Author: admin

LONG serving Fine Gael councillor Mary Coote Ryan will serve as the last Mayor of Ennis Town Council after she was selected for the post unopposed last week.

Cllr Coote Ryan, who was first elected to the council in 1990, was elected after party colleague Mary Howard withdrew her name from the race at the council’s annual general meeting on Tuesday night.

Cllr Coote Ryan was proposed as Mayor by the town’s new Deputy Mayor, Cllr Frankie Neylon (Ind). Her nomination was seconded by Cllr Tommy Brennan (Ind). She replaces outgoing Mayor, Cllr Peter Considine (FF). It will be the third time in her political life that Cllr Coote Ryan will serve as the town’s Mayor.

She told the meeting that it was a wonderful honour to be chosen as Mayor on a historic night for the local authority. Pledging to do her best for Ennis, Cllr Coote Ryan said the night was both a “happy and sad” occasion for her, a reference to her late brother Paddy whom she replaced on the council 23 years ago. “I’m an old townie and I absolutely adore my town. With all your help and support, I hope I will do well for the town,” added Cllr Coote Ryan.

Cllr Mary Howard withdrew from the race saying she the last thing she wanted was “more division in the council”. Cllr Howard was nominated for Mayor by fellow Fine Gael councillor, Johnny Flynn and seconded by Cllr Paul O’Shea (Ind).

Cllr Howard paid tribute to Cllr Coote Ryan. She said, “There is no greater honour that to serve your town as Mayor. It is a milestone.” There was an element controversy in the election of Deputy Mayor.

Cllr Frankie Neylon and Cllr Howard were both nominated for the post. Cllr Neylon was elected on a 53 vote after securing the backing of Cllr Coote Ryan.

Cllr Coote Ryan said she voted for Cllr Neylon instead of her Fine Gael colleague because he had nominated her for Mayor. Cllr Neylon was elected with the votes of councillors, Brennan, Guilfoyle, Considine and Coote Ryan. Cllr Howard won the votes of councillors Flynn and O’Shea. Fianna Fáil councillor Brian Meaney was not present at the meeting.

The election sparked a brief row between councillors Neylon and Flynn. The new Deputy Mayor claimed Cllr Flynn had accused him of “rigging” the vote for Mayor.

“I would’ve supported Cllr Howard only for the remarks of Cllr Flynn,” he added.

This claim was strongly denied by Cllr Flynn who later congratulated Cllr Neylon on his success, saying he had served the town with “great efficiency”.

PARENTS of Clare children with special needs have drawn a line in the sand – this far and no farther. More than 100 people turned out in Ennis on Wednesday to protest against cuts in educational supports for children with special need.

Protests of this kind could become a regular sight in Ennis with Clare parent vowing to fight tooth and nail against future cuts of any kind.

According to parent Catherine Burke, the SNA (Special Needs Assistant)/student ratio for children in Clare has gone from one to three in 2010 to one to seven this year.

“We will see more protests – definitely.

“It has been agreed by the Clare Parents Support Group that, from here on in, we will be giving voices to our children – who don’t have voices themselves,” said Catherine.

“If they cut us anymore more we will be out on the streets – we will have our voices heard.

“Our kids need these support. If they don’t get a chance of an education then they won’t be able to reach their potential. Their voices will be heard on this issue – we will make sure of that.”

According to the Clare Parents Support Group, the numbers at last week’s protest in Ennis would have been even larger but for some confusion following last Tuesday’s statement from Minister for Education, Ruairí Quinn (Lab).

“We had more than 100 people there, so I think we did very well for something that was organised over two days on social media. I think we got our message across very well.

“We probably would have gotten more people out for the march but there was some confusion with some people who thought that situation was sorted out after Ruairí Quinn’s statement from the previous day.

“The resource hours have been reallocated to our children but we still have a cap on SNA in our school. So this does amount to a big cut.

“In bigger schools we now have SNAs being shred between four kids with special needs who might be in different class room – it’s not a workable situation.

“This is not a large amount of money.

“Early intervention is key and if these supports are cut, then it be creating more problems down the line. When children are young, it is much easier to help them.

“If they don’t get this support early then it is just making the job harder when they turn eight or nine.”

CLARE Labour TD, Michael McNamara, has defended the actions of Minister for Education Ruairí Quinn (Lab), who last week reversed his decision to cut to the number of special needs resource teachers in primary school saying “his hands were tied” in deciding to introduce the cuts.

