Author name: oisinkelly

The Dáil debate on abortion continues today with he 8th Amendment under scrutiny TDs are debating whether we should repeal the part of the constitution protecting the right to life of the unborn. The majority of last night’s speakers were pro-repeal. Speaking on his return to the Dail, Donegal Independent Deputy Thomas Pringle says that […]

A Finn Valley councillor says clarity is needed on the timetable for road repairs in Ballybofey and Stranorlar. Cllr Patrick Mc Gowan is asking for an update at next week’s Stranorlar Municipal District Meeting, saying there is a lack of information and understanding about what is happening, particularly with so many projects taking place on

There were 35 patients awaiting admission at Letterkenny University Hospital this morning, 22 of them on Emergency Department trolleys. That’s four down on yesterday. According to the INMO’s latest figures, University Hospital Limerick Letterkenny had the highest number of people awaiting in-patient beds this morning with 57. The national figure has fallen slightly to 547.

The government is being urged to act as quickly as possible to address an anomaly which has seen thousands of people, many of them women, lose out on pension entitlements because of changes in the way they were calculated in 2012. Donegal Deputy and Leas Ceann Comhairle Pat the Cope Gallagher says this has led

A West Donegal Councillor says while there is an unparalleled tradition of voluntary and community work in West Donegal, a government backed task force will be necessary to address poverty levels in the area. A recent Pobal report found the area continues to have high levels of deprivation, and Cllr Marie Therese Gallagher says unless

We can’t continue to outsource the issue of abortion, according to the Health Minister. Simon Harris spoke strongly in favour of repealing the 8th amendment as he opened the Dáil debate last night. Most of the speeches were in favour of repeal, with some outlining why they felt the 8th amendment should be kept. Minister

  A new Status Yellow warning snow and ice warning has been issued for the region. Met Eireann says there is a risk of more snow, particularly tonight. An earlier status orange warning has now been lifted for Donegal, Cavan, and Monaghan, and gardai are reporting no major problems on the county’s roads after heavy

The Fodder Transport Scheme falls short of addressing the seriousness of the situation facing farmers in the North West. That’s according to Donegal Deputy Charlie McConalogue who says while the scheme may give some relief to affected farmers, it will not solve the issue. Deputy McConalogue is now calling for a meal voucher scheme to

A new round of talks on the restoration of the executive and assembley at Stormont will be confirmed later today. Tánaiste Simon Coveney and the new Northern Ireland Secretary Karen Bradley will hold a press conference around noon to announce that talks between Sinn Féin and the DUP will resume next week. A number of

A delegation from Derry and Strabane travelled to London yesterday to discuss a City Deal for the region. Derry City and Strabane District Council Chief Executive John Kelpie said, they outlined to Minister Sajid Javid the economic beenfits the deal would bring for the region in terms of job creation, investment and population growth. The

Safety concern has been raised over the condition of a number of bridges in Carndonagh that were severely damaged by the floods on August 22nd. Local Councillor Albert Doherty told an Inishowen Municipal District Meeting this week that problems at the Circular Bridge are causing erosion to nearby properties, while no entry signs have been

Parts of the region were hit by more snow and ice overnight, with reports of cars becoming stuck and very bad driving conditions in many areas last night. A status orange warning has now been lifted for Donegal, Cavan, and Monaghan, and gardai are reporting no major problems on the county’s roads this morning. Council

There are reports of treacherous driving conditions in parts of Donegal this evening. A number of cars have become stuck at Lurgybrack in Letterkenny due to heavy snowfall. There are also dangerous driving conditions in the Finn Valley area, Glenties, Carndonagh and in parts of Derry and Tyrone. The council says it began gritting at

Main Evening News, Sport and Obituaries Wednesday 17th January:

Detectives have seized more than £200,000 worth of illegal drugs in Limavady and Derry in recent days. On Tuesday last, planned searches were carried out of two houses in the Glens area of Limavady with a quantity of suspected Class C drugs seized along with a number of mobile phones and cash. A short time

The Government has failed to sanction a funding request to re-open the Short Stay Ward at Letterkenny University Hospital. As 39 patients await admission to the hospital this morning, Donegal Senator Padraig Mac Lochlainn appealed to the Health Minister in the Seanad today that the €1.8 million funding request to re-open the ward and increase

There are over 200 children in the North West region awaiting an initial assessment from the Children and Mental Health Service team. Figures obtained by Donegal Deputy Pearse Doherty reveal that 204 children are currently on the waiting list, of those, 16 have been waiting over a year and 6 have been waiting more than

The Abbey Vocational School in Donegal Town, under the management of Donegal Education and Training Board has announced plans to establish an Aonad Gaeilge within the school from September 2018. The Aonad will be part of the school’s site and will offer students subjects through the Irish language, including Gaeilge, Maths, History, Geography, Science and

