Category: News

AFTER much online campaigning and voting, Kilrush’s Ian Lynch has made it through to the final of the Calor Community Champion 2013.

The only Clare man in the national contest, he in now in the final six for a prize that would see two local charities – West Clare cancer centre and suicide awareness – benefiting by € 7, 500.

He was nominated for the award initially by his sister Lorraine for his “selfless volunteering work across the region for a number of years”.

He is a volunteer member of Kilrush RNLI since 2001 and set up emergency defibrillator groups in Kilrush and nine other towns and villages across West Clare.

“While establishing these groups, Ian trained as a CFR trainer to allow him to provide communities with this service free of charge, to drive membership,” a spokes person for sponsors Calor Gas said.

He is also a member of Kilrush Town Council since 2009. Ian received over 4,900 votes in the public vote on the Calor Ireland Facebook page.

The former mayor of Kilrush and his fellow finalists will now go forward to the judging panel led by TV and radio personality Síle Seoige and including legendary GAA and sports broadcaster Micheál Ó Muircheartaigh and Mary Geraty from Calor. The Calor Community Champion 2013 will be announced on November 20.

“Calor would like to say a big thank you to all those across the Kilrush area and West Clare who supported Ian and the second year of the Community Champion initiative, and wish all of our finalists the very best of luck, you are truly an inspiration to us all,” the Calor spokesperson said.

CLARE County Council intends to carry out work to upgrade a section of the Rocky Road to allow for greater pedestrian access to the Ballybeg area of Ennis.

Yesterday’s meeting of councillors in the Ennis East Electoral Area heard the council is looking to repave the road from the Rocky Road roundabout to Ballybeg.

Senior executive Engineer Eamon O’Dea told the meeting the council intends to improve of pedestrian access along the walking route.

Cllr Tommy Brennan (Ind) said the route would be used if work was carried out to repair it.

Cllr Johnny Flynn said the route could also be popular with cyclists.

Mr O’Dea made the announcement of the council’s plans to upgrade the Rocky Road following discussion on a motion tabled by Cllr Paul Murphy (FG). The Clarecastle councillor requested the council “prioritise completing the footpath from Rockmount Cross to where it currently ends on the Kilrush Road and to also provide a pedestrian crossing”.

Cllr Murphy told the meeting he received a petition containing the signatures of 300 people living in the area.

“There are a lot of kids walking to school (new Ennis National School) in the area and a lot of residents are very concerned about how busy the road is,” he added.

Cllr Pat Daly (FF) said the area is a “fierce busy road”. “It is important the NRA provide the money for the footpaths,” he added.

Mr O’Dea said funding would have to be sought from the National Roads Authority (NRA) as the section of footpath is on a national secondary road.

He continued, “The cost of providing a footpath and public lighting would be in excess of € 80,000. There is uncontrolled pedestrian crossing at the Kilrush Road roundabout on the N68. There is an alternate pedestrian access in daylight hours to Ballybeg by using the Rocky Road and the pedestrian pelican crossing at the Rocky Road roundabout on the N85.”

Earlier, town manager and director of Service, Gerard Dollard told a meeting of councillors in the Ennis West Electoral Area, that discussions are ongoing with Airtricity on the provision of public lighting in the Beechpark housing estate.

Mr Dollard said the works could cost up to € 25,000 and the council would have to decide on how to fund it.

CUSTOMERS of a Clare-based company that operates a loyalty rewards business have been warned that there was a breach in its data security, but there is no evidence as yet if any personal information was compromised. The cyber attack on LoyaltyBuild in Ennis could affect up to 43,000 customers who booked getaway breaks through the Clare born com- pany which recorded pre-tax profits of € 4.5 million last year. The company was sold in 2008 by businessmen Dominic Considine, Domhnal Slattery and Sean Lyne for € 25 million to American company Affinion. LoyaltyBuild operates loyalty schemes on behalf of three companies – Super Valu, Axa and Stena Line – and said that customers who booked breaks in the last three months may be affected. Credit and debit card details belonging to customers may have been compromised following the cyber attack however the company stressed that CVV (Card Verification Value) numbers – generally needed to complete online transactions – were not stored. Suspicion about a possible breach emerged on Friday, October 25, and a team of “expert forensic investigators” was appointed to determine what had happened. On Wednesday, October 30, it emerged that a breach may have occurred and it contacted the Data Protection Commissioner (DPC) on the Friday. A spokesman for the Data Protection Commission said its systems were encrypted, and it was not clear how much information had been taken. “The systems were encrypted, including credit card and contact numbers. They [LoyaltyBuild] took the step of notifying individuals just in case,” the office said. Customers were advised however to monitor credit card use on their accounts or take measures to alter their details like PIN numbers, or seek advice from their credit card provider. It is understood it may take up to a fortnight to determine how much information was taken.

THE Burren and Cliffs of Moher Geopark and Loop Head Peninsula finished as runners up to the Brazilian region of Benito in the ‘Best Destination for Responsible Tourism’ category of the 10th annual 2013 World Responsible Tourism Awards.

