Irish Echo December 2016

NEWS

SPORT

PAGE 10

PAGES 28-29

Trump Win May Hit Irish Jobs

Historic Month For Irish Rugby

For breaking news visit www.irishecho.com.au

AUST RALI A’ S I RI S H N E WS PA P E R December, 2016 - January, 2017 | Volume 29 – Number 12

AUS $5.95 (incl GST)

Ready for the World Ireland’s Bid To Host 2023 Rugby World Cup Looking Good SEE PAGE 8

WORKING HOLIDAYMAKERS WILL BE TAXED AT 15 PER CENT

Deal done on backpacker tax Many working holidaymakers have been paying little or no income tax by declaring themselves residents for tax purposes. This loophole has now been effectively closed.

The motion was passed on the year’s final parliamentary sitting day, ending more than 18 months of political back-and-forth over the tax rate, which ranged from 32.5 per cent to 10.5 per cent and in-between.

Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull thanked the Greens and

senators Pauline Hanson and Nick Xenophon for their support, and said that the deal would “provide security and assurance for farmers and many industries across Australia”.

“We don’t agree with this government on many things, but in the end our responsibility in this place is to the community that we serve,” said Greens leader Richard Di Natale, adding that this was a “commonsense victory for farmers”.

“Ultimately what we faced was going

away from this place with regional Australians being sent to the wall and we weren't going to let that happen.”

The new arrangements will be in place from January 1, 2017.

Industry bodies and growers have welcomed the resolution, though the government has been criticised for its approach to developing this policy.

“This outcome means that after 18 months of confusion and uncertainty, Australian growers can now finally move forward with certainty about the

Irish Echo Australia | 1300 555 995 | newsdesk@irishecho.com.au | (Admin): mail@irishecho.com.au | PO Box 256, Balmain, NSW 2041 I Print Post No 100007285

future of the working holidaymaker program,” said Ausveg CEO Simon Bolles. “The treatment of the backpacker tax issue is an indictment on our current Parliament, with growers seen to be held to ransom by political games. This must never happen again. The far mers and growers of Australia deserve better.”

Print Post No 100007285

THE Australian government has come to an agreement on the so-called backpacker tax, passing legislation to tax working holidaymakers at a rate of 15 per cent.

The backpacker tax passed the Senate with the support of the Greens on December 1, though the proposed plan to tax 95 per cent of backpackers’ superannuation has been brought down to 65 per cent. This means that backpackers face an effective tax rate of 21 per cent on their earnings.

2

December, 2016 - January, 2017 I www.irishecho.com.au

AUST R ALIA’S IR ISH NE WSPAP E R

MOVING OVERSEAS? Working with the Irish community since 1970!

Specialist international mover Door to door service High quality packing Cars & Motorbikes Secure Storage Trust our 40 years experience

Call for an obligation free quote

1300 789 322 info ossworldwide.com @

www.ossworldwidemovers.com Lic 2TA00839

Blacktown

FIND A WAY TO STAY There are more than 140 different types of Australian visas To find out which one best suits you

CALL JOHN MC QUAID

For a professional assessment of your options L YOUR FOR ALL NEEDS TRAVE EAKAWAY R CALL B AVEL! TR

BOOK TODAY FOR CHRISTMAS IN IRELAND. SUPER AIRFARES NOW AVAILABLE - CALL NOEL TODAY!

02 9369 2400 Specialising in visas for: Employer sponsorship and skilled workers Partners and Families Student Visas with work rights

(02) 9622 7799

FOR THE BEST FARES TO IRELAND CALL US NOW !!! * PRESENT THIS AD WHEN BOOKING AND RECEIVE $50.00 DISCOUNT ON YOUR INTERNATIONAL INSURANCE. *FAMILY POLICY CONDITIONS APPLY. Division of Rotonda World Travel ACN 001 448 835

94 Main St Blacktown 2148 - Telephone (02) 9622 7799 Email: blacktown@breakawaytravel.com.au

For your temporary or permanent residence strategy Call John or Narelle on 02 93692400 Email us on info@arriveaustralia.com.au Visit our website www.arriveaustralia.com.au Westfield Tower Bondi Junction MARN 0324918

3

December, 2016 - January, 2017 I www.irishecho.com.au

A U S TRA L IA’S IRIS H N EWS PAPER

news TIPPERARY BORN AUSTRALIAN WORLD WAR 1 HERO HONOURED IN HIS NATIVE COUNTRY A CENTURY ON

Glasnevin honour for ‘fearless gallant soldier’ AN Irish war hero, who received a Victoria Cross for his Australian service during the World War I, has been honoured in Dublin.

Martin O’Meara, from Tipperary, was one of four Irish war heroes honoured with new plaques during Armistice Day commemorations at Glasnevin Cemetery.

The slaughter at the Battle of the Somme left thousands of World War I soldiers with physical and psychological wounds.

O’Meara, an Irish stretcher-bearer who received the Victoria Cross for saving up to 25 Australian lives, found the toll unbearable. The Tipperary native joined the Australian Imperial Force in Perth in 1915.

“He joined up in Western Australia and did the usual thing of training in Egypt,” said Libby Stewart, an historian at the Australian War Memorial. “In this period they were still awarding VCs to people rescuing soldiers.”

That policy changed quickly when the British Government realised that the numbers of people performing such acts was too high. O’Meara, a private in Australia’s 16th Infantry Platoon, was one of the last stretcher-bearers to receive a VC. He did so in Pozières, France.