Letterkenny Institute of Technology has been awarded €2.7 million for its role in a new cross-border research centre for renewable energy projects. The Bryden Centre for Advanced Marine and Bio-Energy Research will recruit 34 PhD students across the marine and bio-energy disciplines and will be based at LYIT, Queen’s University Belfast, Ulster University and University

Police and the family of missing 69 year old Lesley McHugh from the Strabane area, who has been missing for over 10 days now, are becoming increasingly concerned for her welfare. Ms McHugh is described as being approximately 5’6 in height, of a slim build with brown hair. She was last in contact with her

It’s expected that work on the new multi-sport 3G facility at Melvin in Strabane is expected to be completed in the next three months. Derry City and Strabane District Council is investing £1.4m towards replacing the existing sand synthetic pitch and grass football pitch with a new multi-sport surface that will primarily cater for football,

Two new weather warnings have been issued just hours after the passing of Storm Fionn. An orange alert is in place for snow and ice in Cavan, Monaghan and Donegal. While there’s a yellow warning for Munster, Connacht and Leinster, with gusts of up to 110 kilometres an hour expected. Forecaster with Met Eireann, Liz

A businessman on Arranmore says action is needed to repair the Lighthouse Road on the island, which he says is deteriorating very badly. Jerry Early says last May, he and members of the local co-op took a number of politicians and officials on a tour of the island, including an examnination of the Lighthouse Road.

There were 39 patients awaiting admission at Letterkenny University Hospital this morning, 23 of them on Emergency Department trolleys. That’s three up on yesterday’s figure of 36.. Accordingt to the INMO’s latest figures, Letterkenny has the third highest number of people awaiting in-patient beds for second morning in a row. Cork University Hospital was again

The ESB is reporting 701 homes and businesses in the Stranorlar area are without power this morning, the issue was reported shortly after 10.30, and it’s hoped it will be resolved by 1 o’clock this afternoon. Earlier problems in Glenties and Donegal Town have now been resolved. There are also 29 homes without power until

A Donegal County Councillor has accused the Council and Central Government of not taking responsibility for the clean-up of rivers in Inishowen. Widespread destruction was caused to the peninsula last summer when torential rain hit on August 22nd. Councillor Martin McDermott says, five months on the issue is still being passed from pillar to post

The Taoiseach is in Strasbourg this morning to discuss the future of Europe. Leo Varadkar will speak to MEPs in the European Parliament. He’s the first European leader to address the issue in a planned series of debates. Vice president of the European Parliament – Fine Gael MEP Mairead McGuinness – is hoping for a

Three new psychologists have been appointed to the Children and Adolsecent Mental Health Service in the North West. The HSE has confirmed that two psychologists taken taken up posts in recent weeks with a third due to start later this month. Deputy Eamon Scanlon says while this is welcome progress, there is more to be

The Dáil last night approved a Sinn Féin motion calling for a more proactive approach to hospital overcrowding. The party called on the Health Minister to re-open all hospital beds closed as part of austerity cuts, and improve pay and conditions for healthcare staff. The Health Minister Simon Harris said the government would not oppose

Agriculture Minister Michael Creed has confirmed he is setting up a scheme to alleviate the costs of transporting fodder to farmers in Donegal and the North West. Details of a scheme had been expected on Monday when the minister came to Sligo for a meeting of the Fodder Action Group. The meeting was told 85%

Letterkenny traffic unit detected two motorists driving over the speed limit as they conducted a speed check on N13. One motorist was caught driving at 136 km/h and the other was detected travelling at 127 km/h. An €80 fine was issued along with 3 penalty points.

345 homes and businesses are currently without power in Derrybeg. ESB Networks have apologised for the loss of supply as Storm Fionn approaches. It is hoped power will be restored by 9 o’clock tonight. In Dungloe, 30 premises have lost supply due to a fault. ESB have estimated that power will be restored by 10pm.

Main Evening News, Sport and Obituaries Tuesday 16th January:

Snow is continuing to fall across Donegal, with four weather warnings now in place. An orange weather warning has been issued for strong winds across Donegal, a yellow alert has been issued for strong winds for Leinster, Monaghan, Roscommon, Limerick, Tipperary and Waterford. While a nationwide weather warning is in place for snow showers and

Safety concerns have been raised after a wind turbine in Inishowen was struck by lightning yesterday evening. At around 6 o’clock, one of the wind turbines on Crockbrack Hill, Meanletterbale, was struck, causing damage to one of the 94 metre long turbine blades with dents and scorch marks also visible on the nacelle of the

The issue of the re-opening of the Short Stay Ward at Letterkenny University Hospital is to come before the Seanad tomorrow. Donegal Senator Padraig MacLochlainn is calling on the Health Minister to ensure that the funding request to re-open the ward is provided without delay, in order to relieve the imminent pressure on the hospitals

A petition was presented to Inishowen Municipal District today, calling for access to Lagg Beach to be repaired, preserved and reopened. Representatives from the Red Cross and the local community along with local campaigner Desmond Glackin, made the presentation to Councillors today with over 1200 local signatures. The Five Fingers Strand is a popular local