TÁINAISTE Leo Varadkar has been urged to address chronic overcrowding at University Hospital Limerick (UHL) when he takes over from Micheál Martin as Taoiseach. Speaking in the Dáil, Deputy Michael McNamara stated almost every day of the lifetime of this Government University Hospital Limerick, (UHL) has been the most overcrowded hospital in the country. “Of the 676 beds we were told would be required at the time of reconfiguration, more than one third have yet to materialise. As Head of Government, what will the Tánaiste do differently? “The current Taoiseach has said it is a matter for the HSE, even though the HSE is not improving the situation? “What will the Tánaiste do differently to ensure UHL is no longer providing a different level of healthcare from the rest of the country?,” he asked. Minister Varadkar said he knows UHL well and has visited it several times. “As Taoiseach and Minister for Health previously, I did my best to ensure …

AER Lingus chiefs has reassured local Dáil deputies the airline it has no intention to withdraw the lucrative Shannon to Heathrow slots in the near future. However, the national airline has confirmed it has no plans to reopen its base in Shannon, stating this would not be the best option in the current climate. Concern has been expressed by Deputy Cathal Crowe and Deputy Joe Carey there is no legal guarantee once a commitment given during the sale of the government share in Aer Lingus to AIG ends this September. The two Clare deputies raised a number of issues and questioned senior Aer Lingus management during a briefing for Oireachtas members at the Transport and Communications Oireachtas committee this week. Aer Lingus chief corporate affairs officer, Donal Moriarty told Deputy Carey normally the airline has three return services daily between Shannon and Heathrow, which were operational before the mandated cuts due to capacity issues in the London hub. Mr Moriarty …

A KILLALOE Sailing Club member has set sail in his bid to become the first Irish person to complete an around-the-world race known as the “Voyage for Madmen”. Killaloe Sailing Club has wished one of its most well known members, Pat Lawless, the best of luck as he left Crosshaven in Cork on Tuesday to make his way to the starting point for the Golden Globe Race. The 66-year-old, who was born in Limerick, but lives in Kerry, is one of the solo sailors taking on this treacherous challenge. He told Virgin Media in Cork on Tuesday, that undertaking the challenge “was a dream that got hold of him when he was a young fellow”. “The human mind is funny, we all get hooked on something, different kinds of sport, reading, history, and I got stuck in sailing.” A great send off for Pat Lawless KSC member #GGR22⁦@RTESeascapes⁩ ⁦@AfloatMagazine⁩ ⁦@IrishCoastGuard⁩ @irish_sailing Kieran Concannon piping Pat out the gap 👏👏👏👏🇮🇪👍⁦@PatLawless17⁩ pic.twitter.com/77jlObqAoA …

CONSTRUCTING something like the Lahinch Leisure Centre on a new green field site would cost between €17 and €18 million compared to the €6 million it cost to refurbish the existing facility, according to a former manager. Councillor Joe Garrihy said the new revamp, which was done at about 30% of the cost of a new building, represents great value for money. Urging community groups in towns to look at what has been achieved in Lahinch, Councillor Garrihy said a new leisure centre, public toilets, rescue centre, public realm works and upgraded Lahinch Sportsfield are now all within walking distance. “When community, state agencies and stakeholders work together collectively, you can achieve a lot more. We now have a centre that will generate year-round business with tourism providing the cherry on top.” Councillor Garrihy said a state-of-the-art facility had to be provided when the roof started leaking years ago and was close to blowing away. When the Fine Gael councillor …

STAFFING issues have been identified in a Killaloe nursing home following an inspection by an independent health watchdog. The Lakes Nursing Home can accommodate a maximum of 57 residents, and on April 6 last during an unannounced HIQA inspection, there were 54 residents in the residential centre. On the day of inspection there were sufficient numbers of staff on duty to attend to the direct care needs of residents. The person-in-charge, however, confirmed that the centre was faced with ongoing recruitment challenges and that staff turnover was high. Records evidenced multiple shortfalls in the allocation of healthcare assistants. It was confirmed that when staff phoned in at short notice they could not be replaced. Residents had provided feedback to the provider through the resident surveys, voicing concerns on staffing in the centre. The results of a residents’ survey identified that 33% of respondents stated they were satisfied while 17% stated they were not happy and 50% were recorded as not …

THE provision of a new sewage treatment plant in Broadford will have to be prioritised, according to the outgoing chairman of the Killaloe Municipal District (KMD), Councillor Joe Cooney. In an interview with the Clare Champion, Councillor Cooney outlined a lot of projects have been progressed in the Killaloe MD over the last year. These include the new Shannon River Crossing, Iniscealtra, local authority housing developments in Tulla and Scariff and action taken on derelict buildings. One of the most positive developments is the possibility of securing a pilot scheme to provide a new sewage treatment plant in Broadford village. Unless rural towns and villages can secure new sewage treatment plants, he warned further closures of shops and post offices are inevitable. There are about ten locations in the KMD, which don’t have access to proper waste water treatment facilities, he said. Clare County Council will be putting forward two locations in the county to the Department of Housing for …

WATER Safety Clare (WSC) is working closely with the Irish Coast Guard, the Gardai and other groups to develop an early response support system along the Clare coastline. The initiative was announced by WSC chairman, Patrick O’Grady at the opening of the new €120,000 Lahinch Rescue and Training Centre, which will be used as a base by volunteers to provide support for community response groups. Clare LEADER provided a grant of €50,000, another charitable organisation provided €30,000 and the remainder was raised through fundraising. Procedures are being put in place that adhere to best practice for the safety and training of local volunteers from this new centre. Since the 1940s, WSC has worked to promote swimming and basic rescue techniques as life skills throughout the county. “Initial attempts to develop this Lahinch project were made in 1992. Unfortunately, the necessary support was not there to support these early efforts,” Mr O’Grady outlined. “Fortunately, this changed in recent years, at a …

LAHINCH Leisure Centre was spending up to €120,000 just to heat its swimming pool a few years ago. Now, as part of a major €6 million retrofit the complex has been transformed into a Near Zero Energy Building (NZEB). In an interview with the Clare Champion, John Hayes, Senior Building Services Engineer with contractors Tipperary Energy Agency recalled the centre was spending €120,000 on oil just to heat the pool and half the building. Mr Hayes estimated the centre will now spend €85,000 annually to heat the entire building. “Now the heating system is heating all the building at a fraction of the cost. Lahinch Leisure Centre is a great example of what can be achieved in public buildings. “A lot of swimming pools are still putting in gas boilers. We had an option to keep the old oil boiler as a back-up but we decided to go fully green. “Lahinch Leisure Centre is a flagship project to show this …