Category: News

UP TO 50 councillors past and present formed a guard of honour on Saturday night to bid farewell to one of the former first citizens of Clare.

Former chairman of Clare County Council Seán Hillery had passed away on Thursday morning following a short illness, and thousands gathered in Shannon over the weekend to pay tribute to the former Fianna Fáil councillor.

Born in Miltown Malbay, he took a number of odd jobs after graduating from St Flannan’s College in Ennis, before moving back to his native town to take up a position in the West Clare pharmacy.

After serving two years in the working pharmacy, Seán went to university in Dublin and qualified as a pharmacist in 1963.

He then moved to Sixmilebridge and opened a pharmacy there.

After a number of years he relocated with his family to Shannon where he opened two new pharmacies.

A community activist, Mr Hillery was elected to Clare County Council in 1985 and served as a councillor and as chairman at different intervals until 2004.

He served on Shannon Town Council from 1994 to 2009.

The 76-year-old was also the first Chairperson of the Clare County Development Board and was President of the Pharmaceutical Society of Ireland (PSI) between 1982 and 1984.

Mr Hillery was a first cousin of former President of Ireland Dr Patrick Hillery and serving Clare County Councillor Michael Hillery (FF). Cllr Michael Hillery described Seán as a man that was very active and full of energy.

“He had great foresight and vision. Years back in the council he was talking about Radon gas in houses and the dangers before anyone else was. He was ahead of his time.”

Cllr Michael Hillery also paid tribute to the late pharmacist’s love of his native Miltown Malbay. “He came back whenever he could,” he said.

Sean Hillery was a keen sportsman, having played football with Miltown and was involved in one of the team’s last county final wins.

A strong swimmer, he served as a lifeguard in Spanish Point in his early years, and continued to be involved with water, boating and swimming.

He was also a keen golfer and enjoyed the social interaction of the sport.

Mayor of Clare Cllr Pat Hayes (FF) paid tribute to his dedication to elected politics and said, “Sean was well known and respected throughout Shannon and the wider county. He also was held in high esteem by colleagues as evidenced by his election as President of the Pharmaceutical Society of Ireland.”

Clare County Manager Tom Coughlan added, “Sean was a very popular public representative who will be remembered by those who knew him for his work ethic, humility and sense of humour. The fact that he held the office of Mayor in both Shannon Town Council and Clare County Council is something I know both he and his family were very proud of.”

Sean was predeceased by his wife Paula, and is survived by his sons Barry, Feidlim and Shane and his daughter Majella.

THERE are more Clare people attending the private Galway Clinic in the last year than ever before, despite six per cent of Irish people giving up health insurance.

The Banner county has surpassed Mayo in providing the clinic’s second largest number of patients, now making up 16 per cent of the hospital population. In 2008, at the peak of health insurance ownership, just 12 per cent of the hospital’s patients were from Clare.

Asked why 4,426 Clare people opted for the services of the Galway Clinic in 2011, Business Development Manager Mark Sheehan said the main reason was its locality but the reduction of health services in the area also played a major factor.

“Many of the 4,426 patients were seen at our Emergency Department which has extended its hours of service now daily from 10am to 7pm,” he said. 24-hour accident and emergency services at Ennis General Hospital closed in April 2009, and acute services were later moved to the Mid Western Regional Hospital Limerick.

Mr Sheehan said that demand for cancer services in the west also far outstrips supply, so when the hospital opened its new unit, beds filled up immediately. “In 2009, we expended the range of cancer care services available at the Galway Clinic. This expansion comprised of a new linear accelerator for the provision of radiotherapy, a new oncology day unit and two new inpatients wings comprising of 46 beds. The new floors were im mediately full.”

People are also staying longer at the private hospital, with the average stay increased from 3.6 days to 4.3 days. The extended stay is due to an increase in the range of treatments and diagnosis.

The numbers of surgical cases performed in the Galway Clinic has seen a slight decrease, which can be attributed to the cessation of the NTPF (National Treatment Purchase Fund), according to Mr Sheehan.

“With occupancy levels of 91 per cent last year, the fall off in surgery has not impacted the demand for services. We are currently developing a new multi-storey car park, which will be complete by December 2012. We are also considering building a whole new accommodation wing comprising of approximately 70 single rooms and a new 20-bed ICU department,” said Mr Sheehan.

And while the Galway clinic is looking to expand, Irish health insurers are slow to reveal a county-bycounty break down of the number of people cancelling their insurance.

