Category: News

IF someone behaves like a ‘lout,’ he should accept that a criminal conviction goes with the territory, according to a judge.

Judge Angela Ní Chondúin made the comment in a public order case, before striking out the charge.

Aidan McCarthy (19), of Clarehill, Clarecastle, pleaded guilty to being intoxicated in public, on Abbey Street, on September 1.

Garda Crowley told Ennis District Court that gardaí received a report that a man was walking up O’Connell Street hitting windows and the accused was subsequently arrested.

Defending solicitor Tara Godfrey said the accused, a barman, had no previous convictions and the incident was out of character. She said her client could pay money to the court’s poor box and asked that he be given “one golden opportunity”.

Judge Angela Ní Chondúin said, “I am not mad about the idea of the poor box. I think a criminal record will straighten him up, rather than taking a few hundred euro off him. If you want to behave like a lout and get drunk in public, the criminal conviction comes with the territory. He should know a lot more about drink than others, because he is a barman.”

She then adjourned the case to allow the accused to come up with €300 for the court poor box. The money was later paid in.

“I take it we won’t see him back here again. I am striking it out,” said the judge.

FINE Gael leader Enda Kenny has not ruled out the controversial Hanly Report for Clare, but has warned that the proposed centralisation of hospital services is not based on patients’ needs.

The alternative Taoiseach also warned that the capital development programme for Ennis General Hospital was “a smoke screen” to hide “the fact that the Government does not want to improve services” at the county hospital.

Deputy Kenny said he was concerned that the Government was planning to downgrade services there “in the long run”.

In an interview with The Clare People , the Leader of the Opposition said “no services should be removed from smaller hospitals until there is a genuine alternative in place that would not affect patient care.

“Many of the plans for centralisation of hospital services around the country do not focus on the needs of the patient, but rather appear to be based on cost containment.”

He said the infrastructure for routine transfer of patients over long distances between hospitals was not in place.

“The Government has consistently refused to give any commitment on the future status of Ennis hospital, and there is every reason to be concerned that Fianna Fáil and the PDs want to downgrade it to a local hospital.”

As the country’s politicians prepare to return to the Dáil after their long summer break, Deputy Kenny criticised the Government’s lack of commitment to the Banner County, which he said can be seen from its poor job-creation record.

“New jobs are being created across the country, but Ennis is being left behind. Ennis must not become a dormitory town, with its residents forced to travel elsewhere to work,” he warned.

“Job creation depends on good transport links, and Fine Gael believes the Western Rail Corridor should play an integral role in attracting new employers.”

He said his party sees Shannon Airport as vital to the future of the mid-West and the entire country.

He added that access to the airport was vital to making Shannon an attractive destination for any airline planning to avail of Open Skies, “and if this isn’t prioritised, we will have grass growing on the runway long before 2015.

“Any loss of access to the US will impact on critical US employment in the Shannon area and risks seeing big investors pull out of the West.

“Although discussion on Open Skies has been deferred, should it become a reality, Open Skies will present opportunities for every EU and US airport, including Shannon. Equally, Shannon will face competition from every well-placed European airport, most of which have excellent onward links to almost any other mainland destination. That is why domestic links to Shannon must be prioritised,” he said.

Deputy Kenny outlined how the people of Clare had suffered a decline in quality of life in the last decade.

“The Government has given lipservice to the rights of people to build houses in their own communities, while working against this through planning regulations,” he said.

“Average house prices are up from €69,000 in 1996 (the last full year Fine Gael was in office) to €245,000 at the end of last year making it impossible for many young couples to afford their own home,” he added.

“There are 3157 primary school children in classes of 30 or more, despite Fianna Fail promises.”

THE proposed €1.2 million Shannon Recycling Centre has attracted 12 tenders, Clare County Council has confirmed. Construction work for the centre, which will be operational by the summer of 2007, is expected to commence before the end of the year.

