Author name: oisinkelly

The Minister for School Transport has agreed to meet with Department of Education officials and Donegal elected representatives to try and resolve the school transport debacle in the Urris area Many families have been denied the right to school transport to the secondary school in Carndonagh because secondary schools in Buncrana are deemed to be

Irish Water is being called on to meet with elected representatives in West Donegal to answer questions on upgrading work being carried out in the area and in particular delays to work in Dungloe. The new wastewater treatment plant, pumping station and sewer in Dungloe were supposed to be finished in late 2015 but are

Work to improve Falcarragh’s Main Street is expected to get underway later this year. The news was confirmed at this week’s Glenties Municple District Meeting. The news has been welcomed by Councillor Seamus O’Domhnaill who says it will give Falcarragh a huge lift:

The Catholic Primate of All Ireland has urged politicians to carefully consider their responsibility to work for the common good. Archbishop Eamon Martin has joined with other church and religious leaders to call for a measured election campaign. In a message to politicians ahead of the Assembly Elections, Dr Martin says the premature collapse of

A North West MEP says it’s vital that EU citizens in Northern Ireland are not forgotten once the UK triggers Article 50. After yesterday’s keynote speech from British Prime Minister Theresa May, the European Parliament’s Chief Brexit Negotiator Guy Verhofstadt tweeted that she had chosen a hard Brexit, and the days of the UK ‘cherry-picking’ are

Gardai are looking for information from the public about the movements of a stolen car which ended up crashed in Kildrum leaving one man seriously injured in hospital. The crash was discovered at 4.15am in the early hours of Tuesday morning. The injured man in his early 20s is thought to be the driver of

The Irish Farmers’ Association will march on Leinster House this afternoon, calling on the Government to set up a crisis fund for tillage farmers. Many grain farmers weren’t able to harvest their crops last autumn after a prolonged period of wet weather, with the IFA saying the worst affected counties were Donegal, Clare, Galway, Cork,

Enterprise Ireland is being urged to prioritise funding for high speed broadband to Lisfannon Industrial Estate in Inishowen. Donegal County Council has been requested to write to the company outlining the need for the service and to seek a list of proposals to progress the work. The issue was raised at the latest sitting of

The Ante-Natal service is to re-open at Dungloe Community Hospital today. The service was suspended over two years ago with a question mark over if they would ever be re-instated to the area. Since then people from West Donegal have had to travel to Letterkenny University Hospital for treatment. Donegal Deputy Pearse Doherty says it’s

It’s been claimed that Letterkenny needs at least 100 new homes per year while self-build applications are on the rise in Donegal. The most recent Property Price Register figures show a 13% drop in the number of properties being sold in Donegal compared to last year. There were 1,328 house sales 2016 in Donegal compared

  Gardai in Letterkenny are continuing their investigation this evening following a serious one-vehicle collision in Carrigans in the early hours of this morning. It’s understood the crash happened at Cloon when the car left the road and hit a tree in a nearby field. A man was taken to hospital where his condition is

  A Councillor says it’s scandalous that there is no proper fire fighting equipment on Tory Island. There are seven trained fire fighters on the Island but no fire engine with a change in national policy required for one to be provided. Councillor John Sheamais O Fearraigh says the lack of proper equipment is a

  Theresa May says the UK will not look to be a member of the single market after leaving the European Union. She’s been outlining her 12 point plan for Brexit – including maintaining the common travel area with Ireland and seeking free trade deals around the world. The British Prime Minister said there will

  It’s been revealed that almost 7,000 calls were made to the NoWDOC GP Out of Hours Service throughout last month. According to figures released by the HSE, the recent festive period also proved to be an exceptionally busy time for the service. Some 6997 calls were received by the service in the month of

Donegal has the highest number of holiday homes in the country, with over 11,300, 13% of the national total. That’s followed by Kerry with 11% and Wexford at 10%.   The latest GeoView report from Geodirectory shows Leitrim had the highest proportion of vacant dwellings, at 21%, followed by Roscommon at 18% and Mayo 17%.

