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EVEN the weather was kind to Tua- mgraney on Friday when the Pride Of Place judges arrived in the vil- lage.

It was all hands on deck to make the two judges in the cross-border competition feel welcome and Tuam- graney residents showed they know how to lay out the red carpet.

“It couldn’t have gone better. Eve- ryone came together to make it a special day,” said Mary Cassidy, sec- retary of the Tuamgraney Develop- ment Association.

The day started with chairman of the association, Damien Heaney, Mary and a large group of local peo-

ple turning out to greet the judges, Tom Dowling and Alison Boyle.

They were brought to the East Clare Heritage Centre where Fr Brendan Quinliven and Alan Sparling greeted them dressed as Brian Bort and his brother and staged a small historical pageant.

Then Gordon Daly gave a power point presentation outling the local attractions and some of the history of the village.

The group then set off on a boat trip from Tuamghraney to Scariff harbour. On their return, the devel- Opment association representatives took the party on a walking tour of the memorial park and the proposed wildlife park before heading to Ra-

heen hospital.

‘At the hospital they met the staff and saw the facilities and then we introduced them to Paddy Gleeson, who turned 104 recently. He was able to talk to them about local his- tory and the the Black and Tans. It was fascinating,’ said Mary

After the hospital visit the judges went to the handball alley where youngsters put on a demonstration of handball skills.

Afterwards the winners of the anti- litter competition were anounced, be- fore the judges said their goodbyes.

Now the association and local peo- ple will have to wait until November to see if their hardy efforts will bear fruit.

“It was just fabulous that even the weather was good for that short while and they got to see Tuamgraney in the sunshine. The day was lovely and there was a lovely atmosphere, with the bouncy castle for the kids and face-painting — they were delighted,” said Mary.

She also stressed that simply win- ning is not the point in the competi- tion.

“Just to be nominated to take part for the first time was a great honour. And it was marvellous the way eve- ryone came together to lend support. The village looked lovely with all of the flags and bunting up for Clare as well. Maybe we’ll leave them up un- til November, just in case.”

CONCERNS have been expressed over the level of service for cystic fi- brosis (CF) sufferers in Clare.

Fine Gael TD Pat Breen told the Dail that around 30 cystic fibrosis patients in the county are attending for treatment at the Mid-Western Re- gional Hospital in Limerick.

He said that a full time consultant was needed to enhance the level of available care.

“The present consultant is due to retire and when the position is adver- tised, a consultant with a speciality in CF should be appointed. The pro- vision of a dedicated adult outpatient

unit 1s also essential. Such a unit is available for children but adults can- not avail of same,’ he said.

“Progress has been made in some areas and funding was allocated in 2006 and 2007 to put in place a full medical multidisciplinary team, fol- lowing an audit by the HSE in 2005 of the staffing levels at the hospital. However, while a number of posi- tions have been filled, there is seri- ous concern regarding the position of two CF nurse specialist positions, which have not been advertised, even though funding has been allocated. When will these positions be adver- tised and filled?” he asked.

“I recently met representatives of

the Clare branch of the Cystic Fi- brosis Association of Ireland and they outlined the stories of the bat- tles they fight every day for services. I met a woman whose son died six weeks ago, aged 23, and I admire her courage in playing a part with the association to highlight the plight of other sufferers. I was amazed by her strength in speaking about her son’s plight. She wants to do something for other CF sufferers in County Clare.”

In response, Minister for State, Mary Wallace, said that the HSE had advised that “An audit of CF staffing at the Mid-Western Regional Hosp1- tal was carried out in 2005. The HSE has since earmarked funding for the

creation of 8.5 additional posts to en- hance both the adult and paediatric CF service.

“The additional staff include a con- sultant respiratory physician with a special interest in cystic fibrosis and a consultant paediatrician with a special interest in respiratory medi- cine, supported by specialist nurses, a physiotherapist, a dietician, a social worker, a pharmacist and a medical scientist post. The HSE has advised that the dietician, the social worker and 0.5 of the physiotherapist post have been filled, the consultant posts are under consideration and it is in the process of recruiting the remain- ing posts.”

A NEW dawn for milk production in Ireland was heralded last Wednesday as Minister for Agriculture, Brendan Smith, signed the new regulations governing milk quotas into law.

The introduction of the new Eu- ropean Communities Milk Quota Regulations effectively revokes the current national regulations govern- ing the super levy/milk quota regime and replaces them with new consoll- dated regulations.