“The project, which involves an investment of some €400,000 from the council’s own resources, was given a significant boost earlier this year when it was allocated €800,000 in funding by the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government,” said Ger Dollard, Shannon Town Manager.

“We need to continue to encourage and support all those who are genuinely interested in properly managing waste. This centre will accept the full range of materials including glass, plastic, paper, timber cans, clothes and electrical and electronic wastes. It should significantly improve the already very high recycling rates achieved by householders in the county,” added Councillor Patricia McCarthy (Ind), Chairperson of Environment and Emergency Services and Consumer Protection Strategic Policy Committee.

In addition, the council has announced plans to open up over 100 acres of land for residential and commercial development in the town. The local authority is currently considering six tenders for the construction of a southern primary road in the Tullyvarraga area of the town.

It is anticipated that construction of the new multi-million euro road network project will commence in November 2006.

FINE Gael leader Enda Kenny is optimistically seeking two seats in the next elections, despite claims at grassroots level that he is overloading the constituency with too many candidates.

Deputy Kenny has told The Clare People that he expects a 50 per cent success rate in Clare next summer.

“I think that if the people want change and a Government that will work as hard as they do, they’ll vote Fine Gael and give us two seats here in Clare,” he said.

“We have four exceptional candidates and as long as we work as a team and urge the voters to use their vote to change the Government, I’m confident we can take two seats.”

But the team have to carve out the mostly rural constituency between them.

In an unprecedented move, the party’s Executive Council added Cllrs Joe Carey and Madeleine TaylorQuinn to the ticket, which already included Deputy Pat Breen and Cllr Tony Mulcahy following a contentious convention in May.

It was believed Mr Kenny had promised Cllr Taylor Quinn a place on the ticket if she ran in the European election, a promise that he kept.

A party poll at Christmas showed an increase in Fine Gael popularity in Clare and the possibility of securing the coveted second seat the leader now craves.

But the addition of the two names led to fears among local party members that its current seat was in danger. At a national conference in Athlone, Deputy Kenny tried to revert back to a selection process that would allow a number of delegates from each branch select the candidates.

He was narrowly defeated in a vote, which meant the one-person -one-vote method introduced six years ago remained. This week, he said he had no plans to change that selection process.

Meanwhile, he refused to speculate about the chances of a Clare minister in a Fine Gael-led government.

“Forming a Government and appointing ministers is a job for after the election,” he said.

A YOUNG woman who stole soothers and false fingernails from a chemist in Ennis has been warned she will face a spell behind bars, if she reoffends.

Judge Angela Ní Chondúin made the comments in the case of an 18-year-old woman who pleaded guilty to stealing the items at Boot’s Chemist, O’Connell Street, Ennis, on September 2 last.

Ann Molloy (18), of Bay 2, Ballaghboy Halting Site, Quin Road, Ennis, pleaded guilty to one offence. The value of the stolen property was €17.40 and it was later recovered.

Garda Regan told Ennis District Court that he arrested the accused shortly after 2.30pm on the date of the offence. She made no reply to charge after caution.

Defending solicitor Siobhán McMahon said her client’s mother was due to have a baby and she was excited at the impending birth of her sibling. The solicitor said the accused’s parents were both unemployed.

Judge Angela Ní Chondúin said, “We are looking at custody.”

She said she would order the accused to carry out 100 hours community service, in lieu of two months in jail.

The judge said she would adjourn the case for three months and warned that the accused must not get into trouble in the interim.

“She is not to come to adverse Garda attention before that. If she does, forget the community service. It will be two months custody,” warned the judge.

MANAGERS at Shannon Airport have been warned that a €30 million redundancy package will be off the table at the end of the week if it is not accepted by unions.

John Horgan, Director of Change Management at Shannon Airport, said the package includes a voluntary severance deal, including enhanced pensions for those nearing retirement and various compensation measures for those staying.