A Letterkenny University Hospital surgeon has spoken of his frustration after more surgery was cancelled this week. Peter O’Rourke, an Orthopaedic Surgeon says surgeries he was to have carried out were cancelled yesterday, and he anticipates more cancellations this week, further lengthening waiting lists. It comes as it emerged Letterkenny Hospital had the country’s highest

There are calls for significant investment in the roads on Donegal’s islands. Today’s meeting of the Island’s Committee heard how the lighthouses on Aranmore and Tory are big draws for tourists but the road access is poor. There were also claims that there has been little to no investment on roads on Donegal’s smaller islands.

There were 38 patients awaiting beds at Letterkenny University Hospital this morning, the highest figure in the country today. 17 of the patients are on trolleys in the emergency department, the rest on chairs and trolleys in other areas of the hospital. Nationally, there were 527 people awaiting beds this morning, 372 on Emergency Department

A meeting of the expert group established to consider the Mica problem in Donegal took place yesterday, with a draft report now understood to be finalised. Minister Simon Coveney’s office has confirmed to Inishowen Councillor Albert Doherty that a final meeting will be held next Monday, at which it’s intended any amendments will be completed

A local anti-drugs campaigner has commended the latest drug raids conducted by Gardai in Letterkenny. Inspector Goretti Sheridan has confirmed that Cannabis and cannabis plants were recovered yesterday in the town following extensive searches in three different properties. One man was arrested and taken to Letterkenny Garda Station but has since been released. Local anti-drugs

Donegal County Council has carried out a speed survey in Castlefinn, which has reaffirmed claims that vehicles are breaking the speed limit on the approaches to the town. It’s understood that a report is to be sent to Transport Infrastructure Ireland’s Regional Safety Engineer, withy a view towards securing further traffic calming measures in the

Donegal County Council is to look at new ways to tackle the issue of rubbish being dumped at recycling banks in Donegal. Concern has been raised by members of the public in relation to cardboard and other materials being left at recycling locations in the county, effectively littering the area. It’s understood that the problem

  An early election is due to take place in Northern Ireland on the 2nd of March after the collapse of the government. It follows the break-up of the power-sharing government following a dispute between Sinn Fein and the DUP over a botched renewable energy scheme. Earlier, the DUP’s Arlene Foster was put forward for

  Concern has been raised over the impact a hard border could have on the tourism industry in Donegal and the wider North West. This afternoon, members of the Westminster Northern Ireland Affairs Committee are taking public evidence at the Guildhall in Derry, as it considers the future of the land border with Donegal. Chief

Constraint payments to farmers in mountain and more severely handicapped areas. The association says the doubling of these payments, which replace the Disadvantaghed Areas Scheme, will require increasing the ANC budget, which they say can come from unspent Rural Development funds. The campaign, to be accompanied by a series of public meetings, is being launched

  Sinn Fein has formally declined to nominate a deputy first minister for Northern Ireland, following Martin McGuinness’ resignation. He stepped down last week, over a botched renewable energy scheme. It means the powersharing executive at Stormont will officially collapse at 5pm – triggering a snap election. The outgoing First Minister, Arlene Foster, says Sinn

  A Donegal Councillor is looking for more resources to tackle anti-social behaviour on council estates in the county. Cllr Patrick Mc Gowan says there are various mechanisms in place to deal with anti-social tenants, but they have no teeth, and appear to be largely ineffective. Speaking on the Shaun Doherty Show today, Cllr Mc

There were 31 patients awaiting admission to Letterkenny University Hospital this morning, 12 of them on Emergency Department trolleys. Nationally, the INMO says there were 417 patients awaiting admission, 304 of them on trolleys in Emergency Departments. Midlands Regional Hospital in Mullingar had the highest number at 34, Letterkenny had the joint second highest number,

The potential impact of Brexit on communities and businesses close to the border is the subject of an ongoing inquiry by the Westminister Northern Ireland Affairs Committee. This afternoon, members of the committee will take public evidence at the Guildhall in Derry, as it considers the future of the land border with Donegal. The Committee

The Killybegs Fisherman’s Organistion has raised concerns that a review of the Refrigerated Seawater sector proposed by Minister Michael Creed could cost the mackerel fleet in the North West up to €10 million. In response, the KFO has says it will oppose this review in the stongest possible terms, saying this has heightened anxiety and

An election will be called in Northern Ireland this evening as Sinn Fein insist they will not nominate a replacement for Martin Mc Guinness as Deputy First Minister. He resigned after the DUP first minister, Arlene Foster, refused to stand aside while an investigation is carried out into a botched energy scheme that could cost