Voter registration, house prices, voucher scheme: Thursday’s headlines for Northern Ireland

Nathan Hanna presents the latest news headlines for Northern Ireland.

Voter registration

Today is the last day to register to vote in the Stormont election.

Applications will close at midnight. You can register online or by completing a paper registration form. Voters go to the polls on 5 May to decide the makeup of the next Northern Ireland Assembly.

House prices rise

House prices in Northern Ireland continued to rise through the first three months of the year, according to the most recent report from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors. It said demand for homes is strong, but supply is not meeting demand. That trend is expected to continue through the next quarter.

Voucher scheme

More than a third of funds from the High Street Voucher Scheme were spent in businesses that were not forced to close during lockdown.

New figures from the Department for the Economy showed 63% of the £100 cards were used in businesses not required to shut. The scheme was one of Stormont's flagship Covid-19 recovery measures. Almost £137m was spent in total.