Author name: oisinkelly

Members of Strabane District Council met this afternoon with representitives of the DOE Roads Service at Bridge Street this afternoon to discuss the roadworks whichc they claim have the potential to cripple local businesses. There has been severe traffic disruption in the town this week because of the roadworks, whihhave seen the outbound lane on […]

The high-profile republican Seamus Daly has been charged with murder over the Omagh bombing. The blast – on August 15th 1998 – killed 29 people – including a woman pregnant with twins. Sky’s David Blevins says it’s the second time Daly’s been charged over the bombing……..

The Donegal Investment Group, formerly Donegal Creameries has announced an increase in profits since selling the bulk of its dairy division to Connaught Gold. In it’s statement for 2013 which has been published today, the company says its adjusted Operating Profit increased from €1.8m to €2.9m, with an increase in revenue of just over 8%.

The family of an elderly woman forced out of her Derry home this morning when cars were set on fire have said they are disgusted at those responsible. Three cars were destroyed and homes damaged in the fire at Moat Street in Derry in the early hours of this morning. Police suspect the fire was

Calls have been made for the speed limit to be reduced along the N56 road to Kilmacrennan. Local elecion candidate John Watson says he has been contacted by a number of concerned parents who have children attending Illistrin National School. He says parents are worried that an accident could happen at pick up or drop

Fresh information about the location of the body of a County Tyrone teenager could lead to new searches, a solicitor has said. The inquest into the 1994 disappearance of Arlene Arkinson was adjourned today. A barrister for the coroner said it was adjourned because matters that were part of a criminal investigation had arisen. The

The traffic lights at the Letterkeny Institute of Technology have been switched back on today. Since their installation the lights have been used intermittently, in recent weeks they have been off altogether with a central barrier and traffic works signs on the site. LYIT President Paul Hannigan has confirmed that the necessary work has been

Donegal Senator Brian Ó Domhnaill has repeated his call for an independent assessment of Ireland’s wind energy policy, saying it’s not right that the Department of Energy is evaluating its own policy. Senator O’Domhnaill says given the amount if money that is spent subsidising the sector, there needs to be an independent, objective and scientifically

Farmers from Donegal, Derry and Tyrone travel to Omagh today for a conference which will be addressed by the Agriculture Minister Simon Coveney. The SDLP run event will include discussions on current farming issues, agri-sector processing and marketing and the European dimension for Irish agriculture. The SDLP’s Joe Byrne says now more than ever north/south

An Bord Pleanala will have to decide if planning permission to allow a Bingo Hall be formally used as a Casino will be granted or not. Majestic Casino LTD was granted conditional permission for the change of use request by Donegal County Council but that has now been appealed. The business, which currently operates as

Three cars have been destroyed and homes damaged in a fire at Moat Street in Derry. The Fire and Rescue Service said 15 people had to leave several homes which were also damaged in the blaze. The area has been cordoned off by police. The fire is being treated as deliberate.

Strabane District Council are to hold an urgent meeting with Roads Service over the Bridge Street roadworks today.  There has been severe traffic disruption in the town this week because of the roadworks. The entire “out of town” lane along Bridge Street has been closed to undertake public realm scheme works. There is a one

A celebration of the work of the late Seamus Heaney is underway at Queens University in Belfast. The four-day commemoration will see academics and writing amateurs alike come together over four days to discuss his work and the influence it will have on future generations. The poet laureate – who passed away last August –

Retailers Against Smuggling is warning that smaller Irish ports like Killybegs are being used increasingly by smugglers. This week a consignment of black cigarettes were seized in Killybegs on a ship which arrived from St Petersburg. A Russian man was question in connection with the seizure of 6,200 cigarettes with a retail value of approximately

A public consultation on plans to ban windturbines from within ten times their tip height to residential property is open. The Draft Variation to the County Donegal Development Plan would also designate 6 Sub- Basin Management areas ‘Not Favoured’ for wind energy development. Other considerations are to protect Fresh Water Pearl Mussels and limit the

