Author name: oisinkelly

A 26 year old man has been charged with murder and attempted murder after two sisters were shot, one of them fatally, in County Derry at the weekend. A 21 year-old woman remains in a critical condition in hospital, following the shooting in Bellaghy on Saturday morning. 18 year old Lauren O’Neill lost her life […]

Up to 70 jobs are to go at the Largo Foods plant in Gweedore. The Donegal News is reporting this morning that a notice put up at the plant on Friday says the jobs will go in June and July, with approximately 35 jobs going in each of the two months. There’s been no statement

The Taoseach has been accused of running scared after declining to meet with a number of campaign groups during his visit to Donegal tomorrow. Taoiseach Enda Kenny will visit Loreto Community School, which recently won the National Smart Class Initiative, to meet with parents, teachers and pupils. However a number of groups including Donegal Action

In Derry, a 21 year-old woman remains in a critical condition in hospital, following a shooting incident in the  village of Bellaghy. Brenda O’Neill and her sister Lauren, who’s 18, were both shot in the incident – which took place yesterday morning. Lauren was killed – as she tried to protect Brenda from being shot.

Letterkenny Town Council officials have been tasked with improving safety at Ballymacool Park with one councillor concerned a child could be injured or killed  if action isn’t taken. Councillor Dessie Larkin raised the issue after reports of children chasing balls which escaped the park on to the Glenswilly Road. He wants officials to to seek

A woman’s been shot dead in Bellaghy in County Derry. Another woman’s been seriously injured after the shooting in William Court this morning. A man in his 20s has been arrested. He’s currently being questioned at the Serious Crime Suite in Antrim.

Irish wholesale and retail grocery group BWG has acquired Donegal-based rival Morris Brothers for an undisclosed sum. Founded in 1952, Morris Brothers is a family-run wholesale and retail grocery company based in Convoy. It has annual revenues of about €30 million, is profitable and employs 30 staff. The company’s owners, Fintan Morris and Joseph Morris,

Health officials are investigating the outbreak of a mystery virus at a Donegal school. Three teachers from Gairmscoil Mhic Diarmada on Arranmore Island are suffering from a virus. One has been treated in hospital. No other staff or pupils at the school have been affected. Six other teachers at the 60-pupil school are now looking

Fianna Fáil Spokesperson on Young People and Children Charlie McConalogue says if specific measures to tackle youth unemployment are not put in place, then emigration will continue to be a major issue. The Donegal North East TD, who has just published a strategy document on the matter, says the current Government’s various job plans have

Over 600 thousand people still haven’t paid the new household charge. The latest figures from the Department of the Environment show that so far, over 940 thousand people have paid the controversial 100 euro tax. And fewer than 25 thousand homeowners have paid the charge, since the March 31st deadline. The news comes as the

It’s been confirmed that DLDC, the Donegal Local Development Company has been asked to deliver the Local and Community Development Programme in the Donegal gaeltacht this year. This would have been one of the functions carried out by MFG, which went into administration last September, and still hasn’t been replaced. DLDC says it has developed

Gardai are investigating the armed robbery of a shop in Glenswilly. At 9.45pm last evening two men entered McFadden’s shop in Breenagh one armed with a knife and the other a baseball bat and demanded money from the two female members of staff. The men, dressed in dark clothes and wearing balaclavas, escaped with a

The group which organised the Education Rally in Letterkenny last March says following Minister Ruari Quinn’s visit to Donegal today, it’s even more important that parents, teachers and others support their planned vigils on May 31st as the country votes on the EU Fiscal Treaty. Between 3 o’clock and 4 o’clock, it’s intended that one

Education Minister says it would be premature to commit his department to a new education campus in Buncrana. Speaking during his Donegal visit today, Minister Quinn said he can make no commitments on the proposed new three school campus in Buncrana, as a site has not yet been identified. The new development has not been

A Derry man will go on trial later this year charged with attempted murder and sexual assault. The 32-year-old who cannot be named in order to protect the identity of the alleged injured party appeared at Derry Crown Court today. He pleaded not guilty to a series of charges which include attempted murder sexual assault,

A suspected pervert was the subject of an attack, his solicitor told a court today. The 42-year-old man, accused of child-sex offences, wore a plaster over stitches above his right eye when he appeared at Ballyshannon District Court. He is accused of exploiting children, exposing himself in his window, and having child pornography on his

