Author name: oisinkelly

The twenty-nine members of Donegal County Councillors claimed almost €900,000 in expenses last year, new figures have revealed. Donegal County Councillors claimed a total of €220,000 under their monthly allowance payments – all of which is tax-free- during 2010. The councillor who claimed the most money was former Mayor and Fianna Fail councillor Brendan Byrne

An inspector from the Health and Safety Authority has told a court that a man would not have died if a pin intended to be fitted on a digger had been in place. Mr Greg Murphy was giving evidence in the case of Owen Curran, a building site foreman facing three charges of negligence surrounding

Environment Minister Phil Hogan has told the Dail that he will consider how a more coordinated response to wildfires can be achieved. The minister was responding to Donegal Deputies Pearse Doherty and Pagraig Mac Lochlainn, who argued that there’s a need to immediately establish an inter-departmental response unit to deal with the fires that have

Highland Radio retains its status as trhe country’s most listened to radio station following the publication of the latest JNLR / MRBI figures. The survey shows that on weekdays, Highland Radio has a listened yesterday figure of 66%, and market share of 61.7%. Weekends show an even higher percentage of the radio audience listening to

The Friends of the Enviroment has suggested that farmers, allbeit not intentionally, may have been responsible for starting some of the gorse fires which raged across Donegal in recent days. The group says their is an economic incentive encouraging farmers to burn scrub land so as to maximise their income under the Single Payments Scheme.

An arrest warrant for a young woman facing charges of involvement in “creeper” burglaries” has been issued by Donegal District Court. Karen McDonald, 25, who faces seven charges, didn’t answer bail given to her when she appeared last Saturday at a special sitting of Carrick-on-Shannon District Court. Karen McDonald and two men were arrested last

It’s been confirmed that Donegal Councillor Terence Slowey will appeal a decision to expel him from Fine Gael. The decision was confirmed last night by Party HQ, with Saturday week set as the date for Cllr Slowey’s appeal to be heard. Meanwhile, Sinn Fein have repeated their calls for Terence Slowey to step down from

Experts have begun to assess the impact in several locations across the county. It’s feared many species of birds may have been decimated by the gorse fires. It’s feared that the blazes will also affect aqua life in the county in months to come. Deputy Regional Manager of the National Parks and Wildlife Service, Dave

Letterkenny Circuit Court has heard how a construction worker died when he was struck by a concrete manhole cover that he was loading on to a digger. Francis Callaghan died on the construction site in Forquar, Milford on January 8th, 2010. A colleague of the dead man appeared at Letterkenny Circuit Court charged with three

Sinn Fein have failed in a bid to have the Donegal fires raised during the adjournment in the Dail. Deputies Pearse Doherty and Padraig Mac Lochlainn are both calling on the Government to establish an inter departmental crisis response unit to tackle the fires that have spread across Donegal and other counties over the past

Donegal North East Deputy Joe Mc Hugh has told the Dail that the possibility of applying for EU structural funds to create jobs should be investigated. Speaking during a debate on the bailout package, Deputy Mc Hugh said neither the IMF nor the EU have any issues with the use of EU funds on cross

All fires bar one in Donegal have now been extinguished, according to the fire service, with members of the public being urged to be very vigilant in the coming days. Chief Fire Officer Bobby Mc Menamin says there is still one fire burning in Inishowen, but it is coming under control. He says the main

Highland Radio News has learned that Councillor Terence Slowey has been expelled from Fine Gael. The decision was made by Party HQ today and follows the councillors appearance before The Standards in Public Office Commission which found he acted recklessly in making a double expenses claim. In a statement released to Highland Radio News this

South Donegal farmer Patsy Brogan has been accused of running a “Shebeen” in a shed called the Bog Hotel attached to his home outside Inver, Co. Donegal. The 73-year-old appeared at Donegal District Court today on a charge of selling beer and spirits at the premises last September 25. Brogan was not asked at this

Following on from the year long delay in holding a by-election in Donegal South West last year, the government has confirmed today it will introduce a six-month rule for Dáil by-elections. Sinn Fein took legal action against the government last year which eventually led to the by-election being held – Pearse Doherty went on to

Donegal could be set to lose a Dail Deputy under plans by the Government, announced today, to reduce the number of TDs Minister for the Environment Phil Hogan stated the terms of reference for the Constituency Commission will be changed to provide for a reduced number of TDs. A Constituency Commission is due to be

 A Donegal businessman has claimed he has spent five years trying to create a viable seafood business in Killybegs but has been thwarted at every turn by the attitude of the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food. John Shine is spearheading a new campaign which is supported by business interests in six fishery harbour

The attendance records of TDs in the Dáil for the first two weeks of a new clocking-in system show that the all of Donegal’s elected Dail members had a full attendance The figures are being described as only a “snapshot” of the new operation and included one “attendance reconciliation day” to deputies into the new

The weather station at Malin Head recorded the warmest april in 100 years. Last month the temperature on average was 3.1 degrees above normal. Due to the the dry weather soil moisture deficits are similar to those experienced in a hot summer. Soil moisture deficits in the north west are running at between 20mm and

The family of murdered PSNI constable Ronan Kerr have urged the public to “support the peace process” by voting in tomorrow’s election. Constable Kerr’s mother, brothers and sister said the local and Assembly elections were “our only democratic means to reaffirm our need for peace. They also said it didn’t matter what party people voted

