Regional

THERE was good news this morning for Clare with the announcement that a financial services company was to create 45 jobs in the county. IQ-EQ, a leading global investor services group, has today announced plans to expand its Irish operations with the launch of a dedicated Funds business in Ireland creating 45 roles in Shannon over the next five years. IQ-EQ provides a comprehensive range of compliance, administration, asset and advisory services to alternative funds, global companies, and private and institutional investors globally. This includes a 135-strong team in Northern Ireland, specialised in fund administration and depositary services, plus third-party alternative investment fund manager (AIFM) platforms in London as well as Luxembourg. IQ-EQ has been active in Ireland for over 30 years, providing a full range of corporate administration and structured finance solutions from its offices in Dublin and Shannon. This move signifies the importance of Ireland as a funds domicile, particularly in light of recent changes to the Irish …

AER Lingus has confirmed it is to lay off all 129 Inflight Service and Ground Operations staff in Shannon Airport from next Monday, March 8, until June 7. The workers will not receive a wage for the duration of this layoff and Fianna Fáil spokesperson on Aviation Cathal Crowe has labelled the move a real blow for the region. “Aer Lingus’s announcement is majorly disappointing and a real blow for its Shannon workers, who have faced almost a year of stress and anxiety about their jobs,” said Deputy Crowe. A statement from the airline referencing the announcement on Friday of its full year results said it showed Aer Lingus recorded an operating of loss of €361m in 2020. “This represents the largest ever loss in the airline’s history and demonstrates the profound impact of Covid-19.  Increased travel restrictions in Ireland and across our network and the subsequent negative impact on demand for travel required us to review our network schedule and …

SCARIFF is reaching out to communities across the country, thanks to Irish Seed Savers who are to become ‘Seed Guardians’ for ten projects around Ireland. Under a new initiative, Seed Savers is to provide training and mentoring in seed-growing and seed-saving to ten community gardens from as far afield Kildare, Leitrim, Dublin and Mayo. Support will be provided by experienced facilitators, who will guide the projects through the steps to enhance seed supply and reduce reliance on food seed imports to grow their own produce. The organisation believes that by supporting communities to grow and save their own food seed, it will improve overall access to seed and foster greater community engagement with the full food supply chain, from seed to plate. The ten community gardens groups chosen to participate in the Community Seed Guardian Programme are: Mud Island Community Garden, Dublin; Monart Farm, Wexford; Kildare Town Community Garden, Kildare; Millenium Community Garden, Tipperary; Gairdín Gortahork, Donegal; Rossinver Community Garden, …

AS A wheelchair user, 29-year old Jessica Keegan has always made the most of the cards that life has dealt her. A native of Manchester, Jessica was born with cerebral palsy, a condition which restricts her movement and affects her balance and coordination. She spent much of her childhood in Feakle and attended Dromindoora and Flagmount national schools and later Scariff Community College. “Feakle is beautiful,” she said, “but it’s not such a great place to be if you happen to use a wheelchair. It’s really hard to access services from there and you can end up being very isolated.” Jessica, a graduate of Mary Immaculate College, describes herself as “bubbly and sociable”. Her friends and the staff of Enable Ireland Adult Services at Quinn’s Cross in Limerick, are a lifeline for her in what has been a time characterised by isolation and loneliness. But while the pandemic has presented huge challenges, Jessica has faced them with characteristic courage and …

FRUSTRATION has been expressed over vandalism at an ancient site in Tulla, linked to a seventh century saint. Last weekend, locals discovered graffiti covering a celtic cross and ancient carved stone at St Mochulla’s Well, located close to the Hill of Tulla. It is the second incident in recent years and while it is not believed, locally, to be linked to the spate of disturbances and thefts at the nearby graveyard, the situation has caused significant annoyance. At the end of 2019, a huge local clean-up effort was mounted to prepare for planned celebrations of the founding of Tulla. “It’s disheartening that this is the second incident in two years,” said Tim Humphries, Chair of Tulla Tidy Towns. “After the last incident in 2019, we had gotten lots of support for a big clean-up in the area, ahead of the planned celebrations last year for Tulla 1400. This time around, it’s a bit worse because whoever did this has used …

SATURDAY will see the start of the very first Clare Drama Radio Play Festival, which takes to the airwaves on Scariff Bay Community Radio (SBCR). The inaugural event brings the station together with the long-established Clare Drama Festival to ensure that actors and their audiences get to enjoy the finest local theatrical productions in their own homes. Proceedings kick off on the East Clare community radio station with a special festival programme hosted by Eoin O’Hagan at 8pm on Saturday next. Thereafter, the drama will continue on Saturdays, and Sundays, presented by Festival PRO Tom Hanley, from March 7 until the final night on Easter Sunday, April 4. “The Clare Drama Radio Play Festival is a perfect addition to the schedule of SBCR and an antidote to the continuing lockdown for both the listeners to the local station as well as the devotees of amateur drama throughout Ireland,” a spokesperson for the station said. “This brand new drama festival is …

A VERY special lady celebrated her 100th birthday last Saturday at Raheen Community Hospital, where she has been a popular and cherished resident for the past three years. Peggy Tuohy (née Smyth) was born in Cleaveland, Ohio, where she spent the first six years of her life. When her family returned to Ireland, they lived in Kilbarroe and Peggy attended national school in Feakle and later Annaghneal. The eldest of seven siblings, Peggy went on to study home economics in agricultural school in Portumna, while also helping her mother to look after the family. Peggy worked in Dublin for a time as a carer for an older person before she met and married her husband Frank. The couple had six children Helen, Marie, Harry, Fergal, Gerard and Deirdre and Frank passed away in 1998. Three of Peggy’s children live in America, and she has 13 grandchildren 13 great grandchildren and one great great grand child. Frank  was a farmer so …

WORK on the roll-out of the National Broadband Plan is expected to begin in parts of South East Clare by the end of the month. Members of the Rural Development Strategic Policy Committee (SPC) heard an update this week from Urban McMahon Head of Information Systems, Broadband and Digital on the work of National Broadband Ireland (NBI) and on the DigiClare initiative. “They will be moving out from Limerick into Parteen and areas close by,” he said. “For the build, they’ll be using the Eircom infrastructure and liaising with us on traffic management. There should be a lot of activity in East Clare in the coming months. NBI will also be undertaking a marketing and information campaign in the area before the end of this month.” Efforts to provide WiFi hotspots in each municipal district were also outlined. Mr McMahon explained that up to €120,000 had been secured to provide public WiFi in places like The Square in Kilrush, in …