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(IR 1.05 EURO) Monday, January 2, 2012

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First babies of 2012

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New Year swimmers take the plunge

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News Letter, Monday, January

INSIDE

2, 2012

41

Beauty must-haves P43

Go nutty for knits P44

Claire Sweeney on turning 40 P47

Author Amanda does the write kind of research

P42&43

Alan McMullan and Darren Crawford, both from Ballymena, take a giant leap during the annual New Year charity swim at Carnlough Harbour yesterday
PICTURE: Paul Faith/PA

Shock after digger death

THE family of a man killed in an industrial accident in Co Antrim on News Years Eve have been left in complete shock, it was said last night. It is understood that 51year-old Eamon Hassan was killed after he was trapped under a digger he had been working on. The tragedy happened in a yard close to the victims home on the Townhill Road outside Portglenone. Mr Hassan, who had his own construction business, leaves behind a wife and three children. See page 8

Secret plan to oust Molyneaux

BY SAM McBRIDE Political Correspondent
sam.mcbride@newsletter.co.uk

Duke strolls to church

THE Duke of Edinburgh appeared in good health yesterday as he joined the rest of the Royal family for the New Years Day service at Sandringham. While the Queen arrived in a Bentley, Prince Philip chose to make the 400-metre trip from Sandringham House to the estates church on foot. There had been fears that the Dukes condition could disrupt his involvement in this years Diamond Jubilee celebrations. See page 5

FORMER Ulster Unionist leader Jim Molyneaux was the subject of a proposed coup by a government official, previously classified papers have revealed. A civil servant attempted to get

the secretary of state involved in the plan to remove Mr Molyneaux from his position as leader in 1981, over the haemorrhaging of UUP support to Ian Paisley. It is not clear whether the advice ever reached Jim Prior, who had been secretary of state for just over two months at the time, but the particularly unwise

suggestion led to a withering rejection from the head of the Northern Ireland Civil Service, Ewart Bell. A note from the official, which came just 10 days after the murder of Ulster Unionist MP Robert Bradford by the IRA, said the UUP had been fragmenting under his watch. He [Molyneaux]

performed abysmally at Belfast City Hall yesterday. He has been unable to take the fight to Mr Paisley, it said. Other documents reveal that David McNarry, who was involved in a pro-devolution UUP pressure group, was also unhappy at Mr Molyneauxs leadership. See pages 6 & 7

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