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CLARE ICMSA 1s set to take legal action on behalf of as many as 100 Clare farmers whose payments have been compromised as a result of the backdated closure of the Farm In- vestment Schemes.

The organisation has obtained legal advice from barrister Gerard Hog- an and are preparing to take a case should the situation not be rectified. The action concerns the decision of the Department of Agriculture to

back date the closure of applications for the Farm Investment Schemes to October 21 of this year.

The closing date for the scheme had been advertised widely as October 31, and an estimated 100 Clare farm- ers who made applications in good faith between October 21 and Oc- tober 31 of this year have now been disqualified.

“The Department of Agriculture has been consistently telling Clare farmers that we could apply for this scheme right up until the end of Oc-

tober and now, after the fact, they have decided that this is no longer the case,’ said Martin McMahon, Clare President of the ICMSA.

“This means that anyone who has applied for this scheme between Oc- tober 21 and the end of the month is in a total limbo land. Every meeting that we attended we were told that the scheme was still open but it ap- pears that that was not the case.

‘There are a good number of people caught by this, it’s human to apply for things at the last minute so an awful

lot of people applying for the scheme are now caught really badly.”

The scheme was put in place in or- der to allow farmers to modernise their farms and many farmers can- not now afford to complete building projects because of it’s scrapping.

‘“T know more than one farmer here in Clare who is half way through a building project on his farm is wait- ing for this funding to come through in order to let him finish,’ continued Mr McMahon.

“They are totally locked into this

situation and now they don’t know if they are coming or going. This whole budget has been very damag- ing for farmers. Besides the Invest- ment Scheme, we have also lost the Disadvantages Areas Payments, the Installation grants and the Early Re- tirement Scheme. It’s been very bad news for Clare farmers.”

The ICMSA held a special National Council meeting in Dublin last week to brief TDs, including Clare TD Joe Carey (FG), on the situation follow- ing the budget cuts.

THE company at the centre of con- tentious plans to construct a €10 million explosives plant on the Shan- non estuary is under threat of being struck off and dissolved because it has not filed returns since 2003.

At the first day of the oral hearing into proposal in Ennis last month, so- licitor for one of the opponents to the proposal, Michael Nolan for Cairde Cill an Disirt said that Shannon Ex-

plosives was due to be struck off at the end of October.

On the final day, counsel for Shan- non Explosives Ltd, Esmonde Keane rejected the claim made by Mr No- lan, stating that the company is oper- ZLObToas NOwneT-N OKA

However, yesterday, the Companies Office confirmed that Shannon Ex- plosives Ltd – which is a subsidiary of the Whelan Group – was put on the strike-off list on November 2.

A spokeswoman for the Companies

Office said if no returns are filed in the next number of weeks, Shannon Explosives Ltd will appear in the Government publication, Iris Ofigu- ue

The company will then be further given a number of weeks to file docu- ments before the company is struck off and dissolved.

The company is also one of a number of notice parties in a High Court action being taken by Cairde Chill an Disirt Teo (CCDT) seeking

a High Court injunction preventing An Bord Pleanala from taking any further steps in determining the ap- peal on the plan.

CCDT along with a number of other objectors withdrew from the oral hearing on the first day after the Board refused to state as to whether the hearing was being held under Irish law or a review under an EU Directive.

Solicitor for CCDT, Michael Nolan has confirmed that the High Court

case being brought by his clients has been adjourned until Novem- ber 21 to allow the other sides lodge responding affidavits. Papers have been served on An Bord Pleandala, Shannon Explosives Ltd and Clare County Council.

Mr Nolan confirmed that CCDT are seeking an injunction preventing

An Bord Pleanala from taking any steps in determining the appeal and an order requiring the reconvening of the oral hearing.

TUAMGRANEY has received na- tional recognition after being named one of the winners in Cooperation Ireland’s Pride of Place Competi- tion.

At a weekend award ceremony held in Cappoquin in Waterford, the east Clare village was named overall win- ner of Category 2, catering for popu- lation centres of 200-500 people for which the Tuamgraney Development Association received a Waterford Crystal trophy and €2,000.

Four other Clare groups – Gleann an Oir, Shannon; The Burren Cen- tre, Kilfenora; Obair Afterschool Project, Newmarket on Fergus and the West Clare Resource Centre, Miltown Malbay – were shortlisted in the All Ireland competition, which aims to recognise contributions that community groups make to society.

Mayor of Clare, Cllr. Madeleine Taylor Quinn described ‘Tuam- graney’s success as a wonderful ex- ample of what could be achieved by adopting a partnership approach to improving community life.

“This competition focuses on local communities, both north and south of the border, coming together to shape, change and enjoy all that is good about their area’, she said.

