Author name: oisinkelly

There’s been a 100% rise in the number of suicides in Donegal according to the Central Statistics Office. Figures published this week by the CSO show there were 20 recorded suicides in the county last year, compared to 10 in 2008, with the county’s recorded suicide rate now higher than the national average. Fr James […]

A priest in Derry who challenged dissident republicans over their violence is to meet families who claim they are being harassed by the PSNI. Fr Paddy O’Kane from Ballymagroarty agreed to the meeting after talks with the 32 County Sovereignty Committee. During the talks, he said he criticised those behind the bomb attack on Strand

There’s been a 100% rise in the number of suicides in Donegal according to the Central Statistics Office. Figures published this week by the CSO show there were 20 recorded suicides in the county last year, compared to 10 in 2008, with the county’s recorded suicide rate now higher than the national average. Fr James

Cardonagh Courthouse is due to reopen for local court business in October. The court service are currently carrying out some remidial and maintenance works on the courthouse. Senator Cecilla Keaveney was recently informed of this by the Chief Executive Officer of the courts service Brendan Ryan. Senator Keaveney also says there were plans to refurbish

There’s a risk of flooding in parts of the county today after yesterdays heavy rain. Almost 4 centimetres of rainfall was recorded at the MET Eireann station in Malin Head yesterday. And with more rain forecast for the next 24 hours, flooding is possible. Forecaster with Met Eireann is Gerry Murphy:

Over four-hundred disqualifications  for drink driving offences were handed down in Donegal last year. Figures released by the Courts Service show that 403 disqualifications were ordered in Donegals main court district in 2009 which includes the sittings at Letterkenny, Buncrana, Dungloe and Glenties and covers most of the county. Twenty-four prison sentences or partially suspended

Speculation is growing that the Government will be forced to announce a date for the Donegal South-West by-election, rather than run the risk of lose a costly High Court ruling. Reports over the weekend suggest that the election could be held in March. Donegal South-West has been without full Dail representation since June of last

The recent plans put forward by the Road Safety Authority is missing the point and will do nothing to stop the carnage on our roads, according to Cllr Jimmy Harte. The authority plans to introduce nine changes over the next two years that will result in an expansion of the driver theory exam and a

Figures showing that almost 4,000 primary school children in Donegal are in class sizes of between 30 and 40 has been described as ‘shocking’. Just under 20% of primary school children in the county are in classes of 30 or more. Nationally one-fifth of children are now in classes of 30 or more. And Donegal

Gardaí have confirmed that they have stepped up patrols on the Pollan Dam in Buncrana following claims that poachers had threatened to poison the Inishowen water supply. On Highland Radio this week a local fishermen claimed that poachers had threatened to poison the water if their attempts to poach salmon from the Crana river was

A Donegal County Councillor claims a High Court decision yesterday relating to the Fahan Marina, could end up costing the tax payer millions of euro. The High Court has ruled that the Department of Marine and Natural Resources acted outside its powers and imposed unreasonable conditions on the owners of a Donegal Marina. In an

A Letterkenny mother has been describing her relief on hearing that her daughter, caught up in a major earthquake in New Zealand, was safe and well. The 7.0 magnitude earthquake struck the country’s second largest city, Christchurch with officials saying it was ‘extremely lucky’ no one was killed. Initial estimates have put the damage at

The Bundoran RNLI Lifeboat Crew on Saturday held a  boat push from Ballyshannon to Bundoran to raise funds for the service. Ballyshannon recently received a new state of the art Atlantic 85 speedboat, which can carry 4 crewmembers and has extra space for casualties. The new vessel can reach speeds of up to 35 knots

A judge has spoke of his fears of “knife culture” crime in Britain spreading to Ireland. Judge Kevin Kilrane was dealing with a case in which Liverpool-born John Fullerton admitted making a knife threat when he stole a case of Budweiser from a Bundoran supermarket. Ballyshannon District Court was told that although Fullerton didn’t show

The High Court has ruled that the Department of Marine and Natural Resources acted outside its powers and imposed unreasonable conditions on the owners of a Donegal Marina. In an action taken by the Department against Figary Watersports Development company Limited, Mr Justice McKechnie said the Department had failed in its duty regarding an application

