lifeline for so many, helping them stay connected and get to work and appointments, and it’s only right they receive the same treatment, no matter their postcode.”

Work and Pensions Secretary Pat McFadden said the change would help remove barriers to employment and education.

Mr McFadden said: “For too long, disabled people have held a free bus pass in their pocket that didn’t always get them to work.

“Now we’re changing that.

“By removing these time restrictions, we’re helping disabled people access jobs, training, and other opportunities at any time of the day.

“Alongside our £3.5 billion investment in tailored employment support, this change shows we’re serious about breaking down the barriers that have held disabled people back for too long.”

Disability and transport charities have welcomed the announcement.

(Image: Bee Network)

Jon Sparkes, chief executive of Mencap, said: “This is welcome relief for disabled people struggling with the cost of living as well as the extra costs of being disabled.

“Most importantly though, it removes the inference that disabled people can’t or shouldn’t work.

“Disabled people should have the same opportunities as anyone else to work or contribute to society in some other way and this will help level that playing field.”

James Taylor, Executive Director Strategy Impact & Social Change with Scope said: “Disabled people face extra costs every day and many need to travel in the morning for work, education and healthcare.

“Making free bus travel available around the clock is a welcome step that will put money back in people’s pockets and remove barriers to everyday life.”

Eligibility for a disabled person’s bus pass is set out in the Transport Act 2000 and includes people who are blind or partially sighted, profoundly or severely deaf, without speech, unable or virtually unable to walk because of a disability, without arms, or unable to use both arms, people with a learning disability, and people who would be refused a driving licence on medical grounds (other than because of drug or alcohol misuse).

This is part of the Government’s wider commitment to better, affordable, reliable buses, including the £2 bus fare cap, free bus travel for kids this summer and giving local leaders control over their buses.

The Prohibition Bar, a 1920s-themed venue in the centre of Middlesbrough, will welcome Leeds-born DJ and producer Tom Zanetti on Friday, August 28.

Zanetti, who has three platinum singles, more than one million social media followers and his own bar in Marbella, is expected to attract house music fans from across the region.

However, ahead of the event, The Prohibition Bar has stressed that it will be operating a strict zero-tolerance approach to illegal drugs, and says all customers will be searched on entry.

Tom Zanetti. (Image: Provided)

In a statement shared on Facebook, the bar said: “For the Tom Zanetti event, we operate a strict zero-tolerance policy regarding illegal drugs.

“Anyone found using, supplying, or in possession of controlled substances on the premises will be removed immediately and may receive a permanent ban.

“Police will be informed and stop-and-search procedures may be carried out where necessary.

“CCTV operates throughout the venue and footage will be provided to the police when appropriate.

“Our staff are fully trained to report and respond to any suspicious activity. All guests will be subject to a search on entry.

“Please respect the venue, the staff and fellow customers so everyone can enjoy a safe night.”

The warning comes ahead of what is expected to be one of the venue’s biggest events of the summer.

The Prohibition Bar describes itself as a venue where “style meets soul”, offering crafted cocktails, live music and headline DJ appearances in a “safe, sophisticated environment”.

The venue regularly hosts headline DJs, live music sessions and pop-up events as part of its entertainment programme.

Doors open at 8pm on Friday, August 28, for Tom Zanetti – Up Close & Personal.

The event is open to over-21s only, with tickets still available through the venue’s website, priced at £32.52 per person.

Kazinsky said: “I left EastEnders in 2008 as a 23-year-old boy and was lucky to spend the next 19 years of my life working around the world, always championing EastEnders and stating the fact that one day I wanted to walk in Sean’s shoes again – but this time as a man, to see who Sean the man might also be.

Former Playboy model and Girls Next Door star Karissa Shannon has resurfaced after quitting Hollywood for a quiet life in her home state of Michigan.

Karissa and her twin sister Kristina, best known as the Shannon twins, both moved into the Playboy Mansion when they were just 18 and then started dating Hugh Hefner shortly after.

The siblings starred on the final season of E!’s The Girls Next Door alongside Crystal Hefner, which positioned the trio as the replacements for the show’s former leading ladies, Holly Madison, Kendra Wilkinson and Bridget Marquardt.

Karissa, now 36, has now left the bright lights of Los Angeles behind and moved back home to try and start a family, but she resurfaced last week to discuss her new life on Lisa Guerrero’s Unleashed podcast.