Despite more than 100 people turning out in Ennis last week to protest against cuts to education for children with special needs in Clare, the East Clare deputy said that Minister Quinn’s u-turn was “a good decision” and welcomed a promised review of special needs resources.

Five hundred new resource teaching posts will be created in September to cope with the increasing number of children with special needs entering the primary schools system.

There is, however, no allocation for extra special needs assistants (SNA) – with reports that some SNA’s in larger Clare schools are now assigned four students in dif- ferent classes at the same time.

“This is a good decision for special education.

“I am delighted that Ruairí Quinn has secured Cabinet agreement to release 500 additional teaching posts to schools in September,” said Deputy McNamara.

“Like the Minister, I regret if the parents of special needs children had gone through anguish as a result of last week’s announcement.

“To be fair to the Minister, his hands are tied by budgetary allocations.

“However, we will have to find a better way to manage these extremely sensitive situations.

“Coping with the alarming rise in the demand for special resource, teaching will cost money.

“I welcome the review which will be set up as to why the rise in demand for special needs resources is much greater than rise in school population.”

It has also emerged that the cost of providing the extra 500 special needs resource teachers may result in an increase in the overall student teacher ratio at certain primary schools.

A NORTH Clare group has called into question the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) used as part of the license application for a massive fish farm off the Clare coast.

The Galway Bay Protection Group, which was establish by a number concerned local last month, has expressed concerns over the EIS, which was compiled jointly using by the Irish Marine Institute and Bord Iascaigh Mhara (BIM) – the government agency who are themselves proposing the fish farm.

Galway Bay Protection Group member and local doctor, Fergus Glynn, said that a number of questions remain unanswered concerning the EIS.

“The master of the Marine Institute and the master of BIM is Simon Coveney [Minister for Agriculture] and Simon Coveney has publicly and privately backed this fish farm from the word go. We don’t feel that the people who have been tasked with completing this EIS have been allowed to do their job fully and independently,” said Dr Glynn.

“We have spoken to a number of experts about this and the conclusion that we have come to is that, not only are their questions about the real independence of this study, but also there is questions over the scientific rigor and the level of research done.”

A BIM spokesperson has rejected claims that the EIS not been completed to a high standard.

“The EIS was compiled by leading scientists; principally from the Marine Institute, some from BIM and other specialists from the private sector. As the applicant BIM had to take responsibility for the overall production of the EIS, as that is how the law concerning applications for aquaculture licencing is formulated in Ireland,” he said.

“The applicant must submit the EIS and the licencing authority then scrutinise it. BIM will not be issuing or managing the licensing. That function rests with the Aquaculture and Foreshore Management Division of the Department of Agriculture, Food and Marine, that body is completely separate from BIM.”

A fundraising event for the group will take place this Sunday, July 7, at Greene’s Yard in Ballyvaughan from 4pm to 9pm.

LAHINCH – a nice town except for all the rubbish. That is the message from a group of local people who are attempting to change attitudes toward litter in Clare’s premier resort town – and make it a nicer place to visit and live.

According to the group, the village was left in a “disgusting” state after last month’s unexpected sunny weather and they are calling on visitors to be more litter conscious and Clare County Council to do more to keep the village clean.

The group formed after the a local clean-up organised large levels of dumping during the June bank holiday weekend and now intend to form a formal group aimed at working to make the village cleaner.

“It was very really disgusting – you name it, it was dumped on the beach after the [bank holiday] weekend. It was great – about 15 of us went out on Monday evening and picked up more then 30 bags of rubbish – it was disgusting,” said Louise McCormack of the group.

“We need more bins on the prom that is for sure. I know there would be some dumping anyway, but if we can set a higher standard and work to keep the place cleaner then visitors will think twice about dumping themselves.

“There are two men [from Clare County Council] who are very helpful and do some clean up work – but it’s just too much work for them. One tourist said to me last week that we had a lovely village – it’s just a shame that it is so dirty.

“The council makes a lot of money from the car park in Lahinch and that money is supposed to be invested in the village – but that isn’t happening. It would not take a lot of money to fix this problem.”

A spokesperson from the Ennistymon Area Office of Clare County Council said, despite the economic downturn, the local authority have maintained rubbish collections at Lahinch.

“After the bank holiday weekend a group contacted Clare County Council to tell us they were organising a clean up and requested to assist in removing and disposing of the waste they collected. We agreed to the request,” said a spokesperson from Clare County Council.

