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AS Taoiseach, Bertie Ahern, was in Washington last week celebrating the recent progress made in North- ern Ireland, the fruits of the progress were being born out in the farming community with a number of high profile cross-border meetings taking place.

The Minister for Agriculture, Fish- eries and Food, Mary Coughlan, ac- companied by her cabinet colleague Eamon O Cuiv attended the North/ South Ministerial Council Agricul- ture Sectoral meeting held in Fer- managh on Wednesday.

The Northern Ireland Executive was represented by Michelle Gild- ernew, MP, MLA, Minister of Agri- culture and Rural Development and Arlene Foster, MLA, Minister of the

Environment.

The meeting covered a range of 1s- sues including co-operation on ani- mal health, plant health, the Com- mon Agricultural Policy Issues and cross-border rural development.

The council noted progress on the activities in the draft All-Island Animal Health and Welfare Strategy including an agreement on a com- mon chapter in the respective epi- Zootic contingency plans for Foot and Mouth Disease with common chapters for Avian Influenza and Bluetongue in the pipeline, on-going development of a report on the po- tential for joint data sharing and con- tinuing examination of the feasibility of a joint approach to the electronic identification of sheep.

The ministers approved further specific measures to progress the all-

island approach relating to Aujesz- ky’s Disease in pigs, and, in conjunc- tion with respective food safety and standard agencies, consideration of the hygiene package with respect to the transmission of food chain infor- mation with animals going to slaugh- ter and of the feasibility and priority of an all island approach relating to Trichinella in pigs.

The council discussed an innova- tive and strategic approach to col- laboration and co-operation on rural development programmes aimed at fostering improved community rela- tions in remote rural areas and com- plementing the economic regenera- tion of disadvantaged cross-border regions.

In relation to the EU Programmes, the ministers noted the development of proposals for a Rural Enabler

Project for submission to the PEACE II] Programme. This project aims to bring together rural people from both traditions and migrants to in- crease understanding and to work to address issues of sectarianism and racism in a rural context. Meanwhile, northern and southern hill farmers meet last week to dis- cuss to discuss a united approach to property rights and protection.

A SOUTH-EAST Clare developer has for the fourth time been refused planning permission for a helicopter pad on his land at Clonlara.

Clare County Council rejected the latest application from Peter Stritch with an internal council memo stat- ing that legal action over unauthor- ised helicopter activity at the site was ongoing. Mr Stritch had previously been refused planning permission

for a helipad on two occasions while he was also refused permission to construct a hangar for a helicopter.

In response to the latest applica- tion, the council concluded that the helipad would seriously injure the amenities and depreciate the value of adjacent residential properties and be contrary to the proper planning and development of the area.

The council refused planning per- mission after objections were lodged by a number of local residents.

In his objection, David Beckett stated that the grounds on which the previous applications were refused were still valid and unchanged and the fact that the location of the site on the farm was moved made no dif- eon Gen

“His appeal to An Bord Pleanala was refused and it is possible that this application is being used as a re- placement for the rejected helicopter landing area.

“My family and I were greatly dis-

turbed by the noise. Helicopters are very noisy and the beat of the ro- tor blades is particularly irritating. Even an approaching helicopter can be heard when it is only a dot in the sky. The applicant will argue that the landing site is well away from hous- es, but this ignores the fact that when the helicopter is flying overhead, it 1s less than 100 metres away and can be heard throughout the house.”

Mr Beckett said there were im- portant safety concerns to consider,

including the fact that the proposed site was next to a gallop which was used daily and there was a high risk of an equestrian accident.

‘According to a UK accident data- base, 57 helicopters have crashed so far this year. On March 20, a heli- copter crashed in Meath, while in July 2007, a helicopter crashed near Ballynacally. We live in a quiet, rural and increasingly residential area and it is not suitable for aircraft activity,” Mr Beckett concluded.

THEFT of property is particularly prevalent in the Clare Garda Divi- sion and often goes undetected, a court heard last week.

The revelation came in the case of two men who admitted stealing €7,000 worth of wire cable from En- nis Electrical, Quin Road, Ennis, on May 9, last year.

Martin Mongan (21), of Balach Boy Halting Site, Quin Road, Ennis, and Bernard Mongan (20), of Considine Road, Cloughleigh, admitted the of- Kieren

Inspector Michael Gallagher told

Ennis District Court that the two ac- cused and another man made away with the wire cable.

He said that Martin Mongan was driving the truck. As they were leav- ing the premises they were stopped by an employee at around 2pm.

