News

Thousands of protesters are expected to march through the streets of Limerick on this Saturday under the ‘We Won’t Pay!’ anti-water charges banner. The march, organised by the Anti-Austerity Alliance (AAA), starts at City Hall at 2pm. Local politicians have announced their plans to attend, including the Fianna Fáil Cathaoirleach of Limerick City & County Council and the leader of the Labour Party’s team of councillors. The march will move from City Hall, down O’Connell street, turning right onto Shannon St, and Right against down Henry street, past Arthurs’ Quay park and back to City Hall. It is expected to be largest when on O’Connell Street. Some marchers are expected to be in Halloween costumes, and when the march arrives back to City Hall they are going to burn some forms from Irish Water, as a statement of their intent to boycott this charge.

With the Hallowe’en season upon us. Clare County Council is urging members of the public not to supply any waste material to persons who do not hold a valid waste collection permit. Clare County Fire and Rescue Service says that substantial costs are incurred each Halloween in responding to bonfire-related incidents, as well as cleaning up after bonfires have taken place. In 2013, the Fire Service attended seven bonfires at a cost of €8,800. Meanwhile, the environment section of Clare County Council has warned that uncontrolled burning of waste, particularly in bonfires, is illegal under the Air Pollution Act, 1987, and the Waste Management Act, 1996, as amended. It said the burning of waste also releases toxic pollutants into the air which are known to be damaging to public health and the environment. “I am appealing to the public to work with the staff of Clare County Council and Clare Fire and Rescue Service during the forthcoming Halloween festivities and …

HENNESSY Memorial Park in Miltown will host The Clare Champion-sponsored Cusack Cup final on Saturday, when holders Kilmurry Ibrickane take on Éire Óg in a repeat of the 2013 final, which the West Clare club won in a replay. This weekend, Kilmurry will be seeking their fourth successive Cusack Cup and their ninth in total, including three won by Quilty in the mid-1930s. The winners will be presented with a €2,000 cheque, while the runners-up will be presented with €1,000 from The Clare Champion. Éire Óg reached this year’s final courtesy of finishing top of the Cusack Cup table, while Kilmurry defeated Miltown 1-11 to 1-7 in the semi-final played in Quilty two weeks ago. Given that both clubs had disappointing ends to this year’s championship, they will be keen to finish the year with a trophy in the cabinet. Of course, Éire Óg beat Kilmurry in this year’s semi-final in Kilmihil before losing the county final to Cratloe. The …

Clare County Council is advising the public that due to a water mains break in Killaloe a number of areas will experience loss of supply and poor water pressure. These include: Hill Road; Ballyvalley; Creeveroe; and Knockyclovaun. Clare County Council are currently carrying out repair work and water supplies will be restored as soon as possible.   By Carol Byrne

A new resource, www.Eatright.eu, designed to help Early School Leavers learn skills in healthy eating and food safety, has been launched by safefood. It is the first free online resource specifically designed with early school leavers in mind. With up to one in five teenagers leaving school early, this can impact negatively on their longer-term health, as limited knowledge around healthy eating and physical activity is a contributory factor to the growing problem of obesity on the island. Gerry Griffin, national coordinator of Youthreach, said “This website is a great opportunity for our staff to deliver life skills training around food and hygiene, in a way that is engaging, empowering and relevant to the needs of young people in society.” Dr Cliodhna Foley-Nolan, director, human health and nutrition, at safefood, added, “We know from speaking with early school leavers that their diets and levels of physical activity are of real concern to them. “Eatright.eu was developed with the input of …

Following the Synod of Bishops at the Vatican, which voted 118 to 62 against expressing ‘welcome’ to gay people in the Catholic Church, Ennis-born Fr Bernárd Lynch has said lying about one’s sexuality within the Church is more acceptable than telling the truth. “If I did lie, if I did pretend, I’d have a job. I could even have a lover on the side,” said Fr Lynch, who publicly came out as a gay man in 1986, when he was ministering in New York. The London-based psychotherapist, who is chair of the Camden Lesbian Gay Bisexual and Transgender Forum, said, “Straight or gay, truth and honesty in the Catholic Church, as far as sexuality and relationships are concerned, is punished by dismissal. Whereas lies and hypocrisy are rewarded, as much in Ireland as the UK or the US. Again, you wonder are these people really serious about the Gospel.” Fr Lynch claims the Church’s attitude to homosexuality is intrinsically linked …

The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine has announced that nitrogen and phosphorus statements for the period January 1 to September 30 are available on-line for all farmers registered with agfood.ie. These statements are a valuable tool, especially for the more intensive farmers, and should assist them in deciding whether or not they need to change their farming practices before the end of the year to stay within the limits set down in the Nitrates Regulations. The department also confirmed that it will notify certain farmers in the coming days of their interim nitrogen and phosphorus statement covering cattle numbers held on the farm for the nine month period up to September 30. This will be done by text message. This follows on from a similar exercise earlier this year for the six month period from January to June. Farmers not already registered for agfood.ie can do so by logging onto www.agfood.ie<http://www.agfood.ie> and clicking the ‘Register’ button.

ALONE has come out in support of HIQA’s request for increased investigative powers into individual nursing home complaints. Sean Moynihan, CEO of ALONE, the charity which supports older people in need, commented, “Already there have been a number of serious cases reported since Leas Cross, with many additional homes closed down. The Government needs to give HIQA the power to investigate individual complaints, to protect older people in nursing home care. Older people in nursing homes are in a very vulnerable position and they need to be supported.” Mr Moynihan said as individual complaints are investigated internally, older people and families may feel they can’t speak out, for fear of losing their place in the home. “Currently over 2,000 people are waiting for nursing home care in the country, this makes nursing homes very powerful. People need to have an impartial external body to submit complaints to. This is an industry that needs to be properly regulated to ensure it …