A local election candidate says voters living in apartments are not getting the chance to engage with candidates and is calling for an innovative solution to the problem. Christy Galligan says he had difficulty canvassing people living in a number of apartment complexes around Letterkenny because of a lack of access. He is calling on

An EU study on internet use by children has found that over a quarter of European children aged 9 to 16 have been bullied, and 14% of them have been bullied online. The “Net Children Go Mobile” report, which has just been published, follows two years of research in Ireland, the UK, Denmark, Italy and

There are now 20 candidates who have declared an interest in running in the local elections in the Letterkenny/Milford areas. The formal confirmation of candidates is four weeks before the polling date of Friday, May 23rd. The son of Cllr. Victor Fisher, David Fisher, has thrown his hat in the ring to contest the Letterkenny/Milford

One of two men ordered to pay more than £1.5m in damages to the families of those killed in the Omagh bombing is being questioned by police about the Real IRA attack in August 1998. Seamus Daly was arrested in Newry on Monday. Seamus Daly was one of five men named in a BBC Panorama

A number motorists and business owners in Strabane have expressed concerns after there was severe traffic disruption in the town yesterday due to roadworks. The entire “out of town” lane along Bridge Street has been closed to undertake public realm scheme works. There is a one way system in place, and there were huge tailbacks

A controlled explosion has been carried out during a security alert in Strabane. Army bomb experts were called to the scene in the Ballycolman area area of the town, following reports of a suspicious object in the early hours of this morning. A number of elderly residents and young families in the area had to

A Donegal councillor is calling for an imaginative response to the problem of rent arrears. In response to a question, Cllr Gary Doherty has been told that 1,571 council tenants, 33% of the total, are in arrears of 100 euro or more. The council says the vast majority of them are in payment plans to

Donegal County Council candidate is calling for more speed limit signage on the busy Letterkenny-Ramelton road. Siobhan McLaughin has particular concern over the windy, densely populated 3.5 km. stretch between the town and the Woodlands National School. Ms LcLaughlin says there is not sufficient signage warning drivers which is of great concern to local residents

Donegal’s Seamus Coleman will be amongst guests to attend a state banquet in Windsor Castle this evening as part of President Michael D. Higgins’ historic state visit to the UK. The Everton player is thought to be on the guest list for the banquet which will be attended by 160 people. He will be in

Officers from Revenue’s Customs Service seized 6,200 cigarettes following a search on a boat in Killybegs. The cigarettes have an estimated retail value of €2,860 and a potential loss to the Exchequer of over €2,600. The cigarettes were discovered concealed in a ventilation compartment on the outer deckhouse on the boat when officers conducted a

The Minister for Health has sanctioned the appointment of a specialist nurse for children with diabetes in Letterkenny General Hospital. The news was confirmed today by Dr James Reilly in a meeting with The Donegal Diabetes Parents Support Group. The group had handed over a petition to the minister signed by almost 20 thousand Donegal

Britain’s Queen Elizabeth has formally welcomed the President to the UK – for his 4 day State visit. Michael D Higgins and his wife Sabina were greeted by the British monarch and her husband Prince Philip in Windsor. The President’s other engagements today will include an address at the Houses of Parliament in Westminister. From

Gardai in Sligo are appealing for witnesses to an assault in the town in the early hours of this morning that has left a man with serious injuries to his face. At around half past three Gardai were called to a house in Avondale where they found a man in his twenties seriously injured. He

Donegal Deputy Charlie Mc Conalogue has accused the Government of sleep-walking through the ongoing jobs crisis in Donegal and the North West. He says the latest Live Register figures show how the North West in general and Donegal in particular are lagging far behind the rest of the country when it comes to tackling the jobs

  A judge has said the delay in the trial of a man accused of causing the death by eight people by dangerous driving in Inishowen ‘beggared belief’. 24 year-old Shaun Kelly from Hill Road, Ballymaggan, Buncrana appeared  in court today after the case was adjourned last week. This was to allow the Director of Public

