Category: News

FINE Gael have blown their best ever chance of taking a third seat in Clare by only running three candidates in last week’s election. That is according to a survey of FG county councillors conducted by The Clare People in which 10 of the 12 councillors, including unsuccessful candidate Tony Mulcahy, agreeing that a major tactical mistake had been made.

The vast majority of councillors said that either east Clare’s Joe Cooney or north Clare’s Martin Conway should have been added to the ticket – with some describing the move to run just three candidates as “gutless” and “lacking ambition”.

Only one councillor agreed that the three candidate strategy was the right one with one other declining to comment.

“The Fine Gael strategy of leaving north and west Clare with no candidate for the first time in history was a big mistake. This was one of the reasons why Dr Hillery (FF), James Breen (Ind) and Michael McNamara (Lab), who got a lot of votes in the area, did so well,” said Cllr Martin Conway – who yesterday announced his intention to run for the Seanad.

“Fine Gael at national strategy were made aware of this situation but the chose not to listen to the grass roots. They were well briefed by the organisation here in Clare.

Cllr Tony Mulcahy, who won 7,438 votes in Friday’s election, also said that strategy was a mistake saying that there was “definitely a case for saying that we could have ran another candidate – either Joe or Martin”.

There was also a feeling amongst the Fine Gael councillors that a third seat would have guaranteed a Clare seat at the cabinet table.

East Clare councillors Pat Burke said that “the morning that Tony Killeen retired I feel that Martin Conway should have been added to the ticket in north Clare” while Clarecastle’s Paul Murphy said that “a third candidate in north Clare it would have given us a serious shot at at taking that third seat”.

NEXT WEEK Clare will more than likely have three Government TDs as Fine Gael and Labour enter coalition talks, and the longest serving of those TDs believes the county should also have a ministry.

Speaking after he topped the poll in the General Election to be the first TD returned for the Banner Fine Gael’s Pat Breen said he believed that the county should at the very least get a junior ministry.

“We have returned three Government TDs here tonight and three Government TDs can make a difference. I would hope also that the Taoiseach would take the opportunity to give one of us in Government a ministry,” he said referring to himself, party colleague Joe Carey and Labour’s Michael McNamara.

“It would make a great difference to the county if we had a junior minister or a minister in the county it- self, and after returning three Government TDs I think Clare at least deserves that.”

The Ballynacally man was coy and evasive however when asked if that TD should be the longest serving in the county. “That would be up to the Taoiseach himself,” he said.

In the neighbouring constituency of Limerick city, where more than 4,000 Clare citizens vote, the constituents are also expecting a “full car” in the form of a senior ministry.

For the first time ever the party’s Finance spokesperson and former party leader Michael Noonan topped the poll in the constituency with more than 30 per cent of the vote.

The 67-year-old is now favourite to take the key position of Minister for Finance, even in the likelihood of the Fine Gael Labour coalition.

The constituency’s proximity to Clare makes it very unlikely that the TDs from the Banner County will also get a seat on the Government front bench.

Most political commentators say the most Clare can hope for now is a junior ministry. The last Fine Gael TD from Clare to hold such a position was Donal Carey, father of Fine Gael’s second TD in Clare Joe Carey. He was appointed Minister of State at the Department of the Taoiseach and Minister of State at the Department of Arts, Culture and the Gaeltacht by then Taoiseach John Bruton in January 1995.

CLARE County Council insists that it has done ‘quite well’ in securing flood funding from the Office of Public Works since the flood disaster in November of 2009 – despite Clare receiving approval for fewer projects than other affected counties.

The local authority confirmed to The Clare People that they are awaiting decisions on “seven or eight” projects which they have submitted to the OPW for funding.

Since November of 2009 the local authority has received € 300,000 in OPW funding for the Gort Road Flood Relief Scheme; € 135,000 for schemes in the Watery Road, Elm Park and Fior Uisce areas of Ennis; and € 160,000 for a number of small flood relief schemes in the north Clare area.

This compares to an allocation to Cork County Council of € 1,805,000; Galway County Council of € 1,695,000 and Kildare County Council of € 1,466,000 in funding since the November 2009 flooding, although Clare County did receive in the region of € 9m to complete flood relief scheme in the Ennis Town Centre just before November 2009.

Clare County Council last week circulated details of progress made in securing flood funding from the OPW following a question raised at last month’s meeting of Clare County Council.

In addition to these schemes, Clare County Council is waiting for “confirmation of continuation of funding” for a flood relief scheme in the St Flannan’s/Ballybeg Area while flood defences have been improved in the Shannon area.

