Tag Archives: Deputy Cathal Crowe

POLITICAL support is increasing for a number of Clare householders whose properties are beginning to crack and crumble as a result of defective material in the blockwork. Since it was formed at the start of last month, the Clare Pyrite Action Group has had more than 30 people come forward from all parts of the county to highlight the condition of their homes. After a virtual meeting with Deputy Cathal Crowe last week, the action group is to hold an open event on Monday in the hope of garnering the support of more Oireachtas members and county councillors. To-date, a number of parliamentary questions have been tabled on their behalf about the possibility of extending a remediation scheme for those affected by defective blockwork, but none has received a positive response. Last week, the Department of Housing approved a call to have Limerick city and county taken under the remit of a scheme for homes where pyrite is present in …

CLARE forestry owners with mature trees are waiting more than 12 months in some cases to secure a tree felling licence due to red tape, a local deputy has claimed. Deputy Michael McNamara recently asked the new Agriculture Minister Charlie McConalogue the measures he will take to address the backlog in applications for planting permits and felling licences in the forestry section in a Dáil question. Deputy McNamara said it is legitimate that people want to plant trees but it is also legitimate that nobody wants a monoculture sitka spruce plantation surrounding their house. The Independent Deputy said there is no point in pretending that planting sitka spruce will help the environment as it is a short term cash product. In addition to requesting more ecologists in the Department of Agriculture, Deputy McNamara stressed the Department of Agriculture had to adequately deal with a variety of issues concerning tree felling and planting. “We need timber but it is all a …

THE first high-speed fibre connections to rural homes in Clare as part of the rollout of the National Broad Plan (NBP) will be made before the end of the year, Communications Minister Eamon Ryan has pledged. In response to parliamentary questions from Deputy Joe Carey and Deputy Cathal Crowe, Minister Ryan confirmed design work “is complete or ongoing” in Clare and 20 other counties. Deputy Carey asked the Communications Minister to outline his plans to accelerate the National Broadband Plan (NBP) to facilitate remote working in homes and business in Clare, while Deputy Crowe asked a similar question about the roll out of the NBP in the county. Around 91,000 premises across the country had been surveyed as part of the €3bn plan to deliver high speed broadband to rural Ireland by September 15, according to Minister Ryan. In Clare, the minister confirmed to the two deputies that surveys have already commenced in Cratloe, Ballycannan, Ballyglas and Cloghrea. Further surveys …

SHARP criticism has been directed at the minister for housing, after he refused to help to Clare homeowners who believe their properties are affected by defective building materials containing pyrite or mica. One local TD has estimated that over 40 people in this county may be affected by the materials which can cause severe structural damaged to buildings, and that many others have not yet come forward. Following the setting up last month of the Clare Pyrite Action Group, the personal experiences of a number of homeowners across the county have been reported by The Champion. The situation in this county was raised in Dáil Éireann last week by Deputy Cathal Crowe and the Sinn Féin housing spokesperson Eoin Ó Broin, with Housing Minister Darragh O’Brien ruling out any extension to Clare of the existing remediation schemes. Dr Martina Cleary, the founder of the action group, has hit out at the fact that Minister O’Brien when in opposition, slated the …

A LISSYCASEY father whose child was recently adversely impacted by the concessionary selection system for public school transport has devised a new petition to spearhead radical reform. Up to 15 pupils from Lissycasey and surrounding areas had their places on a bus to St John Bosco Community College withdrawn at the start of the school year because of antiquated boundary rules, which deemed them ineligible and put them on the concessionary list. West Clare pupils will get their place on a bus after a new contractor was appointed last week with a larger vehicle. Ciaran O’Flaherty is gravely concerned about the Bus Eireann school transport policy currently in place, in relation to “eligible” and “concessionary” categorisation, as the sole means to complete selection. Mr O’Flaherty believes the current policy is unfair, unethical, unreasonable and divisive, creating real divide in rural communities and resulted in the recent West Clare “Bus Fiasco”. Requesting Bus Eireann to abolish the two-tier system, he is …

SITE preparations works are underway for the development of a new multi-million Euro food discount store in South-East Clare following a recent An Bord Pleanála ruling. Work has begun with the construction of a major new Lidl store at Westbury with workers clearing and excavating the ground for the pouring of foundations. The project was given the green light by An Bord Pleanála in July, after it sent to the planning appeals authority following a number of submissions to Clare County Council. The store will be located across from the Westbury estate, which is the largest in the county, with almost 1,000 homes and a sizeable population, while the site is on one of the busiest arteries into Limerick City. Welcoming this development, Deputy Cathal Crowe said it is fantastic to see that the shovel has broken the ground on this long-awaited development. “One of the key things I worked on during this process was the guarantee that road improvement …

POLITICAL answers are being sought on behalf of a number of Clare homeowners whose properties are affected by what they believe to be defective building materials like pyrite and mica. The plight of Geraldine Kennedy of Parteen, which was highlighted in last week’s Clare Champion, prompted a visit from Deputy Cathal Crowe, who said he had been able to put his fingers into the cracks in the wall because they were so wide. Deputy Crowe has since tabled two questions to the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government, on behalf of Geraldine and several other homeowners. “There are as many as 42 confirmed cases in Clare,” he said, “and many more suspected cases. My first question for the minister is to explain the options available to homeowners here. The existing schemes are very county-specific. We will need the buy in of Clare County Council on this, but I don’t foresee a major difficulty in that respect.” Deputy Crowe said …

THERE has been a breakthrough in the dispute between angry West Clare parents and Bus Eireann over the withdrawal of concessionary places for bus transport to a secondary school in Kildysart. Up to 15 pupils from Lissycasey and surrounding areas had their places on a bus to St John Bosco Community College withdrawn because of antiquated boundary rules, which deemed them ineligible and put them on the concessionary list. West Clare pupils can now return to the bus after a new contractor was appointed with a larger vehicle. This comes in the wake of an intensive lobbying campaign by frustrated and parents and public representatives including Deputy Cathal Crowe and Deputy Violet-Anne Wynne, Deputy Crowe said the larger vehicle enables the route to be fully compliant from a socially distant point of view and also meant the increased capacity is now there for those additional 15 pupils, with their parents getting notified on Thursday. “I’ve spoken with some of the …