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RENEWED calls have been made for the Government to abolish its new air travel tax in a bid to protect hundreds of jobs in Shannon and Dublin airports.

Independent councillor and former Mayor of Clare, Patricia McCarthy issued the plea in response to Rya- nair’s renewed pledge to reverse its decision to axe services at the air- ports should the Government decide to abolish the €10 tax.

Ryanair called on the Government to scrap its flat rate €10 travel tax, which is due to be introduced on April | next.

“This tax will further devastate traffic and tourism at the Irish airports, and will result in major cuts to Ryanair’s flights, schedules and traffic at Cork and Shannon airports,” a spokesman for the airline said.

Ryanair recently announced its decision to reduce services at the airports with the expected loss of at least 300 jobs and a fall of two mil- lion passengers. The low-cost car- rier has publicly blamed the negative impact of the departure tax on travel bookings as the primary reason for its move. Cllr McCarthy said the Government must now immediately clarify whether it intends to remove

or at least reduce the tax.

“It is incumbent on Government to explain to the Irish public to what ex- tent the air travel tax is more benefi- cial to the economy than the signifi- cant jobs and revenue generated by the Ryanair services in question.

If the Government cannot justify this tax, then it should be held ac- countable for the loss of these jobs,” added Cllr McCarthy.

According to the Shannon-based public representative, ““Whether this is a manufactured excuse for with- drawing services or not, the airline has clearly said it will reverse its decision to axe services and jobs if the tax is

abolished. I believe that the benefits for the economy in having these serv- ices retained at Shannon and Dublin far outweigh the benefits associated with keeping this tax in place.”

Commenting on the Minister for Finance, Brian Lenihan’s proposal to exclude smaller airports from the travel tax, Kieran O’ Donnell TD (FG Limerick East) said that the exclusion of Shannon is potentially hugely de- structive for the airport, Limerick and the entire mid-west region.

“T will be bringing this up in the Dail and I am calling on the Govern- ment to include Shannon Airport in the proposed exemption,” he said.

REPEATED questioning of a garda over a confidential informant in a drugs case caused concern to gardai, during a court case where a man was accused of drug dealing.

The questioning by a barrister prompted the garda giving evidence to stress it was his duty to protect elu Keshe

Father-of-three James O’Toole (39), a stonemason, of Main Street, O’Briensbridge, admitted a charge of possession of cannabis but contested a charge of possession of the drug for sale or supply, on January 26, 2007.

Garda Ronan O’Hara told Killaloe District Court that he received confi- dential information from a “reliable source’ and on foot of this, he ob- tained a search warrant in court un- der the Misuse of Drugs Act.

He and a number of other gardai then went with the Garda drugs dog to the accused’s home on the evening of January 26, 2007.

He said that on arrival at the house, the accused shouted out a word to the back of the house, which sounded like “screws”. “He tried to impede my entry to the house,’ said Gda O’ Hara.

He said he immediately went to the back of the house, where another man was present. He said the ac- cused was “handcuffed and placed sitting down under supervision in the sitting room area” while the other man was placed under supervision in the kitchen area, but was not hand- cuffed. Gardai then proceeded to carry out a search of the house.

He said he found a bowl with loose cannabis on the kitchen table, where there also was a large vacuum sealed

bag of cannabis herb. He found three snap-top bags containing cannabis herb in the same area. A weighing scales was also found.

He said that the value of the items found amounted to less than €500, but said he believed that was a con- servative estimate.

Gda O’Hara told the court that when questioned, O’Toole said he smoked cannabis “as much as you would smoke cigarettes’, for pain relief, while he also used it for cook- ing. He told gardai he did not deal drugs.

Asked by defence counsel Laurence Goucher, BL, about the confidential source the garda had referred to, Gda O’ Hara said the source had been used in the past. Asked was this person on a list of confidential informants, the garda replied, “It’s my own duty to protect these sources.”

When the garda was asked was this individual on a register, Inspec- tor John Galvin, prosecuting, said, “IT fail to see the benefits in it. The garda went before a court (to obtain a warrant) and satisfied a district court judge.”

As the barrister continued to cross- examine the garda about the source, Inspector Galvin said he was “a bit concerned. We are here in the mid- dle of a drugs trial. I’m not sure where this is going.”

Judge Joseph Mangan then said he was not going to “compel the garda to answer” the question put to him by the barrister.

Garda O’Hara said there was a lot of herbal cannabis present and a lot of paraphernalia that would suggest drug dealing.