The Clare destinations were shortlisted alongside six other sustainable tourism destinations and organisations including Bhutan, Lithuania, Bonito (Brazil) Nature Park and Glacier Region Kaunertal (Austria), Mara Naboisho Conservancy (Kenya) and Valleys Regional Park (Wales).

The final result was announced on Wednesday at an awards ceremony, hosted by World Travel Market at the ExCeL London Exhibition and Convention Centre.

Representatives from both Clare destinations used the awards event as an opportunity to actively promote County Clare and the recently an- nounced Ryanair services at Shannon Airport. Loop Head Tourism and Burren and Cliffs of Moher Geopark hosted an information stand at the event, in conjunction with Tourism Ireland.

PEOPLE in Ennis are being encouraged to contribute to a survey examining attitudes to safety and crime in the Clare county capital.

The Community Safety Research Project is being undertaken by the Ennis Purple Flag working group in conjunction with the University of Limerick.

In February, Ennis became the first Irish town to receive the Purple Flag. The award aims to broaden the appeal and improve the standard of nighttime destinations.

In September, the working group engaged in a public consultation process in Dunnes Stores, aimed at determining if people felt safe in the Ennis at evening and night.

Following huge interest and sign-up to the Community Safety Research, led by University of Limerick’s Politics and Public Administration Department, the full survey is now available from https://www.surveymon key. c om/ s / En n i s Commu n i t ySafetySurvey.

In addition to the online survey, focus groups and desk research will be done and the research results are aimed to be available in early 2014. Details and regular updates will be available from Facebook Visit En- nis.

According to Cllr Johnny Flynn (FG), a member of the Purple Flag working group, crime statistics show an ever-decreasing trend in Ennis over the past five years.

He states public order figures have been decreasing continuously and all crime figures in Ennis down. In the years 2009-2011, the Public Order offences were down by more than 25 per cent (compared to an average of less than 20 per cent decrease nationally).

When Ennis was awarded the Evening Excellence Award Purple Flag in February this year, the town was certified with having a wellmanaged, safe and vibrant evening and nighttime economy.

Cllr Flynn explained, “Having won the prestigious Purple Flag accreditation does not mean that there will never be any crime or safety issues, but it certifies that the town has an overall consistently good safety record and that a key priority of the town is in the successful management and prevention of crimes.”

He continued, “Our work through Purple Flag, since it’s very beginning two years ago, has been supported by the local Gardaí and we are hugely delighted to learn from them in the effort to make Ennis a safer place for everyone at any time.”

COUNTY solicitor John Shaw takes up the role this week as President of the Law Society in Ireland, effectively head of the legal profession in Ireland, an organisation that has 14,000 members countrywide. He is the first Clare-based solicitor to hold the post since Michael Houlihan was elected president back in 1983.

Originally from Dundalk in Co Louth, John Shaw has practiced in Ennis since he qualified in 1984. He is currently a partner in the law firm Michael Houlihan & Partners and serves as solicitor to Clare County Council. He is also a former President of the Bar Association in Clare.

“I’m both delighted and honoured to be elected President of the Law Society of Ireland,” John told The Clare People this week. “I think it is also fitting that 30 years after Michael Houlihan held the presidency that it returns to Clare,” he added.

“During my year I will be based in Ennis and will probably spend a day or two a week in Dublin. There are many challenges facing the legal profession in Ireland and in particular I hope to liaise with the Minister for Justice on the Legal Services Regulation Bill which is currently being finalised.

“Thankfully I have huge support from Michael Houlihan and Partners, with 12 solicitors and five partners we are able to make arrangements to allow me carry out all my functions of the office and of course online technology will also make it easier. I am grateful too to county manager Tom Coughan who has also offered his co-operation towards my dual role,” John told us.

Married to Mary Nolan, herself a solicitor with Nicholas & Nolan Solicitors in Ennis, John, who lives in Ballybeg on Ennis’s Gort Road, has three children, Hannah, Ellen and Julie. Oldest daughter Hannah (23) is currently studying law at Blackhall Place in Dublin, continuing the family tradition, while Ellen (20) is studying physiotherapy in Trinity, with youngest daughter Julie (16) attending Rice College in Ennis.

Although hailing from Co Louth John has many Clare connections. He is a nephew of the late PJ and Ella Garvey (who passed away earlier this year) from Corrovorrin Green in Ennis. John is a noted sports follower and is a member of Lahinch Golf Club. He will serve a one-year term in the role up until November 2014.

ALMOST one in five Clare homes tested were found to have high levels of cancer-causing radon gas.

According to the figures released by the Radiological Protection Institute of Ireland (RPII), one home in Ennis had 10 times the acceptable level of this potentially killer gas equivalent to 2, 500 chest X-rays per year.

In addition to the home in Ennis with the highest level, a home in Clonlara had more than five times the acceptable level of the radioactive gas.

A further 14, seven in Ennis and one each in Clonlara, Corofin, Killaloe, Kilnaboy, Newmarket-onFergus, Quin and Sixmilebridge, had levels of radon above the acceptable level.

