Month: May 2007

CRUSHEEN residents are prepared to “stand in front of the diggers” in order to prevent the construction of a controversial 3G phone mast at Bal- hyd bb aTer

A second meeting between rep- resentatives of 3G and locals is due to take place this Thursday, May 10, but to date the telecommunications company has failed to contact locals ~VoOltlmnatem neler b bares

“We went to Dublin and met 3G al- most two weeks ago now. They were supposed to make contact with the landowner and make arrangements

with us for a meeting this week and none of this has happened,’ said lo- cal resident, Corrina Rosengrave.

“Our next step is to wait and see if any contact is made over the next few days. I’m prepared to stand in front of the diggers if I have to and do whatever it takes. That mast is not going up here,” she added.

Residents have made a number of complaints about the mast, which received full planning permission from Clare County Council, includ- ing alleged problems with the site notice before planning permission was granted.

“As far as we can see there was no

site notice put up at all on the road. We live across from where the mast is planned, there are eight of us in the house and 3G are trying to say that all of us are blind,’ continued Cor- unt

She repeated her resolve to stop the joarcki im oXoseetoamo) UO DL

“It overlooks our house and that of our neighbours, it overlooks a field where young lads are playing every day of the week. We knew nothing about it until it was too late.”

The mast issue will be on the agen- da at the monthly meeting of Clare County Council, which will take place next week.

“The biggest problem that local people had with the whole thing was the lack of knowledge and consul- tation,” said Councillor Pat Hayes (FF).

“That is something that we will be addressing at next Monday’s meeting of Clare County Council,’ he said.

Cllr Hayes claimed that 3G had failed to comply with planning con- Chiao) rte

“One of the main issues was the failure of 3G to comply with a number of conditions of their plan- ning. They had to agree about traf- fic management with the council and that wasn’t done,” he said.

THE Shannon Rail Partnership has appealed to the Minister for Trans- port to ensure that the Shannon rail- link goes ahead after a feasibility study endangered the project.

The draft study into the €240 mil- lion rail-link has predicted that there will be a significant operating deficit in the early years of the service.

The locally-based Shannon Rail Partnership has written to Minister Martin Cullen after he confirmed that the initial study results were very poor.

The study stated: “in the early

years there would be significant defi- cit on the operating account, but with a buoyant air travel market for the whole 30 year period, revenues could potentially cover operating costs, taking a longer term view.”

Minister Cullen is now awaiting a fresh examination of the proposal by consultants, who have estimated the cost at €700 million.

The partnership believes that the cost of the project is €240 million and has now written to secure the minister’s support for the proposal.

In the letter, the partnership said that the region is at a “critical point” in its future development.

“A positive decision on proceeding with Phase 1 of the Shannon Rail Link proposal is critical if we are to secure the full potential of the re- gion. This phase is very achievable,’ UMNO B

The partnership welcomed the recommendations from the report and in particular that to be success- ful and to achieve competitive travel times it needs to be a direct service “designed and built to the highest technical standard”.

The partnership welcomed the pos- sibility that the project could be de- veloped in phases for reduced costs.

The draft feasibility study also

anticipated that there would be “‘ad- verse environmental and severance impacts, particularly where the line runs through Shannon town.”

However, he partnership responded by adding that “Now is an opportune time to eliminate this issue as a Mas- ter Plan is being prepared in rela- tion to TC2 in Shannon town centre and by including plans for rail, and reserving land for its development, these issues can be avoided in ad- EN acon

The Shannon Rail Partnership re- ferred to various mid-west develop- ments including the regeneration of the Shannon Free Zone in the letter.

ENDA Kenny arrived in Ennis on Saturday — his second visit to the town inside two weeks — with a flurry of energy. He bounded from his cam- paign car and high-tailed it to the top of O’Connell Street.

He was due to land at 12.30pm but Kenny was 25 minutes late and the crowd, gathered in expectation of a showdown with ‘Taoiseach Bertie Ahern, had largely dispersed.

They were following in the footsteps of the Fianna Fail leader who himself landed beneath the O’Connell monu- ment at Kenny’s expected time of ar- UAE

But those who did linger to see the national face of Fine Gael witnessed a man in the middle of one of the most intense campaigns. He’s been twisting through the country like a Tasmanian Devil, shaking hands and rubbing flesh. Trying to out-Bertie the Taoiseach.

You wouldn’t think it. Kenny looked fresh and casual as he grabbed a mi- crophone. A blue, unbuttoned shirt in contrast to the sharp suit of Ahern.

He got down to business almost im- mediately, setting out his vision for what he expects will be a Fine Gael- led government once the election is done with. There was a youthful zest to much of what he said.