“It was the scenario of walking in on someone and catching them red-

handed. There was bags everywhere. There was cannabis,” said the garda. He accepted that there were no drugs found on either the accused or the other person who was in the house PLM NO Com BODO Lee

Detective Sergeant Oliver Nevin told the court he was part of the group of gardai who went to the house that night. He said the accused was “very aggressive and very abusive towards us while we were trying to secure the kitchen area”. He said there was drugs paraphernalia all over the kitchen. “Large amounts of canna- bis were being ground down and put into smaller bags. That would be my opinion,” he said.

Judge Joseph Mangan convicted O’Toole and imposed a six-month jail term. He refused an application to suspend this and fixed a bond in the event of an appeal.

Car break-in arrests

AFTER a trial which lasted three days, a jury took less than 30 min- utes to find a Ballyvaughan man not guilty of assaulting an off-duty garda, knocking him unconscious and breaking his nose.

Brendan d’Arcy (22), of Glenfort, Bally vaughan, had pleaded not guilty to the charge of assaulting Adrian

Cosgrave in Ballyvaughan on Janu- ary 1, 2008, causing him harm.

Ennis circuit court heard various witnesses say that the accused had either kicked or headbutted Mr Cos- grave after the injured party went to remonstrate with him about his driv- bite

It was claimed Mr Cosgrave’s pas- senger was sitting on the door frame with his hands on the roof of the car

as he drove through Ballyvaughan.

Mr d@’Arcy denied that Mr Cosgrave produced his Garda ID before he tried to take the keys of the car out of the ignition.

He said in a statement to gardai that Mr Cosgrave was shouting and was very aggressive and he feared that Mr Cosgrave was about to attack him.

He agreed that he punched the in- jured party but said that he did so in

self-defence.

In the witness box, Mr Cosgrave said he and a large group of friends had gone to Ballyvaughan for the night to celebrate.

After summations, Judge Raymond Fullam sent the jury home on Fri- day and told them they could begin their deliberations on Tuesday. They returned a not guilty verdict on Tues- day morning.

A GROUP of five councillors are de- ciding the future of 25,000 people in Ennis, a local protest has heard.

Fine Gael councillor and local businessman Johnny Flynn hit out at a party colleague and four other En- nis councillors at yesterday’s march organised by the Ennis Forum.

He alleged that Tommy Brennan (Ind), Peter Considine (FF), Joe Rei- dy (FF), Mary Coote Ryan (FG) and Frankie Neylon (Ind), are controlling policies that are “anti business and anti-jobs”.

“T’m four and a half years over in that chamber. I’m sick to the teeth of listening to five people who are running this town,’ Cllr Flynn told protestors outside the offices of En- nis Town Council.

“A group of five people are deciding the future of 25,000 people. There are nine councillors, five of them hold power. They are Tommy Bren- nan, Frankie Neylon, Mary Coote Ryan, Joe Reidy and Peter Consid- ine. Those five people are deciding on policies for the last four and a half years of my experience in the cham- ber. Five people are voting and con- trolling the policies of this town.”

Cllr Flynn, a member of the Ennis

Forum, addressed representatives from 150 businesses.

Architect and Ennis Forum com- mittee member Michael Leahy told the crowd that the protest was taking place because “businesses in Ennis are tired of not being listened to”.

He said the forum was established in response to the perception that En- nis 1s “losing its status as a county town”.

Mr Leahy said increases in com- mercial rates put forward by the council in its 2009 budget were “un-

acceptable”.

DRIVING around a roundabout on the incorrect side or driving through a red light could be potentially fatal, a judge stated yesterday.

Judge Timothy Lucey made the comment in the case of Ali Lynch (31), of Marlee House, Keevagh, Quin, who was charged with failing to give a sample to gardai and also two counts of dangerous driving, arising out of the incident on Octo- ber 16 last.

Inspector John O’Sullivan told En- nis District Court that a garda came across the defendant who was driv- ing a Mitsubishi Colt at 2.30am.

He said the car appeared to be sway- ing on the road at one stage. The garda activated the patrol car’s blue lights and siren and a pursuit took place.

The defendant’s car crossed to the incorrect side at the Maid of Erin roundabout and proceeded around the roundabout on the incorrect side.

The car drove through the red light at Club Bridge and the driver nearly

lost control, before being apprehend- ed by gardai on Abbey Street.

Lynch’s solicitor said there was not much traffic around at the time. “It’s accepted that this was appalling, bad driving. It’s accepted he should have stopped,” he said.

