Category: News

HISTORY was made in Athlone on Saturday night when the players of the Corofin Drama Society won two All-Ireland titles at the prestigious RTÉ All-Ireland Drama Festival for their production of ‘The Subject was Roses’. The big winner on the night was Maura Clancy, who took the overall Best Actress Award while Kevin Glynn also brought home a deserved All-Ireland for his light work. The society took a very impressive third place in the overall Best Play category and different members were also in the running for a number of other awards. For Maura, who is a professor of maths at NUI, Galway, her Best Actress award was a team award rather than a personal one. “It was such a prestigious achievement and such an thrill just to make it to Athlone. We felt that we had already done well just to be there, so we were very relaxed about things, we felt we were already winners no matter what happened in the final so that did take the pressure off us a bit,” said Maura. “Every actor knows that you are only as good as the people around you. I was thought from a very early age that acting is all about reacting – so if you don’t have great cast members there with you to give you something to react to then it is pretty difficult to be out there on your own. “It was a total team performance and I can’t emphasise how wonderful it was to work with Martin O’Donoghue and James Rallahy, their performances were magnificent on the night and I thin that the reward really goes to all of us. It was an honour to be recognised but I think the award is for all of us really.” This win continues the recent run of good form for the Corofin Drama Society having won the All-Ireland (Confined) three act finals in 2008 and the All-Ireland (Confined) one act final last year.

SHANNON Airport will become “a carcass” if a new management structure for the airport is not fully operational before international airlines decide their 2013 route schedule this August.

The airport could also become the victim of “asset stripping” by the Dublin Airport Authority, with the loss of Aer Rianta International and the possible loss of the Shannon slots at Heathrow Airport, should the government’s stake in Aer Lingus be sold.

These were the main concerns expressed by councillors at a special meeting of Clare County Council on the subject of Shannon Airport yesterday.

Shannon Cllr PJ Ryan (IND) said that a steering group, including a member of Clare County Council, must be put in place immediately with a view to creating a new management structure of the airport as soon as possible.

“Setting up a steering committee is fine but if don’t have any decision made by this steering committee before the end of 2012, Shannon Airport will become a carcass of an airport,” he said.

Cllr Jerry Flynn (FG) warned that this process should not be used as a means to allow the Dublin Airport Authority to strip the assets of Shannon Airport.

“Aer Rianta should not be given away, it is worth € 100 million, and it should not be handed over to the DAA. Nor should the Heathrow slots be lost. This will amount to asset stripping for the airport in Shannon,” he said. “Shannon Airport also saves Dublin Airport around € 25 million a year by allowing all emergency landings to come through Shannon. If it was not for this, they would have to shut down Dublin Airport a number of times each year.”

Chairman of the council’s Transport Special Policy Committee (SPC), Richard Nagle (FF), said that the timescale for establishing the steering committee was critical.

“Concerns have been expressed about the timescale of the proposals. It was highlighted by speaker after speaker [at yesterday’s Transport SPC meeting]. It was felt that any delay would leave the future of the airport in limbo,” he said.

“The concerns of the staff down there need to be address without delay. Time is critical – the steering group needs to be put in place now an need to come up with proposals for the airport.”

Cllr Patricia McCarthy (IND) also warned about the airport being left in limbo.

“What is not acceptable is that we are now entertaining in a period of limbo and we don’t have an idea what s going to happen to Shannon during this period,” said Cllr McCarthy.

“My main concerns stems from the fact that while a decision has been made, there is no indication of how this is going to be achieved and what impact this will have on the staff down there going forward.”

PEOPLE are becoming more fire and road safety conscious, with Clare Fire and Rescue Service call-outs dropping by one third last year.

According to the county’s fire chief, Adrian Kelly, people are becoming more safety aware, but false alarms continue to be an issue.

In 2010, the fire services responded to 1,355 calls, compared to 908 last year.

As many as 850 of the 2010 callouts were to fires, a number that almost halved to 461 in 2011.

Chief Kelly explained that gorse, bog and forestry fires had a huge affect on the 2010 figures, with approximately 260 such fires in total.

From January 1, 2010, to September 30, 2010, the fire service responded to 257 large outdoor fires. During the same period in 2011, that number had dropped to just 73.

