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THE long-awaited transfer of Shannon Heritage sites to Clare County Council hangs in the balance after Chief Executive, Pat Dowling told councillors he was informed by two senior government officials a funding package estimated to be €15 million over three years would not be approved. While some councillors who attended a two-hour briefing behind closed doors to the public and media on Wednesday are adamant that no final decision has been taken by the council, this latest bombshell represents a major setback to the proposed transfer. An Taoiseach Micheál Martin gave a vague response about the future of this deal when questioned by Deputy Michael McNamara this week. Speaking in the Dáil on Wednesday, Deputy McNamara recalled the Taoiseach had told him on Tuesday he had met Mr during his recent visit to the Shannon Industrial Estate and the CEO had identified there was a funding gap from the council’s perspective. Deputy McNamara said the Taoiseach also stated, “I have …

SHANNON Airport has rebounded exceptionally well from the pandemic, and there was more good news on Thursday as Ryanair announced it will base three aircraft there for its summer 2023 season, while it is adding two new destinations, Béziers in France and Newcastle. Projections are that the airline will bring 1.3 million passengers to and from Shannon next year, which would be the highest number since the Celtic Tiger years, when Shannon’s traffic hit record heights. In total Ryanair will have 180 flights per week from Shannon during next year’s summer season, serving 24 destinations, a 60% increase on pre-pandemic numbers. Shannon Airport Group CEO Mary Considine said that Thursday’s news is significant, particularly the decision to base another aircraft at Shannon. ✈️ ROUTE NEWS ✈️ Fly direct to Newcastle & Beziers with @Ryanair from March 2023! We're delighted to welcome today's announcement by @Ryanair who have launched a seat sale to celebrate! Fares from €24.99 🎉 Read more: https://t.co/Y6DZ0C61yQ#shannonairport …

THE reasons why Clare lost out on inclusion of two heritage sites on a list of internationally significant locations has been outlined, on foot of a question from Deputy Michael McNamara. The Scariff-based TD asked the Minister for Housing; Local Government and Heritage the reason why Inis Cealtra Holy Island and the Burren were not included in the UNESCO tentative list when they had been deemed to meet the criteria for inclusion on the previous tentative list. Responding, the Minister outlined that his Department initiated a review of Ireland’s Tentative List in 2019, following UNESCO advice to do so at least every ten years. Among the six sites included were Inis Cealtra and the Cultural Landscape of the Burren Uplands “In July 2021 I appointed an Expert Advisory Group (EAG) to evaluate each application on their ability to demonstrate potential Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) and evidence of local stakeholder support, both of which are essential for inscription on the World Heritage List,” he outlined. …

CLARE TD Cathal Crowe declared himself “happy” when he spoke about the budget in the Dáil, but he did criticise the introduction of a levy on concrete products. “The concrete levy of 10% is something I have a number of concerns about. Just a few weeks ago we passed a massive redress package for home owners with defective mica and pyrite concrete blocks in their buildings. “It was right to do so. The detail of that will be stitched into regulations and brought forward in a redress scheme homeowners can apply for very soon – it is to be hoped before Christmas. “I do not know if it is fair to put a 10% levy on each person who tries to undertake a building project, be it with concrete blocks or liquid poured concrete, over the coming months. “To me it seems that they are being burdened with a levy that the suppliers and manufacturers of these blocks should pay …

THE obligation on Aer Lingus to serve Shannon-Heathrow expired last week, but on Wednesday the airline’s representatives said that the link is set to continue into the future. Its representatives were before the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Transport and Communications on Wednesday and they also said they plan to continue with Boston and New York services from Shannon, but don’t plan to look at other destinations in the US.  Following a question from Clare TD Cathal Crowe, Aer Lingus Chief Corporate Affairs Officer Donal Moriarty says the Shannon-Heathrow route is doing well and will continue. “The arrangement has elapsed, but we are still selling Shannon-London Heathrow, it’s doing well, all of our routes out of Shannon have performed well during the course of 2022 and we expect that to continue long into the future, there’s no reason why it shouldn’t.” Although he said several times that the existing Aer Lingus flights at Shannon are doing well, Mr Moriarty said he …

Gardaí are appealing for witnesses following a serious road traffic collision that occurred in the townland of Drumline in Newmarket on Fergus, yesterday evening, Wednesday October 5, at 6.10pm. The two vehicle collision occurred on the R458 in Drumline. The three male occupants from one car were taken to University Hospital Limerick. The condition of one male, aged in his 20s, is described as critical. The two other men continue to receive medical attention. The driver of the second car, a female aged in her 60s, was also taken to University Hospital Limerick with non-life threatening injuries. The R458 is currently closed and will remain closed overnight pending a full technical examination by Garda Forensic Collision Investigators. Local diversions are in place. Gardaí in Shannon are appealing to any person who may have information in relation to this collision to contact them. Any person who witnessed the collision is asked to come forward, and any road users with video footage …

AN eight-year-old girl who was found with serious injuries at a home just outside of Clarecastle last week is no longer in a critical condition and is now “out of danger” in hospital, gardaí have confirmed. The youngster and her 46-year-old mother who had come to Clare from Ukraine were brought to University Hospital Limerick on Tuesday morning. The mother, who was found unconscious at the scene, is still under medical care but she is making a good recovery. The girl, who it is understood suffered a large number of stab wounds, was transferred last week from Limerick to a hospital in Dublin where she had been in a critical condition. A spokesperson for the gardaí confirmed to The Clare Champion this Wednesday that the girl’s condition is no longer critical. “She is still in hospital and she is out of danger,” he said. The mother and daughter had been living at a house in which a number of other …

Revenue officers have seized an estimated €40,000 of herbal cannabis at Shannon Airport this Wednesday. The illegal drugs, weighing approximately 2kgs, were discovered in a parcel that originated from Italy and were destined for an address in Limerick City. Investigations are ongoing. This seizure is part of Revenue’s ongoing operations targeting the importation of illegal drugs. If businesses or members of the public have any information regarding smuggling, they can contact Revenue in confidence on Confidential Phone Number 1800 295 295.