NI paper review: Drug paraphernalia and house prices surge

Some have called for rooms to be made available for users to take class A drugs under medical supervision

"The look of love," is the headline on the front of Tuesday's News Letter, which dedicates its entire front page to a photograph of the newly-engaged Prince Harry and American actress Meghan Markle.

Inside, an eight-page pull out claims to provide readers with "all you need to know about the loved-up couple".

Pages 2 and 3 of the paper focus on the story of the proposal too, with a portion of the page sectioned off under the headline "Foster sorry as wrong prince congratulated".

"DUP leader Arlene Foster has apologised after a tweet from her personal account congratulated Prince William, rather than Harry," it reports.

'Long and happy marriage'

The Belfast Telegraph also features a picture of the happy couple on its front page, albeit a smaller one, and also dedicates a double-page spread inside to the news of the engagement.

The paper also reports that "there did not appear to be any goodwill expressed to the couple from senior nationalist politicians".

"It stood in stark contrast to the late Martin McGuinness, when he wished Prince William and the Kate Middleton 'a long and happy marriage, as I would any young couple'," it reports.

An apparent surge in the number of callouts to clear drug paraphernalia from public places in Belfast is also reported by the Belfast Telegraph.

The paper says such calls have "rocketed up" by almost 1,500%.

Both the Belfast Telegraph and the News Letter feature Prince Harry and Meghan Markle on their front pages

Needles, syringes and foils have reportedly been left in parks, playing fields and public toilets.

The Belfast Telegraph says the figures have prompted calls for rooms to be made available for users to take class A drugs under medical supervision.

The idea, the paper says, is that the rooms would reduce the number of people "street-injecting", as well as the number of syringes being discarded and shared.

'Cosmopolitan areas'

The Belfast Telegraph also carries the story of rising house prices in east Belfast.

According to a new report by Barclays Bank, which identifies the most thriving postcodes in the UK's top 20 cities, house prices in BT5 have rose by an average of £8,000 in the past year.

Graham Bailie of Barclays Bank, said affordable housing, a number of good schools and its position within the city and transport links, were some of the reasons the area was flourishing.

A local estate agent told the paper: "Ballyhackamore and the Belmont Road are cosmopolitan, trendy areas.

House prices are rising rapidly in east Belfast

"There's a buzz about the place and people are keen to live in such places."

In the News Letter is the DUP's denial of claims made in the Times on Monday.

The party was reacting to a report in the London-based paper which said that Conservative Party cash was being used to fund a senior DUP post.

In response, the DUP told the News Letter that "no such deal exists".

The Times said that in addition to the £1bn confidence-and-supply deal between the DUP and the Conservatives, the party had also wanted "the creation of a DUP adviser paid from government funds".

The Irish News leads its news offering with the political crises which are gripping both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.

'Lethal party drug'

The paper's political correspondent writes: "Ireland north and south is facing its most serious political crisis for a decade with tensions ratcheted up by Brexit and the acrimonious fallout from the Stormont deadlock.

"With direct rule looming and a likely stand-off between the British government and EU leaders including Taoiseach Leo Varadkar, relations both within Northern Ireland and across the Irish Sea are at a low point."

Inside the paper, a County Down family have issued a warning to young people over drugs.

Eighteen-year-old Jonny Ramsey, from Saintfield, died in October after reportedly taking a "lethal party drug".

His family and girlfriend have appealed for others to "think twice" before experimenting.

Also in the Irish News is a preview of a new photographic book which captures the life of Martin McGuinness.

Mr McGuinness leaves Crumlin Road Jail in 1985 after serving a sentence for failure to pay fines

The images span four decades, from his emergence as the Troubles erupted through years of peace negotiations and eventually political power, to his final days of failing health and his funeral.

The book was curated by journalist Henry McDonald, who says the book Martin McGuinness - A Life Remembered illustrates how the former deputy first minister's journey from "butcher's apprentice and IRA militant" was "the embodiment of how an entire society can not only survive, but ultimately find a way to move beyond decades of violent political conflict".