Author name: oisinkelly

North West MEP Pat the Cope Gallagher is predicting a May by-election to determine his successor in Donegal South West. Fine Gael and Labour have already announced plans to hold selection conventions to determine their candidates while Sinn Fein has made numerous calls on government to set a date. Meanwhile Pat the Cope has rejected […]

Police are appealing for witnesses to an armed robbery on the Buncrana Road during which staff were threatened and thousand of pounds stolen. Three men armed with guns entered Jolly’s Petfood store at around 6 o’clock last evening with staff forced to hand over money from the safe at gunpoint. The men told the Manager,

Water supplies are showing signs of stabilising in most areas of the county though demand remains above normal. Problems continue to be experienced with outdoor service lines, services to field troughs and outbuildings and vacant properties. We urge members of the public to check taps and service lines at home, in outbuildings and in fields,

The trial of 14 people charged with various offences in relation to a protest at the arm manufacturer Raytheon in Derry will be heard in Belfast. At today’ sitting of Derry Crown Court the Recorder, Judge Des Marrinan said that for logistical reasons he felt it was necessary to move the venue of the trial.

A special meeting of Donegal County Council has today heard claim and counter claim over how the budget for 2010 was adopted last month. Non-Fianna Fail Councillors have been heavily critical of Mayor Brenden Byrne allowing the budget be adopted while only Fianna Councillors were present in the chamber. However legal advice presented today backed

A new body representing the Bed and Breakfast sector is predicting a more positive year in 2010, with a new marketting drive and grading system being introduced, and the economic outlook improving in key markets abroad. Ballyshannon based B&B Ireland, which encompasses the old Town and Country Homes and Irish Farmhouse associations, says online bookings

Members of Donegal County Council have been furnished with legal advice suggesting it would be virtually impossible to force a vote of no confidence in the mayor. In the letter, prepared at the behest of Mayor Brendan Byrne, the council’s solicitors say that his handling of the vote which saw this year’s budget passed in

Donegal County Council is meeting this morning to discuss the manner in which ther 2010 budget was decided, and the process leading up to December’s budget meeting. What happened at meeting is well documented. While Fine Gael, Labour, Sinn Fein and the independents were meeting to thrash out proposals to reduce the comercical rate by

Figures collated and publishjed by the Sunday Independent show that between December 1st 2008 and December 1st 2009, Donegal’s three senators claimed almost €123,000 in expenses between them. Of the 60 members of Seanad Eireann, Fianna Fail Senator Cecilia Keavney was the highest claiming Donegal member, with expenses of just over €52,000, the 25th highest

A 17 years old man was been taken to Letterkenny General Hospital early today Sunday following a single vehicle accident near Gortahork. It is understood the van the young man was driving overturned in the middle of the road at Keeldrum just before 4am. His condition in hospital is described as “satisfactory”. The main N56

Water Update – Saturday January 16th As communicated to us by Donegal County Council – Water supplies are showing signs of stabilising in most areas of the county continue though demand remains above normal. Problems continue to be experienced with outdoor service lines, services to field troughs and outbuildings and vacant properties. We urge members

Water should be returning to most homes and business across Donegal following the latest round of reservoir closures by Donegal County Council. Supply was restricted in parts of the  Donegal, Stranorlar, Glenties and Letterkenny electoral areas overnight. Supply was switched on agian at eight this morning but will take some time to reach all properties

There was great success for Donegal students at the BT Young Scientist of the Year Awards held during the week. Deírbhile Ní Chathail, Aoife Nic Uait and Sean Cassey of Colaiste Ailigh picked up an award in the Junior catagory in the Biological and Ecological section. Aisling Nic Fhionnghaile also from Colaiste Ailigh, entering in

The Regional Game Council in Donegal has confirmed that a ban on the shooting of certain wild birds remaions in place, and will be reviewed again on Wednesday next. The temporary ban was brought in during the cold snap, and was to have been lifted yesterday, but it has been left in place for another

Donegal North East Deputy Dr James mc Daid is a step closer to rejoining the Fianna Fail parliamentary party This follows the announcement on Friday that the government will now proceed with the vaccination of first year girls against cervical cancer. Health Minister Mary Harney says she has renegotiated the cost of drugs with the

