Author name: oisinkelly

Donegal based road safety group PARC says there is not enough publicity of  new penalty points for learner drivers. The new Road Traffic Act will allow, for the first time, learner drivers to receive penalty points for driving unaccompanied or for not displaying learner plates. Susan Grey of PARC says that due to the lack

Councillors meet today to discuss a recommendation from the County Manager that the Council not buy the former Rockhil Barracks in Letterkenny. The Department of Defence has offered Rockhill and Lifford barracks to Donegal County Council for a total of 1.2 million Euro over six years. However the County Manager has compiled a report which

Detectives investigating the murder of 31-year-old Kieran Doherty in Derry have issued a renewed appeal for information on the fourth anniversary of his death. Kieran was found dead on the Braehead Road on the evening of 24 February 2010. He had been shot in an attack which has been claimed by the Real IRA. Detectives

A Donegal North East Deputy has said that the A5 is still on the agenda for the Irish Government. It was confirmed earlier this month that the public consultation into the delayed A5 dual carriageway will commence in April. And Donegal Deputy Joe McHugh says money from next years budget will go towards the A5:

A Donegal Senator has called on the UK Government to introduce an exemption for Irish registered trucks which will be traveling through Northern Ireland. A new tax is set to be introduced on April 1st which will see hauliers crossing from the south into Northern Ireland having to pay a daily tax of £10. The

Detectives in Derry are appealing for information following a shooting incident that occurred in the Lincoln Court area on Friday evening. At approximately 11.15pm, a shot was fired at the front door of a house. One man, aged in his 40s, was in the house at the time. He was not injured in the incident.

A coastal search will start in Bundoran this afternoon for a person who its feared entered the water on Thursday morning. The low water shore search will involved members of the Killybegs Coastguard assisted by the coastguard helicopter. It is the third day of the search which was launched after clothes and other personal items

There has been anger and outrage expressed following the discovery of six puppies who were left to die at the side of a road in Gweedore. The six puppies were dumped at the road in a cardboard box. The person who found the pups brought them immediately to Burtonport Pet Rescue. Ann Marie Devine from

The husband and son of a Bundoran town councillor have been banned from meetings of the council until a court deals with public order offences against them. It follows an alleged disturbance outside the council offices earlier this month. 55 year old Thomas McNulty and his 32 year old son Joe each gave an undertaking

Donegal North East Deputy Joe Mc Hugh says the North West Gateway which emphasises the links between Donegal and Derry is firmly back on the agenda in both Dublin and London. Deputy Mc Hugh chairs the Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement, which is meeting in the North West at the

Gardai in South Donegal have seized a quantity of drugs. Cannabis herb, along with small quantities of other drugs, with a combined value of 10-thousand euro were recovered from a house in Laghey yesterday evening. No one has been arrested and investigations are ongoing.

Donegal Cllr Frank McBrearty Junior is calling for the positions of Garda Commissioner, Minister for Justice and Garda Ombudsman to be ‘completely independent’. Mr Mc Brearty came to international attention when the Morris Tribunal found that Gardai had tried to frame him for murder. He’s now demanding that reforms recommended in the tribunal report are

A windfarm in South Donegal has been given the go ahead by An Bord Pleanala depsite a recomendation by its own inspector that permission be refused. M.D. South Windfarm Limited have recieved a10 year permission for development of the 11 turbine wind farm close to Laghey, outside Donegal Town. The turbines will be 74 metres

A Local election candidate has called for the resignation of the Minister of State for the Gaeltacht, Dinny McGinley. Micheál Cholm Mac Giolla Easbuig says Minister McGinley has completely failed to defend the language and the Gaeltacht areas. The independent candidate says the Irish language and culture are under severe threat, and he says as

A search is continuing in Bundoran this moring amid  fears that a person entered the water earlier yesterday (Thursday). Clothes and other items were found on the cliff side at Roughey, an area popular with walkers in the town. The coastguard helicopter was tasked to the scene to conduct a search. Later in the day,

Management says the problem is in part as a result of the seasonal flux in hospital activity that traditionally takes place at this time of year. In addition only a small number of patients are expected to be finished their treatment at hospital today and discharged. The public is being asked to stay away from

Latest figures show the continued pressures on the MABS service in Inishowen with people waiting six and half months for their first appointment. The Money Advice and Budgeting Service offers help for people in debt, or in danger of getting into debt. One hundred and twenty one people are awaiting their first appointment with MABS

The people of the Glenties Parish are to introduce a community text alert system after an elderly man was burgled in his home last week. In the wake of that incident a public meeting was held in the Highlands Hotel last night, and up to 400 people turned out. The community text alert system will

The family of a Strabane woman whose body was found in the River Mourne 36 years ago have said they have received an anonymous letter regarding her death. Denise O’Donnell was 19 when she died. She went missing after a night out at a dance in Letterkenny in November 1976. Her body was found two days later in

Donegal Deputy Thomas Pringle is amongst a group of eight Independent TDs who say Alan Shatter’s position as Justice Minister is no longer tenable. The group also includes Shane Ross, Mattie McGrath, Catherine Murphy, John Halligan and Roisin Shortall. They say Minister Shatter’s political judgment has been called into question recently. Deputy Thomas Pringle is

