Author name: oisinkelly

    Police in the North are appealing for witnesses after an attempted murder in Tyrone this morning. Shots were fired at a house in the Cookstown area at about three o’clock. A 45 year-old man was in the property at the time – however he escaped injury. The PSNI’s appealing to anyone who witnessed […]

Gardai have confirmed that a small quantity of drugs were discovered during a search of a property on Lower Main Street Letterkenny last night. The type of drugs that were found is unknown as Gardai say they are subject to analysis. The matter is still under investigation and there are no further details at this

The Ulster Farmers Union says it’s disappointed at the level of compensation being offered to farmers whose land will be affected by the construction of the Gas to the West Scheme. Contractors Mutual Energy says the scheme will benefit the environment and reduce fuel costs as it is one of the cleanest fossil fuel. However,

The Child and Family Agency Tusla has said the closure of a facility in the Knocknamona area of Letterkenny is temporary. This morning, Deputy Pearse Doherty questioned why the facility had been closed,saying he’d been promised clarification by the agency’s CEO, but that had not been forthcoming. He claimed children at the facility had been

There is a fear in the Galliagh area of Derry that the bus service provided to the locality could be withdrawn following a number of stone attacks within the past month. In the latest incident, four windows were smashed in a bus by a number of children believed to be between 12 and 14 years

It’s emerged that a residential centre for children and young people in Letterkenny has been closed by Tusla, with some children transferred to a residential unit in the midlands, 200 kilometres away. Deputy Pearse Doherty says the closure of the facility in Knoclnamona is ‘extremely concerning’ and he has called on the relevant authorities to

A Donegal Deputy has said if the right to water were enshrined in the Constitution, it would protect the resource against further privatisation. Deputy Thomas Pringle believes if his proposed legislation were accepted, it would bring about a referendum on the public ownership of water in Ireland, therefore determining the uncertain future of Irish Water. Deputy

Derry City and Strabane District Council will host a series of public meetings next week ahead of the preparation of a programme for Peace IV funding in the district. The first of the meetings takes place on Monday next at the Holywell DiverseCity Community Partnership offices and St Columb’s Park House. Meetings will take place

Sinn Fein wants the promised review of the School Transport Scheme to take into consideration the views of families in Donegal. The controversial scheme has been criticised for being to stringent on distance rules which means some families could only avail of free transport to the closest school. In many case distance was calculated on

New statistics from from UK’s Department of Health show that 67 woman from Donegal traveled to Britain for a legal abortion last year. That figure represents 2% of the total number of 3,451 woman from Ireland who had legal abortions in Britain in 2015. The Donegal figure is a fall from 87 in 2013. Overall

Donegal must get its fair share of the extra gardai promised under the Fianna Fáil Confidence and Supply arrangement which saw Fine Gael returned to power. Thats according to Donegal TD Charlie McConalogue who says the Government must follow through on its commitment to increase Garda numbers to 15,000. Eight Garda stations closed under Fine

It’s been claimed that an EU commissioned impact assessment study on the TTIP trade agreement with the US confirms fears about the drastic impact on Irish beef and jobs. The 394-page impact assessment, commissioned by the European Commission two-and-a-half years ago, was released at the weekend. Midlands North West MEP Matt Carthy says the report

A Donegal Senator is calling on the housing Minister to amend the terms of reference for the expert panel currently investigating the MICA blocks issue in the county. The call comes following recent claims that the panel are limited in their power to carry out a thorough investigation. It’s understood they are currently examining private

There was regional success for a number of North West premises in the All-Ireland Restaurant Awards which were announced in Dublin last night. Browns Restaurant and Champagne Bar in Derry was named best restaurant in Ulster, Aroma Café at the Craft Village in Donegal Town was named best café in Ulster, and Harvey’s Restaurant at

  Cuts to guidance counselling have been ‘catastrophic’ according to the Institute of Guidance Counsellors. A new report has expressed concern over the service with students being given advice by unqualified personnel. DEIS schools have taken the biggest hit, losing 30 per cent of their guidance counsellors since 2012. Fianna Fáil has secured a commitment

A senior Emergency Department consultant is calling on the new Government to act immediately to resolve the overcrowding crisis. Dr Fergal Hickey of Sligo University Hospital, who also serves as Communications Officer with the Irish Association for Emergency Medicine, was speaking after it emerged that the numbers on trollies for more than 24 hours in

A national school in St Johnston is appealing for the return of its Active Schools flag. Castletown National School is one of over 30 schools in Donegal to have earned the flag, which recognises a commitment to physical activity and healthy eating practices among pupils and staff. The flag was taken from a pole outside

The filming of Star Wars Episode 8 has concluded at Malin Head, with film crews leaving the area this morning after three days of intensive work. Thousands of people visited the area over the weekend, with councillor Martin Mc Dermott saying the local community and the visitors carried themselves exceptionally well. He said the actors

A strike which had been due to start at 70 Tesco Supermarkets around the country this morning, has been suspended. The action was called after Tesco announced plans to change the contracts of its long serving Irish workers, which would have reduced their pay. At least 12 staff at the Letterkenny branch would have been

The Western Trust has been asked to explain why there was an underspend of £8million on adult learning disability services. Local families, politicians and campaign groups have expressed outrage at the underspend, which they claim has had a major impact on the delivery of respite care and adult disability services. The Trust has confirmed an

Fianna Fail has nominated Deputy Pat The Cope Gallagher for the position of Leas Cheann Comhairle. We understand the Donegal Deputy will contest the position with two others – Sean Crowe of Sinn Fein and Tipperary Independent Mattie Mc Grath. While the Ceann Comahairle was chosen by secret ballot this year, his deputy will be

A motorcyclist has been killed in County Derry. The 19-year-old, from Kilrea, was killed in the crash between a motorbike and a lorry at Aghadowey near Coleraine. It is understood he was a pillion passenger on the motorbike when it crashed last evening. A second man, the motorbike’s driver, was taken to hospital with serious

It’s emerged that 70,000 Housing Executive homes in Northern Ireland have asbestos present in their structure. A Freedom of Information request on the state of houses owned by the Housing Executive was submitted by the political blog “Beyond the Pillars”. The answer revealed that in the Coleraine area, there was a recorded high of 198

Police in Derry are investigating another punishment-type shooting. A man in his thirties was shot in the ankles in the Ballymagroarty area, just after 3.30 this morning. The shooting follows a spate of gun attacks in the north – including the murder of takeaway delivery driver Dan Murray in Belfast last Monday night.