O’Meara braved intense artillery and machine gun fire to retrieve wounded from ‘No Man’s Land’ over a period of four days.

The London Gazette of September 8,

1916 reported that he carried bombs and ammunition to the trenches as they were being heavily shelled.

“He showed throughout an utter contempt of danger, and undoubtedly saved many lives,” it reported.

O’Meara behaved in a manner which led one officer to describe him as “the most fearless and gallant soldier I have ever seen”.

“He was very lucky to escape under such intense bombardment,” said Stewart. “But it took its toll.”

Traumatised by his experiences, he spent the rest of his life in military hospitals, suffering from what official records call ‘chronic mania’.

He returned to Ireland once before his death. The residents of his hometown Lorrha had raised money in his honour, which he donated to the restoration of the town’s abbey. In 1929, an Armistice Day dinner was held by the Governor of Western Australia to honour those from the state who had received a VC. O’Meara’s declining condition meant that he could not attend. He died in Claremont Mental Hospital, Perth, on December 20, 1935 at 50 years of age and was buried with full military honours in Karrakatta Catholic cemetery.

The new memorials in Glasnevin cemetery also commemorate Frederick Edwards of the Middlesex Regimen, John Vincent Holland of the Leinster Regiment and Thomas Hughes of the Connaught Rangers.

BRAVE SOLDIER : The memorial wall at Glasnevin Cemetery in Dublin and (inset) honouree Martin O’Meara.

TEMPORARY RESIDENTS ARE ‘MORE VULNERABLE’

Govt tightens rules for 457 visa holders THE T ur nbull gover nment has announced new changes to the 457 visa scheme that immigration exper ts believe will make temporary residents more vulnerable to exploitation.

Under the changes, visa holders will have only 60 days to leave the country if they quit or lose their jobs.

The reduction from 90 days to 60 days will apply to 457 visas granted on, or after, November 19 , 2016.

Immigration Minister Peter Dutton said the change would help ensure the 457 program meets its aim of acting as a supplement to, rather than a substitute for, hiring Australian workers. It also is intended to r educe the likelihood of 457 visa holders – who are only permitted to work for an approved sponsor and who are not eligible for unemployment benefits – entering into informal employment arrangements and being exploited.

Mr Dutton said the Australian government was committed to ensuring that Australian workers have priority and to reducing the potential for exploitation.

“This change is about reducing competition from overseas workers for those Australians who are actively looking for work” he said.

“The government values the contribution made by the many skilled persons who work in Australia on 457 visas, but where there is an Australian worker ready, willing and able to perform a role it is the Government’s policy that they have priority” He said the government’s approach

Minister for Immigration Peter Dutton wants fewer ‘foreign workers’ in Australia.

contrasted with that of the former Labor government, which increased the time that 457 visa holders may remain in Australia when they cease employment from 28 days to 90 days in June 2013.

“When Labor’s Shadow Minister for Employment Brendan O’Connor was immigration minister he extended the time from 28 days to 90 days citing a need to allow 457 workers more time ‘to look for another job’,” Mr Dutton said. “This is yet another example of Labor selling Australian workers short.

As at September 30, there were 95,700 skilled migrants in Australia on 457 visas, with about 76,400 secondary visa holders, family members, accompanying them.

But University of Adelaide Senior Lecturer Joanna Howe told The Australian newspaper that the meas-

ures went against the recommendations of an independent review chaired by then Fair Work commissioner Barbara Deegan in 2010, which recommended the period be increased from 30 days to at least 90 days.

In 2013 the then Labor government followed Ms Deegan’s advice and increased the period to 90 days.

Dr Howe said the changes would result in 457 visa holders having very little freedom of movement in the Australian labour market and increase the power employers could exert over foreign workers.

“It effectively gives employers the dual role of both employer and immigration sponsor,” she said.

“By having two hats, which they don’t have with a local worker, the employer’s power is increased to a point where they can exert pressure over a worker to get them to do whatever they want them to do.”

“As it is 457 visa holders already have little job security,” Dr Howe said.

“This will make them far more vulnerable.”

Meanwhile Labor has cranked up its “Australia First” rhetoric on foreign workers. Labor’s shadow Immigration Minister Shayne Neumann said there were about a million people in Australia on temporary work visas.

“If you were to say to Australians there’s a million people on temporary work visas in this country and they’re looking for a job, they’d be saying I want a job for me and my family,” he said last week.

DARWIN ASSAULT: IRISHMAN CHARGED

Irishman refused bail as victim fights for life AN IRISHMAN accused of punching a French “good Samaritan” who was tr ying to break up a fight in Stuart Park, Darwin has been refused bail.

Terence John O’Neill, 30, sat in the dock of Darwin Local Court with his head in his hands when his bail application was rejected last week. As we go to press, the victim of the attack Benjamin Lemieux remains in a critical condition after emergency surgery to relieve bleeding on his brain.

The court heard O’Neill, a brick layer and rugby union player, was dr unkenly wandering around Coronation Drive when he approached a black Jeep. It is alleged he pulled the driver from the car and threatened him.

Mr Lemieux approached Mr O’Neill in an attempt to break up the fight and was punched.

Mr O’Neill was charged with assault with intent to steal, aggravated assault and unlawfully causing serious harm.

The court heard Mr O’Neill was from Ireland but had lived in Australia for nine years and is a citizen.

Mr O’Neill has strong ties to the Darwin community since moving to the Top End five years ago.

