Regional

GOVERNMENT approval for any “land grab” by Limerick City Council into South-East Clare would create “bitterness” that could last for decades, a local lobby group has warned.Former chairman of Clare Against the Boundary Extension, Jim Gully, said feelings are running high in communities throughout the region after another high-powered Government committee was given the task of examining the possibility of changing existing boundaries.Mr Gully, one of the original committee members when CABE was founded in 1996, claimed about 90% of residents surveyed in Westbury, Shannon Banks, Meelick and Parteen wish to remain in Clare under the jurisdiction of Clare County Council.Arrangements are being put in place to reactivate the committee, who will decide whether another plebiscite is necessary and whether the group will make a comprehensive submission to the new Boundary Extension Committee, chaired by Kerry Group founder, Denis Brosnan.In a study prepared by Dr Ed Walsh and Peter Coyne in June 2008, the co-authors argued that the governance of …

PARENTS concerned at the ongoing operation of headshops in Ennis have organised a petition on the streets of the county town this Saturday.Maria Ryan, chairwoman of Colaiste Muire parents’ association and Councillor Paul O’Shea are spearheading the petition and are calling on anyone who is worried about the effects of substances being sold in headshops to sign the petition, between 10am and 6pm this Saturday in O’Connell Square, Ennis.“The purpose of this petition is again to raise awareness about headshops. We are asking landlords to be vigilant about who they are leasing premises to and encouraging insurance companies not to give insurance to operators of headshops. Until proper legislation is in place to deal with headshops, all we can do is make it very difficult for headshops to operate. Landlords to a large extent don’t seem to be aware that headshops are being run in their premises,” Maria said.She said that the petition would highlight their concerns about the substances …

A SCULPTURE to pay tribute to the work of nuns in Ennis throughout the years has been commissioned by the Ennis Sculpture Trail Initiative.Committee member Donal Griffin confirmed that they had been looking for some time at a way to pay tribute in an appropriate way to the contributions all orders of nuns had made.“They have had a huge role to play in Ennis in terms of education, care of people in the community, and for the love they have shown to so many over the years,” he said.The sculpture is currently being design by artist Barry Wrafter, who is well known for his involvement in other artistic works around the county. Mr Griffin said that the sculpture would be in the form of a nun with a number of children around her. “It will be very tasteful and will be in marble. It will be located in the archway beside the Friary,” he added.The Sculpture Trail hopes that the …

WEST Clare county councillors are fearful that sewerage schemes in Cooraclare, Labasheeda, Carrigaholt, Kilrush and Kilkee may not proceed due to a shortage of money.Although tender documents have been completed for the Cooraclare Sewerage Scheme and the tender is ready to be advertised, it is totally dependent on funding being available from Clare County Council. Local authority funding will be matched approximately 50/50 by funding from the Department of the Environment. The Cooraclare scheme is the most advanced of those underway in West Clare but is still not guaranteed to be completed.“If they can’t do it for Cooraclare, we can forget about the other schemes,” Councillor Patrick Keane said at Monday’s Kilrush Electoral Area meeting in the Vandeleur Walled Gardens.The meeting heard that the estimated cost of the Cooraclare scheme will be €1.57m, while Councillor Bill Chambers said that €260,00 has already been spent on the scheme.“Will Clare County Council be able to afford it? It’s all down to cash,” …

RYAN Tubridy broadcast his RTÉ  Radio 1 morning show live from Tubridy’s bar in Cooraclare on Tuesday morning.Among the guests was Pat ‘Butcher’ McCarthy from Quilty, who revealed the variety of nicknames that people in his parish answer to. Mark Tubridy, son of bar proprietors Martin Noel and Ann, also spoke to Mr Tubridy as part of a sports panel with Clare camogie player, Deirdre Murphy and RTÉ GAA commentator, Marty Morrissey.Cooraclare man Martin Morrissey and Coolmeen’s Grace Lynch spoke about the unemployment situation in West Clare, along with Clare Champion journalist Peter O’Connell.Other guests included Muiris Ó Rócháin from the Willie Clancy Summer School, Ben Escorcio, a finalist in the All-Ireland Talent Show, Keith Wood and John Rattigan, curator of the Clare County Museum.Siobhán King, Shannon Development tourism officer for Clare said, “We were delighted to assist the programme producers with their outside broadcast. Over 350,000 people listen to the Tubridy radio show and it was a great opportunity …

NORTH Clare man and newly selected Minister for Defence, Tony Killeen was last weekend named a Life Governor of Irish Water Safety.At an awards ceremony in Ennistymon last weekend, he was presented with the Irish Water Safety Life Governor Award.According to Lieutenant Commander John F M Leech, chief executive of Irish Water Safety, “Minister Killeen was outstanding in his support of promoting water safety while a Minister of State at the Department of Environment, Heritage and Local Government. He made a significant contribution to the promotion of water safety and the reduction of the number of drownings in Ireland.”The award, which includes a vellum and medal, was presented to Minister Killeen by Frank Nolan, chairman of Irish Water Safety at the Falls Hotel, Ennistymon on Saturday.Minister Killeen was Minister of State at the Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources and the Department of Environment, Heritage and Local Government from June 2007 to June 2008. While Minister of State at …

THE Board of Management at Scoil na Mainistreach in Quin has highlighted the pressing need for the national school to be extended and has urged for the Department of Education to make this move sooner rather than later.Despite lodging an application for an extension with the department in 2001 and following this up with a detailed application in 2005 outlining projected enrolment figures up to 2014, the school remains on the to-do list.With numbers having jumped dramatically from 148 pupils in 2005 to 224 this year and with projected enrolment at 250 for September, school principal Anne Fitzpatrick is concerned that temporary prefabs are no longer sustainable.“Small schools have received devolved grants and we would ask the department to grant these devolved grants to medium-sized schools. We are in a situation where our only option is to wait in this queue. It’s very frustrating that we have to operate in substandard and cramped conditions. We need to do this for …

A PORTRAIT of Smriti, a Bangaladesh girl who was gang raped when she was just 11 years of age, is just one of a number of striking images taken by a Killaloe-based photographer in a new national exhibition, Women of Concern.