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THE lack of customs checks on some flights into Shannon Airports is of huge concern and must be rectified, according to Clare independent TD, James Breen. He was speaking after Finance Minister Brian Cowen revealed that 17 flights passing through the airport last year were not subjected to custom controls.

Deputy Breen said that because the drug culture was a huge threat, every effort must be made to prevent drugs being imported.

“I would be very concerned. The drug culture is so large now, no chances can be taken. There has to be full cover at all times. Those drug barons know every trick in the trade,” he said.

He said various seizures of drugs in Clare in recent months must be welcomed, but warned that drugs were getting through.

“We can take no chances in our airports. There must be more cover. We have to address the reasons people are getting drugs,” he said.

Sixty five kilos of drugs were discovered concealed in luggage at Shannon last year, while 14 weapons were seized. Almost 800,000 cigarettes were seized, which is a significant increase on less than 500,000 in 2004.

A spokesperson for the Revenue Commissioners accepted that Minister Cowen’s figures were factual, but said that customs staff would always be present to deal with any “risk” flights arriving at Shannon.

He said most flights were covered by customs staff and decisions made depend on the origin of the flight, combined with intelligence.

“The vast majority of flights are covered by rostered staff (full-time employees), who work on shifts between 6am and 11pm. Some flights are covered by non-rostered staff , who work between 11pm and 6am,” said the spokesman.

He said customs officers attended flights “as required” and if any information was received which would lead to a risk, adequate action was taken.

“All flights are monitored on a risk basis. We wouldn’t check every passenger on every flight.

“It depends on where it comes from – high risk areas or suspects are monitored in particular . . . drug and cigarette smugglers would be high risk,” he added.

“We have to apply risk analysis and other information,” he said.

A spokesperson for Shannon Airport confirmed that a sniffer dog was always available.

NURSES in Ennis, Limerick and Nenagh are carrying personal alarms following numerous attacks on staff in hospitals across the region and country.

The Irish Nurses’ Organisation (INO) this week confirmed that all nurses in the Accident and Emergency Departments of the Mid Western Regional Hospitals in Ennis, Limerick and Nenagh carried the alarms, while other staff could request them.

INO representative for the Mid Western Area, Mary Fogarty, told The Clare People that alarms were particularly necessary for nurses who are working after other staff had finished, making them more vulnerable.

“You could be isolated in a ward and one lash could knock you to the floor,” she said.

She said all hospitals were very public areas, with a lot of frustrated people and relatives visiting.

They were also open 24 hours a day, allowing people to come and go.

Ms Fogarty said that she hoped management would continue to review security in the hospitals, especially after incidents.

Meanwhile, the INO and the Psychiatric Nurses Association (PNA) held a meeting on Thursday last, in advance of a Labour Relations Commission conciliation conference, scheduled for April 3.

The conference will discuss eight claims which the unions have lodged on behalf of nurses and midwives.

The unions clam that it will take 21 years for this year’s honours nursing graduates to achieve the same pay as qualified and unqualified childcare workers. The unions are also calling for a 35-hour week.

In 1980, the Labour Court, stated that because of the nature of their work and the stressful environment in which it was performed, nurses and midwives should benefit from a reduced working week.

Nurses and midwives are the only

officer grades of the health serv ice who work longer than 35 hours per week, according to the INO and PNA.

In a joint statement, the INO and PNA stated their committment to maintaining industrial peace and had no intention of breaking Sustaining Progress, but would not tolerate “the no comment approach adopted by the previous Benchmarking Body in the past.”

A Labour Court recommendation on the €30 million ‘survival plan’ for Shannon Airport is expected within the next two weeks.

Unions representing airport workers and the Dublin Airport Authority (DAA) management met at the Labour Court last Friday and both sides made submissions on the proposed restructuring programme.

Speaking after the private hearing, SIPTU’s National Industrial Secretary, Michael Halpenny said that SIPTU’s submission centred on the company not following agreed procedures and not giving the union an opportunity to engage in the process. The DAA’s Director for Change, John Horgan said that the hearing was a private one and that the recommendation of the Labour Court was awaited.

