Search

26 Mar 2026

SDLP bring call to introduce bus safety to Stormont

The motion was prompted by the death of Castledawson schoolgirl Caitlin-Rose McMullan (11) in March.

Caitlin-Rose McMullan

SDLP bring call to introduce bus safety to Stormont

Reporter:

Staff Reporter

02 Jun 2025 10:30 AM

Email:

news@derrynow.com

The SDLP will bring a motion to the Northern Ireland Assembly today urging the Minister for Infrastructure to introduce legislation to require vehicles to stop when school buses are picking up or dropping off children.
The motion comes in response to growing calls for action on this issue and follows the tragic death of 11 year old Caitlin-Rose McMullan, who was killed after disembarking from school a bus earlier this year.
It also builds on previous work led by SDLP representatives on Mid Ulster District Council, Councillor Malachy Quinn and Councillor Denise Johnston, who successfully tabled a similar motion at council level.
SDLP Mid Ulster MLA Patsy McGlone said:

“Every day across Mid Ulster and across the north, cars speed past school buses, gambling with children’s lives. The tragic death of Caitlin-Rose McMullan in March has seen a young life cut far too short, devastating her family and our community, and we as legislators need to do everything we can to prevent this from happening again.
“Our motion calls on the Minister for Infrastructure to introduce common-sense legislation that ensures vehicles stop when school buses are picking up or setting down pupils. In the US, Canada, and Germany, strong laws already exist to protect children in these vulnerable moments. There is no reason that we can’t do the same here.
“Caitlin-Rose’s memory must drive us to do what we should have done long ago - stop the cars, save lives, and give parents peace of mind that their children can travel to and from school safely.”
Councillor Denise Johnston added:

“Too many of our children have been injured or killed after getting of a bus, and we as a society are not doing enough to prevent it from happening.
“As a parent, I cannot imagine the pain Stella McMullan lives with every day. But I have been inspired by her courage in campaigning for change, and we must do everything in our power to protect our children through implementing legislation that can achieve this.
Councillor Malachy Quinn said:
“The only way to affect change is to force vehicles to stop and allow children to disembark from buses safely, creating a safe zone around every child stepping off a school bus and sending a clear message that reckless driving near our children stops now.
“We hope that all parties will be able to get behind this motion to ensure that no more children are killed or injured in something we have the power to prevent.”

To continue reading this article,
please subscribe and support local journalism!

Subscribing will allow you access to all of our premium content and archived articles.

Subscribe

To continue reading this article for FREE,
please kindly register and/or log in.

Registration is absolutely 100% FREE and will help us personalise your experience on our sites. You can also sign up to our carefully curated newsletter(s) to keep up to date with your latest local news!

Register / Login

Most Popular

Sponsored Content

Multimedia

We've got Donegal Covered...

Subscribe or register today to discover more from DonegalLive.ie

Buy a paper

Buy the e-paper of the Donegal Democrat, Donegal People's Press, Donegal Post and Inish Times here for instant access to Donegal's premier news titles.

Buy Now
Get the news

Keep up with the latest news from Donegal with our daily newsletter featuring the most important stories of the day delivered to your inbox every evening at 5pm.

Register Now
Iconic Media is Ireland's largest independently owned regional newspaper and media group, with an unrivalled audience in print, online and mobile. We have 19 regional newspapers and 21 digital sites.

Iconic Digital Titles

  • Carlow Live
  • Clare Live
  • Derry Now
  • Donegal Live
  • Éire Bheo
  • Inish Live
  • Ireland Live
  • Kildare Live
  • Kildare Now
  • Kilkenny Live
  • Laois Live
  • Leitrim Live
  • Letterkenny Live
  • Limerick Live
  • Longford Live
  • Louth Live
  • Mayo Live
  • Nenagh Live
  • Offaly Live
  • Tipperary Live
  • Waterford Live

    • Iconic Print Titles

  • Clonmel Nationalist
  • County Derry Post
  • Derry News
  • Donegal Democrat
  • Donegal Post
  • Dundalk Democrat
  • Homes in Donegal
  • Inish Times
  • Kilkenny People
  • Leinster Express
  • Leinster Leader
  • Leitrim Observer
  • Letterkenny Live
  • Limerick Leader
  • Longford Leader
  • Mayo News
  • Midland Tribune
  • Tipperary Star
  • Tullamore Tribune

    • This publication supports the work of the Press Council of Ireland and Office of the Press Ombudsman, and our staff operate within the Code of Practice of the Press Council. You can obtain a copy of the Code, or contact the Council, at www.presscouncil.ie, Lo-call 1800 208 080 or email: info@presscouncil.ie.

    © 2026 Iconic Media