Author name: oisinkelly

  Representatives from Donegal International Airport will appear before the Oireachtas Committee on Transport and Communications Networks this morning, along with colleagues from Ireland West Airport and Kerry Airport. Committee Chair Deputy Kieran O’Donnell says in light of the adoption of the EU traffic light system and the desire of the diaspora to return home […]

The government has approved 48 million euro in additional funding to support the aviation sector. 22 million in operational and capital funding for Cork and Shannon airports has been approved on top of Budget 2021 commitments. While there will be a further 6 million for Knock, Kerry and Donegal under the Regional Airports Programme. A

The North’s First Minister says she hopes a consensus can be reached today on whether Covid-19 restrictions there can be relaxed. The current measures, which have been in place for four weeks, are due to expire on Thursday night. The Stormont executive met yesterday but failed to agree whether pubs, restaurants and other hospitality businesses

  There’s a call for better lighting to be installed in the Bernard McGlinchey Park to improve safety. This year more than ever, the park has become a vital amenity to the community of Letterkenny however there’s concern over current lighting as the evenings grow darker. While there are lights installed along the various routes

  A leading doctor in the North has issued a stark warning against lifting Covid-19 restrictions there later this week. Talks are resuming this morning at Stormont on whether Northern Ireland’s restrictions should be extended for two weeks after talks last night failed to reach an agreement. A four-week circuit breaker lockdown is due to

  The Chief Medical Officer says there’s “nothing inevitable” about a third wave of Covid-19 after Christmas. New guidelines on how people can socialise over the festive season, while keeping the virus at low levels, are being drawn up by NPHET. A further 270 cases of the virus were confirmed last night, 20 of them

  The Tánaiste is expected to survive a motion of no confidence in the Dáil this evening. Sinn Féin have tabled the motion over the leaking of a confidential GP contract by Leo Varadkar. Last week he apologised in the Dáil for his actions, saying they were not best practice, but denied they were criminal

  The Stormont Executive has failed to reach agreement on a potential extension of Covid-19 restrictions in Northern Ireland. Talks are to resume discussions this morning after they ended last night without a breakthrough. A four-week circuit-break lockdown that’s forced the closure of much of the hospitality sector is due to end at midnight on

  The Department of Education will tell TD’s and Senators later that it’s ‘determined’ to see the conventional Leaving Cert exams go ahead in 2021. Assistant Secretary General, Dalton Tattan, will go before the Education Committee to discuss the plan and give updates on the calculated grades process. It comes as the postponed Leaving Cert

  Irish Water has begun replacing approximately 350 metres of old water mains in Bunnamayne, Bridgend. The pipes, which were prone to frequent bursts and leakage, are being replaced with new high density plastic pipes. The work has been welcomed by Cllr Jack Murray, who says this is very necessary work for the people of

The Government is being urged to prioritise the resumption of respite care for Donegal service users. It’s understood that out of the four designated respite centres in the county, two of these, Riverwalk Respite House in Inishowen and Drumboe Respite House in Stranorlar, are providing emergency respite services for four adults. There are also reports

  The General Manager of Letterkenny University Hospital says that they are continuing to effectively manage the Covid-19 outbreak at the hospital. Close contacts including both patients and staff are being closely monitored however the situation has resulted in increasing pressures at the hospital with staff shortages and non-Covid services are in turn being impacted.

  The head of the HSE hopes we can have a ‘reasonable Christmas’ when we come out of Level 5 Covid-19 restrictions. It comes as the latest figures show the estimated 14 day incidence rate of Covid 19 is at 175 per 100 thousand of the population. Donegal’s 14 day incidence rate is 295.2 per

  There are calls on both Donegal County Council and the TII to carry out an urgent review of one of the main arteries into Letterkenny. It’s thought that reducing the current two lane at the Mountain Top roundabout to one on the Illistrin side and using a shorter right lane for traffic turning towards

  The manager of Ballyliffin Golf Club has hit out at those behind what’s been described as mindless vandalism on the grounds of the golf over the weekend. A sign, in the shape of a golf ball which had become synonymous with the hugely successful Irish Open held in Ballyliffin in 2018 was discovered damaged

  Working from home hasn’t led to a mass exodus of workers from cities. A new Daft-dot-ie study shows the average rent in Dublin is still over 2,000 euro a month, despite a 0.8 percent fall over the last three months. In Donegal, rents were 2.4% lower on average in the third quarter of 2020

  Talks between the UK and EU will continue today in London, to try and end the deadlock in Brexit negotiations. UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson and the president of the European Commission agreed to “redouble efforts” at the weekend to secure a trade deal. Speaking yesterday, he said there are still “significant differences”.