According to Tuamgraney Devel- opment Association Secretary, Mary Cassidy, the award is a tribute to eve- ryone who contributed to the group’s success, including those who helped out during the Pride of Place pres- entation, Clare County Council and the local engineer in Scarriff. She also paid special tribute to the fifteen local community organisations who

pledged their support along with res- idents associations and schools.

Ms. Cassidy explained that the im- mense civic pride in Tuamgraney resurfaced with the formation of the Development Association twelve years ago.

“The Association was formed in re- sponse to concern about the decline of the area. Its goal is to make Tua- megraney a better place to live, work, play and visit. The challenge now is to build on this success’, she added.

The village and the Association have won numerous awards in recent

years, including Clare In Bloom and a Regional landscape award in the Tidy Towns competition, as well as increasing substantially year on year marks and performance in the Tidy Towns competition.

Since its inception in 2003, Clare communities that have participated in the Pride of Place competition in- clude Kilrush, Kilkee, Newmarket on Fergus, Ennis, Labasheeda, Shan- non, Tuamgraney, Miltown Malbay, Sixmulebridge, Ballynacally, Scar- iff, Kilfenora and O’Briensbridge/ Montpelier.

DERBY winning trainer Pat Curtin was on the scoresheet in the tenth race at the Galway Track on Satur- day night contest as his runner Ban Diamond(T2) made all the running to defeat the Paddy Darcy of Ennis owned Bypass My Way (T1) by six lengths in 29.10.

The Michael and Claire Meaney of Kilush owned son of Smoking Ban and Droopys Diamond led by two lengths at the opening bend and by halfway he had the race in safe keep- ing as Bypass My Way gave vain chase behind but the winner was gone beyond recall Race five.

Kilrush handler TJ McMahon was in the winners enclosure after race five in this A3 graded 525 as his run- ner Bodyshop Legend (Larkhill Jo- Bodyshop Flight) made all the run- ning to defeat Mine Direct (T2) by two lengths in 29.64.

The winner was away well from

his trap four berth and led by two lengths from Begarra Bomber at the opening bend.

He extended his advantage down the far side and was home for all money turning for home on his way to his seventh career success.

The feature contest of the night was race number nine the Titans Basket- ball Club Open Buster Final worth €1,000 to the winner.

Favourite for the 525 yard contest was the PJ Fahy owned verteren Tyrur Lee (T1) who although well away was led to the bend by Have Some Cop (T5) who turned down the back a length to the good.

Racing past halfway though Tyrur Lee opened up and the son of Breet Lee and Tyrur Dee swept to the front and he bounded clear of his toiling rivals as he streaked clear for the 29th of his career from Have Some Cop in a brilliant 28.80 .

The opening contest at the College Road venue on Friday night was an

AY graded 525 in which the Gone At Three Syndicate from Fanore owned Last Ace Pot (T4) made all the run- ning to defeat the fast finishing Greg Rover (T4) in 29.86.

The winner led by just over a length from Smithstown Jack (T3) when rounding the opening bend before extending his advantage racing down the back which proved vital as the son of Digital and Dalcash Relief was running out of diesel close to home.

Cable Kiowa (14) was best away in race five which was an A5 graded contest and she led by a length from Go Forit Judy (T5) rounding the Opening two bends.

Racing past halfway Go Forit Judy mowed through on the inside to take over in front and the Wiliam Shannon of Lisheen owned daughter of Come On Lleyton and Sheehans Cottage was always in command from this point as she came home two lengths clear of Cable Kiowa 1n 29.76 .

MICHAEL Dillon told the trial that he felt ‘fine’ driving on the day of the accident and rejected suggestions that he had fallen asleep at the wheel.

The father-of-two, a fitter based in Connemara, had travelled to Port- magee in Kerry the day before the accident to join his colleagues from Galway Scuba Diving Club.

He had got up at 5am and left his Inverin home at 5.30am to drive to Portmagee. He arrived there at

9.30am and did two dives off Val- entia that day. He later went out for dinner and had four or five pints of Heineken. He said he remained in the pub until around lam and then went back to a house that was rented by some members of the sub aqua club.

There, he was handed a bottle of beer but only drank a mouthful and fell asleep. He was awakened at 2.30am and went to the hostel where he was staying. He went to bed and slept until 9am when a phone call from his wife woke him. He went

back to sleep until 10am and af- ter getting up, he was between two minds whether to stay in Kerry for another day.

He eventually decided to drive home and left at around llam. He said he got a headache about 40 minutes into the drive and pulled over and took paracetamol and a drink. He contin- ued on with his journey and said the headache went away, but said he did not remember anything after passing Bunratty. “Nothing, ‘til after the ac- cident,” he told the court.

