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FARM families in the Miltown Mal- bay, Corofin and Ballyvaughan ar- eas can now avail of a free weekly outreach service to access informa- tion on welfare entitlements, farm schemes and training opportunities.

The North Clare Farm Family Sup- port Service will host open and free clinics in these areas each week and are inviting farmers on low incomes to attend.

“We are offering a one to one for farm families – to help them identify the different ways which they can identify ways of increasing their in- come,” said Gerry McDonagh of the

farm support service.

“Every farmer on low income will have different need. It may be that social welfare is the way to go for some while others might be better off looking at on farm activities such as REPS.

“Other might be more suited to looking for off farm employment and we can help them find the training that they need to explore this.”

The service 1s now equipped to pro- vide farm families with an on-the- spot estimation of their entitlements under the range of Social Welfare schemes including the State Pensions and Farm Assist. Over 400 farm families throughout the county are

currently availing of this latter enti- tlement which is worth an average of €168 per week per household.

Many more Clare farming families may be eligible for the payment than currently avail of it. This is on ac- count of the less stringent means test associated with Farm Assist relative to other means tested schemes and the 14 per cent fall in farm income last year.

The outreach clinics will take place at the Parochial Hall Miltown Mal- bay from 10.30am to 12.30pm each Tuesday. They will move to the Her- itage Centre, Corofin from 2pm until 4pm on Tuesday while the service is based in St John’s Hall, Bally-

vaughan from 12.30pm until 2.30pm on Thursdays.

The North Clare Farm Family Sup- port Service is strictly confidential. Farmers can contact Gerry McDon- agh, Rural Resource Worker at 065- 7072467 or 086-8544036 for a home visit. They are also welcome to call to the office in Monastery House, Parliament St, Ennistymon or to any of the new outreach locations.

The service is administered by the County Clare Cohesion Process and is an initiative funded by the De- partment of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs under the Local Development Social Inclusion Pro- eramme (LDSIP).

TOURISM bodies in the mid-west and Shannon airport management must “get their act together” in the aftermath of the end of the Shannon Stopover.

That was the message delivered by Transport Minister Martin Cullen (FF) yesterday, who said an urgent marketing strategy is required. He promised Government support for Shannon.

“Is there a fu- ture there for Shannon? Abso- lutely. People in the mid-west have to get their act to- gether,” he said.

He dispelled

suggestions from opposition politi- COE TeNsmanet-| mp usseele) Vc ing the stopover was akin to re- moving “a piece of infrastructure’ from the mid- west.

“l’m spending billions to ensure infrastructure remains in place in Clare,’ he said.

He said that while the Open Skies deal was being negotiated over the past few years, Shannon may have “held back” and remained in a “‘com- fort zone”’.

“Twenty-two different gatewaus in the States have expressed inter- est in having a connection with Ire- land. Not all of them will develop, but some of them will. Competition

for Shannon is not necessarily from Dublin. Shannon’s competition 1s other airports in the UK and Eu- rope,” he said.

“One only has to see Knock de- veloping new routes going into the States, and it hasn’t the population base that Shannon has. Shannon is very sustainable,’ he said.

‘This debate is over. The sooner we accept that, the better,” he said.

Clare Fianna Fail TD Tony Killeen

said it was obvious for a number of years that the end of the stopover was “imevitable”’.

Je CRS Hem aet-dmcybelee it was first mooted, major progress has been made on various tour- ism projects in the mid-west.

‘There is no rea- son why Shannon can’t get some of them (22 Ameri-

can gateways). Shannon is in a much better position than it was in the late 80s/early 90s,” he said.

He said he did not believe the tim- ing of last Friday’s agreement was hugely significant, in the face of the imminent general election.

“T think it is good timing to tell the people what the situation is, surely. In terms of timing, I think it 1s per- fectly alright to tell people now be- fore the election,’ he said.

PREPARATIONS are well underway in Gort for this year’s St Patrick’s Day parade which looks likely to be the biggest most exciting in years. Hundreds of people are expected to take part in the parade with thou- sands more to watch from the streets and square of the town.

The first thing about our parade is that it actually be on St Patrick’s Day, on the Saturday, where lot of other parades will be held on the Sunday,’ said organiser Padraig Giblin.

‘The parade will start from Church Street after 12 o’clock mass on Sat- urday with the dispersal of the sham- rock by the FCA troop. It will be led this year by the Tulla Pipe band

under the direction of Sean Leamy. They have been taking part in our parade for years and we are always delighted to see them taking part.

