Category: News

THE fact that the Roche Ireland plant in Clarecastle has an incinerator is being held up as the trump card that can save the company from being closed as part of a global restructuring plan being put in place by the company’s cor porate headquar ters in Basel in Switzerland.

Permission in principal for an incinerator at the Clarecastle operation was granted by Clare County Council in early 1996, but was later the subject of the first ever Envi ronmental Protection Agency Oral Hearing before the Roche was granted a licence for the incineration facility in December of that year.

Sixteen years on and with the incineration facility firmly in place, there are hopes among the staff that this could be “the deciding factor” in persuading the Roche Group to retain its Clarecastle operation.

Despite controversies such as incineration and the odour problem that dogged the Clarecastle area in the early years of the plant, Syntex/ Roche’s reputation as a flagship employer in the county has been cemented over many years.

This was flagged from its earliest days of production in 1977, when it employed 180 people and had a wage bill of £750, 000, while within four years numbers employed at the plant had grown to nearly 300 as the company embarked on a £7. 5m investment.

Thanks to the production of the naproxen drug, Syntex had an initial turnover of £10m, a figure that trebled in the early ’80s as employment soared and an expansion of facilities allowed for a four-cycle seven-day week operation.

In 1994 the Clarecastle company became part of the Pharmaceutical Division of the Roche Group as it acquired the Syntex Cor poration in a $5.3bn worldwide takeover that resulted in it being re-branded as Roche Ireland from 1996.

Employees at the Clarecastle plant come from a wide range of disciplines and include chemists, engineers, manufacturing and laboratory technicians, craft-workers, accountants and IT specialists.

There are four automated manufacturing plants on site with room for further expansion, with the company priding itself of being “a manufacturing centre of excellence for the production of active pharmaceutical ingredients destined for conversion to medicines in dosage form at other Roche facilities throughout the world”.

A COUPLE who said they were discriminated against on the basis that they are Travellers have won their case against an Ennis pub.

John Mongans (33) and his wife Anne Marie Mongans (31) said they felt “humiliated” and “embarrassed” after being refused a drink at All Bar One, Abbey Street, Ennis on November 3, 2011.

The Ennis couple brought a case against Tradewell Pub Company Ltd under the Equal Status Act.

The case was heard at Ennis District Court on Thursday. Tradewell Pub Company Ltd was not represented in court.

Mr Mongans said he and his wife entered the bar at around 9.15pm on the night in question. He said the barman came over and told them that the bar was closed.

Mr Mongans said other customers in the bar were drinking at the time and “nothing looked out of the ordinary”.

The couple left the bar and came back at around 10.15pm. Mr Mon- gans said he asked for two drinks but the barman refused. According to Mr Mongans, the barman said that he was closing the bar in order to control the crowd in the pub. The court that Mr Mongans went outside and rang the Gardaí.

He said, “I felt totally embarrassed that I had to go and get the guards.”

He said “settled people” whom he played soccer with had seen what had happened at the bar.

Asked by solicitor Andrew Darcy why he believed he had been refused service, Mr Mongans said, “I was re- fused on the basis of being a member of the Traveller community.”

He added, “I don’t hide the fact that I am a Traveller.”

Ms Mongans was described in court as a proactive member of the Traveller community. She said she was a member of a committee that worked with Clare County Council on the issue of Traveller accommodation.

Ms Mongans told the court that people she knew from her children’s school were in the pub on the night. “I felt very, very humiliated,” she added.

The court heard that the couple had not been drinking on the night. Judge Timothy Lucey said that he found the case proven. He said there was no good reason why the couple should have been refused.

Judge Lucey added, “To be refused because you are a member of the Travelling community, when you are well behaved, is very upsetting.”

Mr Darcy said the couple were not seeking the closure of the bar.

Judge Lucey ordered that that couple be given € 500 compensation each, plus costs of € 250 and VAT.

CONSTRUCTION work on the controversial Clare section of the Limerick Northern Distributor Road will not begin until 2025 at the earliest, according to Clare County Council’s leading Engineer.

Senior Council engineer, Tom Tiernan said yesterday that the road – which has prompted local protests in the Parteen, Ardnacrusha and Clonlara areas – was now an aspirational project and something that will affect the “next generation” of residents in the south east Clare area.

“This is not a road for the present. If this was on the table four or five years ago, it may well have materialised very quickly. There was a different definition of ‘future’. We would have to be very optimistic to see that this road would be accommodating traffic in 10 years. That would be extremely optimistic,” said Mr Tiernan.

“We have to hope that this economic situation will turn around but it seems very clear that this [road] will not be done for the foreseeable future. But we have to plan for it. If we don’t plan for it, then other areas of the country will be ahead of us when things do turn around.

“This is a very substantial scheme, which should have positive spin-offs for the region as well. But really we are talking about the next generation and not the current one.”

Local Cllr Cathal Crowe (FF) also raised concern over the pubic consultation process for the development, saying that the ESB were allowed to consult on the project on an ongoing basis while the public were only allowed two “insensitive” chances to have their opinion heard.

