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ALMOST eight per cent of doctors practising in the West of Ireland are carrying the MRSA super bug, according to research released last week.

A study of 120 general practitioners in the HSE western region revealed that 7.7 per cent of those tested carried the MRSA in their nasal passages.

The research was carried out by the Department of Bacteriology at NUI Galway and the doctors from the GP training programme in the HSE western region and involved carrying out nasal swabs on each of the GP’s.

The results of the survey were described as “significant” by officials at the annual meeting of the Irish College of General Practitioners which took place in Galway last week. Many people, including healthcare professionals, can be carriers of the MRSA bug without showing any ill effects themselves.

The virus is normally only serious when it is transmitted through an immunocompromised procedure such as surgery. The authors said that their findings emphasise the need for high standards of infection control in primary care to prevent transmission of the bug from doctors to patients.

Meanwhile, the uptake of the Government’s new GP visit cards in Clare is significantly lower than the rest of the country, it was revealed last week. Only 710 of the new cards have been issued to date in Clare, Tipperary and Limerick, making it the lowest regional uptake in the country.

Only 12,860 of the cards have been issued nationally to date, which falls well below the Government’s target of 200,000.

The highest number of recipients were in the Cork and Kerry region where 2,633 cards have been issued. The cards allow for free GP visits for people on low incomes.

These low figures are despite attempts by Health Minister Mary Harney to relax eligibility guidelines last October.

THE relatives of three members of Clare County Council could profit from rezonings proposed by the Council in the South-East Clare Economic Corridor Plan.

At its May meeting, the council adopted the proposed rezonings in the absence of Councillor Patricia McCarthy (Ind), Cllr John Crowe (FG) and Cllr Pat McMahon (FF) as the proposals affected lands owned by their relations.

Two of the rezonings that may benefit relations of Cllr McCarthy and Cllr Crowe relate to plans by the council to rezone lands at Sixmilebridge to facilitate the re-opening of the railway station and to provide zoning for car-parking associated with the railway.

The third rezoning related to lands at Ballymurtagh that belong to Cllr Pat McMahon’s first cousin’s son.

Cllr Patricia McCarthy explained that her father lives in the Station House that forms part of the rezoning.

She said, “I have followed everything to the letter and ensured that I was not present for any of the discussions on the rezoning.”

Cllr McMahon said, “I have been consistent on this issue right along. I left the council chamber last Monday when the issue came up for discussion and at four or five local meetings attended by councillors and planners, I made it known consistently all along of the family interest in the land and absented myself from the discussions.”

Cllr Crowe said that he absented himself from the meeting to ensure that “everything was above board”.

The rezonings proposed by the council are part of a large raft of rezonings in Bunratty, Newmarket-onFergus, Shannon and Sixmilebridge.

In relation to Shannon, the council is proposing a series of rezonings at Smithstown, Ballymurtagh and Ballycasey at Shannon, while in Newmarket, the Council is proposing the extend the town boundaries in a southerly direction.

The plan also provides for rezonings at Parteen, Clonlara and Blackwater. It further allows for the extension of Shannon town centre to the north, with the council recognising that certain areas can be developed without adversely affecting the provision of the rail-link.

The draft variation also confirms that a masterplan for residential development at Ballycasey has been drafted by Murray O’Laoire architects. The amendments to the plan are to be shortly published to allow the public make submissions.

A NEW daily flight service from Shannon to New York will see an additional 283 passengers through the airport every day.

Delta Air Lines today announced it is adding a further 14 weekly flights from Ireland to the US, tripling the number of services it operates from Ireland.

As part of Delta’s international expansion, which will see Delta Air Lines launch 11 new transatlantic routes across six new markets to become the largest carrier across the Atlantic between Europe and the US, Delta today started daily services from Shannon and Dublin to New York’s John F. Kennedy Airport.

In addition, the airline is also increasing capacity on its services to Atlanta Hartsfield Jackson Airport during the peak summer season.

From today, Delta will be the only US carrier to serve both the Southeast and the Northeast US from Ireland.

The good news for Shannon Airport comes just after Continental Airlines launched its new daily Shannon – Newark service, which began on Thursday, May 4.

This service is bringing an extra 25,000 seats annually and will provide a major boost to tourism and business activity in the region.

Loren Neuenschwander, Delta’s managing director for the Atlantic Region, said: “After 20 years, Ireland remains an important market for Delta, with particularly strong bilateral trade and industrial links, not to mention a thriving tourism industry between the two nations.