“The two defendants admitted full responsibility. They exonerated a third person who was with them,” he said. The property was recovered.

Inspector Gallagher said, “This is a very serious crime, very prevalent in this division. It often goes unde- tected.”

Solicitor Daragh Hassett, for Ber- nard Mongan, said, “My client

thought the wire was surplus to the requirements of the shop owner. I have no doubt the guards don’t be- lieve that.”

Solicitor Tara Godfrey (below), who represented Martin Mongan, said, “It was not the crime of the cen- tury. It was in the middle of the day. My client was looking for scrap cop- per. We don’t want to make a huge is- sue out of this but my client did get a belt in the face. He got some element of punishment there and then.”

The court was told that Martin Mongan has several previous convic- tions.

Judge Tim Lucey said, “The two

cases are very similar, but in the case of Bernard Mongan, he doesn’t have the previous convictions Martin Mongan has.”

Referring to Martin Mongan, he said, ““What he has done was deliber- ate, conscious. He knows you can’t take things without permission. He chanced it. He was caught. The prop- erty was recovered but it won’t stop him getting a jail sentence.”

He handed Bernard Mongan a three month detention sentence and suspended it for a year. He sentenced Martin Mongan to three months in jail and fixed a bond in the event of an appeal.

QUILTY man Dominic Egan is making the headlines this week as he leads an exhibition of the country’s J er0) bys AYAeL tb u-1 Ce) umm DOMmr: RB e-hY od ODD OTS. exhibition celebrating childhood in Ireland over the 20th century.

As curator of Cavan County Muse- um in Ballyjamesduff, Dominic was the first curator in the country to host the innovative exhibition, expected in Clare in the coming months.

While the exhibition may be enti- tled ‘Seen But Not Heard (Feictear Ach Ni Cloistear) – A Century Of Childhood In Ireland’, the west Clare native was the face of the nationwide exhibition over the weekend.

Born to the late Paddy Egan and Margaret (née Boyle) in Dromore in the parish of Kilmurry Ibrickane, Dominic went to Quilty National

School.

From there he attended the CBS in Ennistymon where he completed his Leaving Certificate in 1968.

After his Leaving Cert he planned to do Gaelic studies in UCD, but the death of his father when he was just 10 years old meant that there were other pressures on the family and a third level education at this time was not to be.

The summer after his Leaving Cert, once the minor football season was finished, he packed his bags and went to England to find work.

While in England his uncle in Aus- tralia suggested that the 20 year old try his luck in Van Diemen’s Land. There he worked in the mines as a driller saving enough money to go to university.

While in Australia he met his West- meath born wife. It was while she

was in Ireland nursing her ill father that the opportunity for work in his native land came about.

His wife saw the curator’s job ad- vertised in the local paper and faxed it to her husband thousands of miles AEN

The rest is history, as armed with his new qualifications he returned to Ireland and got the job. He was in- strumental in setting up the Cavan museum in 1994, The Clare man took a break from Cavan for a year to work in the Clare Museum, but as his two sons had settled in schools in Cavan a permanent move was not possible for the family.

“What I miss most about Clare is the sea, I was brought up only two miles from the sea,” said the talka- tive Quilty man.

He plans to visit the Clare County Museum when the exhibition makes

it to the Banner County.

The exhibition celebrates some of the many lifestyle changes as expe- rienced by successive generations of children growing up in Ireland. Themes covered include education, health, work, play and memories.

Dominic explained that the exhibi- tion was certain to recall a moment in everyone’s childhood.

“Anyone who attends the exhibi- tion is likely to be reminded of their own childhoods, whether it be that fleeting memory of a school day long forgotten, playing games on newly mown grass or the reverential hush of a Sunday Mass. The vivid thoughts and memories that are evoked through this truly interactive exhibi- tion will also enable people from out- side Ireland to learn about the many varied aspects of growing up on this island over the last century.”

A NEW plans for the development of organic farming in Ireland was last week given a cautious welcome by the farming organisations. Speaking at the launch, the ICSA’s Rural De- velopment Chairman, Gabriel Gil- martin, welcomed the plan as a step in the right direction.

‘This is a positive step as it widens the choice of production possibilities for farmers and clearly shows that the Government is committed to de- veloping the sector,” he said.

“ICSA feels that, in the rapidly changing dynamics of food mar- kets and food production, providing farmers with another option is a posi-

tive step.