“At no time did the representative of the group raise any questions about litter management with Clare County Council. With regard to Lahinch, Clare County Council provide a seven day service all year round.

“Due to the downturn in the economy, funding for local authorities has been cut dramatically over the last number of years. The embargo on public sector employment has led to a huge reduction in staff resources available to carry out the functions of the local authority.

“However we have maintained the same level of service on the streets and the promenade of Lahinch despite the lack of resources. All bins have been deployed for the summer season.”

BUSINESSES are facing a potential 20 per cent increase in commercial rates under new structures of local government, the outgoing Mayor of Ennis has warned.

Fianna Fáí l councillor Peter Considine was speaking at the annual general meeting of Ennis Town Council where he called for Fine Gael councillors to lobby for the retention of local authorities.

Eight councillors will be elected to represent the Ennis area in the 2014 local elections.

Cllr Considine said the town will “suffer” by the loss of one elected representative. Currently there are nine elected members on Ennis Town Council.

Cllr Considine said the elimination of local authorities could also have implications for businesses. He claimed that under the new structures, commercial rates could rise by up to 26 per cent. He called on Minister for the Environment, Phil Hogan, to re-think his policy on local government reform.

“Nothing would’ve happened, I’m sure, in this town without the urging, thriving and thinking of Ennis Town Council,” he added.

County manager Tom Coughlan acknowledged that difficult and challenging times lie ahead for local authorities.

He said the timescale for change is tight and that all staff are going to have their shoulders to the wheel.

Town manager Gerard Dollard said, “It’s going to be year of great change and some difficulty.”

Cllr Considine was presiding over his final council meeting as Mayor of Ennis. Recalling the past 12 months, he picked out Ennis’ successful Purple Flag bid, work on the new Quin Road pedestrian bridge and the civic reception afforded to former county manager Joe Boland as particular highlights.

He also hailed the positive impact new coach-parking facilities at Fri- ar’s Walk are having on tourism in Ennis.

It is thought that Cllr Considine will not run for election next year. Colleagues paid tribute to his work as Mayor. Mr Coughlan described Cllr Considine was an “excellent ambassador” for Ennis. “You could see Peter’s pride in the town,” he added.

Cllr Paul O’Shea (Ind) also paid tribute to Cllr Considine, joking that he would “miss their little sparring matches”.

ENNIS Town Manager Ger Dollard has said he would be “concerned” if people with disabilities are having trouble accessing public toilets in the town.

It follows comments made by councillor Paul O’Shea (Ind), who called on the council to make access keys for the town’s two superloos available to people with disabilities.

At yesterday’s meeting of Ennis Town Council, Cllr O’Shea called for a radical overhaul of toilet facilities in Ennis. It costs the council almost € 67,000 per year to operate the automated public conveniences, known as superloos.

Cllr O’Shea described the cost as “extortionate” and called for an independent economic feasibility study on the cost of providing public toilets.

He said the council should provide different facilities that include baby changing facilities and facilities for members of the community with higher specific support needs.

“Public toilets have come on leaps and bounds since 1997,” he added.

Mr Dollard defended the council’s provision of public toilets in Ennis.

He stated, “The executive has previously done an assessment on traditional provision i.e. toilet block with the employment of toilet attendants against the more modern approach of superloos. The executive is in no doubt that when account is taken of the capital cost of provision, costs of operation and maintenance, payroll costs and other overhead and incidental cost that the automated public convenience model offers a cost effective solution and most importantly a standard of toilet facilities that is expected and required in modern cities and towns.”

He added, “The facilities currently in place by Ennis Town Council are modern fully accessible public toilet facilities. The council is not aware of issues regarding accessibility but is happy to examine any such issues in conjunction with the providers and operators of the automated public convenience.”

Mr Dollard said he would be “concerned” if members of the public with disabilities have trouble accessing toilets.

Fine Gael councillors Johnny Flynn and Mary Howard said the council should look at providing a third public toilet at the Parnell Street taxi rank.

FUNDING for small festivals in Clare has been slashed by more than 20 per cent in the latest tranche of funding announced by the Arts Council.

The funding, which was announced last week, will impact on festival taking place in the second half of 2013. Overall funding for six Clare festivals during this period come to € 20,000 – a reduction of a reduction of € 5,080 on the same tranche of funding last year.

