Author name: highlandnews

A major new cross-border pilot project to tackle bovine TB is being launched today in Newtowncuningham. Agriculture Minister Martin Heydon and his Northern counterpart Andrew Muir will launch the project as part of the Shared Island Initiative this afternoon. On today’s Greg Hughes Show, Minister Heydon said the experience elsewhere is that regional approaches work……. […]

The leader of the Seanad is to invite Marine Minister Timmy Dooley into the house to debate seaweed licensing. Applications have been made by a number of companies to harvest large quantities of wrack seaweed from the west coast, including Arramara Teoranta, which was previously based in Donegal, but is now owned by Canadian company

The Drumkeen Environmental Community Group has recently held a meeting to unveil a five-year strategy for community enhancements. Multiple local Councillors from the Lifford-Stranorlar MD were in attendance at this meeting to hear proposals gathered from a survey of residents. The community raised a number of amenities they would like to see in the survey,

Donegal TD and Sinn Féin Finance spokesperson Pearse Doherty says the government continues to sit by and allow vulture funds to bulk purchase homes at the expense of ordinary workers and families. He was speaking as he introduced a motion in the Dáil last evening calling for the banning of investment funds buying family homes.

  It’s been claimed Royal Mail’s letter delivery service has deteriorated so much in parts of West Tyrone that some people in the Aghyaran area haven’t received post for weeks. Cllr Caroline Devine says over the last few weeks, some areas of Aghyaran have had no letters delivered by Royal Mail, and she’s been contacted

Government is expected to take the first steps towards banning social media for under 16s today. Cabinet is expected to confirm plans to introduce legislation in the area. A new age verification tool is going to be piloted on online platforms, to assess how the ban will work. It’s understood Government’s preference is for the

The Chair of ‘Into the West’ says he firmly believes the idea of a regular, eco-friendly rail service across the North-West is viable and achievable. The “Metro North-West” plan would see expanded lines into Donegal and Tyrone, with new stations connecting towns like Letterkenny, Omagh and Strabane to Derry and Coleraine. Plans include running trains

The Northlands Addiction Treatment Centre in Derry has recently marked 50 years of service.   The centre was established in 1975 as a grassroots organisation and has grown into one of the leading treatment centres in Northern Ireland.   Speaking in the Assembly this week Foyle MLA, Sinead McLaughlin paid tribute to the work of

The Department of Education is pausing the review into SNA allocations. In the Dail this afternoon, the Taoiseach has acknowledged that where schools are set to lose multiple SNAs in September as a result of a review, the change should be implemented gradually rather than in one go. Michael Martin was responding to Donegal TD

Donegal has been allocated €69m of funding for projects and maintenance of the roads network. This comes as part of a €1.5bn investment announcement by the Department of Transport. €46m will go toward regional roads, while the remaining €23m for new projects and maintenance of national roads. This includes €2.5m of dedicated funding for the

The ‘Care in The Square’ welfare station will be available to people out in Sligo tonight. It will return to Queen Maeve Square and operate from 9.00pm to 1.00am, providing free water, first aid, advice, drink spiking prevention tools, and phone recharging facilities. Edel Doran, Night time Economy advisor for Sligo Town, explains how the

Donegal and the border could lose out on funding for major projects as a result of an EU reclassification of the region’s economic status. The EU has upgraded the status of the West and North West to ‘more developed’, meaning that the amount of EU funding for major projects now falls from 60% to between

Donegal County Council says action is being taken to tackle coastal erosion at Ballymastocker Strand. Responding to a motion from Cllr Liam Blaney, officials confirmed they are working closely with experts from the University of Galway’s Geography Department on this matter. They say the team has a solid understanding of the local challenges involved and

A Derry based councillor says it’s vital that Translink introduce a bus service to the serve the new £5.2 million Mullenan Derry City Cemetery, which is set to open in the spring. Councillor Patricia Logue says it’s also important that Bus Eireann are involved in those discussions, as she believes the new cemetery will be

The first sod has been turned on a new roundabout at the R232 Laghey-Pettigo Road turnoff on the N15. It’s hoped the works will be complete by the end of the year. Temporary traffic management will be in place on both the N15 and R232, with speed limits being enforced and Donegal County Council warning

  The Defence Minister says new counter-drone technology will be in place by the end of the year. Helen McEntee says the measures are being expedited ahead of Ireland taking over the EU Presidency in June. Concerns have been raised over the country’s ability to protect its airspace, after a number of Russian drones were

A community meeting is taking place tonight at Trinity Court in Newtowncunningham to discuss plans for the expansion of oyster and mussel farming on Lough Swilly. The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine has invited public submissions on 12 aquaculture and foreshore licence applications for several sites, including the Quay Shore at Newtowncunningham. There

A Letterkenny-based councillor is asking for a rundown of how many staff Donegal County Council has at its disposal to carry out minor roadworks. Cllr Donal Coyle made the call as he sought an emergency workshop to expedite the carrying out of essential works such as pothole filling, drainage, erection of signage, removal of overhanging

  80 per cent of farmers believe the TB history of a cattle herd should be shared at the point of sale. The ESRI has released a new study, which examines farmers’ views on biosecurity measures. It found most are aware of official biosecurity guidance, but are pessimistic about the effectiveness of measures. Senior Research