The court heard Mr O’Neill may face more serious charges if Mr Lemieux’s condition deteriorated.

Judge Alan Woodcock refused Mr O’Neill bail because he is considered a risk to the community.

“What is of great concern in Darwin is drunks viciously assaulting people.

It happens almost every day, unprovoked assaults. What we have here is a dr unk man assaulting a good Samaritan.

“He was struck with such force that

French national Benjamin Lemieux remains in a critical condition after emergency surgery to relieve bleeding on his brain.

he suffered a brain bleed and remains in intensive care.”

His work colleagues at Sweet Brew cafe in Stuart Park have rallied behind Mr Lemieux and his family.

Co-owner Brigid Stock launched a Go Fund Me campaign for Mr Lemieux’s medical bills and to help pay for his family to travel to Darwin.

“He suffered a brain injury and had to undergo brain surger y. He is in intensive care and it will be a long wait until we know how he will recover,” she said.

“All the money will go straight to his family and any medical costs that will inevitably pile up. Any money is a big help and will get us closer to helping Ben and his family on his journey to recovery.”

4

December, 2016 - January, 2017 I www.irishecho.com.au

AUST R ALIA’S IR ISH NE WSPAP E R

news MELBOURNE OLYMPICS REMEMBERED ON 60TH ANNIVERSARY

Delany’s Olympic moment recalled Ray O’Hanlon MY first ever address in life was Number 16, Main Street, Gorey, Co Wexford. There should be a plaque on the front of that humble house stating: “At this address on an early winter’s night in 1956 a man was heard yelling at the top of his lungs and not a creature in the town stirred. Not even a mouse.”

That man was my father.

He hadn’t lost his marbles, and indeed was quite within his rights in his effort to roar his lungs out trying to stir the town burghers as they slumbered away another night in an Ireland that did a lot of slumbering in those years.

Yes, Dad did precisely the right thing.

I have no memory of it at all, being merely a babe in swaddling in a cot.

Dad was from Monaghan, Mum from Dublin, but they had moved to Gorey when he got himself a teaching job at the local Christian Brothers.

But this tale stretches beyond the local, to a land down under, where the women roar and men thunder, as the song line goes. That would be Australia, host that long ago year to the “summer” Olympics.

It wasn’t summer in Gorey of course.

But it certainly was in Melbourne where an Irish runner named Ronnie Delany was about to go down in sporting lore as an Olympic gold medalist in the 1500 metres.

Apparently I had “met” Delany some months before this winter’s eve.

A few days before I was born my parents, bravely I reckon, trooped to Santry Stadium in Dublin to see Delany run against the great Aussie miler John Landy. I reckon all the excitement caused me to arrive early.

The Melbourne final would be a rematch, and it would be Delany who would triumph over the favored Landy with a decisive burst of speed down the last stretch.

For ever and ever afterwards the image of Delany surging across the finish line, dropping to his knees and crossing himself, would be printed on the collective Irish imagination, proof positive that God had a soft spot for the Irish – if the mood took him.

There was nothing soft about Delany’s win, however. Delany was a hard man when it came to racing. He had steeled himself for future glory at Villanova University under the tutelage of coaching legend Jumbo Elliot.

If you check Delany on Google you will read that the Irish people first learned of the Wicklow-born runner’s amazing Melbourne triumph at “breakfast time.”

They were dependent for the news on RTÉ Radio, which went to bed at a decent hour in those days, as did decent Irish folk. Television, and a native network, was still a few years in the future. And the morning papers were already on the road and rails when Delany lunged for track immortality.

My parents, however, were especially keen and resourceful.

As I heard it years later, and more than once, they had a radio tuned to the BBC which was carrying reports from the far side of the world where it was not only broad daylight, but another season altogether.

So Gorey slept. But my parents leapt when the crackling announcement of Delany’s astonishing win came out of the radio box.

As I was later told, Dad, with a Delany-like burst of speed, raced to a front window, pulled the frame upwards, stuck his head out and roared “Hooray! Hooray for Ronnie Delany.”

He could be a very enthusiastic man at times, and this was one of those moments.

He went on cheering and hallooing for several minutes, fully expecting to be joined by a chorus of delirious Goreyites.

Not a chance. Not a sound.

Even the cats stayed quiet.

He would recall his cheerleading with pride, however, and even more so decades later when Delany was a nearby neighbor in Dublin.

Small world. But then Ireland was always a small world.

And an absolutely silent one on a night sixty years ago this week in a somnolent Wexford town that these days is considered a “dormer” community for the Irish capital. Some things don’t change.

TRACK RECORD: Ron Delany wins gold at the 1956 Olympics in Melbourne and (inset) pictured recently.

THE only man in Ireland who can talk with full authority about winning an Olympic track title is Ronnie Delany.

It was December 1, 1956 when he claimed the gold medal in the 1500m final at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in front of a crowd of more than 100,000.

Last week Delany, now 81, was presented with a special trophy by Athletics Ireland to mark the diamond jubilee of his famous victory.

The presentation was made by Fr Peter O’Donoghue, president of Villanova University, where Delany accepted a scholarship as a teenager in 1954 after abandoning a career in the Irish Army Cadet School. His decision did not sit well with his parents – especially his father.

“To say my father was aghast at the very suggestion that I would leave the Army is putting it mildly,” Delany

recalled. Going to Villanova and linking up with coach Jumbo Elliott proved to be a key factor in Delany’s athletic development. “My formative years were only important in identifying that I had talent,” he says. “America was the key thing and that’s why I went there. There was no other way, in those days, that you could become a great athlete.”