Despite reservations 1n some quar- ters about the new regulations, Min- ister Smith emphasised that the new laws were the product of an extensive review of legislation on milk quotas, and that the principle of simplifica-

tion was at the heart of the laws.

“The clear focus of the review of the milk quota regulations has been on the need to bring legislation in this area up to date at a time of great change in the dairy sector,’ he an- nounced.

‘As market conditions change and the abolition of quotas draws nearer, it is now time to make the function- ing of the quota regime more flex- ible and, in particular, to remove any unnecessary obstacles to consolida- n(oyn a

The new regulations give effect to the changes previously announced in the areas of quota transfers and milk production partnerships.

These include, in the case of trans- fers, greater flexibility in the consoli-

dation of holdings and the transfer of quota within families, a broadening of the definition of qualified relatives to include relations of spouses, re- moval of the restriction on the sale of land and quota out of disadvantaged areas and the facilitation of quota leases to companies.

Regarding milk production part- nerships, the new regulations remove restrictive criteria such as distance between holdings, age limits and off-farm income thresholds, and fa- cilitate the participation of non-dairy farmers and farm managers in part- nership arrangements.

The new regulations aim to sim- plify, and in some cases remove, no- tification and application procedures for producers.

They also remove restrictions placed on producers as a result of their participation in restructuring schemes up to 2006.

Those wishing to sell quota with land may now include quota pur- 1 E:T exe MON N(6(o) ar: RoI DMOLOL RED U DETSanYel OCs) pOLom while those who had disposed of quota under previous restructuring schemes will not now be excluded from quota trading and temporary leasing schemes.

“IT want to take this opportunity to thank the farming organisations and ICOS for their constructive input to the review of milk quota legislation, and I look forward to their feedback on the implementation of the new regulations in the coming months,” concluded Minister Smith.

THERE’S lots to keep kids busy at Scariff Public Library this July. As well as having all their favourite au- thors and stories including Horrible Henry, Harry Potter and Jacque- line Wilson, the library is holding a number of free events to suit children of all ages.

There’s stories, nursery rhymes and a small craft class with Josie Scholman for children aged 3-6

on Wednesday, July 16 at 3.30pm. Youngsters can be Fireman San for a day on Thursday, July 17 when they meet up at the library at 3.30pm fora visit to Scariff Fire Station. Children must be accompanied by an adult. A make and do session for children aged 7-12 will take place on Friday 18 at 3.30pm.

Come along and get the fascinat- ing facts on bats from conservation ranger Sinead Biggane on Tuesday, July 22 at 3.30pm Children aged

about 7-12 will get to hear and feel ‘real’ bats. Sinead will also lead a bat walk in Raheen Wood that evening at 9.45pm, weather permitting. Chil- dren must be accompanied by an adult.

There’s stories, games and crafts for younger children aged 4-6 on Wednesday, July 23 at 3.30pm.

On Friday, July 25 at 3.30pm Mela- nie Lorien will make corn dollies with children aged 7-12 years. Ad- vance booking is required for this

event.

Kids can sign up for the annual Clare County Library Summer Read- ing Challenge at the library where they will receive their free reading challenge pack. Entry forms for the design a t-shirt competition are also available at that venue.

And the best news of all is for par- ents – all activities are free of charge. Places may be limited on some ac- tivities, so please contact the library on 061 922893 for further detauls.

ENNIS woman Sharon Collins has spent the weekend in jail after being convicted of soliciting a poker dealer to murder her partner PJ Howard and his sons, Robert and Niall.

The mother-of-two, of Ballybeg House, Kildysart Road, Ennis, was

also found guilty of conspiracy to murder the three Howards, at the end of an eight-week trial at the Central Criminal Court in Dublin.

She was remanded in custody to the Laurel House unit of Mountjoy women’s prison where she is one of ten inmates, including Tanya Lamb (30), who is serving a 10-year term

for killing her partner with a hockey stick.

Her co-accused, Essam Eid (52), a native of Egypt, was found guilty of extortion and handling stolen prop- erty and acquitted of burglary at the Howards’ family business in Ennis.

However, the jury could not decide on conspiracy to murder charges

against him and recorded a verdict of disagreement.

Collins denied setting up the email address lyingeyes98@yahoo.ie and hiring a hitman over the internet in 2006. She claimed that she had been the victim of a set up.