‘Over 900,000 visitors travel from the US to Ireland every year, with over 40 per cent coming from New York and the South-eastern states.

“Hence Ireland plays a key role in our major international expansion strategy.

“Demand for our new service between Shannon, Dublin and New York has been strong to date on both sides of the Atlantic and we are confident that this demand will continue.”

Delta’s new route between Ireland and New York-JFK forms an integral part in a series of 11 new transatlantic routes to be launched by Delta this summer, including six brand new markets – Kiev, Budapest, Edinburgh, Copenhagen, Tel Aviv and Düsseldorf.

In total, Delta will offer non-stop service to more than 60 international destinations from Atlanta this summer, including 23 routes across the Atlantic. From New York-JFK, Delta will offer customers non-stop service to more than 28 international destinations with 18 routes across the Atlantic.

RESIDENTS of Flagmount and surrounding areas could be sitting on pots of silver and gold, and a Co Meath-based mineral explorations company is set to find out.

Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources, Noel Dempsey has published a notice confirming that minerals, including silver and gold, appear to be under the lands in and around Flagmount, in the waters of Lough Graney and the islands it contains. These minerals are not being worked.

The Minister has confirmed that he intends to grant a license to Arum Mineral Resources Ltd, Aurum House, 40/41 Watergate Street, Navan, Co Meath.

The license will enable the company to explore the designated area for mineral deposit, though it does not authorise the holder to mine the areas.

The actions permissible under a prospecting license are, in general, non-invasive and have a minimal environmental impact.

Flagmount is one of three areas being targeted by prospectors. Minister Dempsey has also published his intention to give two separate licenses to Central Mining Finance Ltd, 52 Grosvenor Gardens, London, England.

The English firm is intending to prospect for silver and base metals in townlands around the Bunratty area and also in the east Clare townlands of Keelderry, Newtown and Ballymacdonnell.

On the prospect of gold under the lands at Flagmount, Clare County Councillor Pat Hayes (FF) told The Clare People: “I would be delighted if there was a gold mine under the land here. Whatever comes from that, the local community should benefit first.”

Cllr Hayes said that the prospectors have been coming to the Maghera area for a number of years seeking out minerals.

“Since I was a young fella, they have been coming to the area. I remember they found a little known mineral called diorite in the 1960s, though it was never mined.”

“It would be a massive boost for the area if gold was found in Flagmount. I am not sure if landowners have any rights to minerals under the ground. There is a query on that.

“We are so used to companies coming to east Clare looking for minerals, but they have never found enough to justify a commercial operation,” he added.

ENNIS solicitor and member of Opus Dei, Brian McMahon, has branded Dan Brown’s novel and upcoming film The Da Vinci Code as destructive, fraudulent and dangerous, and warned Clare filmgoers not to view it as a work of fact.

Mr McMahon has been a member of Opus Dei since 1992 and is worried that some people way view some elements of the film as historical realities.

“The most destructive thing is that it holds itself up as fact but in reality it is a work of fiction,” said Mr McMahon.

“If you analyse the research it is all a puff of smoke, it is fraudulent and has no historic basis.

“It is taking people in and that is wrong and dangerous.”

Opus Dei is an international organisation within the Catholic Church comprising of lay people and secular priests.

Its stated mission is to spread Catholic teaching that ordinary life is a path to sanctity.

However, the organisation has been accused of secrecy, a right-wing political agenda and even cult-like methods.

“Opus Dei has been treated appallingly, (Brown) went absolutely bananas in his book. It is distorted and smacks of poor research,” continued Mr McMahon.

“He could have used any organisation he wanted, fictional or real, but he used Opus Dei. He thought we were a soft touch. It was malicious and done on purpose.”

While some sections of the Vatican have encouraged people to boycott the film, Mr McMahon welcomes the debate that its arrival has prompted.

“There is a lot of ignorance from the general public about the situation.

“A lot of people are lacking in information and are not encouraged to research it,” he said.

“We are living in a time where we accept whatever the soundbite says.

“I see this as an opportunity to stand up and disseminate the truth,” he added.

Mr McMahon is one of 12 Opus Dei members in Clare while the national membership is believed to be in the region of 1000.

He is particularly unhappy at the links drawn between Opus Dei and self-mortification, or self-harm, as a penance, which are drawn in The Da

. Vinci Code

“One of the book’s main characters is Silas who is portrayed as a monk, but there are no monks in Opus Dei,” concluded Mr McMahon.