A 24-year-old Derry man who tried to force his way through a police cordon set up after the 200 lbs bomb at the Strand Road police station last month was today (Friday) jailed for a month. Derry Magistrate’s Court was told that on August 3 after the bomb attack a police cordon had been set

Arranmore Island will tomorrow mark the 75th anniversary of the Arranmore Disaster, the boating tragedy that took the lives of 19 islanders. In the aftermath of the tragedy the  Donegal Association of Dublin was formed to raise money for the families – members of the association will travel to the island for the commemoration. Eighteen

Thousands of Irish students who are studying in Northern Ireland are being warned that they may be breaking the law in relation to Vehicle Registration Tax. For example, a student from Donegal who has a northern registration and is studying in Belfast and stays there the majority of the week, may have their car seized

The Deputy Mayor of Donegal has applauded Judge Seamus Hughes for handing a 25 year driving ban to a 24-year-old for dangerous driving. Kevin Dunleavy from Kerrykeel was handed down the sentence at Letterkenny District Court earlier this week. Judge Seamus Hughes says it was lucky the defendent hadn’t killed anyone by his wrecklessness. And

The ‘Save Donegal Health Services’ campaign group has unveiled the next stage of its campaign. The group, which is a broad alliance of the three main health unions and community health groups, is planning to host a public meeting to debate the issue of health. While final details have yet to be confirmed the save

Pat the Cope Gallagher has rejected a councillor’s claim that he mis led the public when he stated that the NRA was to relax the laws governing development along the N56. The N56 runs from  Bundoran,across the west and north of Donegal and down into Letterkenny – up to now planning along the route has

A Donegal woman made history yesterday when she became the first Irish lady to swim the North Channel connecting the Irish Sea to the Atlantic Ocean. Long-distance swimmer 44-year-old Anne Marie Ward now joins an elite group of nine swimmers who completed the gruelling 35km swim between the north of Ireland and South Western Scotland.

A security alert which closed the Craigavon Bridge in Derry for several hours yesterday was declared a hoax. A controlled explosion was carried out on a suspicious object at about 5 o clock. An item was removed from the scene and was examined by army technical officers. The Craigavon Bridge is one of only two

There has been a slight month on month fall on the number of people signing on the live register in Donegal. Figures for last month show 22,710 people signed on in the county, a fall of 118 on the July figure. The figures released by the CSO today would not include the recent  21 job

New planning guidelines for national roads will put an end to planning along the N56, according to Councillor Thomas Pringle. He says the new guidelines will put an end to devlopment of houses along the road. And the councillor says this is despite people being led to believe differently by NorthWest MEP Pat the Cope

The Mayor of Ballyshannon says he will consider organising a mass protest to highlight the towns unemployment probelm. Councillor Brendan Travers said the Minister for Trade and Employment needs to make a special case for the area in the wake of the latest job loss annoucement. As Highland Radio News reported on Tuesday, that BWG

The Garda Commissioner has moved to alay the fears of people Inishowen that garda resources, rather than being cut in the area, have actually increased. Fachtna Murphy was responding to concerns raised by Senator Cecilia Keaveney following the Carrigan’s post office robbery amongst other recent crimes and an increase in dissiddent activity in Derry. She

Two brothers and their cousin have been  fined a total of €6,000  for a burglary on a Donegal County Council water treatment plant  with a stolen van on standby for their getaway. Donegal District Court heard one of the men drove off with a van in Ballybofey after putting down €100 deposit and not paying

A man has been imprisoned for 22 months and disqualified for 25 years for dangerous driving offences. 24-year-old Kevin Dunleavy from Kerrykeel pleaded guilty to eight counts of dangerous driving July and August. Judge Séamus Hughes in the district court remarked that Kevin Dunleavy had the “most auspicious number of previous convictions he had ever

A mother who revealed today(Wed) that her son was put out of home because he used head-shop “highs” before they became illegal was praised for her honesty by a judge. Her teenage son was so desperate for highs that he broke into a head-shop in his home town and stole €15,000 goods from it, Donegal