‘He panicked and started digging a hole for himself. In these cases, you make one bad decision and this leads to another,” he said.

He said that the accused had at- tempted to blow into the machine on a number of occasions but was

unable to provide a sample as he has chest problems.

Judge Lucey said it appeared there was a litany of mistakes and bad driv- ing. “It was a particularly bad series of events. Going around roundabouts the incorrect side and through red lights are all potentially fatal situa- tions,” he said.

He banned the accused from driv- ing for four years and imposed fines totalling €1,200. He postponed the commencement of the driving ban until September 1.

THE county’s roads have claimed their first life of 2009, as a 35-year- old man was killed when his motor- bike collided with a ditch on the out- skirts of Ennis at the weekend.

Michael McInerney, a native of Caher in east Clare, was killed in a single vehicle accident, on the Kildysart road, just two miles from Ennis, shortly before lunchtime on Saturday.

He was pronounced dead at Ennis General Hospital at 1.55pm.

It is understood that the driver lost control of the vehicle, before hitting the ditch. He had been travelling to- wards Kildysart at the time of the crash.

Mr McInerney, a_ father-of-one, lived in the Cahercalla area of En- nis. He hailed from a much respected family in Caher.

A tradesman by profession, he had an extensive interest in motorbikes. He will be laid to rest tomorrow.

Mr McInerney was one of four peo- ple to loose their lives on the coun- try’s roads at the weekend.

Three people died in two separate road accidents in County Tipperary Oye LUN ACer-NA

can reveal. The hotel, which has been closed

since early 2008, will be reopened later this month under the guidance of local hotelier Noel Mulhaire. The business will now be known as the Woodstock Hotel, Golf and Spa Re- sort and will open following a deal brokered by Wyndham Worldwide on behalf of one of their largest UK-

PPO mM BETO N Koay

While a franchisee has yet to be announced, Wyndham Worldwide are reportedly in discussion with a number of interested parties.

“The Woodstock Hotel is a magnif- icent property that should never have closed. It is ideally located on its own beautiful grounds, houses an 18-hole championship golf course and has all the facilities you could possibly want from a four-star property. The tim- ing is good to make long-term deals for hotel properties in Ireland,” said Jason Wischoff, Development Man- ager for Wyndham Worldwide.

Recruitment for 50 positions will start immediately, with the hotel set to reopen on March 27. A further 20 positions will come online during the summer months.

“When times are hard, it’s all about

the product offering, the service and the value you offer. If you look after your customer, the business will look after itself,’ said Mr Mulhaire.

“IT would also add that our UK partners have a great track record in staging large events and spectacular banqueting.”

Meanwhile, the Shannon Branch of the Irish Hotels Federation (IHF) is warning that hotel opening on Sun- days may soon come to an end as bosses struggle to pay higher rates to staff.

“Current wage costs of over €20 an hour for Sunday working are un- justified and completely out of step with other countries,’ said Lahi- nch hotelier and chairperson of the Shannon Branch of the IHF, Michael Vaughan.

“Hoteliers have now been forced to

curtail services on Sunday as a result of the statutory requirement under the archaic Joint Labour Committee SAKURA OOM cerca DIE NUN ASN E: lore lished back in 1946 – and requires hotels operating outside of Dublin and Cork cities and Dun Laoghaire to pay double-time for work per- formed on Sundays.

‘There is no doubt that a more rea- sonable wage arrangement would re- sult in increased employment oppor- tunities on Sundays. Hotels simply cannot bear these high rates in the current market.

“It is jeopardising the viability of hotels which cannot sustain this level of cost and find themselves curtail- ing services on a Sunday,” added Mr WET ted athe

MAYBE The Avenue thought the hard work was done with back-to- back wins in consecutive weeks against Bunratty that seemed to tee up their season in both cup and league competition.

On the march in the cup and their league fate in their own hands with three games in hand on leaders Bun- ratty and only five points adrift.

The gap was expected to be down to two points come lunchtime on Sunday – second from bottom Moher Celtic were not about to spoil The Avenue’s recent spurt of form.

However, no one told the mercu- rial Dessie Molohan about the script prepared beforehand, or maybe they did.

Regardless, the Miltown man just tore it up thanks to a stunning hat- trick that has finally kick-started Mo- her’s league season.

And, Molohon’s influence was such that he had a notable assist in Mo- her’s fourth goal too, for it was his free kick that was turned into his own net by Avenue midfielder An- thony Whyte.