More than once, he appealed to the young people of Clare to get out and get involved in the campaign.

“Enjoy it,’ he said. “Use your power to change this Government.”

Then he focused on the Govern- ment he wants to send packing, say- ing at various points that they were incompetent, indecisive, remote, removed, conceited, smug, arrogant and uncaring.

“We offer the people of the Banner a unique choice of candidates here,’ he said. Then, he named out the four who form the Fine Gael ticket, going through each one, presumably in the

order that he expects them to poll.

“We’re led by Deputy Pat Breen and young Joe Carey here in Ennis. And my colleague of many years, Madeline Taylor-Quinn, and also the man pictured across the motor- way coming up from Limerick, Tony Mulcahy.”

He moved into the crowd, flanked by his local supporters, and got to know the people who he says will bring two Fine Gael seats to Clare. He posed for photographs with kids. He skipped down O’Connell Street and took a right into the Market area before stopping at coffee shops, hair- dressers, bookshops, bookies and in- SLD ech eleromrereco nL Ae

The Fine Gael whirlwind was blow- ing through town.

He was asked if the decision to run with four candidates in Clare was a wise one, particularly given the open criticism of the policy by his front runner, Deputy Pat Breen.

“We have very healthy competi-

tion internally in the party in Clare and this has given us a chance to get around to every single voter in the county. I know that all these people are going to get to every house in the county and explain why they have to change this Government.

“But I don’t know what the people of Clare will do at the end of the day and it’s all going to depend on trans- fers. As far as I’m concerned, if the people of Clare return two Fine Gael TDs, Pl be absolutely thrilled.”

It was a day when the sizzle of poli- tics could have taken off in Clare, just like the good old days, but Ken- ny’s late arrival ultimately saw that it wouldn’t come to pass. No face-to- face. No gunfight.

“T heard you had a visitor just be- fore I arrived,” he said. “I’d love to have had a showdown here with Ber- tie, it would have been great excite- ment and we’d all have been talking about it for days. But, of course, we would have won it [the showdown]

hands down and maybe if I shook his hands here, I might be saying good- bye to him.”

He walked on, 1n a small circle of the town and returned again to where the day had started an hour before.

“IT am not one to stand on this Square in Ennis, where many speech- es were made over the past 80 years, by many more notorious than I, but I am not afraid to say to the people of the Banner, we will accept responsi- bility for our actions when we are in Cred crasbeelosel me

It was his parting shot.

Just before he left for Galway, a eroup of young Eire Og fundraisers rattled a box of coins close to him. OST eNVARe UCN ea macCocomn soles pOMEcI BOD ECLMmOLU LIN Ie was alerted. Joe Carey began to push a €5 note into his hand, by way of a donation.

Kenny ignored it, fished in his pock- et and pulled out a crisp €20 note. He plopped it in the box, flashed a smile and then he was gone.

A MAJOR insurance company has admitted that the wording of its mo- tor policies could be misinterpreted and is not clear on what type of driv- ing licence a motorist requires to be certain of being insured to drive a vehicle.

The revelation came at Tulla Dis- trict Court, when two men were prosecuted for a number of motoring aoe ;

Mohamed Salem, of Carrig An O1r, Ennis was driving a lorry which was stopped by a garda, at Moymore, Tulla, in January.

Mr Salem was charged with driv- ing without insurance and a driving licence, not having the correct road tax and with having a bald tyre. His employer, Mr Gerard Clune, former- ly of Clune Murphy Construction, was charged with five offences.

Garda John Ryan said when he stopped Mr Salem and demanded production of his documentation, he tendered a Libyan driving licence.

Defending solicitor Sse bs Loughnane said AXA’s insurance certificate stated that a driver with a

“full driving licence” was insured to drive the vehicle and that Mr Salem’s Libyan licence was sufficient.

AXA _ Insurance _ representative Paul Quinlan admitted the wording of the policy could lead to misin- terpretation. He said AXA did not verify what driving licence was be- ing submitted when an application for cover was made but that the “in- tention would be a full Irish driving licence”.

Judge Aeneas McCarthy agreed that the wording could be misinter- preted. He said that if Mr Salem had an accident, technically he would not be insured but in a civil action, the insurance company would be held li- able. The Judge said however that un- der the provisions of the Road Traf- fic Act, under which the proceedings were taken, a driver must hold a full Irish driving licence.

He acquitted Mr Salem on three of the four charges, but convicted him on the bald tyre charge and fined him €100.

Judge McCarthy convicted Mr Clune on all five charges and fined him €1,250. Recognisances were fixed in the event of an appeal.