Efforts are continuing to quell the gorse and forest fires that are raging in the North West. Falcarragh and Glenties are among the worst affected areas – but officials says there was no call-outs overnight. There’s hope now that rain will finally quench the blazes, some of which have been burning for five days. Chief

Young Fine Gael are preparing for a recruitment drive across Donegal in a bid to build on the party’s recent electoral success. The group has over 4,000 members across the country, and after holdiong two constituency AGMs in Donegal, Young Fine Gael officials are now trying to boost the branch network in the North-West. Donegal

The Irish Cattle and Sheep Farmers’ Association is backing calls for swift government action to support farmers and others who have been affected by fires in Donegal and elsewhere in the country. Rural Development Chairman John Barron says a realistic compensation package needs to be drawn up to help farmers that have been affected by

Meanwhile, the Taoiseach has condemned what he’s described as deliberate “arson attacks” on land and stock in the North of the country. In the Dail, Enda Kenny hit out at what he said were deliberate attacks……….

The government is being told it must respond to the situation created by the onging fires in Donegal. After some respite this morning, fires began reigniting in the early afternoon. The Fire Service says there are now six different fires being tackled across Donegal. At 5.20 this evening,  Chief Fire Officer Bobby Mc Menamin outlined

Fire officers say they are now making good progress in their battle to control a series of fires on scrubland in the north-west of the country. Fires have been raging in Donegal, Sligo and Leitrim. The Fire Service says blazes  in Dungloe, Ardara and Glenties have been substantially brought under control, however, concern remains over

Meanwhile, in Letterkenny, the fire service had to be called out twice last evening when bushes were set alight in Ballyboe Park, close to the Glencar Shopping Centre. Local Councillor Gerry Mc Monagle says the behaviour of those who started the fires is in stark contrast to the bravery and commitment of the Firefighters who

The body of the young Irish backpacker who died while scuba-diving in Australia more than two weeks ago will be returned to her family today. 23-year-old Elaine Morrow was diving off Queensland on April 18 when she failed to surface. Her body was recovered by divers. The young biology graduate’s remains are expected to be

Fires that raged through parts of the west Donegal for three days — destroying thousands of acres in their path — are finally under control. The fire at Dungloe has been closed down this morning, while the fire in the Ardara/Glenties area is under comtrol. Firefighters assisted by the Defence Forces and Air Corps personell

Gardai have recovered tens of thousands of euro worth of property stolen in creeper burglaries across the north-west. It follows an intense year-long investigation by gardai in Co. Donegal targetting gangs who broke into a series of homes while owners were sleeping at night – hence the description “creeper” burglaries. Donegal gardai and officers with

Fire fighters and the defence forces are continuing to battle raging gorse fires in West Donegal which, they say, were started deliberately. Three army corps helicopters, two of which are equipped with Bambi buckets, have been deployed to assist. Each bucket is capable of carrying twelve hundred litres of water. Fires have been reported across

The Defence Forces have been deployed to help a major operation to tackle a large gorse fire in West Donegal. Up to 50 personel will help ten units of the fire service already fighting the blaze in Lettermacaward and Dungloe. Four houses in the area have been evacuated and fire fighters have requested the assistance

A 64 year old man died in a quad bike accident on a farm near Cardonagh, Co Donegal. Hugh ‘Heela’ Doherty was pronounced dead at Altnagelvin Hospital in Derry. A son of the dead man, who was also on the bike at the time, was injured in the incident on Friday afternoon. Both men were

The Minister for Defence is being urged to dispatch the army to assist with a serious gorse fire in West Donegal. A number of families have been evacuated from their homes as over one hundred fire fighters continue to battle the blaze outside Dungloe near Lettermacaward. The Donegal fire service say they believe the fire

The head of Retail Ireland says he’s confident that Xtravision has a future. Today the company said it would continue to operate as normal after the High Court appointed an interim examiner yesterday. Xtravision employs 1,300 people here and has more than 180 stores both sides of the border, includiong a major outlet at Letterkenny

Donegal tourism from Scotland is set for a major boost, with 50 representatives of the tourism industry participating in the Donegal Live Glasgow event tomorrow. The organisers says with sterling so strong against the euro, it is also a good time to target the Scottish market and help bring more visitors to our county,” he

The Mayor, Cllr Colum Eastwood has hit out at those responsible for a vandalism attack which saw £50,000 worth of damage to musical equipment in a van that was set on fire outside of a city centre hotel in the early hours of this morning. Describing the attack as “ a disgraceful act of wanton

A security alert in Derry this morning has been declared an elaborate hoax. The PSNI removed a suspicious object from Racecourse Road in Shantallow earlier this morning. A number of families had been evacuated from their homes while army bomb disposal teams investigated the device. Police say the investigation is now over.

The Irish Postmaster’s Union is holding its Annual Conference in Letterkenny today, with members to debate a proposal that post offices be allowed deliver additional public services, like Motor Tax Renewal, in an effort to cut State costs. The IPU says it can also be part of the reform of the Irish Banking Sector. The

There’s another security alert in Derry this morning, this time in the vicinity  of the Racecourse Road. Police and army  personnel are at the scene. There are diversions in place in the area. Meanwhile, police say a device found close to a van in Maghera in County Derry yesterday morning had partially exploded. The owner