Mr Horgan told The Clare People that Shannon Airport would lose an estimated €130 million during the next 10 years.

“We must find a way of reducing the cost at Shannon to bring it in line with the other airports,” he said.

“We were willing to discuss any proposal made by the unions that would contribute to the airport but no such proposals were forth coming,” he said.

Airport managers have voted unanimously to conduct a ballot for industrial action up to and including strike.

The managers, who are members of IMPACT, oppose cuts in services which they say will cost up to 75 jobs.

General election candidate, Cllr Madeleine Taylor Quinn (FG), has appealed to both parties to sit down to try to find common ground, in the interest of the workers and the future of the airport.

The union claims that closure of a bar and reduced opening hours in the airport restaurant are knock-on effects of a management decision not to replace certain part-time positions when staff leave.

IMPACT Assistant General Secretary Michael Landers said “the cuts would lead to an unnecessary loss of jobs and will undermine the airport’s viability at a time when passenger numbers and profits have never been higher.

“These are profitable operations and the airport authority is engaging in a reckless act of economic vandalism in a crude attempt to impose their will on the workforce.”

The issue has already been to the Labour Relation Commission, the National Implementation Body and the Labour Court.

“I regret that the management and unions are taking such a polarized position,” said Cllr Taylor-Quinn.

“I believe the forecast of €135 million loss over the next 10 years needs to be addressed in detail and it must also be taken into account that a loss was forecast in the past and that turned into a profit,” she said.

THE crew of a transport lorry was left stranded for over six hours after their vehicle became bogged down in flood waters in Clare last Friday.

The driver and his colleague, who were delivering Guinness kegs to pubs and hotels in the north Clare area, were plucked to safety by a good Samaritan truck driver, who steered his heavy vehicle through more than five feet of water. The men jumped onto the front of the second truck which carried them back to dry land.

The drama began at 7am on Friday as the Guinness lorry, operated by a contractor on behalf of the drinks’ company, was making deliveries in the north of the county. Following overnight heavy rain, low lying fields flooded the R476 road at Lemenagh Castle near Kilnaboy.

Truck driver Ray Collins from Limerick explained, “There was a sign back the road which said the road ahead was flooded. When we got there, another truck drove through no problem, but as we were almost through, the truck just stopped”.

Mr Collins and his colleague Gary Shinners, also from Limerick, had to jump onto the rear of their vehicle when the cab began to flood.

“It looked very deceiving. Before we knew it we were in six feet of water. We called the company to let them know what was happening. When the felt the water at our feet in the cab, it was time to get out. We climbed onto the trailer were we stayed. It was too deep to dry and walk out. We weren’t in any danger, but all the time we were there, only one person actually asked if we were alright, or if we needed a phone.”

At around 1.30pm, a passing truck driver offered to help and drove his vehicle into the floodwaters. As his truck came nose-to-nose with the stranded Guinness lorry, Mr Collins and Mr Shinners jumped onto the front of the vehicle and were taken to safety.

“There was no sign of the water going down and if it got any higher, we were going to use the barrels to try and get out,” Mr Collins said.

It was late on Friday evening when the stranded lorry was eventually towed from the flood waters. The Corofin to Lemenagh Castle road remained closed for two days.

CLARE County Council is set for an estimated €2.25 million windfall with the proposed sale of nine acres of land at Ballycasey, on the outskirts of Shannon town.

Local councillors, Patricia McCarthy (Ind) and Tony Mulcahy (FG), yesterday called for the proceeds of the sale to be channelled into projects mooted for Shannon,

The land is up for public auction on October 20 and the site is described as being a prime location at the entrance to Shannon town, the international airport and the Shannon Free Zone. It has substantial road frontage and is close to a large residential area.

The zoning of the land is also expected to increase its value as it is zoned for a mix of uses, while all services are located close to the site.

Cllr McCarthy said that the money from the sale could go towards local projects, including the proposed Arts Centre and other recreational facilities.