He said after the accident, he re- membered “sitting in the jeep. The windscreen was broken and the bon- net was on the windscreen.” He said he had no memory of seeing the two cyclists and had no memory of his jeep veering off and leaving the dual OF NU UTE

He said he learned that Mr Flan- nery had died when he arrived at his Inverin home later that evening.

He told the trial he had several medical examinations carried out in the aftermath of the accident, in

an effort to ascertain what had hap- pened to him, but no explanation emerged. He said he did not drive for 10 months after the accident and did not dive until April of this year.

Under —_cross-examination _—_—by Stephen Coughlan, for the prosecu- tion, Mr Dillon said he felt “fine” while in Kerry. Asked could he have fallen asleep while driving, he said, “No. I felt comfortable driving.” He denied that his jeep had left the road as a result of falling asleep. “I didn’t feel tired or anything,” he said.

he felt it necessary to have his feelings known when he took part in the teachers and parent’s protest against budget cuts in education.

‘For me it is very clear cut. I am a teacher and at the cold face of it, and long after this has died down as a political issue, for me and other teachers and more importantly the children will be paying the price for months and maybe even years to come,’ said Cllr Crowe.

He said as far as he was concerned there was no conflict of interest in his stance.

“T think it is healthy that I should go out. [ am a Fianna Fail man and wish to stay a Fianna Fail man, but I was elected by the people of this area and this does not sit well with them and it does not sit well with me,’ he

added.

While his own school won’t be af- fected directly by the cuts this year the east Clare councillor has not ruled out crippling affects in the fu- neh ker

‘Down the road new appointments could be affected and class sizes,’ he Cr AKOR

“I think the Government and Fian- na Fail need to rethink this. In mak- ing the necessary cuts you should not touch the young or the elderly.

“We have a very low betting tax and by increasing it by a few more per cent it could net another €100 million.”

Like many more in the profession the young teacher said he has spent his Own money on providing essen- tial materials for the classroom.

‘“T have spent close to €2,500 of my own money to put things in my class room.

“IT bought my own projector and I am out of pocket and I took out a broadband contract that I use for the classroom. This is something that should be in every classroom,” he said. “I am not alone in this. We (teachers) put up with a lot and say very little, but at a time like this we cannot stay quiet anymore,’ said the outspoken councillor.

ALMOST 70 per cent of créches in Clare failed to comply with HSE regulations. That is according to a survey of inspection reports from the county’s créches and schools car- ried out between October 2006 to October 2007 and released under the Freedom of Information Act.

According to the pre-school inspec- tion reports into facilities that ca- tered for 10 or more children, 69 out of the 101 inspected in Clare were in breach of the HSE’s criteria.

Of those, which did not comply with the inspector’s criteria, as many as 33, or almost a third, were record- ed as having minor or very minor

breaches of the regulations. Another 32 had no breaches at all.

Among the most common breaches outlined was the child-adult ratio exceeding the 10:1 limit, bound- ary fencing or doors broken, lack of space for children to move about in and un-nutritious food.

At the Knocklisheen Accommo- dation Centre the inspector found a long list of issues including the need for more space and staff, and a lim- ited range of toys available

The report also recorded that there was no nappy bags or disposable gloves for the staff, no snacks pro- vided to the children in the morn- ing session and sleeping babies were at risk of being hit by falling toys.

There were no toys or equipment in the outdoor area.

The Department of Justice said however that the number of children in this pre-school in the reception centre for asylum seekers had been adjusted to meet the HSE guidelines.

Additional toys and equipment are now in place and a stock of depos- able gloves and nappy bags are avail- able to staff. It said healthy snacks it said were available, and the outdoor play area, which was under construc- tion at the time of the inspection is now complete.

The inspector also out lined con- cerns relating to the prefabricated building in which the Little Rascals Playgroup in St Conaire’s National

School in Shannon was situated. That prefab has since been replaced however and the HSE are said to be happy with the new facility.

In Maghera Gardens Créche the in- spector found that nappies were be- ing changed in both toilets including staff toilets. The creche said that one of the toilets is now designated for staff only, and the other is the chil- dren and changing nappies only.

The Inspector found that the stage area in the Community Centre in Kil- rush was not suitable for the Stepping Stones Playgroup. The playgroup has applied however for funding to fix the concertina doors leading to the stage which they claim provide plenty of room for the children.

, will this week

(Wednesday night, 9pm) focus on the

Brendan O’Donnell tragedy, while

it will also look back at the Patrick O’ Dwyer case.

The final part of the series, next

week, will look at the unsolved mur- der of Ennistymon woman Emer O’Loughlin, on the Galway/Clare border in 2005.

In a case that shocked the na- tion, Brendan O’Donnell murdered Imelda Riney, her three-year-old son Liam and Galway priest Fr Joe Walsh. Their bodies were found in Cregg Wood in east Clare in 1994.