Delany’s build-up to the Olympics was far from ideal. During the summer he got spiked in the heel in an event in Paris and he did little training or racing for the rest of the summer. He figured that he might not even be selected for Melbourne.

Finally, in October, he learned from a newspaper report that he was going to be selected for the 1500m in the Olympics. “Before setting out for Melbourne I knew that Jumbo believed in me,” he recalls. “This, above all,

gave me great confidence. Jumbo’s attitude regarding winning really sunk home. He had me worked up to such a pitch that nothing else was going to satisfy me.

“I wanted to win and I would win for him, my country and myself. Jumbo, my team-mates and my father were probably the only ones who gave me more than a snowball’s chance in hell.”

Having strolled through qualifying, in the final, Delany recalls, “my only goal was to win. I wasn’t thinking about second or third or running well.”

With 350 metres left to run, Delany was still back in 10th as Britain’s Brian Hewson hit the front with local favourite Landy on his heels. Then, Delany made his move around the final bend: a winning move that took him clear to immortality. After breaking the tape, he fell to his knees and blessed himself over and over as Ireland celebrated.

INNOVATORS SWEEP THE BOARD AT THE IRISH AUSTRALIAN BUSINESS AWARDS

Gongs reward successful Irish businesses in Australia INNOVATIVE and disruptive technologies were the theme of the night at the recent Irish Australian Business Awar ds pr esented by the Irish Australian Chamber of Commerce.

Utillix picked up the Start-up Award for an app that has been described by the google maps of the underground.

It is a world first app that maps subsurface utilities and infrastructure.

“I think that we won because our product is innovative, no one else is doing what we are doing and it is globally scalable,’ said Oliver Morrissey, Utillix CEO. “This accolade gives us recognition for the work that we have been doing over the last 12 months and it validates our product.”

The International Trader Award went to CurrencyFair, an online peerto-peer currency exchange market place that is leading innovation in global payments.

“The competition was very tough,” said Sean Bar rett, co-founder of Cur rency Fair. “I think we won because we provide real solutions to real people and it makes a difference to their lives.”

AFK Agency (formerly Mobeseek) a mobile agency started in an internet

cafe in Balmain, Sydney in 2009 by Dublin bor n entrepreneur James Sugrue picked up the prize for small and medium enterprise.

“We have had some really big wins this year. We have co-designed the Commonwealth Bank intranet and we have taken Mini Australia into New Zealand,” Mr Sugrue said.

“It is great for the team both in Sydney and in Dublin to have this recognition and it is really good for the Australian Irish relationship.”

Top Knot Joiner y won the established business award.

Founder Eoin Daniels spoke about his ambition when he moved to Australia from Water ford over ten years ago.

“I was 24, with one employee knocking on doors around Sydney, dropping in business cards to shops, pubs, hotels and building companies to try get some customers to give me work,” Eoin said.

“Over the last 10 years I have formed a fantastic team of passionate and dedicated individuals who continue to evolve and drive the company to new heights.” Siobhan White, from wellness business Hypoxi, won the young entrepreneur award

A U ST R A LI A’ S I R I SH N E WSPA P E R

Telephone: +61 2 9555 9199 Facsimile: +61 2 9555 9186 Postal Address: PO Box 256, Balmain, NSW 2041, Australia E-mail (Admin): mail@irishecho.com.au E-mail (Editorial): editor@irishecho.com.au Web: www.irishecho.com.au The Irish Echo is a national publication published monthly by The Irish Exile P/L Printed by Spot Press Distributed by Network Distribution

CurrencyFair’s co-founder Sean Barrett was among the winners.

Services

5

December, 2016 - January, 2017 I www.irishecho.com.au

A U S TRA L IA’S IRIS H N EWS PAPER

www.workpermitsandvisas.com.au An agent, not an agency – for personal & professional service.

enda o callaghan (llb)(ba)(dip) registered migration agent

Work, Study & Travel Visas

Scones and tea like nana used to make, tucked away at 33 George street in Sydney’s Historical Rocks.

D

suite 2201, level 22, tower 2 westfield, 101 grafton st, bondi junction, nsw 2022, australia.

(02) 8095 6406

enda@workpermitsandvisas.com.au

marn 1383553

It’s a hidden gem. Our quaint Tea Room serving delicious scones baked fresh on premises all day.

theteacosy.com.au

IMMIGRATION LAWYER Tel: 02 9389 2290

www.australianvisas.com.au

e perienc x e l a g s le 25 year ATE, R S S E UCC HIGH S ABLE FEES. N REASO

Email: andrew@australianvisas.com.au

Andrew Hackworthy BComm LLB (UNSW) Solicitor and Attorney MARN: 9790738 Eastern Suburbs Sydney

SCOIL TEANGA CANBERRA 2017

HOMESICK? GET A LITTLE TASTE OF HOME.

The Irish Language Summer School 26-29 Jan 2017 - Applications are open for Canberra’s only live-in Irish language school on the Australia Day long weekend.

The school is open to adults from across Australia, including: - complete newcomers to the Irish language - those who want to improve their Irish, for example those who learnt it at school - fluent people who want to meet to converse in Irish and to help others learn. There are classes at five levels to suit the skills of the participants.

Other Irish activities provide a break in a convivial environment. These include the official opening, table quiz, guest speakers, concert and optional classes in singing, tin whistle, yoga or dance. Informal music sessions continue into the wee small hours. Daytime classes and craic at night.

