Author name: oisinkelly

  Junior Gaeltacht Minister Dinny McGinley has invited groups in six more areas to begin the language planning process that could determine their future status. The areas of Donegal included are Clouganeely, including Gortahork, Falcarragh and Magheraroarty, as well as the gaeltacht area of South Donegal. Groups have two months from today to submit expressions

Donegal South West Deputy Thomas Pringle says last week’s announcement of €148m for the fisheries sector is not enough to ensure a thriving seafood sector for seven years. Deputy Pringle acknowledges that the allocation from the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund is double what was received in 2007, but he says it still doesn’t do

Two suspected handguns and a number of suspected petrol bombs have been discovered in county Tyrone. Detectives from PSNI Serious Crime Branch -investigating dissident republican activity- carried out a number of searches in the Strabane area earlier today. A spokesperson for the PSNI says searches are ongoing.

A 45 year old man has died in a diving accident in Donegal. The alarm was raised at around ten to eight this morning, when a group of divers, about four miles North of Malin Head, told the coastguard that one of their crew had got into difficulty. The men – who are all of

Martin McGuinness’s Ministerial car has been vandalised. A Sinn Fein statement this afternoon says the car used by the North’s Deputy First Minister was vandalised in an attack outside his home in Derry last night. Mr McGuinness described the incident as “pointless” and said that it will not prevent him from carrying out his ministerial

Junior Arts and Heritage Minister, Dinny McGinley, today said he believed Ireland’s legacy of surviving archaeological monuments is unparalleled in Europe. Speaking at the opening of an archeological heritage seminar entitled “Lost and Found” Minister McGinley paid tribute to the crucial role played by farmers and landowners, saying those in the rural communities should be

Cornerstone Automation on Derry’s Waterside has been named Business of the Year in the Derry Chamber of Commerce Local Business Awards. The company designs and manufactures material handling, packaging and warehouse automation. Ciaran and Stephen Devine of Evermore Renewable Energy were named Entrepreuners of the Year, Fleming-Agri won the Excellence in Exporting Award, the Nerve

A former vice-chairperson of Strabane District Council has been cleared of assaulting a member of the local SDLP. Michelle McMackin, 48, of O’Nolan Park, Strabane, who represents the Glenelly electoral area for Sinn Fein, had been charged with unlawfully assaulting SDLP constituency representative, Daniel McCrossan, and using disorderly behaviour in a licensed premises. The incident

Independent Councillor Michael McBride has been elected the Mayor of the Letterkenny Municipal Authority. Cllr John O’Donnell is the deputy chairman. The new 10 person authority held its first meeting today. Mayor, Councillor Michael McBride says there are big challenges ahead:

A father of seven children who was the victim of an assault in Derry on Wednesday evening remains in a ‘stable but critical condition’ in Belfast’s Royal Victoria Hospital a court heard today. Teddy Roulston (29) of Ballycolman Estate in Strabane was charged with inflicting grievous bodily harm with intent on June 11. A police

What a start to Special Olympics Limerick 2014! Crowds basked in glorious sunshine as 1,500 athletes representing every county in Ireland paraded through Limerick city centre led by the 40 strong Special Olympics Torch Run team. The athletes were cheered by thousands of people who lined the parade route along O’Connell Street as it made

It seems the summer will finally arrive in Donegal next week. Met Eireann says it’ll be warm and sunny in the Northwest with temperatures reaching the low to mid twenties from Monday onwards. And the good news is the sunshine is likely to stick around until next weekend. Pat Clarke from Met Eireann says it

The County Donegal Heritage Office and the Donegal County Museum, in association with the County Donegal Heritage Forum and The Heritage Council will host the seminar on our archaeological heritage at the Regional Cultural Centre, Port Road, Letterkenny on Saturday, June 14 from 9am to 2pm. “The archaeological heritage of County Donegal gives us an

A ‘no bathing’ notice has been issued for Lady’s Bay in Buncrana. The beach, adjacent to the Shore Greens on the town’s waterfront, is a popular spot with locals and day-trippers alike. The Environmental Protection Agency, which issued the temporary ban on bathing from 11-13 June, says water quality at Lady’s Bay has been affected

A coroner has urged anyone serving food to a member of the public should be trained in the Heimlich manoeuvre an emergency technique used to prevent a person choking when the airway becomes blocked by a piece of food or other object. The recommendadtion was made by West Galway Coroner Ciaran MacLoughlin after hearing that

The Dolphins don’t want to leave Malinhead and who could blame them with good weather forecast for next week . With recent calls for a visitor centre at Ireland’s most northerly point the Dolphins are certainly playing their part to increase the flow of visitors to the area. Watch their acrobatics here: Post by Gearoid

A Donegal Deputy has called on the Health Minister to immediately set a date for the reinstatement of rheumatology services in Donegal. Currently upwards of 500 Donegal patients with arthritis have to travel to Manorhamilton, Co Leitrim for treatment. Last year the Health Minister James Reilly gave a commitment that the rheumatology services would be reinstated, and Mary

For the first time, the statistics agencies on both sides of the border have published comprehensive census results for both parts of the island of Ireland in a single report. The report brings together analysis across a range of topics in areas such as demographics, households, place of birth, religion, health, housing and travel. The

An 18-year-old has been shot five times in the legs in the Creggan area of Derry in what police are describing as “a paramilitary style shooting.” The victim received three gunshot wounds to his right leg and two to his left leg in the Rathlin Drive area of the city last night just after 11pm.