“The self mortification has nothing to do with Opus Dei.

“It is historically part of the Church, like climbing Croagh Patrick.

“He exaggerated it to the point of being offensive.”

The Da Vinci Code open in the Ennis Movieplex on May 19.

THE number of offences being committed by juveniles in Clare has risen sharply, by almost 50 per cent.

Official statistics contained in the Garda Annual Report show that 576 referrals were made from the Clare Garda Division to the Garda National Juvenile Officer throughout last year.

This is a 48 per cent increase on the figure for 2004 (388).

Some 459 individual children were referred, under the Juvenile Liaison programme, last year.

This is an increase on 355 during 2004.

Fifty-nine of the 459 were deemed unsuitable for inclusion under the programme. Sixty-nine were issued with formal cautions; 267 received informal cautions while no further action was taken against 33.

Cases involving 31 of the youths are still pending.

Nationally, thefts accounted for 18 per cent of offences committed by youths, with criminal damage accounting for 10 per cent, followed by public order (nine per cent).

This trend is similar in Clare, according to Chief Superintendent Liam Quinn.

A second juvenile liaison officer (JLO), Garda Margaret Purcell, was appointed last year and works in conjunction with Garda John O’Neill.

“We have sent up a second JLO and that has increased our capacity to deal with that,” said Chief Superintendent Quinn.

“This is focusing on anti-social behaviour in the town,” he added.

The fight against crime in housing estates in Ennis has been boosted through the appointment of four community gardai in separate geographical areas.

Garda Tim Ryan is based in Ennis town, Garda Albert Hardiman is responsible for Cloughleigh, Garda Irene O’Flynn is based in the Lahinch Road area and Garda Jeremy Murphy is focused on the Tulla Road.

FIFTY new gardai must be deployed to Clare, to deal with the spiralling number of incidents under investigation, according to the head of the Clare Garda Division.

Chief Superintendent Liam Quinn was speaking to The Clare People in the wake of the publication of the crime statistics for last year, which shows that gardai in the county dealt with almost 11,000 incidents last year — an increase of 19 per cent on the previous year.

The figures show that serious crime — headline offences — dropped by six per cent last year, when compared with the figures for 2004.

The detection rate in Clare increased from 33 per cent, to 36 per cent last year.

“It is always good to see crime down. The crime rate in Clare is 15.5 per cent per 1,000, compared to the national average of 25.9 per cent. That is 40 per cent lower than the national average,” said Chief Superintendent Quinn.

Non-headline offences — including minor assaults, criminal damage and public order and motoring offences — increased dramatically, by 31 per cent, from 5,142 in 2004 to 6,755 last year. This compares with an average national increase of 12 per cent.

“We are dealing with almost 11,000 incidents a year. That is a demand on our resources and is a significant increase.

“We are noticing that, on the ground, there is less and less time to deal with incidents and that is causing us difficulty. There is a huge stretch on resources and we have applied for more resources,” he said.

One of the areas poised to expand is the division’s Traffic Corps, which is to increase from its existing 12 to 31. That will include the establishment of a traffic corps in Killaloe, which will also deal with crime rates in the east Clare area.

“We have made a substantial application. We are looking for 50 gardai, under new national resources,” he said.

There are currently 267 gardai in the Clare Garda Division, which includes 24 who are based, temporarily, in Shannon.

“We have made the case on what we need. We are dealing with definite numbers,” he said.

There have been repeated calls for additional gardai to be deployed in various parts of Clare, not least Kilrush and west Clare.

Chief Supt Quinn said this is being monitored on an ongoing basis.

“We have set up very specific operations in west Clare. We have deployed and continue to deploy significant resources and that is ongoing,” he said.

GARDAI in Clare were busiest in January, June and July of last year and note that their resources are most stretched during holiday periods. Chief Superintendent Liam Quinn said the increase in non-headline crime, by 31 per cent, is linked to alcohol.

“It is linked to the increased availability of money and the increased consumption of alcohol. The highest number of incidents occur during holiday time. These are very low in November and May, while the peak time for incidents would be January, June and July. January is linked with New Year’s Day,” he said, adding that a large percentage of incidents coincide with the closure of pubs and nightclubs.

Two pubs in Clare were closed last year for serving alcohol to underage people, while eight have been closed in the courts, over the years, under the Liquor Licensing laws.