COME AND JOIN THE FUN. VENUE: Bush Capital Lodge, YMCA, 191 Dryandra Street, O’Connor, ACT 2602.

For more information see: scoilteangaact.com.au or contact Kaaren: Mobile: 0414 231375 Email: scoilteanga.enquiries@gmail.com

The Scoil Teanga Canberra is generously supported by the Embassy of Ireland.

IRELAND’S LEADING BRAND OF

BLACK & WHITE

PUDDING SCAN THE CODE or go to WWW.CLONAKILTY.COM.AU for your nearest stockist.

6

December, 2016 - January, 2017 I www.irishecho.com.au

AUST R ALIA’S IR ISH NE WSPAP E R

news :: ireland :: brexit SCOTTISH LEADER PUSHES IRISH-SCOTS CONNECTIONS IN BREXIT AFTERMATH

‘Celtic corridor’ to strengthen ties SCOTLAND’S First Minster Nicola Sturgeon said she passionately believes historic ties between Scotland and Ireland will be strengthened “to our mutual benefit in the years ahead”.

Ms Sturgeon was speaking during a visit to Dublin during which she met business leaders, students and politicians.

The First Minister backed calls for a “Celtic corridor” of closer business ties between Scotland, Nor ther n Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.

“I think there’s a lot of potential around that,” she said.

Ms Sturgeon reiterated her belief that Brexit could lead to Scottish independence.

The First Minister warned London that if it tries to drive Scotland off a “hard Brexit cliff edge” then Scots would have the right to “choose other alternatives”.

“I have always believed Scotland will become an independent country and I

think it will become an independent country well within my lifetime – and this may be the moment,” she said.

The First Minister was speaking at Trinity College Dublin, where she was

REUNIFICATION

EXPORT BUSINESSES TAKE STOCK OF NEW REALITIES

Unique chance to push for a united Ireland: Sinn Féin

SCOTS WHA HAE: Nicola Sturgeon, Scotland’s First Minister, addresses the Philosophical Society at Trinity College in Dublin last week.

awarded an honorary patronage from the university’s Philosophical Society.

She also said a proposal to allow Britons to remain EU citizens after Brexit, for a fee, should not be ruled

out. “We should be open-minded about solutions that can help, whether it is Scotland or individuals, who want to retain their citizenship, their relationship with the EU,” she added.

Ms Sturgeon said she was willing to consider the possibility as one of a number of “proposed solutions”.

“We shouldn’t be ruling out anything just now,” she said. “We are going into a period that is completely uncharted, in terms of what happens now.

“We are going to have to be imaginative, innovative and creative in the period ahead, if we are going to come out of this Brexit scenario in good shape, without damaging the things that we value in the UK. “So let us be open-minded about some of the suggestions.”

Ms Sturgeon said British membership of the single market is good for all the British Isles and the Irish Gover nment has a strong ally in Scotland.

“The relationship between Scotland and Ireland is better now than it has ever been. The ties between our governments, businesses, cultural organisations, universities and colleges and our people are closer and stronger than ever.

“A hard Brexit is likely to be the most damaging option for trade, jobs and our universities sector. We share the frustrations of the Irish business community about the lack of information we have, and the possibility of a hard Brexit.”

The Scottish leader will publish a blueprint on the countr y’s Brexit options within weeks.

“It will focus on options for Scotland within the UK,” she said, during an historic address to the Seanad.

“Of course, there is also the option of Scotland considering again the question of becoming an independent country. That option remains firmly on the table.”

Turkey farmer refuses to get in a flap over Brexit

David Young

BREXIT has swept away assumptions about the partition of Ireland and presented a “unique opportunity” to press for reunification.

Gerry Adams made the comments as he launched Sinn Féin’s unity blueprint. Under the republican party’s vision for a united Ireland, there would be a series of enshrined protections for unionists, including the option of British citizenship, and the potential retention of a devolved powersharing administration at Stormont.

The party’s discussion document claims “Brexit has changed ever ything”, arguing that the vote to the leave the EU, in the face of a majority vote in Northern Ireland (56 per cent) to remain, has major implications for the debate about the island’s constitutional future.

The paper claims some unionists, particularly “young and liberal” voters, were now willing to explore the potential of a united Ireland.

Sinn Féin said an all-Ireland vote on unification should take place in the next political term.

Under the terms of the 1998 Good Friday peace agreement, the British Secretary of State for Northern Ireland has the power to trigger a poll on unity, but only if he or she believes there has been a shift in public opinion in favour of changing the constitutional position.

The Secretar y of State James Brokenshire has said there is no evidence that Brexit has prompted such a change of opinion.

Sinn Féin president Mr Adams said it was “incomprehensible” to have one part of Ireland within the EU and one outside it.

“It is now vitally important that there is maximum co-operation to uphold the democratic wishes of the people of the North. Ultimately, the only realistic way to ensure this is through the unity of the island of Ireland.”

The paper also questioned the argument that the Irish Republic could not afford Northern Ireland, describing that as a “myth”.

BIRD’S EYE: Turkey farmer David McEvoy at his farm in Co Louth. “ I can’t see them stopping the movement of poultry throughout Ireland.”

Lesley-Anne McKeown ONE of Ireland’s biggest independent turkey farmers has insisted he will not be getting in a flap over Brexit.

Louth-based David McEvoy, whose birds will be feeding thousands of families this Christmas, said he was confident the British vote to leave the EU would not have a bad impact on his all-island business. “I have no concerns.