Ireland is to receive €148 million from the EU under the Common Fisheries Policy over the next six years, with Donegal Deputy Joe Mc Hugh saying it represents a significant increase on previous allocations. He says it’s extremely positive news for the fisheries sector, which has struggled in recent years. Deputy Mc Hugh says it’s

A mother found drunk, with her two-year-old son clutching a can of beer, has been jailed. The toddler who was visibly sunburnt was sitting in a wet nappy, wearing only socks and shorts with a six-pack of beer between his legs and complaining of being hungry after gardai stopped a car at a popular seaside

The British Open Golf Championship is to return to Northern Ireland for the first time since 1951, with Royal Portrush expected to host the tournament as early as 2019. The Royal and Ancient had said last month that it remained “some distance” from being able to stage the Open in the North. However, the R&A

A 12 year old girl was punched in the stomach by a man dressed all in black in Ballyare Woods yesterday evening as she picnicked with her friends. The young girl who fell to the ground shouted to her friends and the man ran off.  She is said to be badly shaken by the incident

A Donegal Co Cllr has said that an induction seminar in Sligo for the 37 newly elected Cllrs is a ‘waste of money’. All 37 Cllrs are to attend the Sligo Park Hotel on Tuesday 17th June for a seminar on the new council legislation. It’s understood that the seminar will cost just over €5,000

Research shows that over 60% of employers expect their workers to answer e-mails from home. The survey, which was carried out by Fastnet Recruitment, also revealed that almost three quarters of the working population think that technology has a negative impact on work-life balance, 82% of bosses said it was disruptive compared to 68% of

New research shows further evidence that people are better off having a job than living on the dole. The ESRI has found that most people who claim benefits are single and childless – and would be paid more on the minimum wage. Even when work does pay less than welfare – 7 out of 10

A man in his 30’s is currently in a critical condition in Altnagelvin hospital following an assault in Derry last night. He was assaulted outside licensed premises in the Waterloo Street area at around 9pm Detectives investigating the incident have arrested a man in his 20’s on suspicion of grievous bodily harm following. The arrested

Obesity expert Dr Donal O’Shea said he is distraught after being informed St Vincent’s Hospital in Dublin is suspending life-saving gastric-bypass operations on dangerously obese public patients. It is one of only two hospitals in the country offering the operation to desperate clinically obese patients who have developed serious health complications and may die without

A pizza delivery van was hijacked and burnt in Derry last night. The delivery driver was threatened by a group of youths in the Creggan area just before 11 o clock. The van was found burnt out at Creggan shops a short time later. It’s the sixth Paolos Pizzas delivery van or car to be

The chairman of the west and north-west hospital group, Noel Daly, has resigned following controversy over his links to a company commissioned to carry out a review of maternity services in the region. The Health Minister confirmed last night he had been informed of Mr Daly’s decision to resign. Minister James Reilly said Mr Daly

The Irish Cancer Society is welcoming the introduction of laws that will ban branded cigarettes from being sold in Ireland. We’ve become the first country in the EU to introduce laws for plain packaging of cigarettes – after Ministers signed off on the legislation at this morning’s Cabinet Meeting. Ireland will follow Australia and New

A young Donegal man remains in a critical condition in hospital today following a serious accident while on holiday in Spain. 19-year-old Oisin Merritt, who plays with Finn Harps Reserves, is from Stranorlar. He sustained a fractured skull as a result of the accident, and has been placed in an induced coma. Oisin was on

If you’re the mother of a primary school child, chances are you’re thinking about buying a thank-you present for their teacher as another school year ends. But, before you splash the cash, it’s worth bearing in mind that for many teachers a home-made gift or card is worth its weight in gold.Some schools have even

Sinn Fein’s Gary Doherty has been elected as the first Cathaoirleach of the new Stranorlar Municipal District Committee. He was elected to the chair at today’s inaugural AGM of the Committee today. It is anticipated that many of the decision effecting the Stranorlar Electoral area that were previously taken at full council meetings in Lifford,

A 40-year-old Derry man has admitted a number of terrorism related charges, including the possession of images of a police headquarters in England. Kevin Barry Concannon, from Beechwood Avenue, Derry, pleaded guilty to seven offences at Belfast Crown Court. He is due to be sentenced in September. Kevin Concannon from Derry has pleaded guilty to

Almost 100,000 new books were dumped into a skip outside a Derry bookshop yesterday after the receiver ordered that the contents of the shop, which closed two years ago, should be disposed of. Hundreds of people, many of them tourists, made off with handfuls of books after they were dumped into a skip outside the