The festival worst effected are the Willie Keane Memorial Festival, whose Art Council funding was cut by a whopping 35 per cent (from € 3,080 in 2012 to € 2,000 this year) and the Feakle International Traditional Music Festival, which saw a cut by 21.5 per cent (from € 7,000 in 2012 to € 5, 500 in 2013).

Funding was also granted to the Shannon Winter Music Festival (€ 4,500); Ennis Street Festival (€ 3,000), which taking place in July; the Crotty/Galvin Traditional Music Frestival Weekend (€ 3,000), which will be held in Moyasta in September and Music in the Glens in in Killaloe (€ 2,000).

This brings the total allocated to Clare through the Festival and Events Scheme (formally the Small Arts Festivals Scheme) to € 44,500 for 2013. Total Arts Council funding for small festivals in Clare amounted to € 83,100 in 2007 – meaning that funding levels in the county have dropped by more than 46 per cent over the last six years.

These continued cuts to the arts budget has prompted the chairperson for the Arts Council to call on the Government to take a different approach to funding the arts.

Chairwoman Pat Moylan has said the State should not take such a narrow view of stimuli for the economy and it needs to get away from the Celtic Tiger thinking that the only stimulus jobs that can be created are in construction.

“Sometimes there is too traditional a view that what creates jobs quickly are construction projects only. This is narrow thinking. The arts has untapped potential, already supports almost 21,000 jobs and contributes significantly to the economy,” she said.

A NIGERIAN born business graduate intends to throw his hat into the ring for the 2014 local elections. George Atijohn says he wants to run as a candidate in the Ennis electoral area.

The married father of two wants to get involved in local politics in order to “improve the town of Ennis”. He has lived in the town for almost 13 years. If successful, Mr Atijohn said he would represent all the people of Ennis.

He said, “I’m not going to represent one particular community. I want to represent all the people of Ennis.”

The 47 year-old says he would like to get the opportunity to tackle issues such as unemployment and the shortage of local authority housing.

“Look at the problem with unemployment in Ennis. Unemployment doesn’t know any colour. We have nearly 1, 500 waiting on the housing list. These are things we need to tackle head on.”

“How do we create jobs? That is my interest. How do we get ourselves out of the economic mess that we are in?”

Mr Atijohn comes from farming background and previously ran an information technology business in the Lifford area of Ennis. He recently graduated from the University of Limerick with a Masters in Business Management. He says he can’t wait to hit the campaign trail.

“If I could start tomorrow, I would. I would love an opportunity to have a debate with other candidates. You know the way they do American debates? We should do them. It would be fun. Invite the people from the town in and let them assess the candidates.”

He added, “I’m not just talking the talk. I’m going to walk the walk. Let us come together and see how best we can improve the town.”

If successful, Mr Atijohn would be following in the footsteps of Taiwo Matthew who won a seat on Ennis Town Council in 2004. The Nigerian born doctor made history when he became the first immigrant to be elected to a local authority in Ireland.

CLARE people are being invited to take part in a hunt for the mysterious Daubenton water bat.

The bat, which is an endangered species in some countries, is understood to be relatively populous in Clare – but Bat Conservation Ireland are hoping to get an accurate reading of the local population this August.

The Daubenton bat exits in numerous countries across Europe and Asia – with Ireland, and indeed Clare – being the western most point of its natural habitat.

Indeed, the fact that Clare lies on the very edge of the Daubenton habitat makes an accurate count of its number here all the more important.

The Daubenton’s bat is known as the water bat because of its preference to roost and feed close to water such as rivers and lakes.

It is easy to identify because of all of all Ireland’s nine resident species of bat, it is the only species that will be seen continuously skimming the water surface as it is feeding on in- sects.

Anyone interested in helping to survey waterways in Clare for the bats this August is invited to take part in a special training event taking place in Ennis this week.

“This survey is part of a monitoring scheme recording the activity of the Daubenton’s bat.

“These yearly surveys allow us to determine whether the population of this bat species is increasing or decreasing,” said a spokesperson from Bat Conservation Ireland.

“Surveyors will be in teams of two people. Bat Conservation Ireland will provide the use of a bat detector for the survey.”

Anyone interested in take part in the survey is asked to come to the Civic Room at Ennis Town Council this Friday, July 5, from 8pm for a training evening.

The training will involve an indoor lecture followed by a practical session using bat detectors on a local river.

For more information about the Daubenton bat visit www.batconservationireland.org.