“However, it is all about the bottom line, and if the Department of Agri- culture is serious about achieving the five per cent target for organic pro- duction in Ireland, then the resources and commitment must be available in realistic terms.”

Farmers will not undertake the ex- pense and labour-intensive conver- sion process without solid, long term backing from the authorities.”

Speaking at the launch of the Organ- ic Farming Action Plan 2008-2012, Minister for Food and Horticulture at the Department of Agriculture, Fish- eries and Food, Trevor Sargent, said that he was committed to achieving the very necessary development of

the organic sector in Ireland.

‘The action plan was an important development in working towards achievement of the Government’s target’, and he thanked the members of the National Steering Group for their input into the document,” he SrHKGe

“The National Steering Group will have a crucial role in guiding and overseeing progress on the action plan. I intend to bring together key industry leaders, opinion makers, agricultural academics with some of Ireland’s top organic farmers and erowers to better appreciate what organic farming is and to dispel any misconceptions that may exist.

“The programme for Government

five per cent target is indeed chal- lenging. I am confident that, with the full support of all stakeholders, implementation of the actions out- lined in the plan will greatly assist in achieving the target.”

The action plan has four main ob- jectives; increase production in line with market trends, increase the knowledge base, develop the organic market at home and abroad, and en- courage the development of public procurement opportunities for or- ganic products. There are over 60 actions identified in the plan.

Since 2005 there has been an in- crease of more than 17 per cent in the area under organic production in Ireland.

I CAN’T speak for you, but for me the last 12 months have passed in a blur. It doesn’t seem like a year since we began to wind up for The Clare 10k 2007, but there you go.

Taking place on June 28, 2008, The Clare 10k is ready for it’s third out- ing. Last year the race attracted over 1200 participants. This year we are

hoping for more.

There are some changes to The Clare 10k this year, the main one be- ing the starting time. For the last two years the gun has gone off at llam, this year the time has been moved forward to 10am.

There are also some new faces on board. Mr Binman have taken on part sponsorship of The Clare 10k and our second nominated charity

will be the Building for Hope – Sr Ethel Normoyle – Project.

Still involved are The Clare People, O’Brien’s sandwich bar and Clare Haven Services and Run Republic.

This we, while we are hoping that more people will take part, we are also hoping that more people will decide to get involved for a worthy oN on

Again, your entry fee will be split

between Clare Haven Services and the Building for Hope Project, but outside of this you can choose the charity you want to raise funds for.

So, dust off your training gear, make the most of the long (hopefully sunny) evenings, and get prepared for The Clare 10k 2008.

Clare’s largest mass participation event. For more details visit www. clarelOk.com.

SENTENCING of a Clare man for sexually abusing two of his daugh- ters has been adjourned, because he claimed he was not told by prison staff that probation officers had at- tended to assess him for a report. The 36-year-old man has been on remand in Wheatfield Prison and told his counsel Gerard Groarke BL that there are four men with the same

name as him in custody there. He suggested that this led to one of them being informed of the probation of- ficers’ attendance, rather than him.

He was remanded in custody last November after a Dublin Circuit Criminal Court jury convicted him on 10 counts of sexual assault on two of his daughters.

The offences occurred on dates from September 2001 to December 2004.

A probation officer told the court she had been advised there were four people in the prison with the same name as the man. She provided the prison staff with his address, date of birth, his prison number and the wing he was on.

She said she was informed a few minutes later that he was unwilling to attend a visit with her. She said she never met him face to face.

She said that another colleague

also attended at the prison to meet the man and got the same response from prison officers.

She agreed she “could not be sure that there was not a mistake on the other side”.

Judge Desmond Hogan said it was ‘a matter of no small regret” that he could not proceed with the case but added that it would be “foolhardy” to deal with the sentencing without a probation report.

He added that he was “very con- scious’ of the age of the accused’s victims and was “very anxious” to deal with the case soon.

Mr Groarke said his client was “ready, willing and able” to meet the Probation Service and had not re- fused to meet with the officers.

Judge Hogan adjourned the case and told Mr Groarke he wanted him to ascertain “how accurate your cli- ent’s instructions are’.

A NUMBER of Shannon town centre businesses have expressed concerns over the final part of the redevelop- ment of the town.

Last month, SkyCourt sought plan- ning approval for two major stores and a courthouse as part of a €60 million redevelopment of the town on aKee

The plan incorporates a 60,000 sq. ft. unit for Dunnes Stores and a further 16,650 sq. ft. of retail space,

together with a new mall and addi- tional car parking.