The County Manager Michael McLoone has been reacting to the news that Donegal County Council is facing a bill of up to four million euro to cover the costs incurred in dealing with the recent poor weather. The council met today were details were given of how much the freeze costs in maintaining and repairing the

Water Update – Friday January 15th 3.30pm As communicated to us by Donegal County Council – Water supplies are showing signs of stabilising in most areas of the county continue though demand remains above normal. Problems continue to be experienced with outdoor service lines, services to field troughs and outbuildings and vacant properties. We urge

The Health Minister has announced she is reversing the decision not to roll out the cervical cancer vaccine for secondary school students. Mary Harney says the Government is now in a position to provide the HPV vaccine for first year students after the cost of doing so was negotiated down from 16 million to just

A rescheduled Swine Flu Vaccination Clinic will take place in Buncrana on Tuesday 26th January, in the Inishowen Gateway Hotel. The clinics, which were due to take place in Buncrana on last Monday and Tuesday, were cancelled due to the severe weather conditions. Appointments for the clinic on Tuesday 26th can be booked online at

Donegal County Council could be facing a bill well in excess of three million euro  in the wake of the freeze that gripped the country over the last month. Senior Council staff have been briefing councillors this afternoon on how the authority dealt with the thirty one day crisis and how much it has and

Gardai continue to question three men today following the major drugs seizure in Carrigans on Wednesday evening. The discovery led to a number of follow up operations across the country and ws part of an ongoing garda surveillance operation. The three men, two from County Tipperary and the third from County Louth are being questioned

Figures obtained by Fine Gael show that in the course of just three years almost 50 pubs have closed in Donegal while on avarage nationally a pub has closed a day. In raising the issue Fine Gael Deputy John O’Mahoney is now calling for initiatives to be considered, including VRT exemptions if pubs invest in

The Chairman of the IFA in Donegal is welcoming a commitment from Agriculture Minister Brendan Smith to assess the extent to which the recent weather conditions impacted on potato growers. At a meeting with the new IFA president, the minister said his officials would liaise directly with individual farmers and bring a report back to

Talks between the North’s political leaders on policing are reaching a critical phase today Last night DUP leader Peter Robinson rejoined the discussion with Sinn Fein where its hoped a deal can be reached on the devolution of policing and justice powers to Stormont It was his first public appearance since he stepped down temporarily

Three men have been arrested following a drug seizure in Carrigans. Over a thousand cannabis plants were found when Gardai from Letterkenny searched a house in Kildrum Lower  yesterday evening. The haul may have a street value of half a million euro, subject to analysis. The men, who are in their late twenties and early

Management at Letterkenny General Hospital says they are confident that measures introduced have contained the small outbreak of the winter vomiting bug in the hospital. A number of cases of Noro Virus were confirmed in patients who have gastroenteritis in the Orthopaedic Ward of the hospital leading to visiting restriction being introduced. Assistant General Manager

AFianna Fail County Councillor says it may be in the best interest of Donegal and the economy if we wait until the next general election before filling the vacant Dail seat in Donegal South West. Fine Gael has announced a selection convention for a by-election while Sinn Fein is calling on the government to set

There are calls for high level intervention to source a consultant haematologist for Letterkenny General Hospital. The hospital has been without haematology services since the departure of the previous consultant at the end of December. Haematology services are vital for the diagnosis and treatment of  blood related illnesses including leukaemia and while this position is

The Council has re-opened the water supply from a number of reservoirs around the county this morning but it may take several hours before water returns to some homes. Again last night water was switched off in many part of the county As the thaw worsens the water shortage in Donegal the council was again

Councils  have been given a boost of more than €17 million above what was expected from the second home tax introduced last year. Just under €57.1m has been paid out under the Non-Principal Private Residence  charge through a dedicated website set up by the Department of the Environment. Millions more may have been paid to

Election candidates with a good image are more likely to attract votes than those with sound policies and a good track record. That’s according to new research from students in County Donegal which is being presented at the BT Young scientist exhibition in Dublin today. The study by Rosses Community school says voters dont readily

This is an archived page- for latest news please see our homepage Highland Radio has been formally notified of the following… THURSDAY OPENING NATIONAL SCHOOLS Cranford National School Dooish National School Donoughmore National School Liscooly Drumoghill National School Educate Together N.S. Letterkenny Gleneely National School, Killygordan Glencovett National School, Ballybofey Illies national school Buncrana The