ENNIS Town Council’s ban on new housing development because of the poor sewerage infrastructure has claimed its latest victim.

More worryingly for developers, the latest refusal 1s for a relatively small development of only 26 houses. Pre- vious refusals related to projects in excess of 100, 200 and 400 residen- tial units.

The situation is expected to contin- ue for another four years at least until anew €75 million sewage treatment plant is commissioned at Clareabbey. The timescale for the plant was an- nounced prior to recent speculation on Government cutbacks.

The plan by Mairead Murphy for 26 homes at Claureen on the La- hinch Road was refused after the Council ruled that “the development would be premature by reason of an

existing deficiency in the provision of sewerage facilities and the period within which the constraint may be expected to cease”.

In an internal memo, Town En- gineer, Tom Tiernan said his main concern over the application relates to the capacity of the main sewerage treatment plant at Clonroadmore.

‘The capacity of this plant has been evolving as an issue for some time and this stage, it has been determined

that it is stretched to the extent that it would be inappropriate to approve any further significant developments which would be dependent on it.

“Given that the new plant at Clare- abbey will not now materialise until 2012 at least, the concept of an in- terim upgrade of the existing plant to accommodate envisaged require- ments over the next five years or so is feasible at a cost of between €1.2 million and €1.5 million.

“Tf this conclusion 1s confirmed, the only means of funding the upgrade works will be in association with prospective development which will be approved via the planning process with any funding to be levied under the council’s approved contribution scheme”’.

The Claureen development was op- posed by residents associations from the Brookville and Dun na hiInse housing estates.

THEY’RE a superstitious lot in Bal- lyvaughan and Fanore. They don’t pose for team photographs until they have a cup. It means there won’t be a photo of Ballyvaughan’s first senior team until they have Jack Daly.

It’s a dreamy notion for sure, but it doesn’t stop the Ballyvaughan boys dreaming. And, one more dream came to life in Ennistymon on Sat- urday night when they shocked 2006 champions Eire Og with a stunning second half comeback that sent shockwaves around Clare football

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The news was greeted with gasps of amazement at games in Kilmihil and Miltown Malbay — Clare football had been turned on its head by Bal- ly vaughan, a club that haven’t basked in the senior football limelight since Fanore’s Paddy O’Donohue played for the county in the 1917 All-Ireland or Sean Mac Néill O’Loghlen and a few others were on the Liscannor team that won the 1940 champion- abhor

The thrill of it all was summed up by manager Pat Costello afterwards. “It was brilliant to beat Eire Og, it’s

hard to describe really how it feels,” he said. ““We didn’t know what to ex- pect going into this game — we had a few injuries and only had 18 togged at the start of the game, while they had 33 or 34. That’s the difference, but we got on with it and got a few VOLO Kem HOMO mi CoscmOlt OMAN CCMOE:NA “Beating Eire Og is bigger and better than beating Cusack’s in last year’s intermediate final. It’s huge for us. People said we’d go straight back down to intermediate. There were even people in our own parish who said we were only a junior team, but we proved them wrong with this

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“Scoring 2-10 in senior football is a great achievement. A lot of senior matches are won in Clare with scores a lot lower than that. We knew we were capable of this — we knew we were fit enough to play for 60 min- utes and had made our mind up be- forehand that we were going to play for the football for the 60 minutes. Ost lmcm Wier: MW iomenlen

“We were slow enough to get go- ing in midfield, but once we got to erips there Eire Og couldn’t stop us going forward. We deserved it and it’s a huge boost for the club and our

first ever adult win in Ennistymon,” he added.

With that it was time to repair to Logue’s Lodge in Ballyvaughan, where the Talty Cup they won in last year’s ‘Battle of the Burren’ with Michael Cusack’s for the intermed1- ate title was filled one more time.

The Jack Daly race had started with a big bang. A very big one at that.

SHOW time has come around again in Bridgetown, where the |8th An- nual South East Clare Show will be held in the beautiful showgrounds in this scenic little village.

The Committee are again look- ing forward to a great turn out, and preparations are now almost com- plete for a very full and entertaining programme.

This is a family day out with some- thing for everyone to enjoy. The show started in 1990 and missed one year because of the Foot and Mouth scare. Itis very highly regarded show among the show fraternity and is in the top ten shows of its class in the

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The horse show events are in the capable hands of Caitriona Bourke, Clonlara, with 22 classes includ- ing five all-Ireland qualifiers and the Limerick Lady Champion 2007 qualifier. Three classes are for Driv- ing Classes for Traditional Vehicles under the supervision of Pat Hayes.