A number of initiatives introduced by Clare County Council and the fire service have also played a part in the reduction in call-out numbers.

Among the schemes in place is a school programme where the fire service speaks with third-class students, a clean chimney campaign, and a smoke detector initiative.

The number of fires started for controlled burning that have gotten out of control has also reduced, with people ringing the service in advance to say they will be lighting fires.

“People are therefore more responsible as they have already informed the service who they are,” explained Mr Kelly.

The number of road traffic accidents the fire service was called to in 2011 reduced by 25 from the previous year. This number was down almost 100 from 2007.

“Part of the reason for this is the opening of the motorway, and there are less people on the road because there are less people working and due to the cost of fuel,” said the Clare fire chief.

Bogus calls continue to waste time and money for the fire service, however. Last year, there were 24 malicious false alarms at a cost of approximately € 1,100 per call-out.

Not only did this cost the fire service € 26,400, it also cost the service valuable time, according to Chief Kelly.

While the fire units are attending a bogus call, they could get a call to a genuine emergency.

“We could be losing valuable minutes on bogus calls,” he said.

A further 75 call-outs last year were good-intent false alarms.

DESPITE having its Government funding cut by more than nine million euro last year, Clare County Council ended the year with a deficit of just € 47,000.

Total Government funding received by Clare County Council during 2011 was € 66.8M, compared to € 78.2m in 2010.

The council’s financial department said it achieved considerable savings through a reduction in operating costs such as payroll and has some additional income generated under the Non Principal Private Residence (NPPR) scheme.

A significant reduction in staffing levels saved the council € 1.26 million in salaries, wages and pension costs.

The pay roll cost for 2011 was € 40.9 million, compared to € 42.2 million incurred the previous year.

Reduced call outs to the emergency services also had an impact on council savings.

Not surprisingly there was an in- crease in uncollected rates at the end of 2011 over the previous year yet the total cash intake had also increased by 10 per cent to € 34.5 million.

The council also managed to reduce its long-term loans by € 6.6 million.

Head of Finance Niall Barrett noted that the 2011 financial year was a difficult one that required the council to make expenditure savings in order to negate both the impact of a significant reduction in Government funding, and other income reductions.

“Taking into consideration the fiscal challenges faced by the Coun- cil, this result is welcomed and has arisen from effective budget management of both expenditure and income throughout the organisation,” he added.

“The key factors that influenced the financial performance of the council included an increased level of vacant properties impacting Commercial Rates and a general increase in irrecoverable charges due to the impact of the economic climate, NPPR income, payroll savings, the severe cold weather and resulting damage to water mains, the deferral of the am- ortization of unfunded capital balances relating to the Central Waste Management Facility at Ballyduffbeg; and critical maintenance and security issues at Traveller Accommodation sites,” he said.

“While the overall result is almost break-even and can be considered to be positive in the context, cognisance must be taken of the fact that this situation is only arrived at by virtue of the corrective actions taken by the council in reducing its expenditure in line with available funding in 2011,” added Mr. Barrett.

THE FUTURE of Lahinch Seaworld seems to have been secured after the announcement of a major € 350,000 investment in the facility by the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport last week.

The facility, which is a private company supported by Clare County Council, has been under new management for more than a year and hopes are high that this new investment will establish the visitor attraction as an ongoing, profit-making venture.

According to annual accounts lodged on behalf of the Lahinch Seaworld and Leisure Centre PLC, the company made a loss of just over € 97,000 in 2009.

However, it is understood that the facility has made great progress in tackling these losses in recent months.

The grant, which totals € 349,800, will be used to carry out essential maintenance work at the facility. This grant comes on top of a previ- ous grant of € 42, 500, bringing the total to € 392,300.

There was also good news for Waterworld in Kilkee last week with the announcement that the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport has granted them € 75,000 in funding for maintenance works.

“These are two crucial community and tourism leisure centres and I am confident that these grants will copper-fasten the future of both operations,” said Clare TD, Michael McNamara (LAB).

These latest grants are part of the third round of grant applications under the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport’s Disabled Access and Energy Upgrade Scheme for Local Authority pools in Clare.