“From there the parade will go down the lower side of the square, down Bridge Street, George Street, turn at the old vocational school and return to Church Street via the Upper Square.”

This years parade will see a number groups taking part for the first time while many of the old favorites will also be present.

“Francis Linnane from Gort will lead the vintage cars and tractors at the parade. People love looking at the older pieces of machinery and they always prove very popular,’ contin- ued Padraig.

‘This year we will have a display of trashing which will take place in the square which should be very inter- esting. We are encouraging as many people as possible to get involved and especially people from the Bra- Zilian community. We are hoping to have at least one group of Brazilian musicians involved in the parade.

There will be live stationary enter- tainment at the square both before and after the parade. The Bradley- Scanlan School of Dancing will provide a display of step dancing at the square while a group of local set dancer and mummers will be led by Marian Cahill-Collins.

There will also be a craft market and food fair to keep the revelers sus- tained throughout the celebration.

One person from each group taking part in the parade will also be grant- ed access to the viewing stand where they will be able to view the parade from the best possible vantage point.

For more information or to confirm your participation contact secretary Trish Buckley at 091 632754.

CLARE farmer and chairperson of ICMSA’s Beef and Cattle Com- mittee has added his voice to the esrowing amount of people demand- ing that the testing limit for BSE be increased. According to figures from the EU Commission, the number of BSE cases in the EU fell by a mas- sive 40 per cent last year. As a result of this McMahon is calling for the BSE testing age be increased from 30 to at least 36 months.

According to Mr McMahon the

ICMSA secured such a commitment in “Toward 2016’ he believes that the Department of Agriculture and Food should now seek approval from the EU Commission to raise the age of BSE testing.

“Given these latest figures pub- lished by the EU Commission show- ing a 40 per cent reduction in BSE cases, itis very clear that our controls are working,” he said. “Indeed, the improvement in Ireland is even bet- ter than the EU in general, given that the number of cases fell by 60 per cent in 2006, and given the current

controls, this trend will continue.

‘The sums involved in BSE testing are a very substantial cost on farm- ers at a time when margins are very tight. It is essential that all unneces- sary costs are taken out of the sys- tem and the problems facing winter finishers at this time clearly show the need for this as well as increased beef prices. It is ICMSA’s firm view that given the age profile of BSE cas- es, this is now an unnecessary cost on farmers.”

The animals in question are typi- cally steers in which no case of BSE

has been found in Ireland to date.

“The ICMSA estimates that the cost on farmers is about €6 million annu- ally for testing male cattle between 30 and 36 months – the figures would seem to indicate that this money is being wasted,” he continued.

“A commitment has been given in “Towards 2016’ to seek this age in- crease and ICMSA 1s calling on the Department to immediately carry through on this commitment and in- deed, examine all BSE related regu- lations and remove those that are no longer required.”

ORGANISERS are hopeful that a re- vamped Lisdoonvarna Festival will be granted planning permission by Clare County Council, despite the local authority’s refusal to allow it to take place in Clare in 2003.

The festival was forced to relocate to Dublin following a decision not to grant planning permission for the event by the local authority in May of 2003.

In a written statement issued by the

planning department, it stated that “the unsuitability of the road net- work serving the area in terms of ca- pacity and width and the unsuitabuil- ity of proposed car parking facilities and threat to pedestrian safety” were the main reasons for not allowing the festival to take place.

The council also said the concert would unduly interfere with safety and the free flow of traffic and en- danger public safety by reason of traffic hazard but did accept “the general suitability” of the concert

venue Site.

A group of 200 motorcyclists from Waterford were blamed for marring the last festival which took place in Lisdoonvarna is 1983.

The large group reportedly de- scended on the north Clare town on the Saturday evening of the festival wielding iron bars and threatening festival-goers.

The scene was described at the time by Superintendent Tim Leahy as “one of the roughest and dirtiest we have experienced”.

WOLFE Tones GAA Club has launched a major fundraising ini- tiative, to pay the cost of installing floodlights at its main pitch.

A special *300 Club’ has been launched, where 300 people are be- ing asked to pay €240, over a two- year period.

The club’s officers say that the pro- vision of the floodlights 1s seen as an important addition to the excellent range of facilities being offered to existing and future members.

Work will shortly commence on the project, for which planning permis- sion has already been secured, and

the lights are to be in place during the summer.

