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GARDAI in Ennis are appealing for witnesses following a burglary that occurred in the county town last week. Overnight between August 3 and 4, Tuesday evening to Wednesday morning, between the hours of 8pm and 7am an apartment was broken into in Parnell St Apartments. Entry was gained by a communal door which was forced. Once inside the culprits made their way to a particular apartment which was unoccupied at the time. They gained entry by force. Some small items were stolen from the scene, most notably a Black Puma sports bag containing gents clothing. If anyone was in the area of Parnell Street, Ennis, Tuesday evening to Wednesday morning, on the dates in question and saw anything suspicious or may have information which may assist Gardaì in this investigation, they are asked to contact Ennis Garda Station on 065 – 6948100.

GARDAI in Clare seized a quantity of drugs following a raid of a house in west Clare at the weekend. Uniformed Gardaì in Kilrush searched a house under warrant at Knock, Kilrush on Saturday, August 7. Cannabis herb drugs to the value of €5000 were discovered. A person has been identified and an investigation is ongoing in relation to the sale and supply of drugs.

ENNIS has been described as “a ship without a captain” in terms of its development, due to the ongoing lack of an updated Local Area Plan (LAP). It follows the decision by county councillors to defer the County Development Plan (2022-2028) for seven months. The move has implications for the creation of the Ennis LAP, a process that started in 2015, but which was paused pending the finalisation of the county-wide plan. It also delays placing the Ennis 2040 plan on a statutory footing. Prominent Clare-based chartered building surveyor, Fergus Merriman voiced frustration saying he believes opportunities are being lost. “An Ennis LAP would be a field-by-field plan with clarity about acceptable development,” he said. “Ennis 2040 is a welcome long-term plan, but we cannot lose sight of day-to-day development. In the absence of a local plan, the risks are too high for many developers.” Mr Merriman noted that the Office of the Planning Regulator (OPR) wrote to the council …

MOST people’s eyes glaze over if the topic of pensions is raised! Saving for retirement is extremely important. People are living longer and leading more active lives in retirement. As a result, it is more important than ever for you to think about where your income will come from when you retire. Pension saving is one of the few areas where you can still get tax relief. Unfortunately, only about half of the people working in Ireland are members of pension arrangements. Today let’s discuss a defined benefit pension. What is a defined benefit pension scheme? A defined benefit pension, or sometimes know as final salary pension, is a special type of workplace pension. Instead of building up a pension pot over time, it provides you with a guaranteed annual income for life, based on your final or average salary (hence the name). DB pensions are most often provided by the public sector (health, education etc) and government employers. Some private …

All-Ireland Intermediate Championship Quarter-Final Westmeath 3-11 Clare 2-11 Clare suffered an agonising three point defeat to Westmeath in the TG4 All-Ireland intermediate quarter final, reports Ivan Smyth. When Clare trailed by eight points near the conclusion of the opening half and by six points after 40 minutes, it appeared their hopes of progressing through to the semi final were thin but Evan Talty’s side produced a tremendous fightback as they fell just short. Clare scored 1-2 without reply as substitute Chloe Towey found the net as her side cut their deficit to a single point with five minutes remaining. After Anna Jones (free) and Niamh O’Dea traded scores, Clare tried desperately to find the score needed to level or win this back and forth contest. O’Dea and Chloe Moloney both saw shots drift wide of the uprights with Westmeath desperately clinging on. However, they showed great composure when late in the game they scored two frees. Clare had a chance …

GORT native Dr James Mahon has become one of the first doctors of mobile journalism after passing his examinations as a guest of Queens University Belfast in June, writes Conor Clohessy. The broadcast journalist, author and lecturer conducted field research with newsrooms of STV (Scotland), NDTV (India), CBS, WDEF and News 12 (USA) and Lemen Bleu (Switzerland) as part of a pioneering study between 2018 and 2019. James was looking into how digital technology is changing broadcasting around the world and found that in many situations these innovations in the workplace were cutting costs for the companies but also having an adverse effect on the older employees. James explained: “I found that this is an economic thing. You can argue that audiences want mobile content, livestreaming and social media content, of course they do. But you can also argue that it saves newsrooms hundreds of thousands of pounds.” While cost-cutting in most industries causes a stunt in innovation, James found …

COMMUNITIES across Clare have been commended by Minister Heather Humphreys for their efforts to survive and thrive in challenging times. The Minister for Rural and Community Development visited six Clare projects last Thursday (July 29) where she saw first-hand how depopulation of rural towns and villages can be tackled and jobs created in the process. Each of the projects the minister visited in Ennis, Cross, Kilrush, Lissycasey, Kilmihil and Tulla have received funding under the Rural Development Investment Programme which includes a number of integrated funding interventions including Rural Regeneration and Development Fund (RRDF), Town and Village Renewal Scheme, CLÁR and Outdoor Recreation Infrastructure Scheme. The minister was particularly impressed by the roll-out of remote working hubs and described Clare as being “ahead of the curve” in developing ten facilities across the county. “I’ve had a great time looking at digital hubs,” Minister Humphreys told The Champion. “My goodness me, Clare is ahead of the curve when it comes to …

FROM Camden Town to Carnegie Hall and from the Fleadhanna ‘down in Ennis’ to the Body and Soul stage at Electric Picnic, the Tulla Céilí Band has captivated audiences of all kinds for the last three-quarters of a century. Over the course of its illustrious history, the band has brought the tunes of East Clare to prominence in Ireland’s musical repertoire. It has also fostered some of the country’s finest traditional players, including West Clare legends like Willie Clancy and JC Talty. At one point, it even counted a TD as a member, in the person of the long-serving Fianna Fáil representative, Feakle’s Dr Bill Loughnane. The story of the Tulla Céilí Band is closely woven into the history of modern Ireland. It was formed in March 1946, in the lean times after ‘The Emergency’, when the bicycle was the dominant mode of transport and social life didn’t stretch far beyond parish boundaries. Chris Keane, in his book on the …