“As it was a private hearing, it would not be proper to comment further,” he said.

Meanwhile, Fine Gael TD Pat Breen has urged the Government not to sell off Aer Lingus following the uncertainties raised recently over the sale process.

Deputy Breen, the Fine Gael spokesman on small business, said there were no compelling reasons for the airline’s sale except ideological ones.

“Aer Lingus is a strategic asset and like Eircom, its loss as a national asset would be sorely missed,” he said.

As an island nation, the reasons why Aer Lingus was formed originally in 1936 remain as valid today as back then, according to Deputy Breen.

“We would have no guarantee that a privatised transatlantic airline, having cherry-picked the Heathrow landing slots would not just fly over Ireland if there was no compelling, commercial reason to land here.

“This is particularly worrying for the Shannon region. Shannon Airport could be bypassed by all the major airlines in the event of an economic downturn.”

A €50 million retail park for Ennis, which it’s claimed, will threaten retail businesses in the town centre, has been put on hold by a planning appeal.

A planning consultant, acting for residents opposed to the development, say their appeal is “exceptionally important” for the town.

Last month, Ennis Town Council gave Michael Lynch Ltd., the green light to develop the 17-acre park, to be located near St. Flannan’s College.

The Lynch company claim the proposal will create 250 jobs. The 15,000 square metre development will comprise of a superstore, seven retail warehouse units and a garden centre.

A retail impact assessment has concluded that the development would “not adversely affect the

viability and vitality of the exist ing Ennis town centre or the local economy”.

However, the residents, in an appeal drafted by planning consultant Brendan McGrath, claim that the proposal materially contravenes the Ennis and Environs Development Plan 2003.

They say it’s not in accordance with the proper planning and sustainable development of Ennis.

They emphasise that it goes against the vitality and viability of the town centre, its role and character, as well as accessibility to it.

They warn that the proposed development will have a serious effect on residential amenity.

“This is an exceptionally important planning appeal for Ennis. The outcome will have a significant effect on the character of the town for the foreseeable future,” the appeal states.

Mr McGrath concedes there is “undeniably a need for new retail development in the town, but . . . a retail park incorporating a superstore at the Clonroadmore site will weaken the town centre and will have a serious effect on residential amenity . . .

“In particular, the proposal does not support the long term strategy for Ennis town centre, will cause an adverse impact on the town centre, does not ensure a high standard of access by public transport and does not link effectively with the existing town centre.”

Mr McGrath also warns that the development will seriously damage

the prospect of creating a better lo cal road environment.

A decision is due on the appeal later in the year.

DOUBTS were raised this week over the readiness of the Mid Western Regional Hospital in Ennis to cope with an outbreak of the deadly human form of the Bird Flu virus.

The Health Service Executive (HSE) failed to provide answers to a number of questions put to it by The Clare People .

A spokesperson for the HSE in the Mid-West was unable to provide answers to any of the questions and indicated that it would be unlikely that anyone representing the hospital would be willing to provide any general status report on the readiness at Ennis General Hospital.

At the time of going to print, no response had been forthcoming from the hospital, or the HSE.

The questions which were put to the HSE were: what plans (if any) are in place in Ennis General Hospital in the event of an outbreak of Bird Flu in Clare, how much vaccine (if any) has been pre-ordered for Ennis, how many staff members will be given the vaccine, how many will not; when is the vaccine due to arrive in Ennis and what plans (if any) are in place in Ennis General Hospital in the event of a case of the H5N1 being found in a human in Clare?

The Tánaiste and Minister for Health, Mary Harney, last month announced the pre-ordering of some 400,000 doses of an experimental vaccine against the H5N1 strain. This vaccine, which is as yet unlicensed, has been earmarked for the inoculation of 200,000 health care professionals in the case of an outbreak of Bird Flu in Ireland.

However, it is not yet clear which health care professionals will receive the vaccine and which will not. It is also unclear when the vaccine will be delivered.

A spokesperson for the Office of Emergency Planning, whose role it is to co-ordinate and oversee the work of Government Departments in emergency planning, told The Clare People that the office’s chairperson, Minister for Defence, Willie O’Dea, was satisfied with the current level of preparation.