The increases in the number of burglaries in Clare is a worry for gardai. There was a huge rise in the number of thefts from shops last year — 221, which is an increase by more than a third. Thefts from unattended vehicles fell by 15 per cent, to 187.

There were three burglaries in which firearms were used (aggravated burglaries) last year, while there were 317 burglaries last year, an increase of five per cent on the figure for 2004. Car break-ins has been particularly prevalent so far this year, and this is being targeted by gardai.

“We have been tracking this carefully. We have identified a number of people who we believe are responsible and are closely monitoring that. We are involved in a major operation across the western seaboard to counteract that,” said Chief Supt Quinn.

“You have groups from outside coming in to Ennis at night and they are hitting 10 to 12 cars at a time.”

There were two incidents of homicide last year and charges were brought in relation to both, which are pending before the courts. Incidents of rape and sexual assault decreased significantly. There were 192 drug seizures last year. 179 people were prosecuted for drugs offences last year, the majority of who were men aged 21 and over. There were 25 cases of breaches of domestic violence last year, 17 of which were for barring order breaches.

There were 4,784 road traffic proceedings initiated last year, which is an increase from 3,634 in 2004.

THE Labour Relations Commission (LRC) has imposed a news “black-out” on talks aimed at overcoming the impasse on the €30 million survival plan for Shannon Airport.

The talks commenced earlier this month with a Labour Court recommendation urging the parties to conclude the talks within a two-month period. Talks on restructuring commenced last summer, but were marred by accusation on both sides on the level of engagement. Before the LRC talks commenced earlier this month, no discussions had taken place on the substantive issues over the past nine months.

Fine Gael deputy Pat Breen said yesterday, “Obviously, if the LRC has imposed a blackout, they obviously mean business and we hope that all sides can produce a resolution beneficial to the future of Shannon.”

Shannon-based councillor Patricia McCarthy said, “Megaphone negotiations can have a negative effect and, on such a sensitive issue, I think it is advisable that a black-out has been put in place to avoid expectations being played-up or down. I believe, however, that there is a need to advise staff on how the talks are progressing.”

Both sides were observing the blackout and have declined to give any detail on progress.

Throughout the talks process, SIPTU has outlined its opposition to plans by the DAA to cut the workforce of 520 through 200 voluntary redundancies by outsourcing a number of areas of work at Shannon.

As part of the survival plan, the DAA is offering sums of up to €10,000 for the workers that remain. The voluntary redundancy package gives staff with over 24 years’ experience a €100,000 pay-off, and entitles workers to their company pensions at 55.

The DAA’s director for change, John Horgan, has previously expressed confidence that if the proposals were put to the workers at Shannon, a majority would vote in favour of the deal. Both the DAA and SIPTU declined to comment ahead of today’s talks.

THE sin-bin awaits Clare County Councillors whose mobiles ring during meetings.

Mayor of Clare, Pat Keating (FF), says he’ll order councillors to leave the Council Chamber for 10 minutes each time their phones interrupt meetings.

They’ll also have to fork out a fine of €2 for each offence, with the money going to charity.

“The use of mobile phones at council meetings shows a lack of respect for what is going on in the Chamber,” said Mayor Keane.

“Meetings have been disrupted by mobile phone usage and it is the same councillors using the mobile again and again. Initially, the sin-bin initiative will be implemented and we will see how it goes. If councillors disrupt meetings, I will request them to leave the council chamber for 10 minutes.

“I understand that councillors must have their phones switched on to take calls from people, but all I am asking is that councillors have their phone on silent or vibrate.”

Cllr Colm Wiley (FF), an outspoken critic of mobile usage in the Chamber, lashed out at those who put the importance of their calls before the importance of the meetings.

“It is a disgrace that councillors cannot behave themselves. And you have members of the public watching from the public gallery. What must they think?” he asked.

Cllr Wiley said that there was a procession of the same councillors walking out of meeting taking calls on their mobile phones.

“With all the sounds going off, it is like the philharmonic orchestra playing. I’m tempted to ask Cllr Kelly beside me, ‘may I have the next dance?’, with all the music going on.”

But Cllr Wiley said that there was no need for the Mayor to be put in place a sin-bin.

“All that is required is for a sign to be placed on the door of the meeting, ‘please switch off mobile phones’,” he said.

Cllr Wiley said that the usage of mobile phones “is very insulting” to the business of the council.

“It delays meetings. Councillors come back in from taking their call and want to go over ground that has already been covered.”