Author name: oisinkelly

Community Development Minister Michael Ring has said there will be more funding announced next year for Local Improvement Schemes, but told the Dail today the way the scheme is administered will be reviewed. Minister Ring told TDs that of the money allocated in February this year, just under 20% of it has been drawn down

    The Housing Minister has confirmed that the Mica Redress Scheme does not have to go back to cabinet for consideration and is in the final stages. It follows an update earlier this week which indicated that the scheme was with the Attorney General for final review and sign off. In the Dail last

  It has taken an ambulance more than an hour to arrive at a life-threatening emergency in Donegal six times this year. The longest wait in the county was almost 1 hour and 35 minutes, according to details released under the Freedom of Information Act, There were 123 response times of over 60 minutes right

  Border communities have already been badly affected economically by the prospect of Brexit. According to a study by the Oireachtas committee on the Good Friday Agreement, there are also serious concerns about the future of EU funding after the UK leaves the EU. The report found border communities are lagging behind other parts of

  People in Greencastle should notice major improvements in the quality of their drinking water from today, as the new east Inishowen Supply Scheme finally comes on line. Water will now be supplied to the region from the Fullerton Pollan Dam, ending a long campaign to bring better water to Greencastle and its environs. The

  The Irish Wind Energy Association says community organisations in Donegal received over €231,000 from wind farms in the county last year. A report on Community Investment presented last evening at the association’s annual conference shows sports clubs, scouting groups, local schools and heritage projects were among those who benefited in the county. Nationally, the

A Midlands North West MEP has dismissed recent threats from dissident paramilitary figures in Northern Ireland. Matt Carthy was responding to questions about two recent reports in the Sunday Times and Channel Four. The Sunday Times piece quoted Loyalist sources threatening to cause trouble if Northern Ireland became aligned in a customs arrangement with the

  It’s been claimed that a damaged bridge in West Donegal prevented an ambulance from transporting an elderly man home today. The 80 year old had been attending Letterkenny University Hospital for treatment. The bridge is currently impassable to vehicles after flooding some months back and this resulted in paramedics having to navigate their way

    39 bodies have been found in a lorry container in Essex. Police have arrested a 25 year-old man from Northern Ireland on suspicion of murder. The truck is thought to have come from Bulgaria, travelling to the UK via Dublin. Emergency services arrived at the scene, and early indications suggest 38 of the

  Hundreds of paramedics are planning several more days of strike action. It’s over the HSE’s refusal to allow the ambulance branch of the Psychiatric Nurses Association to represent them. They’ll protest outside Leinster House this afternoon, to highlight their case to TDs and Senators. Ambulance staff have already had eight days of industrial action

  The Children’s Minister says every effort has been made by TUSLA to assist Parentstop in finding a sustainable funding model. The imminent closure of the Donegal organisation was brought before the Dail last night by Donegal Deputy Pat the Cope Gallagher. Katherine Zappone indicated that TUSLA provided additional funding over the last three years

  The Derry and Strabane Rural Partnership says a £2.5m Leader investment is on track to create over 130 new jobs for rural businesses in the area. 73 of the jobs are already in place, with at least 57 more expected within six months. The funding supports 55 rural businesses with capital investment projects that

  The Health Minister is coming under pressure once again to lift the HSE recruitment embargo. Donegal Senator Padraig MacLochlainn says the recruitment embargo has prevented management at Letterkenny University Hospital from recruiting the nurses, doctors and support staff required to fully reopen the hospital’s Short Stay Ward. He says, he is aware of elective

The threatened withdrawal of funding from Parent Stop is to come before the Dail this evening. In a statement issued earlier this month the organisation said keeping the service running has been a constant struggle and announced that it is to close at the end of this year. Donegal Deputy Pat the Cope Gallagher says

Mica Action Donegal is seeking Government intervention with banks to support Mica affected homeowners meet the required 10% contribution. Lenders have been lobbied to offer 0% interest loans for fixing homes, restructure existing mortgages to support zero increase in monthly repayments and in the case of homeowners who don’t have sufficient money to contribute towards

  A wildlife sanctuary is set to open to the public in South Inishowen later this week, featuring bears, wolves, lynx and other species previously native to Ireland but now extinct here. The Wild Ireland facility at Dundrain, Burnfoot is the creation of Killian Mc Laughlin, a Buncrana native who has worked in the legal

  There’s been an attempted weekend burglary in Manorcunningham. The incident happened in Raymoghy area on Friday evening between 7.30pm and 10pm. There was no attempt made at entry to the house itself but an attempt was made to enter a shed on the property. A lock was broken off the door but entry was

    It’s been confirmed that the Mica Scheme is currently with the Attorney General for final review and sign off before being handed to Donegal County Council for implementation. The Government has also approved a budget of 580m euro for the scheme, that should homeowners spend the 40 million euro allocated, they will be

  Serious concern has been raised over what’s been described as ‘abysmal conditions’ at Crana College in Buncrana. Overcrowding, overuse of prefabs and inadequate facilities are all said to be putting the well being of both pupils and staff at risk. Hopes of a long awaited three school campus have been completely dashed as the ideal