Tag Archives: clare

FIANNA Fáil General Election candidate, Rita McInerney, has urged all Clare residents to check that they are on the Electoral Register, and if not, to register to vote by November 25. Ms McInerney made the call as the new draft electoral register for the county was published. “It is vitally important that everyone checks, and double-checks, that they are on the Electoral Register. You can do this very simply by visiting www.checktheregister.ie and searching for your details. You can also check if you are on the register at your local post office, Garda station, library or Clare County Council office,” the Doonbeg woman said. “The right to vote is one of the privileges of living in a free and democratic republic. Millions of people across the work are denied this basic right, so I firmly believe that we all have an obligation to use our vote. If you spot a mistake on the electoral register, or can’t find your details, …

FOR almost 50 years Mike Noonan has been coming to The Blacksticks Bar but he can see its the type of bar that might not survive for very much longer. Mike, who doesn’t take a drink himself, is still very critical of the changes to the drink driving laws, introduced by a government minister who he feels has no understanding of rural Ireland. “Bring Shane Ross out of Dublin City Centre and he’d get lost. If you landed him here and turned off the street light he’d panic, he’d be looking for the public transport home.” He adds, “It’s a shame, just because of a man above in Dublin City. If you landed him here, he’d get frightened when he saw the dark, he wouldn’t be used to it. But I suppose it’s in now and it’s there to stay. I honestly don’t think it will save any life.” Mike says there are degrees of drink driving.“If you go into …

THE latest Central Statistics Office (CSO) figures show that 4,707 people in Clare were on the live register at the end of October. That figure is a 13% decrease on October 2017 figures. The county wide monthly increase is 17, although that figure is higher in North and West Clare. Seventy people have joined the live register in North Clare, which now totals 797, with the West Clare figure increasing by 34 to 768.  There was a fall in Ennis figures with 2,502 people on the live register, a monthly decrease of 47.

AFTER realising their primary goal, of getting back to senior in their first attempt, Feakle now embark on the provincial journey that so many Clare teams have enjoyed success in down through the years. After last years relegation, Val Donnellan’s men bounced straight back up to the first tier of Clare hurling in emphatic style, coming out the right side of it, 0-27 to 0-16 against Tubber in the Clare intermediate final. Next up for the east Clare team is a trip to Waterford on Saturday. They will face off against Clonea, with the Rathgormack based side having seen off Limerick champions, Garryspillane in the Munster quarter-final, 1-25 to 1-10 in Faher field last Sunday. The Waterford men come into this one in imperious form, averaging 2-19 in their nine outings to date. Feakle will definitely be missing one starter from their victory over Tubber. Ger Hanrahan won’t be participating as he is in New York for the fixture, while …

TWO weeks after winning just their second Canon Hamilton, Ballyea travel to Waterford on Sunday at 1.30pm, looking for a performance that can stun favourites Ballygunner in the Munster club semi-final. Sunday’s encounter promises to go right to the wire, providing both teams perform to their capabilities. A big performance from Tony Kelly will be required for Ballyea yet again, although players like Brandon O’Connell and Martin O’Leary were superb in the county final. More of the same will be required on Sunday along with big performances from Gary Brennan and Jack Browne. The unerring accuracy of free taker Niall Deasy will also play a pivotal role in Ballyea’s performance in Waterford as the 2016 Munster champions seek to conquer Munster again. Deasy has a superb record from placed balls and that has been pivotal to their unexpected 2018 championship success. Ballyea will also have to keep an eye on their oppositions centre forward, Pauric Mahony. The 26-year-old tallied 25 …

Clare County Fire and Rescue Service responded to two bonfire incidents on Halloween night. Both incidents occurred in the Cloughleigh area of Ennis. The overall cost associated with the call out of the Fire Service to these incidents was approximately €2,000. The cost associated with the clean-up of the bonfire sites has not yet been determined. Denis O’Connell, Senior Assistant Chief Fire Officer, said: “There was a significant reduction in the number of callouts this Halloween compared to previous years which is partly down to a combination of wet weather and increasing fire safety and environmental awareness amongst the general public.” “As well as being illegal, uncontrolled backyard burning and bonfires pose a significant risk to property and public safety and therefore, we would like to acknowledge the public for their cooperation and for heeding our safety advice issued during recent weeks.” Meanwhile, Clare County Fire and Rescue Service took part in a river rescue in Ennis on Halloween night. …

TURAS Nua has announced they are increasing their efforts to work with more employers in Clare and are targeting an additional 160 businesses and organisations over the course of the coming year. This is on top of the 490 employers there are already working with in the county. The employment activation organisation delivers the JobPath programme on behalf of the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection in 13 counties across the southern half of the Republic of Ireland. They are now placing approximately 1,000 people in jobs each month. In Clare they have already helped 1,131 people find work and expect that number to increase further over the course of the coming year. Turas Nua help prepare the long term unemployed (ie those out of work for 12 months or longer) to secure and sustain employment. Across their entire area of operations Turas Nua has now placed more than 20,000 long term unemployed people in work. While a total …

CLARE has voted by a significant majority to remove the crime of blasphemy from its constitution. As expected, Clare voters endorsed this move with 61.88% voting in favour and 38.114 voting against. The total electorate was 83,044 and the total poll was 41,766. There were 755 spoilt votes leaving a total valid poll of 41,021. The blasphemy referendum, which was held alongside the presidential election is the latest sign of the weakening of religious conservatism in the country. The last prosecution for blasphemy in Ireland was in 1855, but three years ago gardaí investigated comments made by Stephen Fry on television in which the comedian described God as “capricious”, “mean-minded”, and an “utter maniac”. The investigation, which was initiated following a complaint made in Ennis Garda Station was later dropped after gardai decided insufficient numbers of people had been outraged. Ireland voted to allow same-sex marriage in 2015, and nearly two-thirds of Irish voters backed the repeal of the country’s …