However, the spokesman would not provide any details on the nature of these preparations.

“Minister O’Dea has chaired a meeting recently on the readiness of the Departments of Health and Agriculture and he is very happy with the overall preparations,” the spokesman said.

THE LIFE of a much-loved Tulla man was celebrated at a night in his honour and the honour of brave searchers who spent 10 days looking for him.

Members of the Doolin coastguard, friends, neighbours and workmates gathered in Tulla at the invite of the family of tragic Joe O’Callaghan.

Joe and his two pals, Mick Doran from Broadford and Martin Griffin from Ennis, died when the jeep in which they had been travelling, went over the cliffs at Doolin on October 31.

At the weekend, the bereaved Tulla family organised an evening to raise money for the Doolin rescue service and “to thank all of the people who helped in the search and people who were so good to our family then and since,” said Joe’s sister, Arda.

Last Wednesday would have been Joe’s 35th birthday and the family decided to hold the fundraiser as close to the date as possible.

“We couldn’t possibly go round and thank all of the people individually who helped us, so this is a way of saying thank you and of celebrating Joe,” said Arda.

She revealed that during the terrible search for Joe’s body, helpers travelled from as far away as Barretstown Children’s Camp in Meath, where the young Tulla man volunteered to help sick children by building a pet farm for them.

“Joe’s girlfriend, Louise, is a camp director there and he worked there. They came down by bus and went back at night, then another bus-load arrived each day. People came from Cork as well. Local people were also fabulous. They joined the search and they kept calling to my family, even after it was all over.”

Among the prizes won at Saturday night’s event was a €1,000 spot prize donated by Browne Brothers Landscaping in association with Geaney in West Cork and weekends away, courtesy of Lynch hotels.

THE Health Service Executive (HSE) has advertised to recruit a GP for Quin, allaying fears that the area would be left without a permanent local doctor.

The HSE has decided the post is viable, even though the previous GP had only 76 medical card patients on her panel.

Last year, Dr Eileen Hassett retired from her post and the time taken by the HSE to replace her raised fears locally that she was not to be replaced.

Since Dr Hassett’s retirement, a locum doctor has provided services to the thriving village. The HSE is due to shortly hold interviews for the post. Deputy Mayor of Clare County Council and Quin-based councillor, Sonny Scanlan (FG), welcomed the move.

“It is very important that Quin holds onto its permanent doctor so I’m delighted that the HSE has advertised for the position.

“The last few months have been the first time in living memory that Quin has been left without a permanent doctor. There has been a massive increase in the population of Quin in the past 12 months and there is a definite need for a permanent doctor and a chemist, as I believe that Quin is one of the few villages in Clare without a chemist.”

Already, over the past decade, two other Clare villages, Quilty and Crusheen, have lost their GPs.

According to a HSE statement, “the GP in Quilty retired from his position on June 30, 1994. As his panel list was small, it was decided not to fill the position and the patients were given the opportunity to choose another GMS Doctor in the area. Most of the patients transferred to the doctors in Doonbeg, Kilmihil and Miltown Malbay”.

In relation to Crusheen, the HSE statement stated that “the arrangement some years back was that one of the doctors in Ennis provided medical services from a centre in Crusheen and, following his retirement, the doctor in Tulla continued with this arrangement. However, as the numbers attending were very small, the doctor, with the approval of the Health Board, discontinued the arrangement.”

Most Crusheen patients now seek treatment in Ennis and Tulla.

CLARE County Council has expressed serious concern over contentious plans for a €25 million housing development in Kilkee, because they don’t include enough houses.

The council has told developers Paddy Madden, Barry Madden and Jerry O’ Sullivan that the 60 homes planned for Dough, Kilkee aren’t enough. There must be greater density before their proposal gets the green light.

Council Planners have pointed to a policy that requires developers to make maximum use of land in an appropriate manner, in order to encourage a more sustainable pattern of development.

Twenty-five units per hectare is the minimum allowed.

The Dough plan had already run into local opposition. One local woman, Martha McGreen, warned the council that Kilkee was “losing the very charm that had made it so popular over the years”.

The town was losing its identity, she claimed.

