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GARDAÍ have thanked the public for their assistance in tracing the whereabouts of 17 year old Kalem Murphy. He has been located safe and well. Gardaí had been searching for Mr Murphy, who is from the Lahinch Road in Ennis. He had been reported as missing from the Blanchardstown area of Dublin on Sunday November 4.    

THE latest Central Statistics Office (CSO) figures show that 4,707 people in Clare were on the live register at the end of October. That figure is a 13% decrease on October 2017 figures. The county wide monthly increase is 17, although that figure is higher in North and West Clare. Seventy people have joined the live register in North Clare, which now totals 797, with the West Clare figure increasing by 34 to 768.  There was a fall in Ennis figures with 2,502 people on the live register, a monthly decrease of 47.

FOUR travellers, who had been playing soccer for Sporting Ennistymon, have left the sport following numerous incidences of racist abuse. Figures in the club have voiced their upset at the abuse meted out to the young men, which had become increasingly frequent since the beginning of the current season. Secretary of the Clare District Soccer League, Michael Lydon, refused to comment on the issue on Wednesday. Twenty-four-year-old Michael Sherlock had played for the club, along with his brothers, Edward and Patrick, and their cousin, Martin Mongan. He said that, in recent months, opponents had increasingly sought to insult their background.“We go out and play and you have fellas saying into your ear, ‘Go away, you knacker’. When we react, the referee doesn’t do anything to the other party.” Earlier this year he was sent off in a match played at Lees Road after reacting to a person who referred to him as a “knacker”, while the player who dispensed the offensive …

Clare County Fire and Rescue Service responded to two bonfire incidents on Halloween night. Both incidents occurred in the Cloughleigh area of Ennis. The overall cost associated with the call out of the Fire Service to these incidents was approximately €2,000. The cost associated with the clean-up of the bonfire sites has not yet been determined. Denis O’Connell, Senior Assistant Chief Fire Officer, said: “There was a significant reduction in the number of callouts this Halloween compared to previous years which is partly down to a combination of wet weather and increasing fire safety and environmental awareness amongst the general public.” “As well as being illegal, uncontrolled backyard burning and bonfires pose a significant risk to property and public safety and therefore, we would like to acknowledge the public for their cooperation and for heeding our safety advice issued during recent weeks.” Meanwhile, Clare County Fire and Rescue Service took part in a river rescue in Ennis on Halloween night. …

The European Recycling Platform (ERP), Ireland’s only pan-European compliance scheme, has this year celebrated the ten-year anniversary of the EU Batteries Directive 2006/66/EC in Ireland. ERP has collected over 1,809 tonnes of batteries across all of its territories since the Directive was launched in 2008. The amount collected in Clare over the last 10 years is the equivalent of 1.25 times the length of the Wild Atlantic Way or if stacked upright – 15,300 times the height of the Cliff of Moher. In 2012, European member states were tasked with achieving a collection rate of 25% of all waste portable batteries placed on the market. The target increased to 45% in 2016. ERP is delighted to announce that in 2017, it surpassed the EU target with a collection rate of 64%. Encouraging people to recycle their batteries Karen Foley, Environmental Awareness Officer from Clare County Council said: “Recycling batteries is a great way to help protect the environment. Recycling enables …

TURAS Nua has announced they are increasing their efforts to work with more employers in Clare and are targeting an additional 160 businesses and organisations over the course of the coming year. This is on top of the 490 employers there are already working with in the county. The employment activation organisation delivers the JobPath programme on behalf of the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection in 13 counties across the southern half of the Republic of Ireland. They are now placing approximately 1,000 people in jobs each month. In Clare they have already helped 1,131 people find work and expect that number to increase further over the course of the coming year. Turas Nua help prepare the long term unemployed (ie those out of work for 12 months or longer) to secure and sustain employment. Across their entire area of operations Turas Nua has now placed more than 20,000 long term unemployed people in work. While a total …

CLARE has voted by a significant majority to remove the crime of blasphemy from its constitution. As expected, Clare voters endorsed this move with 61.88% voting in favour and 38.114 voting against. The total electorate was 83,044 and the total poll was 41,766. There were 755 spoilt votes leaving a total valid poll of 41,021. The blasphemy referendum, which was held alongside the presidential election is the latest sign of the weakening of religious conservatism in the country. The last prosecution for blasphemy in Ireland was in 1855, but three years ago gardaí investigated comments made by Stephen Fry on television in which the comedian described God as “capricious”, “mean-minded”, and an “utter maniac”. The investigation, which was initiated following a complaint made in Ennis Garda Station was later dropped after gardai decided insufficient numbers of people had been outraged. Ireland voted to allow same-sex marriage in 2015, and nearly two-thirds of Irish voters backed the repeal of the country’s …

    Outgoing President Michael D Higgins has topped the poll in the Clare constituency. Returning Officer, Pat Wallace revealed on Saturday afternoon that President Higgins secured 22,639 first preference votes in the first count. Independent candidate Peter Casey secured 11,722; Séan Gallagher 2,289; Sinn Féin’s Liadh Ni Riadha got 2,186; Joan Freeman 1,969 and Gavin Duffy 617. The percentage breakdown of the first count is Michael D Higgins: 54.65%; Peter Casey; 28.27%; Séan Gallagher: 5.52%; Liadh Ni Riadha: 5.277%; Joan Freeman: 4.75% Gavin Duffy: 1.489%. The total Clare electorate was 83,044. The total poll was 41,871 and there were 449 invalid votes giving a total valid poll of 41,422. Comparisons between the 2018 and 2011 Presidential Elections in Clare make interesting reading. Michael D Higgins, who was proposed by the Labour |Party in 2011, has increased his first preference vote in the county he was reared by 10% from 44.3% to 54.654% while Séan Gallagher has seen his vote …