THE trial of three people charged with the manslaughter of Kildysart father of five Vincent Hehir last year 1s set to go ahead at Ennis Cir- cuit Criminal Court in June. Inspector Michael Gallagher in- formed Ennis District Court on Friday that the relevant books of

evidence had been served on each of the three accused and that the Director of Public Prosecutions had ordered that all three stand trial for the alleged offences in the Circuit Court.

The three men, Michael Bryan Finn (33), of Ennis Road, Kildysart, Noel Murphy (22), of Crovraghan, Kildysart, and Mark O’Connor (18)

of Rosscliffe, Ballynacally, Ennis are each facing a charge of man- slaughter, arising out of the death of the Mr Hehir on September 6 Tie

Mr Hehir died in hospital three days after being found unconscious outside a pub in Kildysart. He had travelled to Kildysart from Ilford in London to visit his family and

collect his five children, who had been on holiday with his parents for the summer. Mr Hehir managed the popular Black Horse Pub in [I- OKC

Judge Aeneas McCarthy remand- ed all three men on continuing bail and sent them forward for trial to the next sitting of Ennis Circuit Criminal Court on June 19.

GRAVE concerns about Crusheen Garda Station lying idle have been aired at a national Garda conference. The Crusheen station was closed due to damage in January 2005 and has since been refurbished.

However, a dispute between the owner of the building and the Office of Public Works (OPW) has prevent- ed gardai from gaining access to it, for work.

As a result, Garda Declan Keavey, who is based in Crusheen, is forced to work from Ennis, or from a car.

Clare representatives attending the annual Garda Representative Asso- ciation (GRA) conference last week in Westport, Co. Mayo raised the 1s- sue and received support from their counterparts across the country.

Clare delegate, Garda Tom Keane said the people of Crusheen were forced to suffer because of a dispute which they had no control over.

‘The Garda station has been ready for the past 12 months. It is disgrace- ful that the people of Crusheen do not have a station, an area where the population has increased substantial- ly,” said Garda Keane.

The conference heard calls for the OPW to be removed from all in- volvement in the Garda buildings programme.

The Clare delegates attending the conference raised a number of other

issues Of concern to them.

One of those was the procedure which is currently in place to deal with bullying and harassment. Under the existing procedure, grievances and problems are dealt with inter- nally. Rank and file gardai want this to be an external process.

“It is an internal grievance proce- dure and we feel it is not working,” said Gda Keane, who is the chair- man of the GRA’s Health and Safety sub-committee, which is currently compiling proposals for changes in this area.

He said that gardai were particu- larly concerned that complainants were victimised. Once a complaint had been dealt with, they were often subjected to disciplinary action.

“We are looking for an outside in- dependent body to investigate issues like that. There are a lot of issues. People should be entitled to make complaints and have them treated in- dependently,” he said.

The four Clare gardai attending the conference also called for an inde- pendent review on pay.

“The last commission on pay was back in 1979. We feel that the current system, which is based on concilia- tion and arbitration, does not work as it is too bureaucratic,” said Garda WO aler

He said that gardai will receive a pay increase of two per cent this year, which “isn’t good enough.”

RESIDENTS in the Ardnacrusha area have told Clare County Coun- cil that it is necessary to restrain children in their back gardens due to truck traffic passing their homes from a local quarry.

Bobby O’Connell and Sons Ltd has lodged plans for the continuation of quarrying at Ballycar South, Ard- nacrusha.

At present, O’Connell’s quarry is the main supplier of quarry material to the southern section of the Limer- ick ring road scheme, together with other major projects in the city.

The existing quarry consists of an area of 42 acres which has a rock re- serve of seven million cubic metres. This will ensure that the site will continue in excess of 25 years.

However, residents from Quinpool, Ballyfinnan, Ballycannon and Bally- car have come together to object to

the continuation of quarrying activi- ties at the site.

The residents claim that the vibra- tion caused by heavily loaded trucks and speeding empty trucks is dis- turbing to the occupants of the many houses along the road and the dust, dirt and stray rocks from the trucks make the road unpleasant for all.

The residents claim that Bus Eire- ann won’t operate a regular bus serv- ice on the road because of frequency of trucks and it is essential to restrain children in the back gardens for fear that they would ever venture out onto the road.

They open windows in houses at night time because the noise of the trucks early in the morning will wake you up.

They can’t open the windows in houses during the day because of the dust coming from the trucks.

A decision is due on the application later this year.

PLANS have been lodged with Clare County Council to extend a major quarrying operation in east Clare by 45 acres.

As part of its expansion plans, McGrath (O’Callaghan Mills) Ltd is seeking permission to extend its business for another 30 years with a rock reserve of seven million cubic metres in the planned extension site.