‘I was like, you know what? Get out of the spotlight, cut the lights, cut the cameras, let me go find out where I want to live, where I can be in privacy, no one knows who I am, and live a normal life and just figure out what I want to do,’ she explained. 

‘I needed a moment to myself where I can just build on my inner self… Get healthy habits, fully detox, get away from the circle of people that I was around,’ she continued.

The siblings starred on the final season of E!’s The Girls Next Door alongside Crystal Hefner, in addition to being the Playboy mogul’s girlfriends; pictured 2009

‘So what I want more than anything is to be a housewife, be a mother, I want to be able to give my kids what I didn’t have.’

She added, ‘I want a normal family life. I want a husband. I want to be in true love, I want real love. And I’m dating right now.’

While Karissa still boasts her signature tanned skin and platinum blonde hair, the former Playboy centerfold now looks much different than the fresh-faced teenager that fans were first introduced to on the E! Network. 

‘She’s lost a lot of weight I hope she’s doing well and is getting not only physically healthy but emotionally and mentally with everything she’s been through,’ wrote one fan.

‘She looks great,’ commented another, while a third wrote, ‘This isn’t one of the twins… Looks nothing like her!’ 

Karissa also told Guerrero that she’s spending less time with her twin Kristina so that the siblings ‘can do their own thing’ and find their own individuality.

‘I like to be a real person and be honest and be myself and I can’t do that when I’m stuck together with somebody,’ she said.

‘We were always pushed that in our career, to be the same person, dress alike and do the same things, but we’re really different.’

Karissa, now 36, has now left the bright lights of Los Angeles behind and moved back home to try and start a family, but she resurfaced last week to discuss her new life 

The former Playboy centerfold looked unrecognizable on Lisa Guerrero’s Unleashed podcast

The Shannon twins are pictured posing up a storm at the Playboy Mansion in 2011

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When pressed about her time dating Hefner and living in the Playboy Mansion, Karissa said that she was never attracted to Hefner because ‘obviously he was too old’, but she admitted that she enjoyed having the millionaire take care of her. 

‘His power that he had and the brand that he had and being able to take care of me… I’ve never been taken care of, I’ve always had to take care of myself,’ she reflected.

‘I did get a lot of opportunities from being on the Girls Next Door show and from dating Hef, but also, who knows where I could have went if I would’ve went my own direction and just been a Playmate.’

The Shannon twins both spoke out against Hefner in A&E’s 12-part tell-all docuseries Secrets of Playboy back in 2022.

Not only did they both claim to have caught chlamydia after having a threesome with Hefner on their 19th birthday, Karissa also said that she’d gotten pregnant from sleeping with Hefner, who would have been 84 at the time.

She then said that she’d had a secret abortion behind his back in order to avoid any paparazzi or unwanted media attention.

A&E noted in a statement attached to the series that ‘the vast majority of allegations have not been the subject of criminal investigations or charges, and they do not constitute proof of guilt.’ 

Karissa and Kristina moved into the Playboy Mansion in 2009 when they were just 18

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The twin sisters shocked fans when they appeared on A&E’s Secrets of Playboy docuseries in 2022

The twins, along with Crystal, are all pictured with Hefner during a night out in 2009

Additionally, Hefner’s ex-girlfriend Holly Madison claimed in her 2015 memoir that she and Hefner tried to conceive through fertility treatment, but that Hefner’s sperm was ‘not viable’.

When directly questioned about Karissa’s abortion story on an episode of the Juicy Scoop podcast in 2022, Madison called it ‘surprising’.

‘I’m never gonna say that I don’t believe anybody’s story because I wasn’t there and anything can happen, but it’s surprising,’ she said.

Like many of the young women who found themselves falling into sex work, the Shannon twins had a difficult upbringing.

With an unstable upbringing, they were raised by their grandmother and lived in a trailer park for several years, dropping out of school to get jobs at a Hooters-style restaurant at just 15.

When they were 17, a photographer suggested that they take nude photos to send to Playboy — and by 18, they were flown to Miami for a test shoot, which was cut short halfway through when Hefner called to say he liked the images.

Karissa has now quit Hollywood for a quiet life in Michigan, claiming that she needed to get away from the spotlight and her old circle of friends; pictured 2015 with Blac Chyna

The twins appeared on an episode of Botched in 2015

They’d soon be named the July and August 2009 Playmates and were invited to live in the Playboy Mansion and to star on Girls Next Door.

