Author name: oisinkelly

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This is an archived page- for latest news please see our homepage Highland Radio has been formally notified of the following… THURSDAY OPENING NATIONAL SCHOOLS Cranford National School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

TD’s expenses are back in focus after it emerged that despite promises that the amount claimed would fall and the system would be reviewed, nearly 8 million euro was paid out to TDs in 2009, more than the previous year. According to figures collated and published by the Sunday Independent, the highest earning Donegal TD

There are signs of a thaw beginning today, although Met Eireann is indicating it will be several days before the big freeze is over. All primary and secondary schools remain closed until Thursday, with several other institutions remaining closed today. After announcing at the weekend that it is no longer salting and gritting the road

The demand for water from the supply networks today 9th January remains above normal. The supply situation has stabilised around the county generally. The extremely low temperatures are causing an increased incidence of water outage due to frozen service pipes. Water Services Staff remain actively engaged in efforts to maintain supply. The Lough Mourne supply

Letterkenny Institute of Technology has announced that the Semester 1 exams which were to have taken place on Monday next January 11th will now take place on Saturday January 16th. The situation will be reviewed on a day to day basis from Monday, but as of now, all other exams are planned to go ahead

Donegal County Council is to stop gritting the Letterkenny to Fintown Road over Meenaroy. While Donegal is escaping the brunt of the snowfalls which are affecting the South and East this afternoon, the county will continue to experience severe frost and sub-zero conditions, and some sparodic snowfall has been reported in the North of the

OTHER CLOSURES Raphoe Community Playgroup will be closed until Monday the 18th of January Little acorns playgroup Raphoe closed until Thursday 14th Trinity tots mother & toddler group in trinity hall L’kenny is cancelled until Thursday 14th January The Glen Outdoor School, Glenswilly will re-open today Oaktree Juvenile Badminton Club in Killygordan will be closed

Gardai have issued a warning to all motorists to only take to the roads if necessary today. Snow has been falling across the East since early this morning and driving conditions are treacherous. Met Eireann is forecasting up to 5 centimetres of snow in the south and east today, followed by 10 centimetres tomorrow. The

A 24-year-old Donegal man has been charged with dangerous driving causing the death of Garda Gary McLoughlin last month. Martin McDermott of Castlegrove, Raphoe was charged with the offence at Letterkenny District court today. Garda Gary McLoughlin was critically injured at Lisfannon, Burt, Co Donegal, on 13 December when his patrol car was struck by

The Education Minister has ordered all primary and post-primary schools to remain closed until next Thursday. Batt O’ Keefe has taken the decision in light of the weather that’s been forecast for this weekend. The situation will be reviewed again on Tuesday. Minister Batt O’ Keefe says he took the decision out of concern for

New figures released today show that people in Donegal earn less money than those living anywhere else in Ireland. The average income in Donegal is €3,000 less than people elsewhere in the country and €5,000 less than people in Dublin. The statistics from the CSO also show that people in the county also have a

The future of the multi-million euro Greencastle Harbour Project is in doubt, according to Donegal North East Deputy Joe Mc Hugh. It’s emerged that only 104,000 euro has been allocated for the ongoing work in 2010, substantially less than the 800,000 euro which local people believ is necessary as a bare minimum to keep the

It’s been confirmed that there was a minor earthquake in Donegal last night, measuring 1.6 on the Richter Scale. Last night, Highland Radio received a number of calls from Fanad and Inishowen claiming that people had heard what appeared to be a loud thunderclap followed by a tremor at around half past seven. According to

A District Judge in Derry said he was ‘somewhat surprised’ that police did not even make a cursory examination of leading Derry dissident republican Gary Donnelly after he alleged his arm had been broken in an incident involving PSNI officers. Judge Barney McElholm made his comments as he convicted Donnelly of three charges, assault, disorderly

The armys has confirmed that soldiers based at Finner are now on stand-by to assist Donegal County Council or the HSE in dealing with the the current severe weather conditions. Following a directive from the Defence Minister Willie O’Dea yesterday, Finner is one of 17 Barracks across the country which is now able to offer

The Defence Minister says the army may be deployed to help as the freezing weather looks set to continue. An emergency committee, involving a number of Government departments and other agencies, is meeting this afternoon to discuss the issue. Defence Minster Willie O’Dea says whatever is needed will be provided. Meanwhile, Donegal Councillor Frank Mc

Donegal County Council says that the demand for water from the supply network today remains above normal. Some areas, including Lifford and reservoirs at Tievebrack, Ballinacor and Gleneely (Castlefin) will have their outflows turned off tonight, and the council says supply may take some hours to reach all areas when turned on again. In East

House prices in Donegal fell by almost 20% last year. The figures released this morning are contained in property website ‘daft.ie”s review of 2009 and shows that house prices in the county have fallen by 27% from their peak in 2007. Ronan Lyons, Economist with ‘daft.ie’ predicts that prices have not yet reached their lows

Extremely icy conditions are being experienced across the country this morning, with surface temperatures of minus 10 recorded on the N2 in Monaghan. Snow showers in the north west overnight have been intesifying and drivers are being warned against all unnecessary travel. The vast majority of schiools in Donegal will remain closed until Monday –

Staff at Fujitsu’s Derry and Belfast plants are striking for three days from today. The strike is over job cuts, a pay freeze and pension changes. Last year the IT services unit of Fujitsu said it would cut up to 1,200 jobs in the UK, blaming the economic downturn. The company employs 700 people in

Videos have emerged on the interent of youths apparently using quads on Knockalla lake, fozen due to the recent weather. The videos were posted in the same week that Gardai warned of the dangers of driving on frozen lakes – that warning was issued following a number of reports of quads being used on Lough

An investigation’s been launched in the north after an 8 year old boy was found alone and freezing on a Derry street. The youngster was discovered by a taxi driver outside a shop in the Ballymagroarty area at half past six this morning, when the temperature was minus 1 degrees. The man wrapped the child

A woman who runs The Happy Matchmaker dating agency is appealing a judge’s order that she give a dissatisfied client files for court proceedings against her. Happy Matchmaker boss Mary Mitchell of Ballintra, Co. Donegal, has been accused of failing to check out men introduced to Annemarie McBrearty.. Ms McBrearty is suing Ms Mitchell for

The freezing weather conditions of the last fortnight have had a devastating impact on potato producers, with initial estimates showing losses of over €15m on potato crops still in the ground. Donegal IFA County Chairman and potato grower William Monagle said 6,000 acres of potatoes across the country remain unharvested due to the disastrous wet

Letterkenny General Hospital has seen its budget for 2010 increased by the HSE. The Health Service Executive employs a system called “casemix” that penalises inefficient hospitals and redirects the money to more efficient ones. The HSE has confirmed that overall nearly €14 million is being taken from 18 inefficient hospitals and redistributed among 21 efficient

There are indications that a formal link between Aer Lingus and Aer Arann would facilitate passengers from Donegal who want to make connecting flights in Dublin. Two airlines are in talks about a ‘commercial alliance’ to operate joint flights, with the proposal expected to be discussed at an Aer Lingus board meeting on Friday. The

UDA confirms weapons have been decommissioned Leaders of the Ulster Defence Association have confirmed it’s decommissioned all weapons under its control. The North’s largest loyalist paramilitary group put the remainder of its arsenal out of use in recent weeks. The organisation, responsible for some of the bloodiest atrocities during the conflict, had already put a