Councillor Cora Harvey has urged the Tanaiste Mary Coughlan to put a strong case for increased roads funding for the whole of Donegal when she meets with the National Roads Authority. This week  Mary Coughlan confirmed she would be meeting with the NRA to seek additional funding for repairs to a stretch of the N56

Despite the government having yet to set a date for the by-election in Donegal South West Fine Gael is to hold its selection convention for the contest next month (Feb 15th). The by-election is required to fill the seat vacated by Pat the Cope Gallagher MEP when he was elected to Europe last year. Names

Parents of eligible children and service providers in Donegal are being urged to register for the government new free preschool year programme if they haven’t already done so. The scheme replaces the early childcare supplement which saw parents paid one thousand euro directly – it was scrapped in the last budget. Children born between the

Donegal South West Deputy Dinny McGinley says the latest Live Register figures are a clear indication that  Donegal is in danger of losing a whole generation to unemployment and emigration. More than a quarter of those registered as unemployed in Donegal are under 25, with an increase of almost 1,000 young people in this age

A 22-year-old man has been charged with causing death by dangerous driving and failing to stop or report an accident. The charges relate to the death of 24-year-old Martin Gallagher in Derry last November. The accused has been charged with a number of other offences which include driving while unfit, driving without a licence and

As Donegal County Council and the government’s Emergency Response Committee reiterate the need to conserve water, the way the council dealt with the severe weather is to be discussed at a special council meeting on Friday. The meeting will see officials brief councillors on how much was done, and what the cost of the work

The new Inishowen NCT centre in Carndonagh opens its doors today, with the first cars being tested this morning, a decade after the campaign to secure a test centre on the peninsula began. One of the early campaigners was Senator Cecilia Keavney, who visited the centre yesterday while staff training was concluding. She’s welcomed the

Tánaiste Mary Coughlan has called for emergency funding to be made available to carry out urgent repair works on the N56 at Turris Hill, near Mountcharles. Ms Coughlan is to meet the National Roads Authority with a view to securing the necessary finance to reinstate the road to a satisfactory condition. Problems which have alreay

The numbers on the live register in Donegal in December showed a increase on the November figure with an extra seven hundred people signing on in the run up to Christmas Statistics published by the CSO today show that in the space of a year the numbers signing on on the county have risen by

Lawyers for a man being retried on a conspiracy charge connected with the 1998 Omagh bombing have said the state’s description of the event is ‘infecting the case’. Colm Murphy who is a native of Armagh with an address at Ravensdale in Louth denies conspiring to cause an explosion between August 13th and 16th, 1998.

Many local authorities across the country have started to ration public water supplies due to burst pipes and a rise in demand, a practice Donegal County Council has engaged for a number of weeks. In its latest update Donegal County Council says that water supplies throughout the county are experiencing extremely high demands following the

A grouping of 19 Donegal County Councillors have agreed to table a motion of no confidence in the Mayor Brendan Byrne over his role in the adoption of the budget in December. Fine Gael, Sinn Fein, Labour and a number of independents were furious when the mayor allowed Fianna Fail’s nine councillors adopt the budget

Fourteen people charged in connection with a protest at the arms manufacturing company  Raytheon in Derry will argue that their actions were justified Derry Crown Court was told on Monday. The fourteen, nine women and five men face a series of charges including burglary, assault on police obstruction, criminal damage and impersonating a police officer

There are signs of a thaw beginning , although Met Eireann is indicating it will be several days before the big freeze is over. Donegal County Council is urging motorists to remain vigilant as the improving weather conditions create their own problems. Senior Engineer with the council Vincent Lynn says back roads remains dangerous and

Cllr Frank Mc Brearty has hit out at council officials after he was told by the mayor that at least three days notice would have to be given for an emergency council meeting. Cllr Mc Brearty had written to the mayor this morning seeking a meeting to discuss the impact the freezing conditions have been

Sinn Fein has confirmed this morning it is pulling out of the technical agreement on Donegal County Council, and seeking an inclusive power sharing agreement, involving all parties on council. The party whip Cllr Padriag Mac Lochlainn says following a series of internal party discussions, Sinn Fein is to seek a special meeting of Donegal