Author name: oisinkelly

  The new public consultation on the A5 upgrade gets underway on Monday week next, March 25th, and is expected to run for six weeks. Urging people to engage with the process, West Tyrone MP Orflaith Begley said a number of recent fatalities on the A5 have once again reinforced the necessity for the project

  Almost 1.5 million euro has been made available to support home adaptations for older people, people with a disability in Donegal. The funding, which has been increased this year, will enable older people and people with disabilities to remain living independently in their own homes for longer. The grants are 80% funded from the

  Storm Gareth is due to hit parts of the country today, bringing strong winds and a chance of coastal flooding. A status orange wind warning comes into effect for Donegal, Leitrim, Mayo and Sligo from midday. Gusts could reach up to 130 kilometres an hour during the worst of the conditions. Drivers are being

  The British Prime Minister says she’s secured “legally binding” changes to the backstop in Brexit negotiations. Theresa May held talks with EU officials in Strasbourg last night – and received assurances that the measure aimed at avoiding a hard border would not be permanent. British MPs will now have to back the proposals when

  Work is to recommence on the Greencastle Water Supply Scheme in the coming weeks after the previous contractor went into administration last year. Inishowen Municipal District Chairperson Cllr Martin Farren says a new contractor has now been appointed by Irish Water to complete the €5 million project, and that work should be complete by

An additional 400 customs officers will be in place by the end of the month to help Ireland prepare for Brexit. The Finance Minister confirmed the recruitment process is on track to have everyone in place once Britain exits the EU. Paschal Donohoe says the government has made detailed plans for all possible scenarios. And

The British Government has admitted negotiations with the EU are “deadlocked” just a day before MPs are due to vote on the withdrawal plan again. The Brexit Secretary has been called to update Parliament this afternoon on any legal changes to the deal. Prime Minister Theresa May has spoken to the President of the European

The ‘Save our St Joseph’s Hospital Action Group’ group has accused succesive ministers of making promises and announcements which are designed to placate campaigners, but never reach fruition. In a statement ahead of a major rally on Saturday week next, the group says in the 37 months since the first rally in 2016, agreements reached

  A senior roads Engineer at Donegal County Council has defended a decision not to send gritters out overnight. Brendan O’Donnell was responding to considerable online criticism that gritters weren’t deployed to treat primary roads, despite there being a yellow snow and ice warning in place. Gritters we sent out from 6am this morning however

There are calls on the OPW to extend opening hours at An Grianan of Aileach. The historic site in Burt is currently open from 10am to 3.30 daily, however this is to be extended until 6.30pm from March 16th. Local Cllr Jack Murray says given the time of year coupled with an increase in visitor

  Donegal County Councils is being urged to consider establishing additional charging facilities for hybrid and electric cars in Letterkenny. It comes as figures from the Society of the irish Motor Industry show new electric car registration so far this year are 1,129 compared to just 1,233 for all of 2018. It’s thought that extra

There’s been a cautious welcome to news that the greater, Newtowncunningham, Killea and Carrigans area are to get extra Gardai. It’s understood that one Sergeant and a number of Gardaí will be deployed to the border area in the coming weeks. Local Cllr Paul Canning says the town lands in question have seen a major

  While a status yellow snow and ice warning has been lifted, motorists are being urged to exercise extreme caution this morning and assume no road is ice free. Heavy frost is still lingering in places with black ice reported in various parts of the county. In a statement this morning, Donegal County Council say

Local authorities are monitoring weather conditions across the country as a status yellow snow ice warning remains in place. It’s in effect until 6 am tomorrow. A yellow wind warning is also in place for counties along the west coast. A similar warning last week led to traffic disruption on some motorways. The AA’s Conor

Twenty per cent of primary care centres don’t have a full-time GP. Figures released in response to parliamentary questions by Sinn Féin reveal 26 of the 126 primary care centres don’t have a doctor on staff. Dr Matt O’Toole from the National Association of General Practitioners says pay and conditions for GPs haven’t recovered from

The Fianna Fáil Spokesperson on Agriculture, Food and the Marine has called for a Basic Payment Scheme ceiling of €60,000 euro to be adopted in the next Common Agricultural Policy by Ireland in order to protect family farms. Over 99% of eligible farmers received a basic payment of under 60,000 last year. Deputy Charlie McConalogue