“The floodlighting involves a sig- nificant financial commitment, and Wolfe Tones is launching a special ‘300 Club’, with all the proceeds going towards this project,” said the club’s Outdoor Facilities Officer Pat O’Connell.

He said that the club’s facilities need to be constantly updated and enhanced, in order to compete with other sports and recreational ameni- lene

“In urban areas, in particular, there is intense competition for the atten- tion of young people and we have to ensure that our playing fields and

other facilities are of the highest Standard,” he said.

He stressed, however, that there is still an urgent need for involvement by parents and other community members in the club.

“Facilities alone will not suffice. With the modern lifestyle and wide choice of leisure outlets, a huge ef- fort is required by Wolfe Tones mem- bers, to ensure the success of the club in the future,” he said.

Gerry McIntyre is co-ordinating the °300 Club’ for Wolfe Tones, while a committee is also involved.

Draws will be held monthly, from May 7, for two years, with prizes each month totalling €1,200. For

those who pay for Year | 1n advance, there will be a special draw on May 7 for two bonus prizes of weekend holiday breaks.

Patrons can pay €240 at the start, to cover the 24 draws, or €120 prior to Draws 1 and 13.

Alternatively, they can opt for monthly direct debits of €10 for 24 rneCOyel etsy

‘300 Club’ forms are available from the Wolfe Tones Goalpost Club- house or via email at wolfe-tones- shannon @clare.gaa.ie.

Members of the Wolfe Tones 300 Club Committee will also be in con- tact with all club members in the coming weeks to explain the details.

THE IFA have launched a major of- fensive against the bureaucracy in- volved in on farm inspections this week by circulating a 66 page docu- ment which they claim contain all the possible questions which could be posed to farmers during inspec- tions.

The document, which was circu- lated to a range of politicians and member of the media, is designed to show exactly how much bureaucracy faced by farmers.

According to IFA President, Pa- draig Walshe, the IFA is taking the

bureaucratic Department inspection checklist to all TDs, Senators and political candidates in a nationwide information campaign which he says is gaining reactions of shock and dis- belief.

“Political representatives cannot believe that the Department of Ag- riculture would subject any farmer to a checklist which runs to 66 pages, covering 1,450 different questions, sections and permutations, and re- quires the Department inspectors signatures in 28 different places,” he said.

“When Franz Fischler agreed the new Single Payment system, it was

never intended that 135,000 farmers in Ireland would live in daily fear of an unannounced inspection,’ the IFA President continued.

The Minister for Agriculture must realise that young people will not pursue a future in farming knowing that they will spend their life looking over their shoulder for a Department inspector.”

The IFA believe that the require- ments in the current Department checklist are incomprehensible to farmers and the checklist goes way beyond a reasonable interpretation of the EU regulations.

“In 2006, over 7,500 thousands

farmers were targeted for on-the-spot inspections by the Department under the SPS,” he said. “Over 30 per cent of farmers inspected were deemed to be in breach of the requirements by the Department of Agriculture and 1,389 farmers were penalised finan- GEUINA

“Many 2006 inspections by the De- partment involved no notice whatso- ever to the farmer, more than one 1n- spector and return visits to the farm. The IFA is determined to secure fair play and full recognition of the rights of farmers under the Depart- ment of Agriculture farm inspection 1uss:a bas onl

late last year, Mr Aiken told of his ambi- tion to bring big-time musical enter- tainment back to Lisdoonvarna.

“To revive the old festival would be impossible. It would be just too hard to get planning. But there is no reason why a new festival can- not be designed. If Paddy Doherty and Christy Moore came on board, I would be more than ready to listen.

“We did attempt to revive the old Lisdoonvarna Festival, but it is very

difficult. But look at the likes of Bruce Springsteen and his new al- bum. If he decided to do a folk festi- val and someone asked me where to go with it, | would say Clare.”

Lisdoonvarna festival organiser, Paddy Doherty, paid tribute to the support that Aiken gave to the festi- val over the years.

“When we started off in 1978, Jim Aiken was the big promoter in the country,’ said Mr Doherty. “I always remember him calling up and wish- ing us the best. We were just two guys from down the country and it meant a lot for him to do that.

“I have great respect for him and have worked closely with him down the years and up as far as last Christ- mas. We have an ongoing associa- tion with Aiken Promotions and we would be looking to continue this relationship for any future Lisdoon- varna Festivals.”

