Author name: highlandnews

A motion has been passed by the Derry City and Strabane District Council, stating its support for the establishment of an Irish Passport Office in the North. The motion, tabled by Sinn Fein Councillor Emma McGinley, is the second such motion to be passed by the Council in the last few years. She says that

The Association of Garda Sergeants and Inspectors has established Ireland’s first accredited third-level programme on conflict resolution in collaboration with ATU Donegal. 25 Sergeants and Inspectors commenced the 12-week programme which will support AGSI members in advocacy and negotiation on pay, conditions and welfare. It’s expected that hundreds more Sergeants and Inspectors will join the

Chaotic scenes at Dublin Airport which led to long queues were a ‘blip’ according to the Dublin Airport Authority. It’s been confirmed that around 1,000 people missed their flights when passengers were stranded in queues outside and inside both terminal buildings. Junior Transport Minister Hildegarde Naughton is meeting the DAA Chief Executive this morning to

We’re being reassured that there is nothing to fear after the first case of monkeypox has been confirmed in Ireland. A second suspected case is also being investigated. Professor of infectious diseases Sam McConkey says further cases are likely – although it’s transmissible, it’s also very treatable, and could be easy to halt the spread….

  Donegal Deputy Thomas Pringle has called for a follow up report to the Brandon Report to be published, after further concerns were raised at the weekend that more allegations of sexual abuse could emerge. The “Brandon Report” was released in December of last year, and outlined 108 incidents of serious assault carried out by

The Relay for Life returned to the ATU campus in Letterkenny over the weekend for the first time since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic. A cast of stars from the music world were there to provide the entertainment across Saturday and Sunday, most notably the patron of the Donegal Relay for Life, Daniel O’Donnell.

The PRO of the Mica Action Group has hit out at further Government delays to the delivery of a revised Mica redress scheme. Speaking in his weekly online update, Michael Doherty says that the main Government party leaders were supposed to have discussed the draft memo for the new Mica legislation a week ago –

The Taoiseach says he’d be in favour of retaining the recent reduction in fares on public transport. The 20 percent cut for bus and rail users is set to expire at the end of the year. It was part of a number of measures introduced to help people deal with the rising cost of living.

Sinn Fein’s now more popular than Fianna Fail and Fine Gael combined, according to a new poll. The Business Post/ Red C survey has the party polling at 36 percent, while Fianna Fail are on 20 and Fine Gael on 15 percent support. The poll also highlights overwhelming public support for a shift in housing

A new research project to explore the impact of tourism on island communities in Donegal will begin next week. Utilising the European Tourism Indicator System, researchers from the Atlantic Technology University (ATU) will collaborate with island communities to explore the impact of tourism on the local communities, economy and environment. On Monday, researchers will travel

The first case of monkeypox has been identified in the Republic. Health Minister Stephen Donnelly says it was detected by health authorities yesterday. It comes as the first case of the mild illness on the island was confirmed in the north on Thursday. Minister Donnelly says vaccines are on the way to help fight the

A Donegal Deputy has criticised the Government’s handling of passport services, as many people are facing long delays in getting their passport applications processed. Thomas Pringle says that employees in his constituency office often have a hard time getting through to the Passport Office, even through the dedicated Oireachtas line. Deputy Pringle also likened the

Local authorities across rural Ireland will be given funding to purchase vacant and derelict sites to repurpose as community spaces. Up to 400 thousand euro will be available per local authority each year. The funding aims to revitalise rural towns and villages so they become attractive, vibrant places for people to live and work. Irish

The Mica Action Group says it now anticipates that the revised Defective Concrete Blocks Scheme will be published on Tuesday week June 7th. With that in mind, the group has now written to Deputy Steven Matthews, Chair of the Joint Committee on Housing urging him to push for pre-legislative scrutiny of the forthcoming bill. The

The Stormont Assembly is to meet on Monday to make a second attempt to elect a speaker. It’s after a Sinn Féin recall motion gained enough support – but it’s still not backed by the DUP. The assembly can’t do any business until a speaker’s been appointed, and the DUP is blocking the election over

The HSE has been pressed on future plans for the James Connolly Memorial residential unit in Carndonagh. It’s after a recent HIQA report highlighted a number of issues at the facility. The Assistant Chief Officer of CHO Cavan, Donegal, Leitrim, Monaghan and Sligo confirmed that the future of the centre has yet to be determined.

A Donegal TD says the government must look at how apprenticeships are funded in a bid to grow the programme Deputy Thomas Pringle told the Dail that changes may be needed in order to develop an apprentice programme that provides for the education and qualification needs of many of our young people. Deputy Pringle said

Parties in the North are going to the assembly again on Monday to try to elect a speaker and restore the institutions. However the DUP is still refusing to reenter government until the protocol issues have been addressed. It comes as Sinn Fein and the DUP remain at odds over their respective meetings with a

The Tanaiste says work is continuing on a subvention scheme to support small post offices which are in danger of closure because the postmaster is considering retiring or leaving. Leo Varadkar was responding to Dail questions about the recommendations of a Grant Thornton report, and when those recommendations would be implemented. Mr Varadkar didn’t address

A Fine Gael senator is calling for a Junior Minister for Passports to be appointed to deal with the current backlog. Martin Conway says the situation has become a “national emergency”. There are 195,000 applications currently in the system. At the Fine Gael Parliamentary Party meeting last night, one TD is understood to have called