Tag Archives: Cathal Crowe

ALL roads led to Ennistymon last Sunday morning as the counting of just over 60,000 Clare ballots began. Storm Ciara tore along the western seaboard, leaving sections of the N85 barely passable. As political pilgrims queued to cross flood waters south of the Inagh village, the brother of outgoing TD Timmy Dooley came quietly to the rescue. Pat Dooley donned his wellies to check the depth of the water, then led a number of other drivers through. Gales and floods ultimately did little to deter the capacity crowd that poured into The Falls Hotel to witness a drama few could have anticipated. As the ballot boxes were opened, the threads of a new political narrative emerged. Sinn Féin was on course to have a Clare TD for the first time since 1922. It took more than twelve hours, however, to confirm the dominance of newcomer Violet-Anne Wynne. Anticipation of the first count was at fever pitch by 9.10pm. Families and …

THE government has announced their decision to “defer” an event on January 17 to commemorate the Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC) and the Dublin Metropolitan Police (DMP). The decision follows widespread criticism of the proposed commemoration, including from Mayor of Clare, Cathal Crowe, who had said he was going to boycott the event. “As a Government, we have at all times sought to have a national programme of commemorations that is authentic, sensitive and inclusive. However, given the disappointing response of some to the planned event on January 17, I do not believe that the event, as planned, can now take place in an atmosphere that meets the goals and guiding principles of the overall commemorative programme.  Therefore, I am announcing its deferral,” Minister for Justice, Charlie Flanagan, said in a statement on Tuesday evening. “I know that, regrettably, this decision will be a cause of hurt and upset to many people. I commit to proceeding with an alternative commemoration in …

WITH jobs going in a number of companies in Clare, the county’s Mayor Cathal Crowe said the situation is unprecedented, at a special meeting of Clare County Council on Friday afternoon. “The recent announcement of job losses in Clare has been quite unprecedented. The loss of more than 500 jobs in Molex, 240 jobs at Roche Clarecastle, potentially the loss of 114 jobs at Avara Pharmaceutical and the ongoing uncertainty at Moneypoint all has the potential to have a devastating impact on this county’s economy. There is also a knock-on effect, not yet known, for smaller businesses in the supply chain. We in Clare County Council must hold our counterparts in national government to account. On behalf of the workers and their families we must make a stand and demand the intervention and support of the government and other state agencies.” He added, “Parallels can be drawn between what County Clare is experiencing now and what the people of Limerick …

ANNOYANCE around the Mid- West was very apparent online late last week, following two provocative tweets from Dublin Airport. The first tweet from the capital’s airport said, “We look forward to being the key gateway for overseas visitors attending #RyderCup 2026, which will take place @TheAdareManor in Limerick”. Claiming to be the key gateway was a cheeky comment from an airport 222km away from Adare, compared to just 43km from Shannon and it wasn’t long before people from Clare and Limerick were responding unfavourably to the display of Dublin arrogance. However, Dublin Airport wasn’t in conciliatory mode and quickly doubled down on the earlier tweet, in response to one man asking was Shannon not the key gateway for the event. “We’ll welcome more overseas visitors for the event, as we’re a much larger airport with much greater connectivity to Britain, the US and continental Europe. Overseas visitors using Dublin Airport go to all 32 counties on the island.” After this, …

SHANNON Group got a share of stick at Monday’s meeting with the County Council, but at least one element of it was undue. In his speech to the meeting, Mayor of Clare Cathal Crowe criticised various decisions made, and also claimed that Clare’s local representatives had been ignored at a recent celebration. “It was disappointing that the airport held a significant event just last week to mark the 80th anniversary of its operations and didn’t invite the Chief Executive Pat Dowling, Councillor Gerry Flynn (Chairman of the Shannon District) or myself, as Mayor of Clare, to attend. “Shannon Group must do better to improve its working relationship with this County Council.” However some time later when Acting Shannon Group CEO Mary Considine responded to questions raised by members, she said that there actually had not been a celebratory event to mark the 80th anniversary, although Shannon had used the date to help with its own promotion.   Owen Ryan

A LEADING national Fianna Fáil strategist insists its controversial geographical directive, which effectively hinders Councillor Cathal Crowe from seeking a party ticket to contest the next general election at this Thursday’s Dáil Selection Convention, is “strategy and not personality driven”. There has been a major backlash from some angry FF delegates against the decision by the national Constituency Committee (CC) to issue a directive to select one candidate from East and West Clare at the Clare Fianna Fáil Dáil Selection Convention. A new ad-hoc group – including former FF director of elections in Clare, Michael Neylon – has called for the convention, scheduled for 670 delegates at the Hotel Woodstock in Ennis, to be postponed, amid claims it is “undemocratic” and “contrary to party rules”. Five candidates were initially nominated for the convention – sitting Deputy Timmy Dooley and Councillor Cathal Crowe in East Clare, as well as Rita McInerney, Dr John Hillery and Michael McDonagh, before the latter officially …

Pupils in Parteen National School have kicked off a new rugby project, with a public appeal for assistance in their fact-finding mission. They need help telling the life- stories of the 15 men who played on the Parteen rugby team more than a century ago. A good deal of the pupils’ work will focus on how conflicts drastically altered the lives of the rugby players. ‘United by Sport, Divided by War’ is the theme of the project. The men were united in their love for playing rugby in peacetime but war would ultimately tear their team apart and have a devastating impact on many of their lives. A project team, made up of 17 history-loving pupils and third-class teacher Cathal Crowe, meets after school on Monday to delve into the untold stories of the rugby players. School principal Ger Ruane described this project as a fantastic opportunity for the children. Mr Ruane thanked Mr Crowe for volunteering to do this in his free …

Councillor Cathal Crowe may become one of the youngest public representatives to contest the next general election in Clare but he chose an old style Fianna Fáil rally-type event to officially launch his bid on Wednesday afternoon. Standing on an open top trailer surrounded by political posters from the last three local elections, Councillor Crowe also turned back the clock by launching his election campaign outside the home of the last Dáil deputy from South-East Clare, Paddy Brennan. The fact that the Brennans were Free Staters and staunch Cumann na nGaedheal members didn’t deter the 34-year-old from declaring his intention to run in the next general election at Brennan’s Cross in Meelick. The passionate historian recalled that while on the run, the Brennans often took shelter at his grandparents’ house in Woodcock Hill, just three miles from the cross. With former Clare hurler Niall Gilligan providing the warm-up speech, Councillor Crowe then outlined his vision. “For 95 years, this corner …