The twins admitted their naiveté in accepting this offer, saying that they thought the invitation to become Hefner’s girlfriends really just meant they were being asked to be on the show. 

They claimed on Secrets of Playboy that they believed Hefner’s image was fake and that he wasn’t actually having sex with any of the models in the mansion.

‘Hell no, you don’t think an 80-year-old man is sleeping with three of these women,’ Karissa said.

They eventually started having sex with him after turning 19, and while they claim that they hated the experience, even comparing it to ‘rape’, they didn’t want to leave the mansion and risk losing career opportunities.

‘Coming from [abuse] and our biological mom leaving, we really felt like we had to take care of our grandmother who raised us. And we didn’t want him to take away all of the success we had built. We thought he’d revoke our centerfold,’ they said.

The twins parted ways with Hefner after E! canceled The Girls Next Door in 2010.

They remained in the spotlight for a few years after that, most notably starring on Celebrity Big Brother in the UK in 2012.

They later moved into doing hardcore pornography, shooting X-rated scenes with adult studios including Brazzers.

While Karissa has left adult entertainment behind her, her sister Kristina recently launched her own AI-generated chatbot, which is based on her likeness. 

Kristina also has her own OnlyFans page and is based in Miami, where she continues to work as a model.  

While promoting her book with US Weekly in May, Panettiere revealed she was bisexual. She told the outlet: “Now that I know that this book is coming out, and that I’ve chosen to share it with the world, I’m comfortable to confidently say that yes, I am bisexual. I said it! This is the first time I got to say it out loud.”

She further explained: “That’s something about me I was never able to share with the world, because it was just never the right time. It was either I was too young, and I was being forced to be perfect at all times. I was not encouraged to just be myself. Then came the period where it felt like people coming out, especially women, saying that they were bisexual or liked girls, was a fad.

“I was afraid that if I was honest, it was going to be like me jumping on the bandwagon. It was a very difficult topic to articulate properly. It’s sad I had to wait until I was 36 years old to share that part of me, but better late than never, right?”

When speaking about dating women she said: “Yeah, I did. It was scary, though, because there were paparazzi always waiting for me outside, to follow me everywhere. I had very little privacy. I have dated women. I was much more into women even as a child than I was men. I have explored it, but because I hadn’t shared this with anybody, I didn’t really have the courage to throw myself fully emotionally into it. Because then if I did fall in love, that wasn’t something that I wanted to ever have to hide.”

By CLAIRE ELLICOTT, WHITEHALL EDITOR

Published: 22:15 BST, 17 August 2026 | Updated: 22:20 BST, 17 August 2026

Councillors say groups face a backlog in a process that has no policy at City Hall

A Belfast councillor has criticised City Hall over delays for small groups requesting events in the city.

SDLP Councillor Séamas de Faoite has stated that smaller groups face a greater wait when they make requests, and has namechecked the “Ballynafest.” The annual Ballynafest is a free community festival organized by Open Ormeau and will take place on Saturday, August 29, in Ormeau Park, Belfast.

Councillor de Faoite said at the August meeting of the council’s People and Communities Committee: “Groups are facing significant delays in getting their event requests approved, particularly events that don’t come to the committee, that is, smaller events, events that happen on an annual basis.

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“(That makes it) difficult for groups to plan, and have certainty when they are going out to vendors to book entertainment, or even the physical amenities they might need for their events.

“I have raised before the Ballynafest, organised every year by Open Ormeau, which will take place later this month. It has taken them until this month to actually get the approval from this council for their event to take place.”

Ballynafest brings together diverse local cultures through music, family activities, and workshops. It will be the sixth time the festival is celebrated. It promises live music and dance performances, circus acts and interactive shows, petting farm and animal encounters, environmental workshops and creative art stations, sensory tents and children’s crafts, and a guided local history walking tour of Ormeau Park.

Councillor de Faoite said: “What they were being told consistently was they would probably get their approval, but it couldn’t definitely be said until it was ready to go out. I understand there may be delays in terms of the (council) team processing those applications, but is there some way we can resolve that delay and clear the backlog, to make sure this issue doesn’t arise again? It is having an impact on a whole pile of groups who organise events on an annual basis.”

A council officer said they would “be quite happy” to look at the problem and bring a report back to elected representatives, offering details on process, council staff numbers and “turnaround.”

Committee Chair, Alliance Councillor Jenna Maghie, said decisions around events in the council were “pre-policy” and asked for an update on a draft policy document surrounding events.

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