Category: News

CLARE will now have two respesentatives at this year’s Rose of Tralee Festival – and both of them will be named Flanagan.

Despite Clare Rose, Orla McDonagh, not making it through to this year’s final, the county will be represented by London Rose, Nóra Ní Fhlannagáin, who hails from Corofin, and also the New Zealand Rose, Alana Marshall, whose family comes from Ennis.

Alana, whose great-great-grandfather, Michael Flanagan, left Ennis for New Zealand in 1864, was among 15 overseas Roses who gathered in Dublin yesterday to be presented with a certificate of her Irish heritage.

Sporting the Clare jersey, Alana was presented with her certificate by leading Kerryman, Dick Spring. The Certificate of Irish Heritage is a Government document, signed by the Tánaiste, Eamon Gilmore, as an official recognition of a person’s Irish ancestry by the Government of Ireland.

“From a young age, I was very aware and proud of my Flanagan Irish connection. My parents took me to Clare when I was 11 and I returned again when I was 18, during my gap year.

“I felt an amazing sense of belonging and felt so at home. I am delighted to honour my ancestors and the sacrifices they made through the Certificate of Irish Heritage,” she said yesterday.

Each Certificate of Irish Heritage is a personal record of the recipient’s Irish roots, showing the name of their Irish ancestor and the town or parish in Ireland from which they came.

It is as yet unclear whether Clare’s two Flanagan representatives are in any way related to each other but they will be able to assess their family histories when the Rose of Tralee festival gets underway later this week.

Nóra Ní Fhlannagáin is an Oxfordbased PHd student but her roots are very much in County Clare, with her father, John Flanagan, living on the main street in Corofin and a collection of cousins and friends all over the county.

Indeed, Nóra even has a connection to this year’s Clare Rose as her uncle, Tom Flanagan, is a next-door neighbour of Orla McDonagh in Clouna.

ONE million euro has been donated to the Diocese of Killaloe to promote vocations and to help fund the training of new priests in the diocese.

The money was a bequest to the diocese in the will of an unknown local person, on the condition that it only be used to promote new priests entering the ministry.

The cash windfall was yesterday described by diocesan spokesperson, Fr Brendan Quinlivan, as a sign of “new hope” for vocations in the diocese.

The Killaloe diocese currently has one person studying to become a priest, while a number of other men are currently considering entering formal studies.

“This is a sign of great hope for the diocese. The person who made this donation must have been someone whose life was greatly impacted on by the priesthood,” said Fr Quinlivan.

“The money will be used for the promotion of vocations and also to help fund the studies of anyone from the diocese who decides to study to become a priest. Between accommodation and the cost of studies it can cost between € 15,000 and € 20,000 a year for a person to train to become a priest and this could take between five and seven years.”

According to Fr Quinlivan, the type of people who decide to join the priesthood these days are very different from the people who joined in the past. New entrants are generally older, and must undertake psychological testing as well as a period of deep reflection before they are allowed to begin their studies.

“We had two ordinations in the parish this year, we currently have one person in studies and we have a number of people who have expressed an interest in becoming a priest and are currently in a period of discernment,” continued Fr Quinlivan.

“It is different from how it was in my day when people came straight from school. These days we are finding a lot of older men, who have lived through the Celtic Tiger and have come to the conclusion that there is something different out there for them.

“Many of these people may have to give up jobs to begin their studies so it is a total change of life for them.”

The diocese will receive the € 1 million in three different payments over three years. Pic kin g u p to wa rd s th e we e ke n d bu t e a rly in d ic a t io n s a re n o t gre a t , m o re c lo u d wit h o n ly spo ra d ic su n sh in e .

CLARE County Council received complaints against 60 of its tenants last year in relation to anti-social behaviour.

According to figures received from the local authority, complaints were made against 60 of the council estimated 1,500 tenants in 2012.

It is unclear, however, how often each of these 60 tenants were complained, with some people complained on several or even dozens of occasions.

According to Liam O’Connor of the Housing Section at Clare County Council, the complaints are evenly distributed around the council’s properties and there are no anti-social blackspots.

Mr O’Connor also said that the local authority takes a proactive approach to dealing with anti-social behaviour by any of its tenants.

“A small proportion, approximately four per cent, of all tenancies would be reported during any one year as creating a problem in their neighbourhood,” he said.

“The council investigates in each case and works to resolve the issues. In very serious cases, where there is no improvement in the situation following the council’s intervention, eviction proceedings are taken by the council. One or two such proceedings would be underway during the course of any year.