I can’t see them stopping the movement of poultry throughout Ireland.”

From June, every year, Mr McEvoy rears some 2,500 birds on his land at Termonfeckin.

The biggest this year will weigh about 25lbs (11kgs) when fully grown.

He said he sleeps alongside the turkeys to ensure they have the best start.

Unlike intensively grown turkeys, Mr McEvoy’s do not have their beaks cut and develop full feathers.

They are sent for processing across the border at a plant in Rasharkin, Co Antrim, from December 10.

“I get them as day-old chicks and sleep in the shed for the first two weeks of their life,” he said.

“Turkeys are very fragile and you have to get them warmed up properly before they get their feathers. But after about five weeks they are strong enough to go outside.

“And they are just like little children who don’t want to leave their mammy.

At first they don’t stray too far from the shed but by 10 weeks they go everywhere in the field.

“The real hard work for farmers is at the beginning and then at the end.”

Nonetheless, Mr McEvoy has never been tempted to keep a turkey as a pet, despite their “great personalities”.

“They are produced for food and the satisfaction I get is knowing that they are grown in a healthy way.

“They see the light of day; they are out in the fresh air.

“They see the sunshine and are grown in an environment that suits their characteristic.”

7

December, 2016 - January, 2017 I www.irishecho.com.au

A U S TRA L IA’S IRIS H N EWS PAPER

brexit :: ireland :: news AIRLINE MAVERICK TAKES AIM AT DAD’S ARMY POLITICIANS

O’Leary mocks ‘lunatic optimism’ about Brexit Neil Lancefield RYANAIR boss Michael O’Leary has compared Bristih Government ministers to the characters of television sitcom Dad’s Army because of their “lunatic optimism” about Brexit.

The chief executive of the Dublinbased carrier claimed Britain is about to “walk off a cliff” by leaving the European Union.

Mr O’Leary, who supported the Remain campaign during the referendum, announced earlier this month that Ryanair has cut its growth plans in the UK next year from 12 per cent to 5 per cent because of the uncertainty in relation to Brexit.

Asked what the low-cost airline would do if his expectations turn out to be overly pessimistic, Mr O’Leary replied: “If we get it wrong I’m sure we’ll come charging back into the UK. But there’s very little evidence apart from some mildly lunatic optimism that it will be all right on the night.

“It’s like Dad’s Army going off to war here. It’ll be all right Sergeant (sic) Jones. You’ll just keep plodding along.

“These guys have no idea where

they’re going for the next two years and the problem is that in the absence of any discussions with the Europeans on Brexit they’re all talking to themselves.

“They stand up in the Houses of Parliament (and say) ‘We’re going to do a good deal for Britain’.

“Any idea what a good deal looks like? No, they haven’t a clue. The UK is going to walk itself off a cliff unless somebody in the Tory Party comes up with a bright idea.”

Aviation experts fear that flights

by UK carriers could be grounded if the country withdraws from the single market for aviation. The agreement, created in the 1990s, means there are no commercial restrictions for airlines flying within the EU. Speaking at the annual conference of the Airport Operators Association in west London, Mr O’Leary claimed ministers are giving meaningless assurances to many industries.

“Politicians making lots of warm noises but no specifics.

“Aviation will be high up on the Government’s list of priorities, which is what they say to all the boys they meet these days,” he added.

IT WON’T FLY: Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary says he believes Britain is “walking off a cliff” by leaving the EU.

BREXIT REVIVES TERRITORIAL DISPUTE OVER LOUGH FOYLE BETWEEN UK AND IRELAND

Partition row reignites over estuary Brian Hutton and Lesley Anne McKeown

BREXIT has sparked its first territorial dispute – reigniting an ancient row over the ownership of Lough Foyle.

Claims over the vast estuar y between Co Derry in Northern Ireland and Co Donegal in the Republic of Ireland have been made since the island was partitioned almost a century ago. After the Good Friday Agreement peace deal, a cross-border body called the Loughs Agency was handed responsibility for the waters, a key strategic naval base during World War II. After the Brexit vote, Nor thern Ireland Secretar y of State James Brokenshire has reasserted London’s claim over the entire lough.

In response, Dublin has issued a declaration saying it does not accept the claim and does not see Lough Foyle’s disputed ownership being put on the table as par t of the Brexit negotiations.

Mr Brokenshire (right) was asked in a parliamentary question how fishing rights will be decided in both Lough Foyle and Carlingford Lough – which also straddles both jurisdictions – after Britain leaves the EU. The Conser vative minister said London is committed to withdrawing from the EU Common Fisheries Policy and putting a new fisheries regime in place. No decisions have been taken, he said, adding that the UK was bound by international law.

Asked specifically about Lough Foyle he added: “The Government’s position remains that the whole of Lough Foyle is within the UK.” Dublin’s Depar tment of Foreign Affairs swiftly rejected the claim.

“Ireland has never accepted the UK’s claim to the whole of Lough Foyle,” it said in a statement.

Dublin said both gover nments agreed to try and resolve the ongoing row over both Lough Foyle and Carlingford Lough during talks in 2011 between the then minister for foreign

af fairs and the British for eign secretary.

“Since that time a series of meetings have taken place at of ficial level between the Foreign and Commonwealth Of fice and the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade,” the statement added. “The issues involved are complex and involve a range of different actors, including the Crown Estates.