Independent Councillor Padraig Doherty has confirmed he is rejoining Fine Gael. The Glenties Electoral Area representative was previously a member of the party, and was elected to the council in 1999. However, he was not nominated by the party to run in the 2009 local election, and chose to contest it as an independent. Now,

There are calls for young Donegal farmers to be encouraged into the industry in light of recent CSO figures which show the number of farmers over 65 in the county is growing. The figures show that 28% of working farmers in Donegal are aged 65 and older. Midlands Northwest European Election candidate Rónán Mullen says

Detectives investigating the Omagh bombing have arrested a man. The blast – on August 15th 1998 – killed 29 people – including a woman pregnant with twins. The man was detained in the Newry area yesterday. He’s being questioned at the serious crime suite in Antrim.  

53 people from Donegal, including children affected by diabetes will travel from the county to Dublin today to meet with the Health Minister. Parents of children with Type 1 diabetes will present the Minister with a petition of 15,000 names demanding more diabetes nurses at Letterkenny General Hospital. It is understood the parents will be

A man in his mid 20s has been shot four times in a paramilitary-style shooting in Derry’s Bogside. He was hit in four times in both  at a house in Lisfannon Park last night shortly after 10.15pm. It is understood the man was in a front room of the property when he was targeted. He

Support for Windows XP is ending today. The final security update for the software will be released today by Microsoft. Users of XP – which was released 13 years ago – will have to upgrade to a newer operating system. Microsoft says technical assistance for the system will no longer be available – including automatic

The Fianna Fáil Finance Spokesperson says only the Irish public can decide when the Rehab crisis is over. The Group has admitted its response to recent public and political demands for transparency have been ‘inadequate’. Rehab’s directors say they did not exercise strict or appropriate oversight and has appointed an independent consultant to oversee a

Letterkenny General Hospital will have a deficit of almost 6.5 million euro at the end of this year according to the West North West Hospitals Group Service Plan, which has just been published. 2014 is set to be a busy year for the hospital, with over 20,000 inpatients and 60,000 outpatients expected to pass through

A 30-year-old man from Fahan in County Donegal has been jailed for a driving incident on Benone Beach which left a mother and her four-year-old daughter in hospital. Paul John Doherty of Ballynahone in Fahan admitted seven driving charges including two charges of dangerous driving, two of driving with excess alcohol and failing to report,

Gardai are appealing for information after a man was critically injured in a collision near Muff just before midnight on Saturday night. The incident which involved a black Honda Civic happened close to the Birdstown junction between Muff and Burnfoot. Gardai are trying to piece together the events that led to the crash and say

A weekend cancer conference in Donegal has been told that building work on the new Radiotherapy Unit at Altnagelvin Hospital in Derry is set to begin next month, with the unit on track for a mid 2016 opening. The Unit’s Manager Una Cardin told the Relay for Life conference that the design teams have been

Donegal North East Deputy Joe MC Hugh says he believes progress will be made when parents of children with Type 1 Diabetes meet with Minister James Reilly tomorrow in Dublin. The meeting comes on foot of a campaign to secure the services of a specialist nurse for children with diabetes in Letterkenny General Hospital, but

President Michael D. Higgins has left Dublin to travel to the United Kingdom for his official State visit – the first ever by an Irish President. He starts his official engagements in London tomorrow morning. The government jet, carrying the President, his wife Sabina – and the Tanaiste Eamon Gilmore and his wife Carol –

A priest in Derry has said he may be forced to leave his parochial house after a spate of anti-social behaviour. Parish Priest for Creggan Rev Dermott Harkin says there has been ongoing anti-social behaviour adjacent to were he lives. Young ones have been gathering near the parochial house at night and drinking into the

A local election candidate in Letterkenny/Milford area, has once again called on fellow candidates to remove election posters erected over the weekend. Peter Cutliffe raised the issue a week ago over posters erected at Pole Star and Mountain Top Roundabouts, those posters were subsequently took down. Another poster from the same Fianna Fail candidate has