“The council has formed a network of residents’ associations in which there are now 46 residents associations participating. Periodic network meetings are arranged with training and help being provided to the associations, whose voluntary work in their neighbourhoods is highly valued by the council.

“There is also active participation in the council’s ‘best kept estates’ awards each year, with 25 groups receiving awards at various levels last year.

“Notwithstanding this preventative and positive work with residents which contributes to a higher quality of life in those estates, the council also takes an active role in addressing tenancy breaches where those are reported. The council also liaises with statutory organisations including An Garda Siochána and the Health Service Executive on a regular basis, with regard to anti-social behaviour and related issues.”

A FORMER Clare County Council worker who was found dead at his home in Kilrush last May died as a result of misadventure, an inquest has heard.

The body of Michael Noel Blunnie (61) was discovered by gardaí at his home at 2 O’Gorman Street on May 1, 2011.

An inquest into his death heard that Mr Blunnie died from positional asphyxiation, with alcohol intoxication and heart disease as contributory factors.

County Coroner Isobel O’Dea ruled that Mr Blunnie died by misadventure.

Door-to-door enquires were car- ried out in the area following the death and CCTV footage was also obtained.

Supt Gerry Wall of Kilrush Garda Station told Clare Coroner’s Court on Friday that “no evidence of criminality was established from these lines of enquiry”.

The inquest heard that an ambulance was called to the house on April 30 after Mr Blunnie complained of stomach and chest pains. Mr Blunnie refused to get into the ambulance. A friend, Paul O’Connor, said he placed a blanket over Mr Blunnie when he fell asleep that evening. When he left, he also placed a rag in the front door to jam it shut because there was no lock.

Mr O’Connor said, “He drank a naggin of whiskey while I was there.”

The inquest heard that Mr Blunnie’s house was in poor condition, with no electricity, heating or running water.

Michael Sweeney told the inquest that he had left his family home in Kilrush at around 6am to look for a lighter. After trying a number of houses, Mr Sweeney called to Mr Blunnie’s house. He told the inquest that he had known the deceased for a number of years. Mr Sweeney walked in, took the lighter and noticed Mr Blunnie lying down. He added, “I did not stay there. I panicked and left. I hate dead bodies.”

After calling to his brother’s house, Mr Sweeney phoned the gardaí, the inquest heard.

Of Mr Sweeney’s demeanor, Garda Gander said, “He appeared to be distressed and upset and struggled to get across what happened at 2 O’Gorman Street….He was very forthcoming.”

Deputy State Pathologist Dr Kahlid Jaber told the court that blood and urine analyses showed that Mr Blunnie “was drinking heavily at the time he passed away”.

He said the primary cause of death was positional asphyxiation with acute alcohol intoxication and hyper cardio-vascular disease as contributory factors.

Ms O’Dea said, “It is quite clear from the evidence there was no suspicion of foul play.” She paid her condolences to the deceased’s family and friends.

Retired garda Michael Ryan also paid his condolences to the Blunnie family. He said, “Mick Noel was nice, gentle man.”

AN ENNIS resident who has been a victim of recent anti-social behaviour says he will drive to the office of the Minister for Justice, Alan Shatter, and complain to him in person if action is not taken to improve the service being offered to the public by gardaí in Clare.

The Glenina resident, who asked not to be identified, says he is only raising the issue with Minister Shat- ter in the hope that it will spark a change in the way anti-social, violent and intimidating behaviour is treated by the gardaí.

“I don’t have anything against any garda, but I think the people have just lost faith in them.

“I know their resources have been stretched but that makes it all the more important to engage with the local people,” he said.

“All I want is for this to spark a change. It is no good for the gardaí to sit there and wait for the people to come to them – they have to part of some sort of community approach to solving this problem.

“Until they do that, nothing is going to change – it will only get worse. When I was at school, everyone knew the local policeman.

“He was part of the community. It is not about driving up and down the Gort Road. It is about getting out of the car and actually talking to people. It is an old fashioned idea but it will work. What is happening in Ennis is bad but it is nothing compared to situations which have happening in other places.

“So it can be fixed. But if something is not put in place to fix this then it will get worse.

“We cannot bury our heads in the sand any longer. I’m not interested in Dublin or Limerick, if something is not done in County Clare soon then it will only get worse.

“If I don’t get a reply from Alan Shatter I will get into the car and go and visit him in his constituency office,” he added.

KATIE Taylor’s historic Olympic triumph came as no surprise to one former teammate of the Bray boxer.

Ennis woman Edel Malone wore the green jersey alongside Katie on Irish soccer team from under 17 right up to senior level.