THE number of people born on Clare soil swelled by one in the early hours of Friday morning when baby Eirinn Christina Robbins Logue came into the world on the side of the road in Corofin. Eirinn’s parents, Caralyn Robbins and Phil Logue, were about to drop their two older children at their aunt’s house at Laghtagoona in Corofin before carrying on to hospital in Galway, when Eirinn decided that her big moment had arrived.

The momentous birth took plance on the road outside Caralyn’s sister Crystel’s house, with dad Phil acting as a more than capable midwife.

CLARE County Council yesterday put itself forward to play a major role in the steering group which will implement the separation of Shannon Airport from the Dublin Airport Authority.

County Manager, Tom Coughlan, yesterday outlined the local authority’s plan for influencing the restructuring the management of the airport, but said that the steering group must be established immediately if it going to succeed.

Speaking at yesterday’s May meeting of Clare County Council, Mr Coughlan put forward a timeline for change to take place at the airport saying that the steering group should be up and running, and making reports to government before the end of the year.

“The steering group must be established immediately and must include representatives from the local authorities,” said Mr Coughlan.

“The terms of reference of the steering group must be concise and a clear time line must be set, within the current year, for the reporting of the steering group, for decisions by government, for legislative change and for the implementation of Government decisions.

“The steering group must focus on achieving an increase in passen- ger traffic and a mechanism must be identified to achieve this objective in the short, medium and long term.”

The county manager also poised a number of questions that needed to be clarified before the proposed reorganising of Shannon Airport can be completed. These include some uncertainty about the workers at Shannon Airport, will the airport remain an “international” airport or will it be re-designated as a regional airport and will Clare County Council have a role to plan in the plans being drawn up by organisations such as the IDA and Fáilte Ireland.

HUNDREDS of walking enthusiasts from all over Ireland will descend on Ballyvaughan this Saturday for the fifth ever Clare Burren Marathon Challenge.

The walking marathon, which has quickly established itself as one of Ireland’s premier walking events, could raise as much as € 300,000 for the local economy, with scores of people expected to stay in the Burren area for the weekend.

The marathon, which is organised by the Ballyvaughan/Fanore Walking Club, will this year take place on Saturday, May 26, and will coincide with a host of events taking place as part of the Burren in Bloom Festival.

“The marathon has been a great success, not just for Ballyvaughan but for the whole area. Taking place in May, it is a great chance to see the Burren as it is just getting into full bloom and it has definitely been a great boost to the tourism businesses here over the years,” said Geraldine Linnane of the Ballyvaughan Tourist Information Point.

“It is a great way of introducing people to the Burren. The walk takes people to parts of the Burren that a lot of people just wouldn’t see otherwise. A lot of people would see the Burren from the back of a tour bus and this gives them a totally different experience of the place.

“I would say that a lot of people who get a taste for the area during the walk come back at other times. The local tourism businesses certainly get a big boost out of it.”

This year’s event will feature three courses – the full marathon, the halfmarathon and the mini-marathon. The routes take participants both on and off roads, into some of the most breathtaking Burren terrain.

The event is made possible with the kind permission of the local landowners, Clare Sports Partnership, Logues Lodge in Ballyvaughan and the Burren in Bloom Festival.

Full details of this year’s event, including entry options and a training schedule, are now available on www. clareburrenmarathonchallenge.com or by calling 087 7779714. TO CELEBRATE volunteers and the great community spirit alive throughout the county, the Clare Volunteer Centre is launching its first poetry competition. Anyone over the age of 8 is invited to submit a poem, no longer than eight lines, on the theme ‘together we can make a difference’. Sharon Meaney, Manager with the Clare Volunteer Centre, explained

where the idea for the competition came from.

“Part of our role in the Clare Volunteer Centre is to promote the important role that volunteers play in all our communities.

“We are asking people to really think about the ways in which volunteers contribute to our communities and to the people who live within those communities.

“The theme ‘together we can make a difference’ is a recurring theme we use in the Clare Volunteer Centre as we witness, on a daily basis, how volunteers are affecting change through individual action.”

Supported by Clare County Council and Clare Local Development Company, application forms can be obtained from any of the local libraries around the county or by contacting Clare Volunteer Centre.