Helen O’Neill has expert control of the working hunter/performance working hunter/show hunter ponies, show riding and side saddle classes. Helen has 23 classes. This section has attracted huge entries in the past, and it is expected that this trend will Loyal ApALeLSE

Show jumping is in the care of Dav- net Kiernan O’Brien and again big

entries arte expected. There are 16 events in this section. Conor Hayes takes charge of the cattle section, and has 27 classes.

Michael Hayes has the dog show portfolio. This event is improving every year, and this year huge en- tries are expected. This section of Bridgetown Show has gained a great reputation and this year there are 13 classes including the Gain Dog Food All Ireland Championship Qualifier.

A new addition to this years pro- gramme is the vintage classic cars section ably steered by Joe English.

In the home industries section, the ladies of the committee have put in a great effort to ensure that everything is in good shape.

Bernie English looks after the home baking section. The secretary of the ladies section is Kate McAuley who is in charge of the flowers section.

Of course the children cannot be overlooked, and there are 9 classes. The novelty events include the Little Miss competition, bonny baby, and AVE Cele ssetcMam eB sCCA AI Kontce

No show would be complete without the competition for the best dressed lady.

The show committee is most appre- ciative of the land owners, who with- out their help, the show could not go on. The committee would also like to thank their sponsors and particularly their main sponsor, Tom Marsh for their sponsorship.

has learned that Slainte, the HSE’s local drug and alcohol treatment service, has been forced to limit its service to those under the age of 24.

The recruitment freeze in the HSE has also left more than half the county without a local mental health counsellor as staff covering the En- nis, east Clare and west Clare regions have not been replaced.

This has created a situation where Clare GPs have no place to refer pa- tients who present with alcohol or drug addiction problems, while GPs outside of Ennis, east and west Clare

can only refer addiction patients with mental problems to the mental health services which they claim are “inap- propriate” to their needs.

“There is a big difficulty in Clare when it comes to funding. At the mo- ment, in large areas of the county there is no counselling service avail- able at all. We have a worse service now than we had back in 2006,” said Clare county councillor and commu- nity nurse manager with Clare com- munity mental health services, Joe Arkins (FG).

“We may have the offices and the signs outside the door, but we don’t have the personnel inside. The area is badly under funded. People over 24 years of age are being sent to the mental health services which is a totally inappropriate place to send Weloeee

THE amount of summer chartered flights flying into Dublin Airport has passed out those flying into Shannon Airport for the first time ever.

That was the startling revelation at last nights meeting of Clare County Council where calls were made for the local authority to redouble it’s efforts to market the county to tour- ists abroad, especially to the United NF tee

Commenting on a motion put for-

ward by Cllr Pascal Fitzgerald (Lab), Cllr Patricia McCarthy (Ind) blamed the loss of the Aer Lingus’ Heathrow slots in Shannon as one of the chief reasons for the decline in tourism nga t Kone

“The Clare Tourist forum is work- ing very hard but we have to recog- nice that there were fierce impedi- ments put in the way of the Clare tourist forum, not least of which is the loss of a connection,’ said Cllr McCarthy.

“The current system with flights

coming into Ireland is favouring Dublin and the greater Dublin area and not Shannon. The number of chartered flights going into Dub- lin has passed out those going into Shannon for the first time ever. This is very bad news for the tourism pro- duce in Shannon.”

The council also heard that a number of hotels in the county were working three-day weeks as a result of the widspread downturn in tourist numbers.

“I’d like to see more initiative used

in promoting the county. There are no incentives or advertisements to bring people in. We are looking at putting out a brochure but we re- ally should have done that last year. There are no enticement for people to come into the county this year,’ said Cllr Fitzgerald.

“Some hotels are now down to a three day week to get people in. The Americans are not coming. Especial- ly in to the Shannon slots.”

According to Fianna Fail councilor Pat McMahon, the tourism industry

is suffering not just in Clare but also throughout Europe.

“The situation is getting worse by the month. You hear of hotels going into receivership and down to a four and three day week – the whole in- dustry is in serious trouble,” he said.

“It’s not just in Ireland. People are scared to go abroad and move be- cause of the state of the global econ- omy. It should be up to us to take the initiative and put forward a new programme for bringing tourism into OE Tome