Having observed up close the dedication of Ireland’s newest Olympic champion, Edel says Katie is the perfect role model for any young sportsperson.

She continues, “When you speak with her, she’s the most humble person and she has this gentle spirit about her but when she gets onto the pitch and into the ring, the fire inside her, her passion for that sport, comes out. Her training was always number one. Any athlete should use Katie as a role model, for her attitude, work ethic and natural ability. Just look at how far it has taken her.”

Apart from their Ireland days, Edel and Katie also crossed paths on the club scene, most famously in 1998 when Clare took on Wicklow in the prestigious Kennedy Cup.

Edel recalls, “We probably know each other since we were 12. She played with Lourdes Celtic and I was with Lifford. We would’ve played against each other in All-Ireland competitions. If there was someone you had to really mark on the other team, that was Katie. Then we played in the Kennedy Cup. It’s traditionally a boys’ competition but that year there were three girls in the whole tournament. She was with Wicklow and I was with Clare. The two of us made it to one of the finals so we got to play against each other.”

A Clare team, managed by John O’Neill and Vinny McDermott, claimed a narrow 1-0 victory.

Now living in New York where she has just completed a Masters in Documentary Studies and Production, Edel had to rely on updates from her mother and friends to follow Katie’s nerve-shredding quest for gold.

She thinks that having fulfilled a life-long ambition, her former teammate could hang up the boxing gloves for a return to soccer.

Edel, who is currently nursing a knee injury, says, “It will be interesting to see if she returns to football. She could do that. She’s achieved everything in boxing. If it wasn’t a boxing tournament she was preparing for, she was getting ready for a soccer match. I think she could very well go back to playing soccer also.

“You can only imagine the amount of pressure she was under. One of our other friends who plays soccer and is quite close with her, she texted a few days ago saying she had met Katie after she’d won gold. She said that Katie was over the moon and that she was so relieved,” she adds.

Selina Moylan and Susan McNamara are two Clare women who also played with Katie Taylor on Irish soccer teams.

UNEMPLOYMENT in Clare is at a four-month high, but the numbers signing on have dropped compared to this time last year. However, there are now more women on the dole queues than there were this time last year.

As many as 10,437 people were receiving some form of unemployment assistance in the county last month.

This is the lowest number of people seeking unemployment payments during the month of July since the number unemployed rose significantly in 2009.

In July 2008, 6,023 Clare people were unemployed. By July 2009, the number had jumped to 10,497 and increased again to 10,796 this time last year.

There was a slight drop of 271 this July when compared to 12 months ago. However, unemployment in the county had increased by 239 compared to June 2012.

While the overall unemployment number has dropped compared to last year, there was a slight increase in the number of women signing on. However there are still over 2,000 more men than women on Clare’s dole queues even though the number of men seeking job assistance had dropped by 288 on last year.

There are also less people under 25 seeking employment compared to the same time last year. However, the unemployment rate among this age group has increased by 59 to 1,729 compared to June.

The number of people over 25 years of age unemployed has now reached 8,708 an increase of 180 on the previous month but a drop of 85 on last year.

The largest number of Clare people seeking unemployment assistance do so in Ennis, with 5,995 people signing on last month.

This compares favourably to July 2011 when 6,159 people were signing on.

In Ennis, the number of women in receipt of Jobseekers Allowance and unemployment benefit has increased slightly, while the number of men in the same position has decreased.

This is a fact reflected in two of the three social welfare areas, the exception being Tulla where 1, 501 people are currently unemployed.

Here too the number of unemployed decreased slightly compared to 12 months ago. However, there was a drop in unemployment rates among both genders.

In Kilrush, the number unemployed was at 1,449, a drop of just seven compared to last year, while in Ennistymon there was a decrease of 33 to 1,492 people on the unemployment list.

OLD age pensioners and young mothers in Clare are resorting to shoplifting to survive as the recession sends a new group of people to the poverty line.

New figures show that older people are also going without certain foods, cutting back on electricity and fuel and are not buying clothes as they struggle to pay essential bills.

Clare Gardaí said they have come across a number of older people and mothers “who basically do not have enough money” and have come to their attention for shoplifting.

Superintendent Gerry Wall said there have been a number of incidents of shoplifting in Kilrush in the last seven months, with those responsible broken into three distinct cate gories – older people, young mothers and general thieves.

The increase in the number of older people and mothers resorting to crime to feed themselves and their families is a growing social concern, he maintained.

Gardaí have been treating the issue with sensitivity.

Supt Wall said that he and his colleagues are sensitive to the social needs of these people and have dealt with them by way of an adult caution. “I must say the shops in question have also been very understand ing,” he said.