“Clare County Council has reviewed and will continue to review its inventory of flood defence infrastructure and equipment and is continuing to develop and improve its response strategies in the face of prospective major flood events as resources permit,” said Senior Engineer, Tom Tiernan.

“Records were retained in relation to all of the locations where flooding became a problem and these records have been/will be of benefit in the design of flood relief schemes and in informing the Councils Emergency Response Strategy as required in future.”

The council also pointed out that first phase of the Ennis Town Centre Flood Relief Scheme had just been substantially completed before November of 2009 at a cost of € 9,000,000.

A council spokesperson also confirmed that the tender process pertaining to the second phase of the Ennis Town Centre Scheme is substantially completed and the project is scheduled to get under way in the near future.

CLARE parents of all babies, from birth to 12 months, are being advised this week to give infants a daily vitamin D supplement to protect their growing bones.

This advice from the Health Service Executive (HSE), the Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) and the Department of Health and Children is for both breastfed and formula fed children and should be given 5 micrograms of Vitamin D daily.

The health organisations have said that Vitamin D, also known as the sunshine vitamin, is essential for healthy bones, but is present in very few foods.

Ireland’s northerly latitude and lack of winter sunlight means that Irish people can no longer make enough vitamin D in this way, according to the groups, so they are advising that it is added to infants food intake instead.

Severe and prolonged vitamin D deficiency can cause softening of the bones or bone deformities, known as rickets in children or osteomalacia in adults.

Less severe vitamin D deficiency also affects bone health, may increase the risk of osteoporosis, and some studies have also linked it to conditions like rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis and diabetes.

“Babies need a daily supplement of vitamin D because their delicate skin cannot be safely exposed to the sun, and because their feeds or diet alone do not provide enough of this important vitamin to ensure healthy bone growth,” a HSE spokesperson said.

Rickets in children was known as a problem in Ireland up to the mid20th century, but due to better nutrition in our population over recent decades, it was thought to have been eradicated.

However, a number of cases of rickets have been seen in the country in recent years.

According to Dr Mary Flynn, Chief Specialist in Public Health Nutrition, FSAI, “the cases of rickets that we have seen are likely to be the tip of the iceberg, and indicate that there is a wider, undetected level of vitamin D deficiency in our population. There is growing evidence that this can increase the risk of conditions like rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis or diabetes.”

BRIAN Meaney is in line to become the next leader of the Green Party, following the party’s disastrous result in last week’s General Election.

The Clare county councillor, who was an unsuccessful candidate in Friday’s election, says that while he has no desire to be party leader it was the “likely outcome” following the collapse of the party.

Cllr Meaney was speaking after being eliminated following the seventh county of last week’s General Election.

“I am delighted to be a town councillor, I’m delighted to be a county councillor the only thing that I don’t want to be is the next leader of the Green Party – which a lot of people [in the Green Party] are saying is the likely outcome,” he said.

“There is going to be significant restructuring of the Greens. We need to rebuild the party right across the country but the future can only be brighter when you are down at the bottom.”

Cllr Meaney says that the Green Party has to regroup, both in Clare and nationally.

“The Greens have not gone away. This has not been a good day for the Greens but we need to dust ourselves off and start again,” he said.

“The Greens in Clare will have to regroup, as we will nationally. There are significant questions that we have to answer on an organisational level that we will have to address if we are to rebuild.

“I knew we were facing a significant challenge to hold onto any seat nationally. I knew I faced a difficult challenge locally here in Clare – the wind was blowing against the party and I don’t make populist decisions. Maybe there is an amount of political naivety there but that is how I do my business,” he said.

“I’m happy that I ran. I’m happy that I faced the people after being part of a very unpopular party in government who had to take some very difficult but necessary decisions.

“I have to make one thing clear, and that is the depth of sincerity that I have for the people who did vote for me and the people who gave me second and third preference, and the people who came out and canvassed with me. It was not an easy thing to do under the current circumstances.”

EAST Clare county councillor John Crowe (FG) is quietly confident that he will get the nomination to contest a seat in the Seanad later today (Tuesday).

The Fine Gael councillor said he was very interested in running again for the upper house of the Oireachtas as he came very close to success the last time around. With more Fine Gael elected representatives in the country than in 2007 and the wind at the party’s back following its most successful general election ever, the Sixmilebridge man is even more confident of success. The county councillor contested a seat in the Industrial and Commercial Panel in July 2007. His party colleague north Clare councillor Martin Conway has already secured a nomination to run for the Administrative panel, having dipped his feet in the Seanad election pool the last time around. Mayor of Shannon and General Election candidate Tony Mulcahy (FG) said he would take some time to consider his options. The county councillor, who received 6,829 first preference votes in Friday’s General Election, was among the highest Fine Gael pollers not to be elected in the country.

