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Clare County Council has issued a decision to grant permission for the development of coastal erosion management works at, and adjacent to, Carrowmore Dunes, White Strand, Doughmore Bay and Trump International Golf Links and Hotel, Doonbeg. As per the provisions of the planning acts, any decision made may be subject to a first or third party appeal to An Bord Pleanála within four weeks of the decision date. The application was lodged on December 22, 2016 and has attracted more than 40 submissions from interested parties, including Eammon Ryan TD,  West Coast Surf Club; Irish Surf Association Ltd; Save the Waves Coalition;  Friends of the Irish Environment; community groups and individuals. The decision is subject to nine planning conditions, which include the payment of two separate planning conditions totalling €265,231. The conditions set out that public access and rights of way to the beach shall not be obstructed in any way by the proposed development. Mitigation measures outlined in the …

All 120 registered beds in the public elderly care facility St Joseph’s Hospital are to be registered again, following the outcome of a long and complex regulatory process. “The decision announced today (Thursday) by the HSE is fantastic news for St Joseph’s, its staff, the local community and for the users of the facility,” commented Senator Martin Conway. “This confirmation shows the hard work and commitment of those working in St Joseph’s and the HSE to make sure the necessary changes were put in place so that this positive result could be achieved. “I have no doubt that the staff and management in St. Joseph’s will continue to make improvements and that they will strive to ensure they are a patient focused facility.The centre is currently earmarked for a major new build by 2021 under the Capital Programme approved by Government and I look forward to following the development of St. Joseph’s over the next few years,” the Fine Gael …

“CHRISTMAS is definitely my favourite time of year to come home; there’s a different atmosphere, it’s really family-oriented,” said Aileen Griffin on Wednesday afternoon, just after arriving in Shannon Airport. The Kilmaley woman was one of the thousands of emigrants returning to Ireland this week, mainly from the UK, the US and Australia. Aileen was greeted by her father, Joe, in Shannon. “He’s very diligent. He always does the airport pick-ups and he carries the luggage as well,” she joked. Peggy Hennessy had come in from Kilkee to pick up her son, Patrick, who is based in New York, where he works for an airline and is part-owner of a bar. Unlike many Irish people in America, he has legal status there. Peggy was very pleased to see him. “Of course, it’s brilliant to get him home. He shouldn’t have had to go in the first place, they shouldn’t have to emigrate in the first place. So many youngsters are …

In the July-September period this year, the average rent in County Clare for newly registered properties with the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB) was €678. This was up €31 when compared to the average rent in Q2, 2017, which was €647, and is up €60 when compared to a year earlier, in Q3, 2016. This is according to the latest Residential Tenancies Board (RTB) Rent Index, which is produced in conjunction with the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI). The RTB Rent Index is the most accurate and authoritative rent report of its kind on the private accommodation sector in Ireland as it is based on data from all new tenancy agreements registered with the RTB nationally in Q3 this year. In total 29,528 new tenancies nationally were registered in Q3, this represents an increase of over 6,000 registrations since the previous quarter. Rents are highest in Dublin, the surrounding counties and larger urban counties such as Cork, Galway and Limerick. …

May I, as President of Ireland, mar Uachtarán na hÉireann, send you my warmest wishes for a peaceful and a Happy Christmas and New Year. Christmas is a time when we can pause for reflection, as we look back on the year gone by. It is a time when it is surely appropriate to recall the story that lies at the heart of this festive season. That story is of a long and difficult journey, and the birth of a child, in a temporary home, in Bethlehem two thousand years ago. Let us think too of how far from a state of peace that region is today, and how the absence of peace reflects our failure at a human and diplomatic level, and how, sadly, we hear words that provoke rather than heal. Across the many years and miles that separate us from the original Christmas story, we can unfortunately see too many parallels in our own society today. As …

  UL Hospitals’ Group has appealed to patients throughout the Mid-West to avoid the Emergency Department (ED) in the University Hospital Limerick (UHL) unless they have a serious of life-threatening injury. In a statement issued to the Clare Champion, the group acknowledged the ED in UHL has been very busy over the last few days following the admission of a lot of seriously ill patients, many of whom remain in the ED awaiting a bed. The gropu are asking people to think about all their care and treatment options and keep ED services for the patients who need them most. Many patients with limb injuries can go to an Injury Unit in Ennis, Nenagh or St John’s Hospital. Injury Units are open in Ennis and Nenagh Hospitals from 8am to 8pm, Monday to Sunday and 8am to 6pm Monday to Friday at St. John’s Hospital. Other patients with a less serious illness can be treated by their GP or out of …

BECKMAN Coulter, based in Lismeehan, O’Callaghan’s Mills is to create 70 jobs over the next two to three years as it just announced expansion plans today. Beckman Coulter develops, manufactures and markets products that simplify, automate and innovate complex biomedical testing and has revealed it is expanding the company’s development and manufacturing facility at Lismeehan. The project is supported by the Irish Government through IDA Ireland. The company’s 9,700 sq. metre site at Lismeehan in County Clare is a strategic site for the global Beckman Coulter Diagnostics business, with 330 people working there. Work carried out currently on the site includes the development, manufacture and support of reagents (mixtures for use in chemical analysis) for clinical chemistry, immunochemistry and haematology product lines. The expansion will provide capacity for two new product streams at the Clare site, and will also provide for the ongoing growth of the current product streams. The new expansion will add an additional 6,700sq. meters to the …

Clare homeowners and shoppers have been reminded by Minister of State Pat Breen to check for safety standards during the festive season. Supporting the “12 Day’s of Christmas Safety” by the National Standards Authority of Ireland, which is under his remit, Minister Breen wished all Clare people a safe Christmas. “To ensure we all remain safe and happy during this special time of year, it its worth remembering the safety advised being issued by the National Standards Authority of Ireland (NSAI). “The NSAI will issue daily reminders to help us all stay safe including advice such as the CE mark must be present on all children’s toys, fairy lights and other electronics. “We are also reminded to buy products from trustworthy shops and legitimate online stores and check all your Christmas lights for signs of wear-and-tear and replace them if necessary,” Minister Breen said.