Born on October 4, 1932, Jim Aik-

en was a physics and maths teacher for a number of years in Belfast, be- fore turning his attention to music promotion.

He finished teaching in 1965 to set up Aiken Promotions, which helped place Ireland on the international map for music over the last four dec- ades.

His other business interests in- cluded radio – he was involved in FM104 and Red FM – as well as music shops, and he was part of the consortium which brought HMV to Ireland.

Jim is survived by his wife, Anne, and his five children, Claire, Susan, Cathy, Joan and Peter who now runs Aiken Promotions.

A SHANNON teacher has received the major honour of being granted a Fellowship to study for her Masters Degree at a US University.

Sarah Burke (25), from Tullyvarra- ga, Shannon, is a teacher at St Tola’s national school in her home town. She graduated with a BA (English and Geography) and Graduate D1- ploma in Education from Mary Im- maculate College in Limerick two years ago. Her outstanding results in the Graduate Diploma caught the at- tention of Frostburg State University in Maryland, who chose her to study

for her Masters in Education there. She is the only Irish person to have been selected by the University to spend a year there.

The University will also pay all of her fees, during her year-long stud- ies. Her studies will commence in August and she will be given the choice between Special Needs Edu- cation or Children’s Literacy, as her specialist area.

“The course is fully recognised by the Department of Education and I was chosen based on rank, order and merit. It is all to do with where you finish in the class and your work throughout the Graduate Diploma in

Education,” she said.

Sarah is hoping to use this oppor- tunity to do a bit of travelling around the States, but admits she will miss her parents Catherine and Albert. However she is hopeful that they will take some time out to visit her during the 12-month spell.

“I was delighted, but shocked to be chosen. I am a little bit nervous. I haven’t travelled for any extensive time before. A year away is daunt- ing, but itis an opportunity I couldn’t refuse. Everyone is delighted for me. I really want to make the most of this,’ she said.

Sarah is currently in her second

year teaching at St Tola’s, where she has secured permanent employment, and has been delighted that she can take a year out from teaching, to travel overseas.

“I teach 28 junior infants and love Tola’s. The job will still be here after the year,’ she said.

She has received fantastic support from the principal at Tola’s, Kevin Hehir, and all the staff at the school, who have supported her.

‘The staff are so proud. They think this is great and are delighted for me. They have been brilliant. This is such a great opportunity to see so many different places,” said Sarah.

ADARE 10k Road Race and 10k fun walk will take place this Sunday, March 11, in the village of Adare starting at 1.30pm with the fun walk and road race at 2pm.

This race is organised by West Lim- erick AC and entries will be taken in the village hall from noon. There will be t-shirts to the first 250 entries with spot prizes and refreshments af- ter the race. Race entry will be €5 for juniors and walkers and €10 for all senior athletes. Any queries can be directed to Willie Costello, West Limerick AC, at 061 396532.

There will be big number of Clare athletes taking part and the course record is 30.34mins and that was set in 2003 by Seamus Power, Kil- murry Ibrickane/North Clare, and the ladies course record is 34.34mins and that was set by Valeria Vaughan, Blarney/Iniscarra.

Clare athletes have been very suc- cessful at this venue with James McIntyre and James Liddane, Tul- la, again expected to be among the leading contenders along with Gerry Ryan, Galway City Harriers, Dermot Galvin, St John’s, Jason Fahy, Olym- pic Harriers, Brian Murphy, Mar-

ian, Thomas Walsh, Tulla, lan Egan Galway City Harriers, with Eugene Moynihan, Marian, contesting the masters title along Michael Harvey, James Kenny, Kilmurry I[brickane/ North Clare, Pat and Mick O’Shea, Iveragh in Kerry, Jeffrey O’Looney Kilmurry Ibrickane/North Clare,

and Gerard Mullane, Bilboa.

In the team competition Galway City Harriers will once again do bat- tle with Bilboa, Tulla, Desmond Cur- rans, Ballynonty, and the host Club West Limerick.

The ladies contest will see Valerie Vaughan, Blarney/Iniscarra, who set a course record of 34.33mins a few years ago, challenge Rosemary Ryan, Bilboa, and Clare athlete, Ve- ronica Colleran, Ennis Track Club, for the title.

The Clare Cross Country Champi- on could be the athlete to cause a big surprise here and not too far off the pace will be Marie Foley, Limerick, Mary Sweeney, and Mary Murphy, St Finbar’s, Mary Sheehan, Blarney, along with Tracy Guilfoyle.