“This is not something we currently envisage as forming part of the negotiations around the UK’s departure from the EU.” Sinn Féin Senator Padraig Mac

Tel: (02) 8243 2600 Fax: (02) 8243 2611 Email: georgina@celtictravel.com.au

SUITE 502, LEVEL 5, 4 BRIDGE ST, SYDNEY 2000 Licence No. 2TA003945

Lochlainn has branded Mr Brokenshire’s remarks as “arrogant and provocative”.

“The Loughs Agency tasked with responsibility for managing Lough Foyle by both governments has been repeatedly calling for a resolution so that the real tourism and fisheries potential of the Lough can be fully realised,” he added.

Ireland’s Minister for Foreign Affairs Charlie Flanagan said it was an issue upon which “there has been some disagreement for many years”.

“I don’t accept the claims that the whole of Lough Foyle is under the jurisdiction of the UK government.

However, rather than dwell on the negatives, I think it is important that we look forward and see how best this issue might be resolved.”

The minister said officials from his department had been in contact with civil servants from the Secretary of State’s Of fice in a bid to find a resolution.

“I believe it is important that we

work towards solutions and both myself and my depar tment are committed to reaching a successful conclusion on this outstanding issue which has been the subject of disagreement for many decades. I do believe that we should work together on reaching agreement,” he said.

Northern Ireland’s First Minister Arlene Foster said a barrier on the seas would contradict the efforts to avoid a hard border on land. “Obviously if there’s no hard border going to be on land we don’t really want to see a hard border on Lough Foyle either. There has been a dispute over Lough Foyle and it is impor tant that we find a solution that everyone can agree on.”

Deputy First Minister Mar tin McGuinness, a keen fisherman who lives close to the lough, added: “Here, here, Arlene. No hard border on the land; no border on the sea.

“My interest is to see the salmon and the sea trout flow without interruption up Lough Foyle into all of the tributaries.”

AT LAST! ONE HOP WITH ONE STOP - TO IRELAND Call and let us show you how!

8

December, 2016 - January, 2017 I www.irishecho.com.au

AUST R ALIA’S IR ISH NE WSPAP E R

ireland RELATIVES OF MURDERED MEN PLEAD FOR REMAINING ‘DISAPPEARED’ TO BE RECOVERED

Search goes on for missing men David Young

Family members of IRA victim Kevin McKee (inset): his sister Philomena McKee (right) and aunt Philomena Smyth at the Coroners Court in Dublin.

FAMILIES of two so-called disappeared IRA victims, who were found in the same shallow grave, have used their inquests to plead for help finding other missing bodies.

Teenage student Kevin McKee and married labourer Seamus Wright were abducted in Belfast on the same day in 1972 and their loved ones never saw either alive again. More than four decades later, in June last year, their remains were found together in reclaimed bogland in Co Meath.

After hearing the cases separately last month. a jury at Dublin Coroner’s Court found both men were unlawfully killed. Both were allegedly members of the IRA and were murdered because the organisation suspected them of being British informers. They each died from a single gunshot wound to the head.

After the verdicts were delivered, both families urged those with information about the whereabouts of the remaining four disappeared to give it to the institution established to find them.

While 12 bodies have been found, those of Joseph L ynskey, Rober t Nairac, Seamus Ruddy and Columba McVeigh have not.

“Please, please come for ward,” Kevin’s sister, Philomena McKee, said.

“We have come this far with information that has been given. I would plead with anybody to come forward.”

In a statement, the Wright family said: “Today brings final closure on a long painful process. We would appeal that all is done to allow the remaining four families to bury their loved ones.”

In 1999, the IRA issued a statement admitting involvement in the disappearance of nine people, two of whom were Mr McKee and Mr Wright.

The Independent Commission for the Location of Victims’ Remains, set up by the British and Irish governments after the Good Friday peace agreement, is tasked with finding the bodies.

The Provisional movement said that the pair were buried in bogland in Co Meath. The bodies were found inadvertently last year on reclaimed bogland near Coghalstown, during the search for Mr Lynskey.

After the jury returned the respective verdicts, the coroner extended his sympathies to the families and said he hoped the inquests could bring some measure of closure.

Relatives of other disappeared victims attended Mr McKee’s inquest.

S e a n M e g r a w, w h o s e b r o t h e r Brendan’s body was found in 2014, and Maria Lynskey, niece of Mr Lynskey, watched proceedings from the public gallery.

GAA STADIA TO PLAY KEY ROLE IN RUGBY WORLD CUP BID

The Stadia

Deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland Martin McGuinness (second left) with (to his right) former Ireland international Brian O’Driscoll; Taoiseach Enda Kenny; chairman of Ireland’s RWC 2023 Bid Oversight Board, Dick Spring, and IRFU president Stephen Hilditch at the Aviva Stadium. Picture: Brian Lawless

Ireland’s World Cup bid takes shape Brian Hutton LIAM Neeson has donated some celebrity muscle to Ireland’s bid to host the Rugby World Cup 2023.

The Hollywood star narrates a short film being used to pitch the country against South Africa and France for the tournament.

Launching a final push for what would be the biggest event ever put on in Ireland, rugby chiefs revealed the 12 venues that would host the matches.

Derry’s Celtic Park was a surprise inclusion while uncertainty hangs over Belfast’s Casement Park, which has yet to be built.

Flagship venues include Croke Park – one of Europe’s largest stadiums and home to the Gaelic Athletic Association – as well as rugby HQ Lansdowne Road in Dublin.