Age Action Ireland, which promotes positive ageing and better policies and services for older people, said many older people are finding it impossible to make ends meet.

According to EU SILC statistics 9.6 per cent of over 65 year olds in Ireland are deemed to be at risk of poverty.

Gerard Scully of Age Action told The Clare People that the increase of household bills such as electricity and heating coupled with the reduction in the household package, which once assisted with those bills, is adding to the struggles.

“The social welfare pension has not even cut, but it also hasn’t been increased which is effectively a cut,” he said.

“A lot of older people with pri- vate pensions have also been badly hit. There is a phenomena of a ‘new poor’,” he explained.

“For the year 2010, 23 per cent of people over 65 were unable to pay for an item on the household budget. Older people are cutting back on clothes or shoes, and they wouldn’t be using electricity as much or eating meat in order to save money.

“It highlights the fact that many older people are finding it difficult to make ends meet. It belies any suggestion that older people are doing well out of the recession,” he said.

SHANNON Development incurred losses of over € 10m in 2011, but the chief executive, Dr Vincent Cunnane, has expressed himself to be “quite pleased” with company’s performance amid the challenging times of the current economic climate.

Figures from the annual report that was released last Tuesday show that pre-tax losses at the company narrowed by over 27 per cent during the year, from € 14.5m in 2010 to € 11.9m for the year ending December 2011.

The company’s performance comes against a backdrop of revenues declining by seven per cent from € 32.4m to € 30.2m in the 12 months to the end of December last. Dr Vincent Cunnane said he was “quite pleased” with this performance and pointed out that the biggest contributory factor to the pre-tax loss was a combined non-cash cost of € 10.5m made up of a depreciation charge of € 7m and a € 3.5m write-down in property assets.

“We had a small operating deficit,” said Dr Cunnane. “Over € 10m of it is a paper loss in terms of depreciation and impairment. When you take it all out their was a small operating loss of € 1.5m,” he added.

During 2011 Shannon Development’s rental earnings from its € 100m property portfolio dropped by over € 1m from € 13.3m to € 12.2m, which represented an eight per cent drop.

Meanwhile, as a direct result of the property crash, the company’s income from property sales has collapsed resulting in combined losses of € 45.6m in the past three years, largely made up of impairment charges and depreciation. “A significant improvement in un- derlying economic conditions will be required in order to facilitate the realisation of a number of major property sales and investment projects by the company,” the annual report states. “Accordingly, the company will adjust a number of the strategic plan key performance indicators such as job creation targets, visitor numbers and capital expenditure targets during 2012 and 2013 in order to take account of the prevailing economic climate,” it adds. “I believe that the best way out of a difficulty is to face it head on,” said Dr Cunnane. “In that vein, Shannon Development has managed its resources to respond to the most serious recession in a generation. “Against a difficult economic background, Shannon Development staff are continuing to craft the building blocks to help secure the economic future of our region. For this, I would like to personally commend their continued commitment and dedication. Shannon Development will continue to work to ensure that our region is a world class global location where people want to live, work and spend leisure time. As a regional development agency we are firmly focused on delivering a strong economic future for everyone living in the Shannon region,” he added.

KILRUSH’S most senior garda has reassured those who may be the victim of illegal loan sharks that they can meet his colleagues in the strictest confidence. At Thursday morning’s meeting of the Kilrush Joint Policing Committee (JPC), Superintendent Gerry Wall said he was aware of the is- sue of illegal money-lending in the town, but he needed people to come forward and make a statement if an arrest was to be made. He told the committee members that there are two ways open to the Gardaí to tackle the issue – firstly through direct reporting, and secondly throgh the assistance of specialst gardaí based in Dublin. “I have as much access to these specialist gardaí as any of my colleagues. “They are not a million miles away just because they are based in Dublin,” he said. The most direct route to an arrest is through victims and witnesses coming forward. “We are drawing a blank on people reporting this,” he added. The superintendent said he would encourage people affected to come forward and speak to Gardaí in strict confidence. During the last few months, problems associated with illegal moneylending have come to the fore in the West Clare town, with reports of lenders standing outside the post office waiting for payment as borrowers collect social welfare payments. There are also reports of lenders holding on to people’s social welfare cards to ensure payment. Those at the mercy of the moneylenders have said they are not willing to talk about their situation as they are afraid of reprisals. Many who signed up for these exorbitant loans fear the unscrupulous lenders too much to even tell the Gardaí. Gardaí in Kilrush have reassured people, however, that they will meet them in confidence.