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There are currently just over 9,000 troops in the province, but that will be reduced to no more than 5,000 by 1 August 2007. The number of sites where troops are stationed will be reduced to 14 from about 40 in the next year and more watchtowers will be demolished.

Mr Kennedy said:

“I have continually warned the government about the dangers of premature removal of military personnel and installations. This continues to be my view in light of the recently published troops withdrawal plan.

“There is still a significant level of threat posed by dissident republicans and I am conscious that the South Armagh area still contains a sizeable rump of violent republicanism. The government really has no excuse to continue in the manner they are progressing.

“I am also concerned about the 3000 civilian staff province wide, including many in my constituency, who are understandably worried about their future. They find themselves in the same league as the RIR and I have been trying to make representations on their behalf to clarify how the Government intends to treat them.

In a statement, Mr Armstrong said: “Over eight years ago the British were self-sufficient in all our food. However in the first six months of 2005, 28,150 tonnes of Brazilian beef were imported – if consumers fail to read the small print they could be eating meat from Zebu cattle.

“The Brazilian Government has made it national policy to rapidly expand a huge farm export policy, aided by the World Trade Organisation, which wants EU subsidies scaled down, and our markets prised open. No mention is made of the fact that three states in Brazil have Foot and Mouth disease while the whole of the UK’s export capability continued to be completely closed due to Foot & Mouth Disease in certain regions.

“We continue to import Brazilian beef which may have been from and moved through infected states. In February 2006 EU and other countries banned the import of beef from northern Argentina but beef imports from Brazil continue. The traceability of cattle in South America is dire in comparison to UK standards, yet we continue to import their beef.

“The South American juggernaut appears to be unstoppable. Our beef herds in Britain are shrinking while Brazil has 30 times the number of beef cattle and abattoirs processing 5000 head a day, most of which are for export.”

“The UUP is committed to securing the pension rights of employees – both in the private and public sectors. We firmly believe that employers have a responsibility to ensure that employees’ pension rights are protected. In this case, Government as the employer is failing to give our local government employees the same pension security it has extended to other public servants. This is fundamentally unfair.

“While recognising this, we also recognise the public’s reliance on the key services provided by local government employees. Strike action rarely achieves its aims – and in the case of key public services hurts families and communities much more than it does Government as the employer.

“Waste management is not an add-on extra or something that can just be left to Councils or to the three waste management regions in Northern Ireland - Belfast (arc21), the North West, based in Londonderry, and the Southern Area – known by the acronym SWaMP, created by directive in 2000. I sometimes fear that Government here has left all the running to the Councils and neglected its own responsibilities,” explained the UUP Environment Spokesman.

“If Northern Ireland fails to meet waste management targets then serious fines will kick-in. If there is a statutory failure to meet our responsibilities under European directives which result in hefty fines then, if that is due to negligence by public servants, heads should roll. They would in private enterprise and they should in the public service. Either there has been personal failure or systems failure – or both.”

“It is intensely depressing that the top management of the Department of the Environment (DoE) were not only accused of a lack of leadership by the House of Commons Public Accounts Committee, but that they openly admitted to that failure when giving evidence. This is the fourth time in two years the DoE has been criticised on how it manages rubbish in NI. When I consider what some of these civil servants are paid, it shocks me that more is not done about this failure to do their job.”

“The Tourism Industry in the European Union is currently growing rapidly due to the effects of globalisation, demographic change and the increasing availability of cheaper air transport.

“With this in mind I very much welcome the Commission’s efforts to harness this rapid growth and co-ordinate efforts between countries to the benefit of everyone” said the East Londonderry MLA.

“In 2005 there were an estimated 1,928,000 visitors to Northern Ireland which provided a revenue to our economy of £346 million. This represents an increase in revenue of 11% on 2004.

“In terms of where our visitors were coming from, there was an increase of 20% coming from within Europe.

His comments follow a report by the British Wind Energy Association which shows that Northern Ireland could contribute 543 MW of onshore wind by 2010,, generating sufficient electricity for more than 300,000 homes each year, equivalent to one in three households in Northern Ireland.

“I trust that DETI and NIE will act on the advice given by BWEA and undertake a programme of grid reinforcement, allowing Northern Ireland to reach its renewable targets. The benefits of renewable energy have been well publicised and people are beginning to think more about where their electricity comes from and the effect that it may have on the environment.

“Cutting our reliance on fossil fuels not only reduces pollution, but it ensures that future generations will have an alternative source of energy. The rate at which we are using fossil fuels simply cannot sustain itself and it is in everyone’s best interests to find alternatives sooner rather than later.

Mr McGimpsey said:

“Dermot Ahern is the Foreign Minister of the Irish Republic. The Northern Ireland football team is none of his business. How the IFA manages itself is nothing to do with him. This is not another cross-border body that he can stick his nose into.

Mr McGimpsey was responding to the forthcoming launch of the Border Ireland website by Irish Finance Minister Brian Cowen due to take place next week.

In a statement Mr McGimpsey said,

“The decision by Irish Finance Minister Brian Cowen to launch a new website called Border Ireland next week is further proof that the Irish Government is making the most of Direct Rule to actively promote and encourage existing and further cross border activities and co-operation.

The website will list information on over 8,000 activities, publications and contacts, all related to cross border activity and co-operation.

This launch follows on from Dermot Ahern’s announcement that £100 billion is to be spent on infrastructure over 10 years on an all Ireland basis. The Garda Siochana are openly recruiting in Belfast.

The Dublin Government is being fundamentally dishonest with this new approach and is breaching the existing rules. It should be remembered that the existing North-South bodies, in the absence of the devolved Institutions, are only to be run on a ‘care and maintenance’ basis. In short this means No Stormont – No North-South bodies.