Author name: oisinkelly

No commitment that MICA redress scheme will be included in budget

Housing Minister Eoghan Murphy has declined to give a specific commitment that money will be ringfenced in the forthcoming budget to cover a redress scheme for people in Donegal and Mayo whose homes were affected by MICA. It’s claimed that after missing several deadlines for the publication of an Expert Panel Report, the government is

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Donegal County Council, County House, Lifford

Council playing lead role in new waste management structures

A senior engineer with Donegal County Council says it’s significant that the authority is playing a lead role in developing new waste management structures. Con Mc Laughlin was speaking to Highland Radio News after a special meeting to discuss last week’s Prime Time programme which revealed widespread illegal dumping, particularly in Inishowen. Mr McLaughlin says

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‘Significant’ prehistoric hoard of gold bands unearthed in Donegal

Significant artefacts which appear to date from the Bronze Age have been discovered in Donegal.  Experts from the National Museum have travelled to the site where the artefacts were discovered. According to RTE News, Gold rings that were recovered are said to be “arm-sized” and the find is being described as “very significant”. The items

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No one Cllr can claim credit for fire station breakthrough – Jordan

A South Donegal councillor says it’s unfair that some members of the authority appear to be taking credit for the decision this week not to proceed with a proposal to amalgamate the fire stations in Ballyshannon and Bundoran. Cllr Noel Jordan believes all members of the Donegal Municipal District worked together to secure the breakthrough,

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Four Irish Men from Donegal complete the toughest Cycle race in the world – RAAM

Milford native, Arthur McMahon, Padraig MacGinty from Downings, Convoy’s Gavin Harris and Gerard Callaghan from Letterkenny finished what was most aptly named the toughest cycle race in the world, Race Across America in the East Coast’s Capital City of Maryland, Annapolis. The cycle spanned over 3200miles Across 12 States, from the East Coast to the

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Look! Aoibhín Garrihy announces birth of baby girl

Aoibhín Garrihy and her husband John Burke have welcomed a bouncing baby girl into the world. The 29-year-old former Fair City star took to social media to share the happy news and shared that her little bundle of joy is “already daddy’s little girl”. Garrihy announced that she was expecting her first child late last year. Taking to Instagram,

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LYIT, Killybegs, Tourism College

€1.4m secured for Springboard courses at Killybegs LYIT campus

The Killybegs campus of the Letterkenny Institute of Technology has secured €1.4 million from the Higher Education Authority for four Springboard courses in the hospitality sector. The courses had previously been funded by Failte Ireland, and when that finished, the Killybegs campus led out on a project to secure the money from elsewhere. The courses

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Irish Water urging customers in Donegal to conserve water

Irish Water is urging people across Donegal to conserve water as demand across the county continues to increase. The utility says, along with Donegal County Council they are monitoring all supplies across Donegal on a daily basis with the two at-risk schemes identified Lough Mourne and Milford public water supplies. Parts of the country have

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Number of penalty notices issued during checkpoint at Carndonagh

A number of Fixed Charge Penalty Notices were issued to drivers today following a checkpoint in Carndonagh. The checkpoint staged by the Roads Policing Unit Buncrana along with the RSA issued the notices for a number of offences including; no tax and no N plates. Meanwhile, a vehicle was impounded by Donegal Roads Policing yesterday after

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More staff due to be put in place to boost Council’s waste management

A special meeting of Donegal County Council’s Environment Strategic Policy Committee has heard that more staff will soon be in place to boost the council’s waste management activity. Senior Engineer Con McLaughlin told the meeting that the council has been proactive since an RTE programme last week made a number of allegations in relation to

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An Bord Pleanala grant permission for wind farm in Donegal

An Bord Pleanala has granted permission for a wind farm at Meenbog, Croaghonagh and Cashelnavean, in Donegal. The details of the application were published on the agency’s website today. The proposals had been strongly opposed by some residents in the area. Finn Valley Wind Action Group Spokesperson Marie Scanlon has been reflecting on today’s decision:

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Donegal County Council, County House, Lifford

Special meeting on illegal waste controversy underway

A special meeting of the Environment and Emergency Services Strategic Policy Committee is underway in Lifford to discuss the ongoing illegal waste controversy. The meeting has been told council helpline established last Thursday has taken 30 reports of unauthorised activity, relating to 22 different sites. 15 of them had already been under investigation. A number of