The Education Minister was greeted by around 40 protestors at the opening of the new Finn Valley College this morning. Ruari Quinn said good morning to the protesters, and he said he would take their concerns on board. Doengal South West Deputy Dinny McGinley spoke with the protesters and he will raise their concerns with

A 21-year-old woman has died following a car crash in County Fermanagh near Pettigo. She has been identified as Gemma McHale from the Castlederg area. The collision happened on the Letter Road in Kesh in the early hours of this morning. Only one vehicle was involved. Police said the road will be closed for the

Two-thirds of voters aren’t happy with the Government’s performance according to a new opinion poll. The survey for today’s Irish Independent is also the latest to show a significant increase in support for Sinn Féin. Fine Gael’s down two points to 34 percent, while Labour drops four to 15 percent. Fianna Fáil’s unchanged on 17

Martina Anderson is to replace Bairbre de Brun in the European Parliament, Sinn Fein has confirmed. She was the only candidate to succeed Ms de Brun, who is stepping down as an MEP for personal reasons. The move means Sinn Fein will have to replace Ms Anderson in the assembly and find a new junior

Sinn Féin says it’s clear the government could ask the electorate to vote a second time on the Fiscal Treaty – if it’s rejected later this month. Yesterday, Jobs Minister Richard Bruton was forced to retract comments he made suggesting this may be the case. In a statement last night Minister Bruton said he dealt

The group which organised the Education Rally in Letterkenny last March has announced plans for a series of vigils on May 31st as the country votes on the EU Fiscal Treaty. Between 3 o’clock and 4 o’clock, it’s intended that one hour vigils will take place outside every school being used as a polling station

Education Minister Ruari Quinn is in Donegal today for a series of engagements. He begins this morning with a visit to St. Eunan’s School in Raphoe, before the official opening of the new Finn Valley College in Stranorlar. Minister Quinn will also open the extension at Scoil Phadraig, Drumkeen, before travelling to Letterkenny. When he

The vigilante group Republican Action Against Drugs has offered people they have ordered out of Derry an opportunity to return. The group claim the number of people affected is actually very small, and figures are being exaggerated by some media outlets in a bid to discredit them. The vigilante group Republican Action Against Drugs in

The Health Information and Quality Authority says it is “wholly unacceptable” for patients to be treated on trolleys in hospital corridors. The HIQA warning comes following the health watchdog’s inquiry into services at Dublin’s Tallaght Hospital – where a man died while awaiting admission. Hilary Coates – HIQA’s Head of Operations – says the 300-page

The co-ordinator of the Golden Eagle Project says he fears the initiative could fail if there are more cases of poisoning in Donegal. Lorcan O’Toole was speaking after it emerged yesterday that a White tailed Eagle released in Kerry three years ago was found poisoned in the Bluestacks three weeks ago. Today, on Highland Radio’s

The Department of Education has confirmed that Minister Ruairí Quinn will not meet with a delegation from the Finn Valley School Transport Group when he visits Stranorlar tomorrow to open the new Finn Valley College. Fianna Fail Senator Brian Ó Domhnaill says it’s extremely disappointing that the Minister with responsibility for Education will not meet

The Tánaiste has clashed with Sinn Féin in the Dáil, telling the party its ‘fairytale economics’ will drive us in the direction of Greece. Ahead of the referendum on the fiscal treaty in two weeks time, Pearse Doherty asked Eamon Gilmore to admit that austerity isn’t working. The Donegal South-West Deputy told the Tanaiste that

The Donegal Branch of the Irish Cattle and Sheep Farmers Association are holding an information meeting on EU Fiscal Treaty Referendum tomorrow evening. The meeting will take place at 730pm in the Mount Errigal Hotel. There will be speakers from both the ‘YES’ sides and ‘NO’ sides. Chief Executive of the ICSA in Donegal, Malcolm

A 28-year-old man has been beaten by three masked men who abducted him and took him across the border to Donegal. He was walking in the Circular Road in Derry at about 930pm on 10 May when a red car pulled up alongside. The masked men pulled him into the car, then took him to