George Field from VHI told The Clare People that the state-supported health insurer could not reveal the exact number of people from Clare that discontinued their insurance due to commercial sensitivities, but the number was down.

THE loss of the Sky Ride Etape Hibernia cycling race has been described as a “devastating blow” for the Clare tourism and cycling sectors.

The event, which has generated more then € 2 million for the local economy over the past two years, will not take place this year after race organisers, IMG Challenger World, decided to end their involved with the race.

The event attracted more then 3,000 cycling enthusiasts to Clare over the past two years with stars such as Irish cycling legend Sean Kelly and British Olympic gold medallist Denise Lewis taking part.

According to Patrick O’Donoghue of the Burren Cycling Club, a new event should be organised to fill the gap left by the Etape.

“|t is a devastating loss for the Clare cycling community but it is more of a loss for everyone involved in tourism in the county,” he told The Clare People .

“What we need now is for Shannon Development and Clare County Council to come together with the Clare cycling clubs and between us we can come up with an event to take its place and build on the momentum which has been built up over the past two years.”

These sentiments were echoed by Shannon Development’s Tourism Marketing Manager, Paul Ryan.

“We are disappointed with the news that IMG Challenger World will no longer be involved with the event. However, Shannon Develop- ment and Clare County Council will work with the Shannon Region Conference and Sports Bureau to secure a similar cycle event for the county,” he said.

“We understand that IMG Challenger World, although acknowledging that the event attracted significant numbers of cyclists and their families to Clare, felt the number of participants didn’t reach their projected levels and therefore was not commercially viable for IMG.

“The 2010 Lonely Planet Travel Guide named County Clare in the top 10 super cycling routes in the world. This is testament to the amount of work that has gone into the development of the tourism cycling product in the region in recent times. We will continue to build on the county’s growing reputation as a cycling destination.”

In August of 2010 the inaugural Sky Ride Etape Hibernia became Ireland’s first ever closed road mass participation cycling event. A similar event organised by IMG in Scotland attracts more than 5,000 participants each year.

A MAN alleged to have wasted Garda time in Ennis last summer has been returned for trial. Bernard Flaherty (37), with an address at 3 Lifford Lodge, Ennis, appeared at Ennis District Court last Wednesday.

It is alleged that on June 24, 2011, at Ennis Garda Station, Flaherty did knowingly make a false statement tending to show that he had information material to Garda enquiries and thereby causing the time of the Gardaí to be wastefully employed. It arose out of a three-week Garda search for a missing man in Ennis last June. The court previously heard that the person died of natural causes.

Sgt Catherine Houlihan told the court that she had served the book of evidence on Flaherty. Insp John Galvin said it was appropriate for this matter to be returned for trail to the next sitting of Ennis Circuit Court. He said the State did not have any objection to bail. Judge Patrick Durcan remanded Flaherty on bail to appear at Ennis Circuit Court in May.

A GOVERNMENT TD has claimed that there is still hope for two Clare schools, which did not make the much-publicized five-year school building plan.

The Government was criticized for failing to include a new school for Sixmilebridge on its building plans.

Deputy Joe Carey (FG) said this week that the school would progress to final planning stages “in anticipa- tion of further funds being available to the Department of Education”, but for now the money for the school is not available.

“I welcome this clarification from the Minister and the job now is for us to continue to work with the school authorities and within Government to make a new school a reality. I have met with Minister Quinn to discuss Sixmilebridge National School and he has indicated to me today that he will meet with school authorities in the near future,” said Deputy Carey.

There is funding available for Quin National School to develop eight new classrooms as announced last November, according to the Fine Gael TD.

There was much concern locally last week when the school was not listed in the Government’s five-year plan.

Last November, the Department of Education and Skills informed school authorities of plans to provide eight additional classrooms at Quin National School in order to cater for current and future capacity needs of the school.

While the school was not part of the recently announced five-year school building plan, Deputy Carey said received assurances from the Department of Education that the school build will go ahead as planned.

“I have worked closely with Quin National School in recent years to ensure the school grows in line with the expected needs of the local area. I want to pay tribute to school principal Anne Fitzpatrick and the Board of Management for their tireless work on this issue,” he said.

“I can confirm that funding is secure for an additional eight classrooms, to allow Quin National School to develop into a 12-classroom school in accordance with the announcement of last November. A statement in response to my representations from the Minister for Education’s office confirms the project will be devolved and the technicalities of this are currently being worked through.”

CLARE’S new District Court Judge has led the tributes to his former student, Eugene O’Kelly.