The move to extend the operation Loy eaTeAMa Usd 0 MMO eComereye el orcDeh Van oles Orca NO me)

very strong financial position as the most recent accounts to the Compa- nies Office by McGrath (O’Callaghan Mills) Ltd show that retained profits at the end of March 2006 stood at €5.4 million.

The accounts also show that the company more than doubled its pre- tax profits in 2005-06 going up from €322,000 at the end of March 2005 to €792,000 at the end of March paul ees

There are 30 people employed at the facility and underlining the im-

portance of the operation to the east Clare economy, the accounts show that €721,000 was paid to staff in 2005-06.

The accounts also show that the remuneration to the company’s two directors, Thomas and Joseph Mc- Grath stood at €217,488 for ‘man- agement services’ in 2005-06.

In the Environmental Impact State- ment (EIS) lodged with the planning application, it outlines the need for the extension, stating that there is a market demand for aggregate rock,

that there is a history and an estab- lished industry 1n the area for the ex- traction of rock.

It points out that the existing quarry area of 48 acres is nearly exhausted, while the company was founded in 1952 and has been in the quarrying business since then.

“Since its establishment, the com- pany has maintained a good relation- ship with the local community and the local authority,” the EIS states. “The company has made a contribu- tion to the development of the region

through the supply of construction materials and providing employment in the east Clare area.”

It states that the operation of the quarry will have a minimal addition- al impact on neighbouring activities.

“The quarry is a major employer in the local community as it employs 30 people directly with another 30 people working in ancillary depend- ent services and industries,’ the EIS adds.

A decision is due on the application later this year.

ANTHONY Kelly never knew anything about his father and was brought up in an atmosphere of se- crecy, the trial has heard.

Mr Kelly was brought up by his maternal grandparents and he in1- tially believed that his birth mother was his sister. His family was very secretive about his father.

His grandmother told him the story about who his mother was when he was aged seven.

The Director of the Central Mental Hospital, Professor Harry Kennedy, who gave evidence for the prosecu- tion on Thursday, provided a history of Mr Kelly.

“I note a history of Mr Kelly’s up- bringing in an atmosphere of secre- cy,’ said Professor Kennedy.

He said that Mr Kelly’s mater- nal grandfather was a cobbler, who worked in Ennis, and the family lived in Ruan.

His birth mother moved to the UK after Mr Kelly was born and she

married there and had two sons, who are half-brothers of the accused.

Mr Kelly fell out with an aunt who lives in Ennis, as she refused to give him the keys of the family home in Ruan, when he returned from the US a number of years ago. He has con- tact with another aunt, who lives in Ore

The trial was told that Mr Kelly went to school in Ruan, where he got on well with teachers and class- mates, with the exception of the headmaster, who he described as as orbs ae

He worked in the United States during summers and moved there after sitting his Leaving Certificate.

He was a superintendent in charge of buildings.

He married a woman from Para- guay and they had two children. They later separated.

While in America, he developed a problem with crack cocaine.

In 1994, he faked his own kidnap- ping, in the hope he would extort money from his aunt’s husband, the

court heard.

He was convicted of fraud and was sentenced to 20 months in jail.

While in prison, he got treatment for his cocaine addiction and he was later deported back to Ireland.

In October 2004, his former wife informed him that his daughter was pregnant. This shocked and devas- tated him and he began to drink very heavily.

‘He would fall into a stupor in the afternoon,’ said Professor Kennedy.

“After October 2004, he felt he was not the same person. He was in a period of depression. He has a lot of blanks in his memory around this time because of his heavy drinking,” he added.

He moved his mattress in front of his television in his Kerry home and continued drinking a bottle of alco- hol every day…“the biggest bottle I could get”’.

He drank a bottle of Bacardi eve- ry day, but did not drink the night before he drove to Clare and killed Liam Moloney.

THE jury in the trial of a man, accused of murdering hackney driver Liam Moloney, will retire to consider its verdict today.

Anthony Kelly (54), a native of Ruan, has denied murdering the father-of-four, at Portlecka, Ruan, on February 11,

2005.

Mr Moloney, who was sepa- rated, died af- ter sustaining 17 blows to the head, while his throat was cut from side to side.

The accused has admitted the killing, but says he was of dimin- ished responsibility at the time.

A judge and jury of seven women and five men has heard evidence in

the case over seven days.

According to the Prosecution, the accused carefully planned the killing and lured Mr Moloney to his death.

It claims that the accused’s mo- tive was robbery, as he went straight from the scene of the killing to Mr Moloney’s flat and stole money.

The defence, how- ever, has claimed that Mr _ Kelly suffered from a mental disorder at the time and this diminished his re- sponsibility.

At the outset of the trial, Kelly pleaded guilty to six other charges, including rob- bing Mr Moloney and taking his car, on the same date.