The renewed PSNI investigation into the events of Bloody Sunday has run into difficulties, with what’s been described as a ‘disappointing’ response to an appeal for witnesses who gave evidence to the Saville Inquiry to come forward. More than 1,000 witnesses, consisting of local people and former soldiers, are being asked to make statements as

A serving member of the Defence Forces appeared before a special sitting of Letterkenny District Court last evening charged with possessing explosives. Mark Cassidy, with an address at Grianan Vale in Burnfoot was charged with two counts of possessing explosives at the same address on Monday. He was also charged with possessing 87 12-gauge shotgun

Details have been announced of the inaugural Donegal Cancer Survivorship Conference, which will be held in Letterkenny on the 5th of April. The event is being hosted by Relay for Life Donegal, which says it wants to augment its fundraising efforts by offering vital information and support networks. Chairperson Robert O’Connor says with 1,000 people

A new report commissioned by the Donegal County Childcare Committee is highlighting how the cost of childcare can stop parents returning to work. The report, which will be presented to the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health and Children later today, shows 26% of parents are prevented from returning to work as a result of expensive

Community relations and agreements between North and South are the focus of two days of meetings involving the Oireachtas Committee on the Good Friday Agreement.  The meetings are taking place in Derry and Letterkenny, with cross border health care is one of the topics on the agenda. Donegal North East Deputy Joe McHugh is Chair

It has been confirmed that Angela Kerins will appear before the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) next week. The Chief Executive of Rehab will face questions about her salary, the group’s lottery and other expenditure. Rehab was forced to disclose earlier this week that Ms. Kerins has an annual salary of 240,000 euro plus perks. PAC

The Minister for Finance has denied trying to win voters by raising the prospect of tax cuts. Michael Noonan says the Budget next October will still need to implement 2 billion euro of tax increases and spending cuts. He says he remains open-minded on possible tax changes but only if the country can afford it.

A woman who was attacked by the man who went on to murder Sylvia Roche-Kelly in Limerick in December 2007 claims Sylvia is dead because her case was not handled properly by the Gardaí. Taxi driver Mary Lynch was assaulted by Jerry McGrath in Virginia in Co. Cavan in April 2007. Following the assault, McGrath

Majella O’Donnell says she is out the’ other side’ of cancer. In an update to her fans from hospital, Majella also confirmed she is on day five after surgery for a double mastectomy with reconstruction. Majella wrote that it has been a very difficult 7 months between being diagnosed with cancer and her father passing

A public meeting is to be held in Glenties tonight (Wednesday) after a pensioner was robbed in the town last week. The meeting will take place at 8pm in the Highlands Hotel. In Glenties last week, an elderly man was beaten and robbed in his home. Gardai are investigating. Brian Carr from the Glenties Action

A Donegal man has been banned from keeping dogs for 10 years after pleading guilty to seven counts of cruelty to the animals. George Cavanagh, of Carrowhugh, Greencastle, Co. Donegal was convicted at Donegal District Court. Eighteen dogs were found living in poor conditions at his property and ISPCA inspectors also found the decomposing and

One of Strabane’s longest serving businesses is to close its doors for the final time. Modern Man Menswear had been in business in the town centre for the past 44 years, and the shop survived the Troubles and the big flood of 1987 The clothes shop was one of the last remaining family run businesses

A Donegal North East Deputy is to raise the growing concerns of communities in the county regarding a recent spate of break-ins. Over 1,000 people attended a public meeting in Mannorcunningham last week to raise concerns about the burglaries. Donegal Deputy Padraig MacLochlain says the Justice Minister must be made aware of this meeting. And

The Justice Minister’s facing a grilling by Oireachtas colleagues today over the GSOC surveillance controversy. Alan Shatter’s going before the Public Service Oversight committee, a day after he announced an independent inquiry into allegations centring on the Ombudsman’s headquarters in Dublin city centre. In the Dail last night, he revealed a new report from an

There are calls for a full public enquiry into the illegal dump which was found last year on the Mobouy Road in Campsie on the outskirts of Derry. Over 500,000 tonnes of illegal waste was discovered at the site. Last June, the then Environment Minister Alex Attwood, revoked the license of the operator and commissioned

A Green Party candidate for the Midlands – North West in the European elections has criticised the remarks made by MEP Pat The Cope Gallagher in regard to the Government’s failure to apply for funding from the European Union Solidarity Fund for storm damage. Yesterday Pat the Cope Gallagher called the Governments decision not to

Donegal has the lowest level of compliance with payment of the local property tax. Just 87.1pc of property owners have paid up for 2013. Revenue Commissioners are giving homeowners a final six weeks to pay up their property tax and household charge – to avoid interest and penalties or prosecution the Sheriff being called About

A garda investigation is continuing after the death of a teenager in Stranorlar on Monday night. 18-year-old Dean Lafferty was found dead in his home at Admarin Park at around 8pm on Monday evening. It’s understood he was the victim of a serious assault after a night out in Letterkenny on Sunday night. Local  Cllr

The body recovered from the River Foyle in Derry earlier this week has been formally identified as that of missing teenager Andrew Quigley from Galliagh, who’s been missing since last month. Some of his personal items had been found on the Foyle Bridge on January 18th.

Two soldiers remain in Garda custody this morning in connection with the discovery of a pipe bomb in Co Donegal. The man and woman were arrested yesterday under Section 30 of the Offences Against the State Act. It follows the discovery of a pipe bomb at a premises in Burnfoot. Gardai are investigating if the