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Sufficient numbers in Donegal to merit a Diabetes Centre of Excellence

Management at Letterkenny University Hospital has confirmed that there are sufficient numbers of adults and children with diabetes types 1 and 2 in the county to merit a Diabetes Centre of Excellence to be based in Donegal. The Donegal branch of Diabetes Ireland has long campaigned for a centre to be based in the North

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Temperatures forecast to hit 30 degrees in many parts today

Temperatures are forecast to hit 30 degrees in many parts of the country today, as the heatwave continues. Irish Water is warning that supply may have to be restricted in the Greater Dublin area if demand remains high. The Drought Management Team is meeting this morning to assess the situation. Met Eireann’s Joan Blackburn says

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New Fine Gael councillor selected for Donegal County Council

It has been announced that former Fine Gael Councillor, Mickey Doherty is to be co-opted onto Donegal County Council, replacing John Ryan in the Inishowen Municipal District. Meanwhile, Michelle McKenna from Buncrana has announced her her intention to contest the 2019 local elections for Fine Gael. Former Councillor Mickey Doherty who was elected to the

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IFA warn hard border would have devastating impact on Donegal

The IFA says a hard border would have devastating consequences for Donegal. Donegal IFA Chair, Michael Chance recently visited to the Norway-Sweden border to see first-hand the impact on business trade when crossing a land border between a country inside the EU and one outside. Mr Chance say while there is excellent co-operation between the

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Technology sectors need help to fill jobs in Donegal

A newly formed Donegal ICT and FinTech Working Group aims to address the struggle within the county to meet the demand for jobs within the sector. This Department of Educations and Skills initiative, facilitated by the North West Regional Skills Forum will encourage collaboration between industry, local education and training providers. With 81% of the

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Forest fire warning issued as country basks in high temperatures

People are being urged to be vigilant after the Department of Agriculture has issued its highest Red warning for forest fires. It says the dry conditions mean fire can spread rapidly, particularly in forestry, gorse and heather. Farmers are asked not to use machinery near hay meadows, and to refrain from using fires. Donegal County

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Funding for Cleary Centre redevelopment to be formally appraised

An application for capital funding for the redevelopment of the Cleary Centre in Donegal Town is due to be formally appraised by the HSE’s Estates Department shortly. It’s understood that the group, which has overall responsibility for providing property services to the HSE, will examine the proposal for the Donegal Town project at its next

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INMO estimates 1,100 nurses attacked in Saolta hospitals since 2008

The General Secretary of the INMO says in the region of 1,100 nurses and midwives have been attacked in Saolta group hospitals over the past ten years. Specific local figures have not been published for the hospitals in Letterkenny, Sligo, Galway, Mayo and Roscommon, but Phil Ni Hay says a total of 1,602 staff members

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Alarming rise in anti-social activity in Newtownstewart

There’s been a sharp rise in anti-social activity in Newtownstewart, with the blame being put on an increase in temporary crisis housing in the area. There are reports that burglaries, robberies and abusive behaviour in the town have reached an alarming level with residents said to be living in fear. The housing executive in the North

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Public Consultation on North West Greenway taking place in Fahan

A Public Consultation on the North West Greenway is taking place today in Fahan. €18.5 million in funding was secured earlier this year for new cross-border greenway projects between Donegal and Derry. Today’s consultation is focusing on the route from Buncrana to Derry with a number of proposals on the table for consideration. It’s being

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Funding now available under Community Enhancement Programme

A Donegal Deputy is urging interested groups to apply for funding from the Community Enhancement Programme. This funding is targeted towards enhancing community facilities for individuals and communities that are impacted by disadvantage. It includes funding for the likes of project resources, research facilities and energy efficiency equipment for voluntary groups. Deputy Thomas Pringle says

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Cllrs unanimously reject proposals to amalgamate two fire stations

Donegal County Councillors have unanimously voted to reject proposals to amalgamate both Ballyshannon and Bundoran Fire Stations. A proposal was put forward by Donegal’s Chief Fire Officer Joseph McTaggart that both stations would be merged into one, at a site near Bundoran, reducing cover for the area to just one base. At a special meeting

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