A blog from the Northern Ireland Assembly Research and Information Service

Latest Articles

Browse all the articles published on the Research Matters blog, with the most recent articles appearing at the top.

Image of a planned urban landscape: Local development planning is now with local councils

Planning in a new environment

The planning system has undergone much change recently, so what are the new structures and how has the balance of responsibility shifted between central and

The merging of environment and agriculture

A new mandate, a new Environment

Local government underwent significant structural change in 2015 with the number of councils reducing from 26 to 11, and the transfer of many functions from

Average Farm Business Income (FBI) for selected sectors, 2010/11 to 2015/16 forecast

Are current farm incomes sustainable?

Farm incomes over the last five years in Northern Ireland have shown considerable volatility and this presents challenges for the long- term sustainability of the