A number of Outpatient Clinics have been cancelled at Letterkenny General Hospital this morning after what’s been described as unprecedented numbers attending the Emergency Department overnight. As a result, the medical clinics of Dr Khamis and Dr Mulpeter have been cancelled. Today’s ENT clinic has also been cancelled. A decision will be taken later to

A new group hoping to replicate MFG’s work is considering making a complaint to Europe due to Government delays. MFG closed suddenly last September with the loss of 130 jobs. It delivered the LEADER and LCDP funding programmes to the Gaeltacht regions. Since Meitheal Forbartha na Gaeltachta ceased operations last September, there’s been a vacuum

The Dail has been told that the use of garda resources to tackle drug crime in Donegal is under review, but there’s been no commitment to extra funding. Senator Brian O’Domhnaill called for additional resources to be deployed in the county to fully resource the Drugs Unit in Donegal in its fight against drug abuse

A 33-year-old man has appeared in court charged in connection with a £800,000 cannabis seizure in Derry. Mark William McPhillips, of Elmvale in the Culmore area, was charged with importing the drugs from the Irish Republic with intent to supply. The cannabis was found concealed in kitchen units in a van in Glengalliagh Road on

More than half of stores operated by Clinton Cards in Northern Ireland are to close. The company runs 30 stores in Northern Ireland, including 16 in the Birthdays chain which is closing. Clinton Cards, which is the biggest card retailer in the UK, went into administration last week. Adminstrators Zolfo Cooper said that it has

The Irish Blood Transfusion Service is asking people in Dungloe to please give blood today to help replenish vital supplies following the recent Bank Holiday. In a statement, the service says supplies of O Positive are down 23% on last week and these need to be replaced. The mobile unit will hold a donation clinic

The Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht has condemned the apparent poisoning of a white-tailed sea eagle in Donegal. Post mortem results from the eagle, found dead sonme weeks ago in the Blue Stack mountains, showed it had been poisoned. The National Parks and Wildlife Service are investigating the killing. Minister Jimmy Deenihan urged

There are renewed calls for negotiations to take place with a view to opening a closed fishing area off the Donegal coast. The area has been closed since 2008 as part of a cod recovery plan. However, there has been a significant increase of haddock in the area with calls for Donegal’s inshore vessels to

A Councillor has suggested that HIQA, the Health, Information and Quality Authority is placing unrealistic expectations on Community Hospital and this is leading to their closure. Councillor Ciaran Brogan, who is a member of the Regional Health Forum, also believes it is inevitable that Lifford Community Hospital will be downgraded and the same fate may

A Derry man has claimed that republican vigilantes told him to go to anger management classes or get shot. RAAD has been behind paramilitary-style shootings against those they claim are guilty of so-called “anti-social behaviour” in Derry. The man, who did not give his name, said he had been threatened by RAAD, and he said

An inquest has been held into the death of an 87 year old man who drowned after leaving Killybegs Community Hospital on January 22nd last The coronor stressed that no staff were to blame, because the hospital wasn’t a closed unit, and the patient, Paddy Keeney, had exercised his option to go out. The inquest

A public debate on the EU Fiscal Treaty will be held this coming Monday in Ballybofey. The debate will feature Fine Gael Deputy, Joe McHugh arguing in favour, and Independent Deputy Thomas Pringle arguing against. The debate has been organised by the Stranorlar Traveller Women’s Group and Donegal Travellers Project. It will begin at 2pm

Letterkenny Town Council is to write to the HSE and the minister for Health demanding that no further cuts are made to services at Letterkenny General Hospital. A motion was passed at this weeks meeting of the council off the back of a request by campaign group ‘Donegal Action for Cancer Care’. Some services have

A Donegal senator has claimed that progress on shared health services is too slow. Speaking at a meeting of the British Irish Parliamentary Assembly attended by the Health Minister, Senator Jimmy Harte asked Dr James Reilly to bring the Health Bodies that operate on both sides of the border closer together. Senator Harte says he

The most senior police officer in the north west has admitted his officers are struggling to secure convictions against the republican vigilante group Republican Action Against Drugs. The group have carried out numerous punishment style attacks in the Northwest in the past year, and a number of men have been ordered to leave Derry. Chief

The Head of Information Services with Donegal County Council says the council is to embark on a new Communications and PR strategy which will bring the council closer to the people. Brian Boyle was speaking today at the launch of the new Donegal Library website in Letterkenny today. The new library website is easier to