A Donegal builder is facing jail over his failure to comply with fire safety regulations at a Dublin 3 apartment block. The High Court heard McGinley Construction Ltd is in contempt of an order relating to the basement car park at 55 to 58 East Road. Today lawyers for Dublin City Council informed the court

A stand off between Staff of the Lough’s Agency, Gardai and a local fishermen is ongoing in Greencastle this afternoon. Liam O’Brien, an Oyster fisherman, is at sea refusing to come ashore in protest at claims that the ongoing commercial dumping of mussel on oyster beds in Lough Foyle is destroying traditional stocks. Mr O’Brien

The Road Safety Authority is set to unveil radical new plans to overhaul the learner driver system. L-Drivers will have to do “homework” and drive in the dark – while supervised by their parents as part of the new Graduated Driver Licencing System. Their mum or dad will then have to sign a form, swearing

A Catholic priest in Derry has made a call  for talks with dissident republicans to begin. Father Paddy O’Kane, from the Holy Family church, said if the groups rejected dialogue then they should be “pushed to the margins of society’”. Father O’Kane also called for Oglaigh na hEireann, the group which claimed responsibility for the

Shots have been fired at a house in Derry. Four masked men went to the house in Dove Gardens shortly before 2300 BST on Tuesday. A number of shots were fired at the door. Two men were inside at the time, but neither were injured. A short time later, petrol bombs and other missiles were

A £6m contract to redevelop the parade ground at a former Army base in Derry has been awarded. SIAC (NI) Ltd will transform the space at Ebrington Barracks into a new public square that will link up with the city’s new Peace Bridge. Derry’s regeneration company, Ilex, said it was the first “major step” in

Health Service management in the West is seeking to cut temporary staffing levels by 7,000 hours per week, or the equivalent of 200 full-time jobs. The figure represents a reduction on the level of staff cuts ranging from 320 – 1,000 whole-time equivalents previously sought by the HSE in the West. There are currently 27,000

A large number of areas throughout the county are being evaluated with the objective of designating them ‘Special Areas’ under the EU Birds and Habitats Directive. And Northwest MEP Marian Harkin, is urging people to be vigilant about extensions to designated areas under the EU Birds and Habitats Directives. She says restrictions on individual landowners

Four men were arrested yesterday after the discovery of a  substansial quantity of cocaine and cannabis in Letterkenny. The discovery was made in the Coolbuoy are yesterday afternoon. Following a surveillance operation, a number of gardai swooped on a house in the Coolbuoy area of Letterkenny. Inside they discovered cocaine and cannabis with a street

Just weeks after two serious incidents involving Donegal referees, the GAA in the county is under the spotlight once more after a referee had to be protected at the end of a league game in Fanad on Saturday. Kieran McShea was subjected to alleged verbal abuse at the end of the Division Two game between

20 jobs are to go at BWG Foods in Ballyshannon. The company has annouced that it will cease trading from October 1st. In recent times Donegal Parian China, James Likely, C&C, Donegal Rubber Company and Hospira have all closed in the same area. Donegal South West Deputy, Dinny McGinley, says it’s another body blow for

Unions will attempt to minimise health service job losses at key talks today after management outlined plans for 300 full-time job cuts. Today is the deadline for negotiations at the Labour Relations Commission that continued at local level up to yesterday, as the Health Service Executive West tries to avoid a €90m budget overrun. The

The retired leader of the Catholic Church in Derry has said he still does not know if Fr James Chesney was a member of the IRA or if the cleric took part in the Claudy bombing 38 years ago. Bishop Edward Daly cast doubt on last week’s report of the Northern Ireland Police Ombudsman, which,

Donegal’s Deputy Mayor has described as embarrassing concerns expressed by An Taisce over the council’s handling of the Moville/ Greencastle Sewage scheme. The National Trust for Ireland raised serious concerns with the environmental protection agency on how the council assessed how Lough Foyle and local beaches would be impacted by the scheme. Councillor Padraig MacLoughlainn

Senator Cecilia Keaveney has raised the issue of poor television reception in the Inishowen area, with the responsible bodies on both sides of the border, calling for better communication and cooperation. The Senator says that many people on the peninsula have always had a problem receiving Irish channels and says more recently those wishing to