JOE BROLLY HAS given his backing to a new campaign aimed at increasing the number of organ donors in Northern Ireland.

Brolly, alongside Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness and a number of prominent MLAs, launched the campaign in Belfast this morning.

Brolly has been a high-profile organ donation campaigner since he donated one of his kidneys to his friend Shane Finnegan.

At present, 38% of families in Northern Ireland refuse organ donation after the death of a loved one despite the fact that 84% of people in the North support the idea of organ donation.

The refusal rate in the rest of Europe is between 5% and 15%

Speaking at the launch, Martin McGuinness said:

“It’s not enough to simply decide to donate your organs after death. Without family knowing about your decision, they may not agree to proceed with organ donation and many lives will be left unaffected.

“Often families don’t proceed with organ donation because they are uncertain about their loved ones’ wishes and feel daunted by the decision during their time of grief.”

Family wedding prompts Slaughtneil to request change of All-Ireland semi-final date

Shefflin, Sheedy, McGrath and Maher all pay tribute to Tipperary’s Eoin Kelly