The project will involve the demoli- tion of the existing Lidl store and its relocation to a larger site within the town centre.

This latest phase of development completes the masterplan for the town centre which was established in 2001 and forms part of the total regeneration of Shannon.

SkyCourt argues that the nature and form of the proposed develop- ment would support the viability and

vitality of the designated centre and would not seriously injure the amen- ity of property in the area.

But in an objection to the plan, Fei- dhlim Hillery of Sean Hillery (Phar- macists) Ltd has expressed serious concerns over the proposal by Sky- Court to remove the car-park to the rear of his business.

He said that he was concerned that the removal of this facility from the shopping mall would seriously erode its attractiveness to all potential busi- nesses.

“T am concerned that this will lead to the abandonment of units — which has already occurred — and to the area become vacant and rundown.”

In a separate submission, former President of the Shannon Chamber of Commerce and owner of McLough- ney’s Newsagency, Eoin Hoctor said that while he was not against the de- velopment, he had genuine concerns in relation to its possible impact on his business if disruption during the construction phase was not guaran- Keteren

Aidan Quish of Shannon Knights also lodged a submission, stating that if planning permission was granted, it would have a significant impact on his property and his ability to oper- ate his business.

“I had previously indicated to rep- resentatives of the developers of the town centre the difficulties with their proposed development but my representations to date have been ig- nored,” he said.

A decision on the SkyCourt appli- cation is expected later this year.

THE Shannondoc out-of-hours GP service suffered a slight financial loss for the second year in succession, ac- cording to its latest figures.

In accounts lodged to the Compa- nies Office, Shannondoc reported a loss of €40,000 to the end of 2006 and this follows an operating loss of €45,000 in 2005.

Asked if there were any concerns over the operating loss, manager of Shannondoc, Larry Maher replied, “No, not at all.”

The accounts show that in 2006,

Shannondoc handled 86,932 calls – an increase of 9,722 or 12.6 per cent over 2005. The Killaloe area showed the highest increase at over 30 per cent, while triage nurses dealt with over 20,000 calls as nurses advise without the need to refer the call on to a doctor.

“Given that Shannondoc provides out-of-hours cover for 274,000 peo- ple, the call rate per 1,000 population per week is up from 5.71 to 6.1 calls per 1,000 population per week.

“People don’t realise the scale of the operation. It provides a very com- prehensive service, but it must be re-

membered that it is a family doctor service, not an emergency service,” Mr Maher emphasised.

The accounts show that Shannon- doc had a turnover of €5.08 million in 2006 — an increase of €300,000 on the turnover for 2005.

However, administration expenses for 2006 amounted to €5.12 million and this resulted in an operating loss of €40,000.

However, Shannondoc’s overall fi- nancial state remains healthy with an accumulated surplus of €100,000 at the end of 2006, while the co-op’s net funds stood at €499,000.

The Health Service Executive (HSE) contributed €3.8 million — up €300,000 on the 2005 contribution.

Prior to this year, doctors paid €10,000 each to fund the service but, this year, the rate decreased to around €6,000 per doctor.

In 2006, Shannondoc received €1 million in doctors’ contributions.

The service is also a major con- tributor to the regional economy, with salary costs coming in at €3.2 million.

The accounts show that Shannon- doc employs 38 drivers, 53 medical staff and 35 administrative workers.

THE Clare Primary School 5-a- side soccer tournament went ahead at the Lees Road astro turf facility last week with a huge turnout for the various competitions.

The smaller school competition went ahead on day one with 24 teams taking part in the boys competition. Lahinch NS had the better of An- nagh NS in the first semi final while Quilty beat Kilkee in the second with Lahinch prevailing over Quilty in the final on a score of 2-0.

A total of 20 girls teams took part in the girls competition. Newmarket NS beat Liscannor NS in one semi final and Quilty NS beat Lisdoonvarna in the second. The Quilty girls avenged the defeat of their boys counterparts when they won the final by 2-0.

The Lahinch boys and Quilty girls will now go on to represent Clare in the Munster finals later in the month.

In the bigger schools tournament, Ennis NS won the girls B event in a thrilling final which saw them pre-

vail over Kilrush NS after a tense penalty shoot-out and in the boys B event, Newmarket were 2-1 winners over Kilrush NS.

There was further success for Ennis NS in the large schools section of the draw when they beat the holy family in an entertaining final by 5-1.

“The event was a great success,’ said Tom Glynn, Clare co-ordinator of the event. “The facilities were top quality as were the referees, from Rice College.”