‘Law and order breakdown’ in West Clare

NEWLY elected Kilrush Electoral Area chairman, Bill Chambers, has claimed law and order has broken down in West Clare.

 

The Cooraclare Fianna Fáil councillor also alleged that people in rural parts of West Clare are being driven out of their homes and that Kilrush is “in a state of economic decline”.

“Law and order at the moment has broken down in West Clare. In rural areas, we’ve had a lot of break-ins and a lot of trauma for old people,” he said at this week’s Kilrush Electoral Area annual general meeting.  We have to sit down with the powers that be and see what can be done about it. It’s terrible to see people being driven out of their own houses, people being robbed and afraid to go back to their own houses,” he added.

Councillor Chambers maintained the way to improve on law and order in the region is to station more gardaí in Kilrush.

“Something has to be done about getting more gardaí on the beat in Kilrush and the surrounding areas. I don’t know how it can be done but I’d call on the Government to try and get rid of this embargo as regards recruitment and try and get more gardaí on the beat. That’s most essential because if gardaí are on the beat, they’re spotting what’s going on and what shouldn’t be going on. It’s vital we have a meeting with the chief superintendent or somebody in authority to see how can we get more gardaí on the beat,” he stated.

While Councillor Chambers said he was determined to work for West Clare during his year-long term as Kilrush Electoral Area chairman, he claimed that the town is struggling badly economically, before outlining his belief that 100% free parking in the town would boost trade.

“Kilrush, as we know, is on the decline. When I look back at it, a little over 20 years ago, we had two hotels in Kilrush. Now we have a marina and no hotel. If we want to promote marina activity, we need a hotel in Kilrush and another thing that has to be looked at is the parking,” he said.

“There should be free parking in Kilrush, as far as I’d be concerned. It’s a rural town. The parking situation is ruining the heart of Kilrush. To my mind, it’s gone. Look at Henry Street and the fine businesses we all knew there that have closed down. We have to tackle that. When you look at Tesco and those places, all of them have free parking,” he noted.

At the moment, motorists are allowed 30 minutes free parking in Kilrush town centre before they have to buy a parking ticket, while all-day parking is completely free in Place de Plouzane.

“It’s my aim to try and promote West Clare. It’s already underway with Loop Head Lighthouse opening but we have to try and keep up the momentum and promote Kilrush as the capital of West Clare,” Councillor Chambers concluded.

Kilrush Garda Superintendent Gerry Wall, when contacted by The Clare Champion, declined to comment on Councillor Chambers’ claims relating to law and order issues.