In its latest publication of results from completed radon tests in the past year and a half, more than 430 homes from across the country have been identified by the RPII as having high levels of radon.

Radon is the second larget cause of lung cancer after smoking and is directly linked to more than 200 lung cancer deaths each year in Ireland.

In Clare, 87 tests for radon gas were completed in the past year and a half and of these 16, or approximately one in five, were found to be above the acceptable level.

David Fenton, Senior Scientist at the RPII, said, “We know that Clare has a particular problem with radon and yet only a fraction of homeowners have tested. Our research shows that, of the homes already tested, there is a large percentage with high radon levels.”

“Tens of thousands of homeowners in Clare have yet to test for radon and among them are many thousands that are unknowingly being exposed to this cancer causing gas. It is really important for people to test their home for radon as this is the only way of protecting your family,” said Mr Fenton.

KILLALOE was the fourth and last Fine Gael Local Election 2014 Convention held in Clare, and the third of the conventions to be concluded without the necessity of an election.

Last night (Monday) three candidates were nominated to contest the six-seat constituency that spans from Cappavilla in the south to Abbey in the north and is made up of the majority of the Killaloe area and part of the current Ennistymon area.

The three Fine Gael candidates nominated to contest the new Killaloe Municipal Area were three sitting councillors, mayor of Clare Cllr Joe Arkins at the north of the constitu- ency and Cllr Pat Burke and Cllr Joe Cooney from the current Killaloe area.

Sources close to the Fine Gael party said it was also possible that a fourth candidate would be added to the ticket by headquarters in the coming weeks.

As all of the Government party’s conventions are now concluded in the county, a special election committee will consider if more candidates will be added to the tickets, especially in three of the areas.

There are already five candidates selected to contest the eight-seat Ennis area, with an addition here less likely than in the other three.

Killaloe could see one more name added to the three incumbents in the coming weeks, with one or even two names to be added to the Shannon Municipal Area ticket to join Councillors John Crowe and Sean McLoughlin.

In West Clare at least one if not two candidates will also be added, with one candidate more than likely coming from the town of Kilrush.

UNSUCCESSFUL nominees from Friday night’s West Clare Fine Gael convention are still hopeful that they could be added to the ticket.

During a contentious selection process, councillors Bill Slattery and Oliver Garry were selected under a geographical directive from headquarters.

Delegates then voted for a third candidate, with sitting county councillor Gabriel Keating getting the nod ahead of former Kilrush mayors Marian McMahon Jones and Ian Lynch and the current mayor of Kilkee Paddy Collins.

It is understood that the incumbent secured his place on the ticket by a tight margin, just ahead of Cllr McMahon Jones, who had a vote that was almost five times that of the nominee in third place.

A motion was put to the chairman of the convention Maurice Fitzgerald by former TD and current Trustee of the party Madeleine Taylor Quinn that a directive be sent to the central executive stating it is the wish of the local party that Cllr McMahon Jones be added to the ticket. This was seconded by a number of delegates.

Yesterday, Monday, Cllr McMahon Jones said she was extremely happy with her vote.

“I am absolutely delighted with the result. I would be very confident that I will be placed on the ticket,” she said adding that she believes she would be a strong candidate throughout the vast West Clare area.

Cllr Lynch has not given up hope of running in the election either.

“I don’t really know if they will be adding someone, they might just run three. I will just have to wait and see and in the meantime I will get behind the other three candidates,” he said.

Fine Gael has selected five candidates to contest the eight-seater Ennis area.

Those close to the party said that it is very likely that at least one if not two more candidates will be added to the ticket for the eight-seat West Clare Municipal Area, with one candidate more than likely to come from Kilrush.

However this decision will be at the sole discretion of the central executive of the party, who could opt to add a candidate who was not even nominated for convention.

Cree nominee to the convention Johnny Pilkington chose to withdraw from the race at the beginning of Friday night’s meeting.

FINE Gael delegates at Friday’s night’s convention raised issues about a selection process some claimed “disempowered” the grass roots of the party. Others argued the process was unfair to certain nominees contesting the convention to select representatives for the party in the eight-seat West Clare constituency.

A directive was issued from the central executive of the party stating that three candidates were to be elected on the night.

There was a rider on the directive however that stated one candidate would have to be selected from the old Ennistymon area, and a second candidate selected from the Kildysert Electoral Area. Of the six nominees remaining after Cree’s Johnny Pilkington withdrew, just one – sitting county councillor Bill Slattery – came from the Ennistymon area.

County councillor Oliver Garry was the sole repetitive from the southern end of the constituency and so both councillors just required one vote to secure a place on the tickets.

Disgruntled delegates were annoyed that they were then limited to select just one candidate for this hotly-contested area, claiming it was undemocratic and limited their in- volvement in the selection process.

Supporters of Councillor Gabriel Keating felt that as the only other councillor nominated on the night he should not have been the only incumbent to go before the delegates.

More raised concerns that they were sidelined in the process and were not given true ownership of the process.