Mr O’Kelly, a West Clare solicitor, was last week appointed as a District Court Judge by the Government.

It is expected that Mr O’Kelly will serve in Limerick.

At Ennis District Court on Wednesday, as news broke of Mr O’Kelly’s appointment, Judge Patrick Durcan paid tribute to his former student.

Judge Durcan, who was a lecturer of Mr O’Kelly at University College Galway, said he had been delighted to learn of the appointment.

Judge Durcan said Mr O’Kelly had been a “brilliant student”. He added that the bench will be “enlivened and enriched by someone of his capacity”. He said the fact that Mr O’Kelly was being assigned to Limerick illustrated the high degree of faith and trust that exists in him.

Mr O’Kelly thanked Judge Durcan for his words. He said he was “honoured and delighted” by the appointment. Speaking at the Ennis office of his law practice on Thursday, Mr O’Kelly said he was “stunned” when he received a phonecall from the Minister for Justice, Alan Shatter, informing him of his appointment.

He added, “It’s a great honour for me, my family, Kilrush and West Clare.”

The Kilrush native qualified from University College Galway in 1981. He joined the legal practice of Aylmer O’Doherty and worked with him until his retirement in 1990.

After practicing on his own, he took on a partner, Patrick Moylan, five years ago. O’Kelly Moylan Solicitors now has offices in Kilrush and Ennis.

Mr O’Kelly said, “I would not have accepted the post if I thought my clients were going to suffer. I have every confidence that I am leaving the practice in very good hands under the direction of Patrick Moylan.”

Mr O’Kelly has worked on many high-profile cases. He represented Ennis woman Sharon Collins in the ‘hitman for hire’ case. He said, “I will forever be associated with the high-profile cases but the smaller cases will always be as important.”

The 58-year-old lives near Kilkee with his wife Felicity. He is the father of two children. His son Eoghan works with a legal firm in New York, while daughter Aoiffe is an architect in Sydney.

Mr O’Kelly, who has previously spoken out against the closure of rural courthouses, is also a passionate landscape photographer.

He is looking forward to the next stage of his legal career. “I am apprehensive but not nervous knowing that there is an enormous responsibility to the court and the office of the court.”

CLAIMS by a nurse that she was verbally abused in Ennis Garda Station have been described as an “appalling attempt to muddy the waters” by a Judge. Judge Patrick Durcan was speaking at Ennis District Court on Wednesday as he disqualified mother of two Jane O’Leary (55) from driving for a period of four years.

O’Leary, formerly of 10 Main Street, Clarecastle, and now living in Cork, was charged with failing to provide two specimens of breath at Ennis Garda Station on August 2, 2010.

The court heard that on the day in question, the accused was arrested in the Kilrush Road area of Ennis on suspicion of drunk driving. Garda Val McCormack told the court that after stopping O’Leary’s car, he got a “very strong smell of alcohol from her breath”. He said, “She appeared to be very intoxicated and drunk”. Garda Shane O’Connell told the court that he operated the intoxalyser machine at Ennis Garda Station when O’Leary was conveyed there. He said that she twice failed to provide a breath specimen when asked to do so in the doctor’s room of the station.

Solicitor for O’Leary, Tara Godfrey, put it to Garda O’Connell that her client would say that he called her a “dirty c***” as she attempted to provide a breath specimen in the doctor’s room. This was instantly rejected by Garda O’Connell. He said, “I did not say that. I would never say something like that.” Judge Durcan said he was disregarding the accused’s allegation and accepting what Garda O’Connell said. He said, “It is totally not acceptable that this allegation is thrown out in criminal proceedings.”

The court heard that in the 18 months since the accused was arrested, no official complaint was made to any garda authority. O’Leary, a nurse and psychotherapist, told the court that she had been “really upset and anxious” at the time. She said she “felt under pressure” to provide the sample. “He was calling me names under his breath and that upset me greatly, she said. She told the court that when she left the room, she told another garda about the alleged incident. “He said he would put the complaint upstairs. I didn’t follow it up.”

Describing the allegation as “reprehensible”, Insp John Galvin said, “I feel this allegation was brought up to muddy the waters and to cast aspersions on the character of a guard.” Insp Galvin told the court there was “overwhelming evidence” heard that O’Leary failed to produce a breath specimen.

Judge Durcan said, “A most appalling and serious allegation was made in the privilege of this court.” He said he was satisfied that the accused was guilty. He continued, “I regard this as the most appalling attempt to muddy the waters and to bring into question the character of a garda.” Judge Durcan added, “I am totally satisfied that all gardaí conducted themselves properly in the matter of this case.”

