Author name: oisinkelly

Business Matters Ep 70 – Mary Forde & Michael Margey

On this week’s Business Matters, Ciaran O’Donnell speaks to Mary Forde who has been running the Donegal DPD Depot with her husband, Gerard, since 2005, having taken over the business from her uncle, Charlie McDaid. It’s been a hectic 21 months at Depot 36 in Letterkenny which increased its drivers from 18 to 34 following

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NI residents with Mica homes should be included in scheme – Eastwood

Foyle MP and SDLP leader Colm Eastwood is backing holiday home owners living in Northern Ireland whose holiday homes have been affected by Mica. Colm eastwood says there is justifiable anger that people living in the north have been excluded, and the Irish government has missed an opportunity to give all those impacted the full

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Clarity needed on ‘confusing’ sliding scale – Diver

Mica campaigner Paddy Diver says he has had a conversation with Agriculture Minister,  in which he told Charlie McConalogue the sliding scale is confusing, and has to go. The government says in February, the per foot rate will change, based on Housing Agency assessments of prevailing market conditions. Paddy Diver says if that happens in

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Minister O’Brien confident revision of sq. ft rate will see 100% redress

The Housing Minister has admitted there is more work to be done on the enhanced Mica redress scheme unveiled yesterday. Much criticism has been voiced over the inclusion of a €145 per square foot cap for the first 1,000 square foot of a property which could leave homeowners still forking out tens of thousands of

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1.4 million people to receive Christmas bonus next week

1.4 million people are set to receive the Christmas bonus next week. More than €313 million will be paid into bank accounts by the Department of Social Protection from December 6th. Pensioners, carers, people with disabilities, lone parents and long-term social welfare recipients are among those who’ll benefit. People on the PUP or Jobseekers will

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Deputy MacLochlainn seeks urgent clarity over added costs for Mica homeowners

Urgent clarity is being sought over what added cost a Mica affected homeowner will have to incur in the enhanced redress scheme. There are fears that people will still have to contribute a significant amount of money towards the demolition and reconstruction of their homes. Deputy Padraig MacLochlainn says the Housing Agency has played a

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Council urged to prepare NTA public consultation response

Donegal County Council is being urged to prepare a response to the National Transport Authority public consultation on Connecting Ireland. The consultation is proposing a series of new public transport routes as well as improving some existing routes. As Donegal is solely dependent on roads, its thought that there should be positive discrimination towards the

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Faces masks for third class pupils upwards required from today

Children in third class and above have to wear masks in school from today onwards. New Department of Education guidelines state a medical cert’s required for an exemption, and those without evidence will be refused entry. The government’s also calling for less indoor socialising among under-12s for the next two weeks, after a sharp increase

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Government urged to provide clear guidelines for schools

  The Irish National Teachers’ Organisation is calling on the government to provide clear and consistent guidelines for schools. It follows the cabinet decision to recommend the wearing of face masks for pupils from third to sixth class. INTO General Secretary John Boyle says clear and unambiguous guidance increases the likelihood that government decisions will

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Mica – Government statement in full

Here is the full test of the government statement issued this afternoon  – Minister O’Brien announces enhancements to the Defective Concrete Block Scheme The Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Darragh O’Brien TD has announced significant enhancements to the Defective Concrete Block Scheme. Minister O’Brien said the core issues raised in relation to the

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Pringle clashes with Taoiseach over details of Mica scheme

Donegal Deputy Thomas Pringle has clashed with Taoiseach Michael Martin over the details of the revised Defective Blocks Redress Scheme. Earlier, Housing Minister Darragh O’Brien acknowledged that the rebuilding cap of €420,000 and €145 per sq. ft for the first 1,000 sq. ft will fall short for some. However, in the Dail this afternoon, Deputy

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Sinn Fein exploiting Mica Redress for political gain – Taoiseach

  The Taoiseach says Sinn Fein could have got involved in working towards an enhanced Mica Redress Scheme but didn’t. It’s understood that a written request was made two months ago after the working group report was published to invite submissions from the opposition on how the scheme could be improved further. However Sinn Fein

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Details welcomed but work still to be done – MAG PRO

The PRO of the Mica Action Group while welcoming today’s scheme which has come before Cabinet, says there is still work to be done. Farm and commercial buildings and community centres are not believed to have been included in today’s announcement. In a social media post, Michael Doherty says there are outstanding issues but affected

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Sum of money stolen during burglary at Letterkenny apratment

Gardai in Letterkenny are investigating a burglary in the Port Road area of the town. Between 8am on Wednesday last, November 24th and 3:45pm on Sunday, the door of the apartment at Sunnyside Apartments was forced open and a sum of money stolen during the incident. Anyone with information, particularly fellow residents who may have

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Increased cap of €150 per sq. ft expected to be included in Mica redress scheme

Ministers are due to sign off on a new Mica redress scheme today. Cabinet are meeting to discuss the scheme which involves a rebuilding cap of €420,000 and an increased cap of €150 per square foot. Homeowners with two properties, one being a principal residence, the other a rental property, will now be able to

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Call for Donegal Fire Service to step in as first responders

It’s thought the Donegal Fire Service could step in as first responders in some 999 calls. Fire personnel are already trained to administer first aid and use defibrillators when an emergency arises. A motion is to be brought forward at the adjourned sitting of Donegal County Council by Cllr Michael McClafferty. However in response the

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Garda Commissioner to update PA on mass cancellation of 999 calls

The Policing Authority will today hear an update from the Garda Commissioner on the mass cancellation of 999 calls. During the summer, it emerged emergency calls were being cancelled by operators since 2019. However, it subsequently emerged the problem was continuing despite additional staff training and changes to call and dispatch technology. Chair of the

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‘Constructive feedback’ from Donegal caravan and motorhome users

There has been a lot of ‘constructive feedback’ as it relates to the Donegal Caravan, Camping and Camper van study. The study, commissioned earlier this year set out to assess such facilities in the county and to determine where and if additional sites could be established. A range of submissions from various sectors, groups and

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Decision on international travel proposals expected today

Cabinet ministers will decide this morning whether everyone coming into Ireland should need to have a negative Covid test. Public Health officials made the advice last night after updating Government party leaders on the Omicron variant. Last night CMO Dr Tony Holohan met the three Government party leaders and Health Minister Stephen Donnelly along with

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Donegal family to be recognised for their efforts in saving girls from water

A Donegal family is to receive the Seiko Just in Time Award in recognition of their efforts in saving the lives of three girls from the water earlier this year. Joseph, Kristin and Sean McNulty are to be honoured at Water Safety Ireland’s National Annual Awards Ceremony later this evening. In September this year, the

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