O’Donnell was subsequently con- victed of the triple murder, but died in 1996 while serving his sentence at the Central Mental Hospital in Dub-

lin.

Patrick O’Dwyer, from Shrohill, Ennistymon, killed his 17-year-old sister Marguerite in a frenzied at- tack at their home on November 29, pAuers

O’Dwyer hit his sister six times on the head with a claw hammer and in- flicted more than 90 stab wounds to her body. He told gardai he had con- templated suicide and attacked his sister while she watched television, as he feared she would get in the way of his suicide attempt. He later came

clean to gardai. “It’s like being inside a room with a video and I can’t turn it off,” he told gardai.

At the Central Criminal Court in June 2007, O’Dwyer claimed a de- fence of diminished responsibility, in that he suffered from a mental disor- der when he killed his sister.

The jury in the trial agreed and found him guilty of manslaughter, by reason of diminished responsibil- ity. He was sentenced to six years in jail.

This week’s hour-long programme will address the issue of balance of mind and the prevalence of mental health issues among a high percent- age of those who commit crime in Ireland.

The third Clare tragedy to be in- cluded in the series is that of Emer O’Loughlin. The 23-year-old’s body was discovered in a burnt out cara- van near Tubber in April 2005. No- one has ever been held accountable for her killing. The story of Emer’s killing is one of three unsolved cases being highlighted in the documen- Fe AY

The series is produced by Sideline Productions. It examines the rise in Irish murder rates and assesses the impact of the various killings on the families left behind. It is presented by former T’V3 crime correspondent Maura Derrane.

A POLICY is needed for the future maintenance of the Ennis public lighting system, Town Councillor Johnny Flynn has said.

At a meeting of the town council last night, Cllr Flynn proposed that a professional consultant be employed to draw up such a policy as the con- tract between the council and the ESB is drawing to a close.

In a motion before the meeting he asked that “in the context of deregu- lation and possible departure of ESB contracts that Ennis Town Council

develop an appropriate policy to manage their street lighting asset having regard to public safety, en- ergy efficiency, value for money for maintenance, liability indemnifica- tion, design commissioning and cer- tification”.

The councillor said that the service which the town council is getting has reduced in recent years “probably because of the break up of the com- pany into constituent parts”’.

He said that street lighting is “a valuable asset” on which the coun- cil spent a third of a million Euros last year. “We have something in the

order of 3,000 street lights in En- nis and it’s important that we have a policy for managing and maintaining them,” he said.

Cllr Flynn said that in February 2007, 7 per cent of the town’s pub- lic lights were not working. “That went back to two per cent following a discussion of the matter,’ he told the meeting.

Cllr Tommy Brennan said that it would be important when the council takes over maintenance of the light- ing system that they “ensure that we are taking over lights that are in good working condition, in the same way

that we would if we were taking any- thing else in charge’.

In reply to the councillor’s motion the town engineer said that the coun- cil has engaged a company to carry out an inventory of public lighting and an asset management system. “The softwear is a specialised light- ing management package which is used by eight other local authori- one

He said the lighting inventory would be used by the local authority to tender their public lighting main- tenance when their existing ESB contact expires.

A WEST Clare student was honoured along with five more from the county at the National University of Ireland Galway last week for outstanding re- sult in this year’s leaving cert.

St Joseph’s Secondary School Spanish Point paid tribute this week to past pupil Sorcha Curtin who not only secured the maximum 600 points in the state exam but was also awarded a bursary from the Galway University at the Entrance Scholars Socsaleyne

The intelligent teenager is now studying medicine at the college.

School principal Mary Crawford paid tribute to the 17 and a half-year- old and told the Clare people the school was very proud of Sorcha’s achievement.

While attending the Spanishpoint school she opted to study English, Irish, Maths, French, Music and Chemistry.

“As well as a great academic achievement she was a trusted friend and also got on very well with all members of staff in the school,” said

a school’s spokesperson.

“Tt 1s an honour for her and the school that she was one of eighteen to get such a high grade, and we would like to congratulate her,” he said.

A keen musican Sorcha plays the concertina in Michael Mahony’s tra- ditional music group.

She is the daughter of Anne (nee Barry) and Christy Curtin from Clondony Miltown Malbay.

Other Clare students to be hon- oured by NUIG were Ian Broderick from Ennis, who was a past pupil of Rice College and is now studying

Engineering. Finn Krewer, from Tu- ber is also studying engineering and is a past pupil of Gort Community College.

Caoimhe Marie Hanrahan from Corofin is a past pupil of Ard Scoil Naoimhe Mhuire Ennistymon and is now studying Occupational Therapy.

Christine Kelly is also from Tu- ber and is a past pupil of Kinvara Secondary School. Paula Christina Kelly is a past pupil of Rice College Ennis and she was also honoured by NUIG.