Ms Godfrey said her client had gone through a difficult separation and her life had “fallen apart” at the time. She said O’Leary had not realised that she could make an official complaint.

Judge Durcan said this was not believable as O’Leary was a “highly trained and qualified person”. He said only for the accused’s personal circumstances, he would have imposed a fourmonth prison sentence. He disqualified her from driving for four years and imposed a fine of € 1,500. Recognances were fixed in the event of an appeal.

THE community of Lissycasey is holding a series of fundraisers to support a young local family faced with tragedy.

Louise Earle from Abhain Sleibh, Lissycasey, was left to raise four children under the age of seven following the tragic death of her husband Kevin.

The young mother is also battling breast cancer and dealing with the fall-out of the treatment, as she cares for her little children Caitlin, Thomas, Jack and George.

The local community is now rallying around to help the family as they face a very difficult time.

A committee representing the various community organisations in the Lissycasey parish has been set up to give some financial assistance to the family to help them through the dif- ficult coming months.

The fundraising will begin with a door-to-door envelope collection during the week for anyone who wishes to contribute.

“We understand that the recession has affected everybody but we know from experience that people’s hearts are in the right place and this recent tragedy has certainly touched the hearts of all,” said Linda Eustace, a member of the committee.

“All contributions, however small, would be gratefully accepted,” she added.

Members of the committee began calling to homes in Lissycasey last evening (Monday) and will return by the end of the week to collect the envelopes. The committee will also be organising more fundraisers in the coming weeks.

For more information, contact local county councillor PJ Kelly or Linda Eustace.

A CLARE man is among 20 people to have made a complaint or query to the Data Protection Commission- er over requests on the household charge’s website for additional personal information. James Fahy, who paid the € 100 tax, wrote to the Department of the Environment saying he had no problem paying the tax, but objected to handing over his PPS number, telephone number and email address to an anonymous body that “does not even have an address”. The Household Charge Operations unit had told him they could not set up his account “due to insufficient information”, namely the lack of a PPS number. The household charge website asks for a PPS number and also for email and telephone numbers to provide annual reminders or “to notify property owners of potential liability for household charges”. While Mr Fahy had issues with providing personal information but was willing to pay the tax, more Clare people are refusing to make the € 100 payment before the March 31 deadline. A group based in West Clare took its campaign against the household charge to three of the county’s St Patrick’s Day parades at the weekend. The Enough Campaign’s West Clare branch manned “information desks” at the Kilkee and Kilrush parades on Saturday, while they handed out leaflets at Sunday’s Doonbeg parade. Karen McCormack of the group objecting to the household charge said the information desks were very busy. “The only negative response we got at the parade was from people thinking we were handing out information on how to pay the tax. Once these people realised we were objecting to the payment, they were fine,” she said. “This is a stealth tax and we know it is not paying for any local amenities, but to pay back bondholders. They (the Government) have already cut € 170 million for local government funds.”

MORE than 4,500 family carers from Clare are “under siege”, according to an advocacy group that is urging them to stand up and be counted.

The county’s dedicated family carers provide more than 99,000 hours of care every week, saving the local social economy more than € 67 million every year, yet this year they faced cuts to their social welfare support.

The Carers Association claim that these carers are under siege as the Government reviews policies, including the Domiciliary Care Allowance.

The Government is currently reviving the National Carers Strategy, put on hold due to budgetary constraints in 2009.

As a result the Carers Association is urging carers across Clare to attend its upcoming ‘Listening to Carers’ forum and have their say.

This forum, being held as part of a number of events around the country, will give family carers the opportunity to tell The Carers Association what they would like included in the National Carers Strategy as well as inform Government policy.

“Given the current crisis faced by family carers in relation to cuts on Domiciliary Care payments, it is now more important than ever that their voices are heard. We are urging carers across Clare to come to our forum and have their say to inform Governmental Policy and the National Carers Strategy” said Catherine Cox, Communications Manager of The Carers Association.

The Carers Association’s ‘Listening to Carers’ forum for carers from Limerick, Clare and Tipperary will be held in Limerick’s South Court Hotel on Monday, March 26 from 10.30 am to 1.30 pm. This will include a presentation from The Carers Association and workshops to get the views of family carers.

“There are an estimated 161,000 family carers in Ireland, providing over three million hours of care per week and saving the state almost four billion euro every year. The Carers Association works towards recognition, empowerment and a better quality of life for Ireland’s family carers,” said Ms Cox.