He told The Clare People that he would spend this week concentrating on his business, and then consider all of his political options next week.

Fianna Fáil councillor Pat Daly, who also contested the Seanad election in 2007, has firmly ruled himself out of the running. “If you want to go into the Seanad you are either a defeated TD or an outgoing senator to join that exclusive club,” he said.

Meanwhile as one Corofin man – Tony Killeen – comes to the end of his political career, this week another is now hoping to take part in national politics. Former INTO President and Corofin National School principal Declan Kelleher has announced his intention to run as an Independent candidate on the NUI University Panel for Seanad Eireann.

The principal of Scoil Mhuire Náisiúnta, Corofin, and INTO national executive council representative was well known for leading protests against large class sizes during his term as head of the teachers’ union. The school teacher will now begin a campaign in a bid to win the seat currently held by outgoing senator Joe O’Toole, a former general secretary of the INTO.

Mr Kelleher is well aware however of many political party policies to dissolve the Seanad, but he believes it needs serious reform.

“Nobody could be blamed for calling for the abolition of the Seanad in its present form as it has been hijacked by the political parties and used as a retirement home by them for many politicians down through the years. I believe that the entire political system needs to be examined, radically overhauled and slimmed down,” he said.

There are almost 2,000 registered NUI voters in Clare out of a national total of 133,000.

LESS than two weeks after the county was recognised with three awards for encouraging people to speak Irish, an event that will see even more Clare people attempt a “cúpla focail gaeilge” is to be launched.

The programme of events for 2011 Seachtain na Gaeilge will be launched in Ennis this Thursday by well known Irish language writer and musician Maidhc Dainín Ó Sé and Bainisteoir Náisiúnta de Sheachtain na Gaeilge Órla Nic Suibhne.

Hundreds of people are expected to participate in a wide range of events during the week at locations in Ennis, Kilkee, Kilrush, Shannon, Miltown Malbay, Tulla, Lisdoonvarna and Kilmaley.

Emer Ní Fhlaitheartaigh, Oifigeach Forbartha Gaeilge, Clare County Council, said “Seachtain na Gaeilge takes place less than a fortnight after Coiste Glóir na hInse won three national language awards for the promotion of Irish in the spheres of education, the media and public service. This success underlines the progress that is being made at a local level to encourage greater use of the Irish language in everyday life and greater participation in initiatives that take place throughout the year.

“We anticipate that this year’s programme of events will again involve hundreds of people of all ranges of fluency. The vast range of events due to take place around the county demonstrates that the Irish language is vibrant, alive and exciting in the hearts of the people of Clare,” she said.

Clare County Council, An Clár as Gaeilge, Clare County Library and a wide range of voluntary bodies have jointly assumed the role of co-ordinating a countywide programme for this annual festival.

Once again a large number of events will take place at primary and secondary schools throughout Clare with some schools hosting their own events, including Réalt na Mara in Kilkee and Scoil Sheanáin Naofa in Kilrush. Workshops in singing and dancing have been organised to take place in schools throughout the county.

This year’s Seachtain na Gaeilge also coincides with the Ennis Book Club Festival featuring Eddie Lenihan in Scéal Eile Bookshop, Féile Scoldrámaíochta today (Tuesday), as well as Féile na hInse which is expected to attract in excess of 2,000 people to the town later this month and the Roibeárd Ó Cathasaigh devised Rabhlaí Rabhlaí in Glór, Ennis on March 31.

HISTORY was made in the Galway East yesterday – but it was a long time in coming. After a marathon 28 hours of counting, Labour’s Colm Keaveney did just enough to take the final of four seats – the party’s first ever inroad in the long history of the constituency.

Keaveney will now join Micheal Kitt of Fianna Fáil and Paul Connaughton and Ciaran Cannon of Fine Gael in the Dáil. Though widely predicted to be in contention for a seat, Keaveney’s election was one of the big surprises of the count after he polled a disappointing 4,200 first preferences.

The drama of Keaveney’s eventual election began, in truth, with the performance of his running mate Lorraine Higgins. Higgins, who covered the southern half of the constituency, came in with in a disappointing tenth place after the first count with 3,577.

But the transfers were all going red and Higgins survived count after count, staying just ahead of the chop, until the fifth count when the flood of preferences could no longer save her.