She questioned how locals could afford to buy in Kilkee, or build there with the current zoning restrictions.

Independent town councillor, Dr Tom Nolan, has raised similar concerns and has called for developers to be obliged to provide social and affordable housing in the area.

“The sad truth is that local people can and never will be able to live in Kilkee unless developers are compelled to provide social and affordable housing in the area.

“No infrastructure, either social or essential, has been provided for the surge of holiday homes in Kilkee and it is not sustainable. Why doesn’t someone shout stop?”

Apart from the housing density of the Dough proposal, the council states that it has serious concerns for pedestrian safety and the piecemeal approach to the overall development of the land.

“Accordingly, the council is not favourably disposed to grant permission as it stands.”

However, planners add that the “council may be favourably disposed towards an overall comprehensive development of the entire lands zoned for residential housing”.

The applicants have six months in which to respond to the council’s request for further information.

THE small size of bedrooms planned for a new housing development in Ennis helped convince An Bord Pleanala to overturn planning permission granted to the developer.

The board denied planning permission to property developer Joe McNamara to build 159 homes on Golf Links Road.

Mr McNamara had already run into trouble, with residents claiming that the development would undermine the “established integrity of the golf course”.

They also claimed the site was too isolated from the town. Ennis Golf Club did not oppose the proposal.

In its direction on the residents’ appeal, the Board stated that it had concerns regarding the quality of the proposed housing layout.

The board also cited the proximity of houses to the new Western Relief Road.

But the size of the bedrooms in the proposed houses, and the poor quality crèche facilities, also came in for criticism.

The Board wasn’t convinced that the site could be drained properly. Lands for drainage were outside the control of the applicant. This drainage problem constituted the Board’s primary concern.

The Board said that it would necessitate connection across the new Western Relief Road, which has been constructed below the level of the site.

The proposed development would, therefore, be prejudicial to public health and would be contrary to the proper planning and sustainable development of the area, the Board concluded.

However, the report of the Board’s inspector leaves the door open for Mr McNamara to re-lodge revised plans. The report states that the proposal “is broadly acceptable in principle”.

“I don’t believe that planners give due consideration to building design when adjudicating on decisions. That is wrong, because building design can often dictate the quality of life people have in these estates,” said Cllr Brian Meaney (GP).

“My opinion is that there have been some horrendous housing estates built to satisfy investor demand rather that residential demand in Ennis and its environs.

“These homes are not family- or community-friendly. They are investor-friendly and consideration has to be given to this in the future, otherwise there will be social consequences to be had.”

CLARE Green Party councillor Brian Meaney wasn’t winning any popularity contests at the party’s conference in Kilkenny this weekend when he came out in support of US military use of Shannon Airport.

The councillor made an impassioned plea at the conference that people would begin to look at increasing flights into Shannon rather than decreasing, or ending, them.

Speaking to The Clare People , Cllr Meaney said that his position was a practical one. There would be civil war in Iraq if the US military pulled its troops out now, he said.

He was concerned by protesters at the airport, who included some members of his party, demanding the US got “out of Shannon, out of Iraq”.

“The Americans have made their bed in Iraq and now they have to lie on it,” he said.

Cllr Meaney said he was never in favour of “the coalition of the willing” going into Iraq, but believed that the US must stay there to help prevent greater bloodshed.

“It is necessary to allow America to use the airport. . . It is to ensure that a bad position doesn’t get worse”.

He said “rendition” flights of terrorist suspects were a different matter that no right-thinking person could condone.

The councillor referred to the number of young, frightened soldiers he had seen passing through the airport, many of Irish descent.

He is also concerned that more pressure may come on the US government to pull out, as elections approach and the loss of American lives continues. Withdrawal must not be allowed happen, he said.

Cllr Meaney received only limited support from his party colleagues for his views at the conference.

However, it was not just Cllr Meaney that came under fire from fellow delegates when they met in the Newark hotel in Kilkenny.

The party also rejected a call led by the party’s deputy leader Mary White to allow corporate donations.

On this issue, Cllr Meaney told the conference that he believed the Green Party should accept donations from green industries that shared the party’s agenda.