“The playing pitch was unequal at times. Talks with the ESB were ongoing where as Joe Soap in the public was given just two chances to have their say, and they were very insensitive times where they had to go into a hotel in front of all of their neighbours to say their piece,” said Cllr Crowe.

According to Tom Tiernan, the ESB were spoken to on an ongoing basis because of the “serious consequence” that the road could have for their operations.

“People are upset, it is impossible to develop a road scheme of this nature without upsetting some people,” he said.

“We have to consult with people, we have to be as fair as possible in how we deal with people. Once a route is selected, once funding begins to materialised for the purchase of property, we have to realise that people are being disenfranchised by this scheme.”

LONG serving Fianna Fáíl councillor Peter Considine was last night elected Mayor of Ennis.

It is the seventh time Cllr Considine has held the office having last been elected mayor in 2008.

He beat off competition from Fine Gael councillor Johnny Flynn at the council’s AGM. He replaces outgoing Mayor, Cllr Michael Guilfoyle (Ind), who held the chain of office for the past 12 months. Cllr Considine was proposed as mayor by Cllr Frankie Neylon and seconded by Cllr Tommy Brennan (Ind).

Cllr Flynn was proposed by Cllr Paul O’Shea (Lab) and seconded by Cllr Mary Howard (FG).

Councillors Neylon, Considine Brennan, Brian Meaney (GP) and Guilfoyle voted for Cllr Considine.

Councillors O’Shea, Howard, Flynn and Mary Coote Ryan (FG) voted for Cllr Flynn.

Cllr Considine urged members to be conscious of economic circumstances of the council. He added, “Local authorities don’t escape the austerities that are around.”

He added, “I would urge all councillors to temper their expectations with the resources of the council in mind.”

However he said progress could be expected on certain projects including the completion of the Inner Relief Road and the development of new facilities for Tim Smythe Park.

On the future of local government, Cllr Considine said, “We would expect rather than hope that Ennis Town Council would be left to administer services in Ennis. It would be shocking if Ennis were left as a sub-committee of Clare County Council.” Cllr Tommy Brennan (Ind) was elected as Deputy Mayor ahead of Cllr Mary Howard (FG), Cllr Brennan was proposed by Cllr Guilfoyle while Cllr Howard was proposed by Cllr O’Shea.

Prior to the election of the deputy mayor, Cllr Meaney said he had not been asked to vote for Cllr Howard. He urged those councillors supporting her to do a little “groundwork” before hand. Cllr Flynn said he had competed for mayor on nine different occasions and never once canvassed councillors for votes. He said he would not be competing next year due to work commitments.

Cllr O’Shea was returned as Chairman of the Ennis Joint Policing Committee (JPC). Tributes were also paid to outgoing mayor, Cllr Guilfoyle.

COMPUTER users have been warned about a new electronic scam that targets people’s personal bank details.

Gardaí in Ennis have issued the warning after receiving a number of calls from concerned computer owners.

Sgt Joe Downey, Crime Prevention Officer, explained that in recent weeks people have received telephone calls indicating that their computers have viruses and then directing them to various websites.

The caller directs the person to input certain data and what is actually happening unknown to the person is that they are uploading a virus, which corrupts their computer.

The caller now has control of the person’s computer and is able to access personal information, especially information relating to bank account details.

Computer owners are being told to ignore these calls. The gardaí have issued the following advice to computer users: “Please do not accept this call and under no circumstances should you input data as directed by the caller. Hang up and ignore the caller, as legitimate computer companies do not operate in this manner.” 30/06/2012

CLARE’S most westerly village was celebrating on Friday with the announcement that their long awaited playground has got the green light from Clare Country Council.

The local authority granted permission for the nautical themed state of the art playground with eight car paring spaces including one disability car space.

The new playground will be situated between Keating’s and the Lighthouse Inn in the village.

Kilballyowen Development Ltd and the Playground Special Interest group are continuing to fundraise for the project and hope to be granted Leader funding in the coming weeks.

Ailish Connolly spokesperson for the playground group said everyone was delighted with the news.

“We were donated the site for this purpose back in March 2011 and its been a long road to get to this point,” she said.

The playground is likely to attract a lot of local and visiting children.

“Loop Head Lighthouse hope to attract more than 17,000 visitors this summer and this facility they hope will encourage families to stay longer in the area. Kilbaha, Cross and Carraigaholt have a good population of young children with the schools and playschools totalling 121 students this year.

“We have been so lucky with the huge support we have had from the parish of Kilballyowen. We had such huge support from our local councillors Patrick Keane, Gabriel Keating, and Oliver Garry, TD Pat Breen and Clare County Council,” she said.

“The playground is now subject to Leader funding but all going to plan the playground, we hope, will be opened late August this year,” added Ms Connolly.

To date the hard working fundraisers have raised € 20,525 and are hoping to raise the remaining € 10,975 during the next few weeks.

THE Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) is expected to issue directions later this month in respect of incidents alleged to have occurred at a primary school in Ennis earlier this year, a court has heard.

Inspector Tom Kennedy told Ennis District Court on Wednesday that Gardaí were in the process of responding to further queries from the DPP in relation to alleged offences at and outside Holy Family junior school, Ennis on March 20.