Dolores O Halloran, Volunteer Placement Officer, with the Clare Volunteer Centre, gave an insight into how the competition will run. “We are asking people to submit their poem, along with an application form by midnight on June 11. The winner will be announced on July 2 and we plan to do something a little different with the winning poem.

“The overall prize is an Apple iPad, which was kindly sponsored by Action Point Technology Group. The 10 runners-up will receive a € 50 voucher, sponsored by local businesses.”

Sharon Meaney added, “There are three categories Junior (8-12), Young (13 – 17) and Adult 18-plus. We encourage schools and clubs to get involved and spread the message – together we can make a difference.”

Contact the Clare Volunteer Centre on 065 68 66 800 or visit their website www.volunteerclare.ie to obtain an application form.

THE new Shannon Airport company will be debt-free, but the write-off of € 100m plus that it owes will be at the price of Aer Rianta International (ARI) being lost to Shannon forever.

This quid pro-quo arrangement has been heralded by Minister for Transport, Leo Varadkar, despite a demand from interest groups in the mid west region that Shannon be given a slice of ARI’s profits.

“ARI originated in Shannon,” admitted Minister Varadkar, “but what it will do is remain part of the DAA group which is going to be re-named. It started in Shannon, but moved beyond Shannon a long time ago.

“It has been contributing to the DAA group, but the justification we have to take the debt off Shannon is the fact that Shannon did contribute to the development of ARI,” he added.

The case for Shannon ownership of ARI, which is considered the jewel in the crown of the DAA, was made vociferously to Minister Varadkar as recently as last March by former ARI chief, Michael Hanrahan.

“Aer Rianta International started in May 1988 – we had an initial capital of € 1.2m and that came from the surpluses of Shannon through the ‘80s. Minister Varadkar indicated that this money came from Dublin – it came from Shannon,” he said.

“The concept that Shannon owes € 100m is to me an absolute scandal,” he blasted.

“Aer Rianta International invested in Birmingham Airport and that investment was £30m sterling. That came from the surpluses of Aer Rianta International. The DAA disposed of the investment Birmingham and made a profit of € 270m,” he added.

“ARI is a subsidiary of the DAA group and belongs to the state. It doesn’t belong to Shannon and what we are giving Shannon is independence,” Minister Varadkar has countered this week.

“We are giving Shannon the ability to set its own charges, we are giving it a situation where it is going to start off debt free and hopefully some cash in the bank and maybe cash incentives and other tools to make it a huge success.

“It’s because Shannon contributed so much to Aer Rianta International, in recognition of that it’s not going to have to carry any debt from the DAA.

“The exact mechanism about how that’s going to work will be part of the steering committee’s remit.

“What I want is the new company to have cash in the bank – cash to carry out investments that are needed and also to absorb any losses that might occur in the first year or two,” Minister Varadkar added.

VICTIMS of clerical child sex abuse or those with knowledge of abuse that has been perpetrated against children in Clare have this week been urged to step forward and alert the relevant authorities of these crimes.

The move that has been signalled as part of a new clerical child sex abuse awareness campaign being mounted by the Diocese of Killaloe throughout the county during the month of May.

This campaign was launched in the past week, just as the Catholic hierarchy was rocked by fresh abuse allegations surrrounding the investigation of notorious paedophile priest, Fr Brendan Smyth, that has left future of Cardinal Sean Brady as primate of all Ireland hanging in the balance.

As part of what the diocese has called “the importance of safeguarding children”, those who have suffered abuse in Clare have been urged to alert the Garda Siochána, the Health Services Executive or the Killaloe Diocese directly.

Throughout Clare those “concerned that someone you know is at risk in relation to a child safeguarding concern, or you wish to raise a matter from the past” have been told to come forward immediately.

“If you have grounds for concern about the welfare of a child you must act immediately to the statutory authorities and/or diocesan designated persons as soon as possible,” the Diocese of Killaloe has said.

“The designated persons will liaise with the statutory authorities – the Gardai the HSE and also the Bishop and the National Board for safeguarding children,” the diocese has added.

Since 2003, over € 2m has been paid out to victims of clerical child sex abuse in the Diocese of Killaloe. Money given victims are labelled as ‘Special Payments’ in the annual diocesan accounts published every year.