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In the first 10 days of the DUI (Driving Under Intoxicant) campaign,December 1-10 inclusive, there have been 260 arrests on suspicion of DUI, compared to 243 for the same period in 2016. Whilst most are alcohol related, there have also been positive tests for drug driving. There are multiple examples of arrested drivers found to have an alcohol concentration of more than 100 micrograms per 100 millilitres of breath. These have been intercepted throughout the country, including the morning after and early evening. The limits are, 9 micrograms of alcohol per 100 millilitres of breath for a specified driver. A specified driver includes learner, novice and professional driver. 22 micrograms of alcohol per 100 millitres of breath for a non-specified driver. The Garda message is, “This Christmas campaign will continue to concentrate on intoxicated drivers all day every day. These high risk drivers put everyone’s life in danger. Never ever drink and drive.”

BISHOP Brendan Kelly was announced as the new Bishop of Galway, Kilmacduagh and as Apostolic Administrator of Kilfenora today (Monday). The 71-year-old is a  native of Derrybrien in South Galway. The episcopal appointment by Pope Francis was announced at the Cathedral of Our Lady Assumed into Heaven and Saint Nicholas, in Galway City. Bishop Brendan has spent the last 10 years serving as Bishop of Achonry and he takes over from Michael Canon McLoughlin, who has been Diocesan Administrator since the retirement of bishop, Martin Drennan 16 months ago. It is planned that Bishop Brendan’s installation ceremony will take place in Galway Cathedral on February 11, 2018, the Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes. Among Bishop’s appointments has been as curate in Kilvara and parish priest of Lisdoonvarna.

SINN Féín’s sole Clare County Councillor Mike McKee is to run in the next general election. He will be joined on the party’s ticket in Clare by Noeleen Moran, who ran in 2016. The party is clearly hoping that a two-candidate strategy, which has not been attempted here by them in any recent election, can deliver a seat. Sinn Féin are to hold their selection convention on this Thursday night but, with only two candidates nominated, this is a formality. While they have not won a seat in Clare for generations, nor even come close since the party’s revival after the Good Friday Agreement, it is far from impossible that they will do so next time out, with the party polling between 14% and 18% nationally. In addition, they are set to go into the next election without Gerry Adams as leader. While Adams is Sinn Féin royalty, a sizeable cohort of voters in the South have never warmed to …

THE Clare Association in Dublin has selected 38-year-old Spanish Point hotelier John Burke as their Clare Person of the Year for 2018. He was named at a meeting of the association on Tuesday night. Last May, John made history, when he became the first Clare man to successfully climb Mount Everest. The mountaineer, who runs The Armada Hotel, made the climb to fulfil a personal dream and also to raise awareness and funds for the charity, Elevate, which he and his wife, Aoibhín Garrihy, established to promote well-being among young people. Aoibhín accompanied her husband to Nepal, where he climbed Mount Everest and, on reaching the summit, he remembered his Clare roots by planting the saffron and blue flag. Afterwards, he described the final night of the climb as hell on earth. He witnessed casualties of the mountain first-hand and could see the fear of death in the faces of other people who were making the climb with him. On his …

The Clare Champion has received lots of letters for Santa Claus over the past few weeks. We will be sending them by special post to the North Pole, in good time for Santa and his team of elves to load his magic sleigh with presents for children all over the world. Don’t be too disappointed if Santa does not deliver all you asked for in your letter, as there is huge demand on some toys.   He will do his best with nice surprises instead. You can read all the letters to Santa in this week’s Clare Champion, in Living, pages 6 and 7.

THE Clare Champion is making the news again. The paper has emerged as winner of the Regional Newspapers Printer of the Year award, in conjunction with Webprint from Cork. The award comes on the back of a major redesign of The Clare Champion over the past six months. This is the third time in four years that The Champion has taken this prize. The award was one of more than 30 accolades celebrated at the 40th annual Irish Print Awards at a black tie gala ceremony in the Aviva Stadium. Clare Champion managing director, John Galvin, said he was delighted to win the award, which the newspaper has won on a number of previous occasions. “A lot of effort goes into publishing a paper, from start to finish every week, so to get this kind of recognition is fantastic. “We embarked on a major redesign earlier this year and when it is complete early next year, our paper will look …

A CLARECASTLE family is desperately trying to give their six-year-old son, born with a rare condition, a very special gift. Little Antoni Barczak was essentially born without an outer ear on his right side. He has been diagnosed with right ear microtia, a condition that affects one in every 100,000 newborns. His family is now trying to raise €30,000 to bring him to America for reconstructive surgery, which they believe will help change his life for the better. According to his father, Val, Antoni has started to notice that he is different from the other children in his school. The condition also affects his hearing, with speech sounding like a whisper to him. Antoni and his twin brother, Franek, were born premature in their 31st week. Mother Tania said, “We didn’t know anything was wrong. Everything was fine until my 30th week, when we found out that they had twin to twin transfer syndrome. The scans were all perfect, we …

Minister for Trade, Employment, Business, EU Digital Single Market & Data Protection Pat Breen has announced that €63,000 has been granted to Clare for agricultural shows next year. “This €63,000 will be a huge benefit to the nine shows in County Clare who will each receive a grant of €7,000 each. The Clare shows include Kildysart, Kilrush, Clarecastle, Corofin, Ennistymon, Mullagh, Newmarket-on-Fergus, Bridgetown and Scarriff. “This funding is particularly useful to the smaller shows that are susceptible to weather and other unexpected costs that can occur,” said Minister Breen. “Agricultural shows are hugely important to the rural economy, with surrounding towns and villages benefitting hugely from each show. “The Government considers this funding an important investment in rural communities and I am delighted that my colleague Minister for Rural and Community Development, Michael Ring has granted this funding for Clare,” he said