The biggest talking point, however, was Molohan’s winner in the second minute of injury time. It provoked a welter of controversy when he beat the offside trap, lobbed the advanc- ing Avenue keeper Shane O’Connell from outside the area and then fol- lowed up to slam the ball to the net from three yards.

Avenue screamed offside and had a case, but only a minute earlier were charmed when Killian Malone was harshly blown up for offside when clean through on O’Connell’s goal.

The moral of the story is an old cli- ché, but one that certainly held true for this dramatic finale – you win some and you lose some.

And, in truth this was a victory that Moher deserved, not only for the bril- liance of Molohan who was giving his second man-of-the-match display

in the space of 24 hours. On Saturday he worked the oracle for St Joseph’s Miltown Malbay in the Cusack Cup – this time his three goal salvo gave a new purpose to Moher’s season that looked to have reached an endgame when they were whipped 5-1 by Lif- ford in the cup the previous Sunday.

There was a dour opening to this one, and little by way of a hint to- wards the dramatic second half that EM AUIS Ke) ues

Avenue had the better of the early

exchanges, albeit they didn’t threaten Conor O’Loughlin’s goal. But the big breakthrough came 20 minutes in when Anthony Whyte’s through ball was clipped invitingly into the path of Davide Ghilardi by Mikey Mahony – the Frenchman did the rest when sidefooting the ball home from seven yards.

With Eoin Glynn and Gary Flynn industrious in midfield and Mahony buzzing up front, Avenue should have built on this start but gradually

allowed Moher gain a foothold.

Alan Clohessy’s free from outside the area forced Shane O’Connell into a fine fingertip save in the 35th minute, but five minutes later O’Connell was left stranded when Whyte headed Molohan’s inswing- ing free from just outside the area into his own net.

Moher were back in the ball game but 40 seconds into the second half gifted Avenue the lead once more when Conor O’Loughlin allowed

Eoin Glynn’s speculative toe-poke from outside the area go through his as

It looked like being the decisive blow of the second half before the game came alive in the final 20. Im- pressive substitute Killian Malone whipped in across 1n the 72nd minute and Molohan headed home.

Ten minutes later Diarmuid Daly threaded a ball through Avenue’s de- fence and into Molohan’s path – he was coolness personified in rounding O’Connell and rolling home the lead goal.

Avenue were now desperate to save the game and threw everything at Moher. They were rewarded in the 88th minute when David Herlihy’s cross from the byline was turned into his own net by Dara Blake.

Now Avenue hunted down the win- ner and substitute David Smith came close in the 89th minute when firing over the top from outside the area.

A share of the spoils seemed in store until Molohan stepped up to win the day for Moher.

Don’t know if he did try to keep the match ball for himself.

A COMMON enrollment policy for primary schools in the Ennis parish area will be launched in Ennis on Thursday.

The policy means that all student enrollments for children attending schools in the Ennis parish area will now be handled by the Clare Educa- tion Centre at the Kilrush Road, En- nis instead of by individual schools.

The key features of the new policy

are a co-coordinated structure for all schools, and common advertis- ing dates, application forms, closing dates and registration sessions.

The policy is the product of a series of meetings organised by the Ennis Education Forum, a body that rep- resents all schools in Ennis parish. The process has been facilitated by St Senan’s education office in Lim- erick. The office provides support to the Dioceses of Limerick, Killaloe and Kerry.

Speaking yesterday Joe O’Connell Director at St Senan’s said the En- nis Education Forum had explored several issues when formulating the policy.

‘The six schools in the Ennis par- ish came together to formulate the policy. The forum met regularly and a sub-committee of chairmen of Boards of Management and school principals was formed. They looked at applying a common set of proce- dures for all the schools.”

Mr O’Connell said that prior to the introduction of the new system, schools operated their own enroll- ment policies.

“One of the issues that they were working towards was a common agreement on areas such as applica- tion forms and closing dates for reg- istration. There was a lot of collabo- ration on all of the issues that were raised and the forum has worked hard to achieve it.”

The enrollment policy aims to guar-

antee 25 per cent of all new school places for minorities, Travellers and foreign nationals.

The common enrollment policy 1s due to be introduced in September. The aim is to provide a common enrollment policy for all schools in the Ennis parish, to include Catholic education and a welcome for pupils of other faiths and traditions.

The policy will be launched at in the Old Ground Hotel, Ennis on Thursday, March 5 at 8pm