By this time she had increased her share of the vote to just under 5,000 and, with Keaveney next in line to be eliminated, a massive transfer was needed to keep the Tuam man alive and kicking.

Against all the odds the flow the votes materialised with Higgins transferring just under 4,000 votes to her party colleague – lifting him above Fine Gael’s Tom McHugh and Jimmy McClearn and the highly fancied Independent Tim Broderick and Sean Canny.

So dramatic was the manner of the Keaveney comeback that few could have begrudged the recount called by the Fine Gael’s Tom McHugh. But there was no changing the result with Keaveney making history to take Labour’s first ever seat in Galway East.

No doubt there will be many disappointed Fine Gaelers in the constituency today, with the party’s hopes of winning a third seat faltering at the final hurdle. There was much success for the party on the day however as Paul Connaughton held onto the seat vacated by his father and former PD leader Ciaran Cannon taking a second seat for the party.

There had been some contention surrounding Cannon’s selection ahead of the election, with some local party members upset that he was added to the ticket by the Fine Gael hierarchy in Dublin.

Fianna Fail’s Michael Kitt was the only sitting TD returned by the electorate, taking the seat on the eight count.

GARDAÍ have launched an investigation after three people were injured following a two-car collision in Gorteen on Saturday night.

One man in his sixties and two men in their thirties are being treated in the Mid Western Regional Hospital in Limerick following the incident which took place at around 12.30am on the Quin Road.

It is thought that the driver of the van involved in the incident of the scene fled the scene on foot after the collision occurred.

One of the injured men managed to release himself from the car and call for assistance.

The three men, a father, his son and a friend, were travelling towards Ennis at the time.

Meanwhile Gardaí have issued an appeal aimed at preventing forest fires.

In Clare in 2010 there were eight fires resulting in 18 hectares being damaged.

According to private forestry business Woodland, at least 500 hectares of private forestry were destroyed by fires in 2010 resulting.

Sgt Joe Downey, Crime Prevention Officer in the Clare Garda Division, explained, “If fires are lit near or adjacent to forests and not properly controlled they can get out of control and cause sever damage to forests and possibly damage homes that are built too close to the forests and in extreme cases to serious injuries.”

He explained that apart from the risk of injuries there is also a significant cost factor to be taken into account.

Sgt Downey is urging any landowners intending to burn land to clear scrub to contact the fire services before doing so.

He explained, “Under certain circumstances, and based mainly on tradition, the burning of land to clear scrub and unwanted vegetation has become and accepted practice. Members of the community who engage in this practice should make themselves aware of the necessary precautions relating to controlled burning by contacting the local fire services.”

Sgt Downey added, “We want to emphasise the threat that land and forest fires present to people’s lives and property. You must comply with the legislation and undertake burning in a controlled manner. It is also advisable to contact the fire services the day before you intend to burn so that they are aware if any phonecalls come into their office.

AS MANY as 4,200 Clare citizens from the east of the county were required to cast their votes not in the Clare constituency, but the hotly contested new constituency of Limerick City.

As many as 3,270 of those Clare people cast their votes in nine boxes in a school in Parteen and a Scouts Hall in Shannon Banks.

The Clare vote reflected that of the constituency as a whole with Fine Gael’s former leader Michael Noonan receiving almost 30 per cent or 967 of the votes cast on the Clare side of the ever-contentious boundary line. This was just a few percentage points shy of what the Fine Gael stalwart received in the constituency as a whole when he topped the poll for the very first time.

Despite such supporters in Clare as Cllr Cathal Crowe (FF), Willie O’Dea (FF) saw his vote drop to 16.89 per cent or 545 votes.

Despite being elected on the seventh count after failing to reach the quota Labour’s Jan O’Sullivan polled strongly in east Clare, coming in as the second most popular candidate with 21.44 per cent of that vote.

In the only Clare area with a Labour Clare county councillor in the form of Pascal Fitzgerald, the Clonlara native secured 705 votes.

The second Fine Gael candidate and TD Kieran O’Donnell was also the second TD elected following a healthy transfer from running partner Michael Noonan.

Deputy Noonan, had increased his first preference vote across the constituency by 77 per cent.

Fianna Fáil’s Deputy O’Dea’s first preference vote had fallen however by as much as 64 per cent.

Former mayor of Limerick City and former Fine Gael councillor Kevin Kiely, who has long since been an advocate for moving the Limerick City boundary into Clare, did not poll well in the Clare area he believed should belong to Limerick city.

The now Independent candidate received just 36 out of a possible 3,270 Clare votes or one per cent of the vote.