Fine Gael general election candidate Tony Mulcahy said he had no issue with the sale because the council would receive a good figure for the land, but the area councillors should have been briefed on the council’s intentions.

He said that the council zoned the land for mixed use only four days before it was advertised for sale.

Cllr Mulcahy said that there was a real need to invest in recreational facilities in the southern end of Shannon where, currently, there is a lot of development.

The proposed sale is the second land sale that the council has been involved in over the past 18 months.

In April of last year, the council sold a two-acre site at Ballymurtagh Cross for €500,000.

The site was purchased by Managing Director of Beaux Walk Properties, Barry Boland, in trust for the Shannon Railway Company.

Mr Boland made the purchase to secure lands reserved for the route of the €60 million rail-link into Shannon airport.

The council compulsorily purchased the site from Shannon Development as part of the N19 road improvements into Shannon.

The Compulsory Purchase Order related to 4.23 acres and the recent sale by the council concerns 1.9 acres of land left over from the road improvements.

LAST week’s torrential rain left a number of families trapped in their homes in the Glasha area of Doolin. Local residents have expressed their anger at the flooding, which they believe is the result of works carried out by Clare County Council more than seven years ago.

According to one family, the problem began when the council carried out works on the main Lisdoonvarna to Doolin road as part of upgrade work to the water system in the late 1990’s.

Glasha resident Treasa Flaherty claims that she has raised this issue several times with a number of local county councilors over the last five years but no action has been taken.

“I’m sick and tired of talking to them about it and nothing seems to happen,” said Ms Flaherty. “The lady next door could not even come out into her driveway last week, the water was right up to the door.

“Once any heavy rains starts at all, there is a flood. I have been talking to local councilors about it for the last five years and I am just sick of it.”

Ms Flaherty claims that works undertaken by Clare County Council have turned the roadway into a funnel, directing floods of rainwater onto her property.

“They did the water works about seven or eight years ago and as part of that they changed the roads outside the front of the house,” continues Ms Flaherty. “It is very high in the middle and very low on side which means that all the water is being directed straight at my house.

“My lawn and garden is getting the full impact of the flooding. It is doing awful damage to the garden and the wall is being totally destroyed.”

The Clare People contacted the county council local area office in Ennistymon in relation to this matter, but no comment was forthcoming at the time of going to press.

TAOISEACH Bertie Ahern has this week described Clare junior minister Tony Killeen (right) as ministerial material.

In an interview with The Clare People the Taoiseach said, “Since his promotion to Minister for Labour Affairs, Tony Killeen has shown a great ability to solve complex problems and address issues of importance in the workplace.

“Tony has shown his capability as a minister, and I look forward to working with him up until the next election and beyond it.”

The Fianna Fail leader would not say, however, how many Fianna Fáil seats would have to be secured in the next election for a Clare minister to be appointed.

“There is no doubt that we want to regain the seat we lost here in 2002. Clare has always had a proud Fianna Fáil representation, and in the next election we will be going all out to take three seats,” he said.

With the departure of Minister for State Síle deValera from the political scene next summer, the Taoiseach said it was important Fianna Fáil put together a strong team to contest the next election.

“Brendan Daly has resolutely defended the interests of Clare people for many years, and I am confident that next summer he will return to the Dáil to continue his good work for the Clare people. Timmy Dooley completes our team. He brings energy and drive, ensures that issues which matter to the people of Clare are made priority and resolved,” said the Government leader.

He said the current Fianna Fáil representation of two Ministers of State and two senators meant that Clare retained a powerful voice in Dublin.

“After the next election, I am confident that Clare can again have three FF TDs who represent the county in the Dáil and in Government Departments,” added Mr Ahern.

“Fianna Fáil are proud of our record of delivery in Clare. Working with the people of Clare, we have made good progress across a wide spectrum of issues. Now we want to build on this progress,” he said.