Ulster Unionist MLA John McCallister has expressed his disappointment after party leader Mike Nesbitt sacked him as deputy leader of the UUP’s Assembly team.

Eyewitness claims that the Ulster Volunteer Force was involved in extortion and other criminal activities were today cited by Ulster Unionist MP Lady Sylvia Hermon as a reason for her unease over her party’s decision to link up with the Progressive Unionists in the Stormont Assembly.

The courts need to get tough on people who attack members of emergency services when they are answering calls, a Northern Ireland Assembly member claimed today.