An "eco-socialist" councillor in England has taken up a top communications post in the Green Party in Northern Ireland.
Jack O'Dwyer-Henry, from Belfast, is the Green Party's new strategy and communications officer.
The 22-year-old sits on Lancaster City Council as a councillor with the Eco-Socialist Independents - a group formed after they split from the Labour Party.
Mr O'Dwyer-Henry said he plans to quit his council post next week to focus on his new Stormont role.
He said: "I'm just getting this one-week transition period because I wanted to get started here right away."
Mr O'Dwyer-Henry, a former Methodist College Belfast pupil, studied History and Politics at Lancaster University and graduated in June.
He previously worked for a number of months as a researcher for BBC presenter Stephen Nolan's independent production company, Third Street Studios.
As a school pupil he co-founded Challenges NI, which aims to give a platform for political discussion to young people in Northern Ireland.
Mr O'Dwyer-Henry was elected as a Labour councillor for Lancaster City Council in May 2019.
Last year he was among five councillors on the local authority who quit Labour, accusing the party of a "shift to the right" under leader Sir Keir Starmer.
Mr O'Dwyer-Henry said their independent grouping has "always worked between Labour and the Greens in the administration".
He said they "worked very closely" with reps from the Green Party of England and Wales, which is separate from the Green Party in Northern Ireland.
Mr O'Dwyer-Henry added: "I'm now obviously a fully signed up Green Party Northern Ireland supporter."
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