Three people – Conor Mahon (21), Rose Mahon (22) and Laura Molloy (21) – are facing charges arising out of the incident.

Conor Mahon, of Ballaghboy, Quin Road, Ennis is charged with possession of a slash hook at the school contrary to the firearms and offensive weapons act and with engaging in threatening and, or, abusive behaviour.

Conor Mahon’s wife, Rose Mahon, also of Ballaghboy Quin Road, Ennis, is charged with causing 1500 euros worth of damage to the windows of a vehicle on Station Road.

Her sister, Laura Molloy, of 21 An Pairc, Bruach na hAbhainn, Ennis is also charged with causing 1500 euros worth of damage to the windows of a vehicle on Station Road. Both sisters are also charged with provoking a breach of the peace.

Solicitor Daragh Hassett consented to Insp Kennedy’s application for a 14-day extension for DPP’s directions.

All three were remanded on continuing bail to appear again in court on June 20.

CHILDREN from Clare with diabetes are putting up with “dire” conditions as they try to manage their condition.

One of the leading experts in type one diabetes in the country, Dr Anna Clarke is now appealing to parents from the county and across the midwest to begin a letter campaign calling on the CEO of the Mid Western Hospital Group, Ann Doherty, to implement some promised measures that would alleviate the situation.

Parents of the estimated 3, 500 children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes, including an estimated 250 from Clare, lobbied politicians last year, calling for diabetes services to be restructured on a virtually cost-neutral basis.

In response, the HSE made commitments to address the inequity, inconsistency and general difficulty in accessing advanced therapies like insulin pumps outside of Dublin.

“The HSE promised to address this imbalance and build capacity for insulin pump therapy in Cork, Limerick and Galway. I am very concerned at the slow progress being made five months after the announcement,” added Professor Hilary Hoey, Chair of Diabetes Ireland.

“The situation in the Paediatric Diabetes clinic in Limerick is pretty dire,” according to Gráinne Flynn, Secretary of the Clare branch of Diabetes Ireland.

“Every child should have immediate access to a diabetes nurse specialist and a dietician on diagnosis but, in some cases, the waiting list for a child with type one diabetes to see a dietician can be up to one year,” she said.

“Another example of the lack of resources in Limerick would be if a parent telephones the clinic looking for some guidance on how to manage diabetes with a sick child, the parent is forwarded to an answering machine which may not be checked until late afternoon. By this time, the family could be highly distressed. On the other hand, if this child is an outpatient of a Dublin hospital, the parent would be put through to a live person.”

Diabetes Ireland is calling on the HSE to put in place promised nursing and dietician support to make the treatment available to children and adolescents with diabetes at Cork University Hospital, the MidWest Hospital Limerick and Galway University Hospital.

TWO Dublin people found in possession of a stolen caravan near Newmarket on Fergus have appeared in court.

Owen McDonagh (23) and Rita McDonagh (21), both of 6 Shelly Park, Dunsink Lane, Dublin 11 are charged with handling stolen property a – Tabbert Vivaldi caravan knowing the property was stolen or were reckless as to whether it was stolen at Latoon, Newmarket on Fergus on May 30 (2012).

Inspector Tom Kennedy told the court that it would be alleged that the McDonagh’s were found in possession of a caravan at 6.15am.

He said the caravan had been stolen from Spanish Point at around 2.30am.

He said the property was recovered.

He said the DPP had directed summary disposal of the case.

Judge Patrick Durcan accepted jurisdiction and adjourned the case until July 24 for hearing.

A MAN who a Judge said operated a drugs “mini-market” from his former home has been warned not to come to garda attention.

Judge Patrick Durcan was speaking as he adjourned sentencing on John Gaffney (23) at Ennis District Court on Wednesday.

Mr Gaffney, with an address at 4 Sandfield Mews, pleaded guilty to having diazepam for sale or supply at 4 Sandfield Mews on September 23 (2011)

Inspector Tom Kennedy told the court that gardaí found 40 small bags of diazepam during a search of the property.

He said Mr Gaffney admitted to selling the drugs to pay off a drug debt.

Solicitor Thomas Kiely told the court that his client had become highly dependent on drugs at the age of 17.

He said Mr Gaffney had completed a residential treatment programme and after care course at Bushypark.

Mr Kiely said his client intended to become a fitness coach and had obtained a qualification as a nutritionist.

He said Mr Gaffney is a keen athlete who has joined a cycling club.

He said the fact that Mr Gaffney had been placed in custody for a brief period while he waited to have his case heard, had served as a “rude awakening”.

Judge Patrick Durcan said he had to balance the accused’s guilty plea and positive written testimonials handed in on his behalf against his previous record, which includes a conviction for sale or supply of drugs.

Judge Durcan said he had seriously considered imposing a custodial sentence.

He said Mr Gaffney had engaged in “appalling” activity.

He added, “This was 40 small bags, a real little mini-market.”

He remanded Mr Gaffney on continuing bail until November 14. Judge Durcan granted liberty to the State to re-enter the matter at 24 hours notice.

He told the accused not to come to Garda attention.