Taoiseach Enda Kenny said the allIreland bid, supported by the govern-

ments in Belfast and Dublin, showed how sport could “bind up wounds and heal difficulties”.

“This is not going to be easy,” he said. “But we have every reason to believe we will win the right to host World Cup 2023.”

Mr Kenny said he was excited about the bid and urged Ireland’s 80 million strong diaspora to “pull on the green jersey” to get behind the push.

The winning bid will be announced in November next year.

Northern Ireland Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness said he was confident about Ireland’s prospects.

“If it does come it will be massive for our economy, it will be massive for tourism, it will be massive for our sport and massive for our people,” he added.

Noting the inclusion of his native Derry’s Celtic Park, he added: “Wouldn’t it be wonderful to see a Rugby World Cup match played in that city. And

STADIUM OWNER Croke Park

CITY CAPACITY GAA Aviva Stadiu m Dublin IRFU 82,300 Páirc Uí Cha oimh Cork Dublin GAA 51,700 Fitzgerald St adium Kerry Cork GAA 45,770 Casement Park Antrim Killarney

GAA 38,200 Pearse Stad ium Galway Belfast

GAA 34,500 MacHale P ark Mayo Galway GAA 34,000 Thomond Pa rk Castlebar

IRFU 31,000 Nowlan Par k Kilkenny Limerick

GAA 26,987 RDS Arena Kilkenny Royal Dublin 26,000 Society Kingspan S tadium Dublin IRFU 18,677 Celtic Park Derry Belfast GAA 18,168 Derry 17,000

wouldn’t it be even more wonderful to see Casement Park built.”

He joked: “I hope whatever judge is in charge of whatever appeal goes to the courts is a rugby fan.”

Philip Browne, chief executive of the Irish Rugby Football Union (IRFU), confirmed the Irish government has underwritten the £120million tournament fee.

But he said with two million tickets to sell and a knock-on impact on the economy, the six-week competition would be worth €800 million to Ireland.

Because of the close proximity to England, Scotland and Wales, Mr Browne predicted an Irish World Cup would be the best ever attended.

“It is probably the biggest event Ireland could ever hope to host,” he added.

One of Ireland’s biggest selling points is that the 12 long-listed venues are all central locations and fans would not

need to travel far from their lodgings.

World Cup bosses will ultimately choose the venues which would probably be whittled down to between eight and 10, Mr Browne said.

Others include Belfast’s Ravenhill, Dublin’s RDS, Kilkenny’s Nowlan Park, Cork’s Pairc Ui Chaoimh, Killarney’s Fitzgerald Stadium, Limerick’s Thomond Park, Galway’s Pearse Stadium and Castlebar’s McHale Park.

“When you match up the big GAA stadia with the big rugby stadia we have an ideal mix of venues,” said Mr Browne.

Sports Minister Shane Ross admitted work is needed on some stadiums but added: “We have got seven years still to do this, it is a long run-in and we will be well prepared for it.”

Ireland is considered the frontrunner to host the tournament in 2023 with South Africa considered the second favourites ahead of the French.

Liam Neeson is supporting the bid.

9

December, 2016 - January, 2017 I www.irishecho.com.au

A U S TRA L IA’S IRIS H N EWS PAPER

news ULSTER PLAYERS QUESTIONED

Rugby stars deny any wrongdoing

BELFAST ATTRACTION WINS ‘TOURISM OSCAR’

David Young

TWO Ulster and Ireland rugby stars have denied wrongdoing after being questioned by police in connection with a number of alleged sexual offences.

Paddy Jackson and Stuart Olding were two of three men arrested and inter viewed in relation to alleged incidents at a property in south Belfast about six months ago.

The men were released pending a police report being sent to prosecutors for assessment.

The alleged offences and arrests happened in June but details only emerged last month.

A statement by Ulster Rugby made clear the men maintain their innocence.

“Paddy Jackson and Stuart Olding have been assisting the PSNI (Police Ser vice of Nor thern Ireland) with inquiries,” it said.

“The players deny any wrongdoing and have not been charged with any of fence. As no charges have been brought forward, it would be inappropriate to comment further.”

A separate statement by Jackson’s lawyers, KRW Law, said: “He rejects

WORLD-BEATER: Titanic Belfast museum has been declared the world’s best tourist attraction.

Ulster’s Paddy Jackson played for Ireland against the Wallabies.

completely any allegations made against him. Patrick has co-operated fully with police in their inquiries and we have been liaising with police on his behalf.

“We are both disappointed and indeed concerned that this information has been leaked to the press before the investigation has concluded and well in advance of any final decision.”

“Police arrested two men aged 24 and one man aged 23 on Thursday 30 June in relation to a number of sexual offences, reported to have taken place at a property in south Belfast on 28 June,” the PSNI said in a statement.

Titanic win for Belfast tourism attraction Lesley-Anne McKeown TITANIC Belfast has been crowned best tourist attraction in the world.

The museum, which opened in 2012, staved off competition from Ferrari World in Abu Dhabi, the Las Vegas Strip and Peru’s Machu Picchu to clinch the accolade at a ceremony for the World Travel Awards in the Maldives.

It is the first time any attraction from Ireland, north or south, has won in the 23-year history of the awards, dubbed the Tourism Oscars. Tim Husbands, Titanic Belfast’s chief executive, said the museum is delighted.

“The Titanic story captures hearts

and minds throughout the world and at Titanic Belfast this is no exception.

“Our interpretation of the story and ability to engage visitors on many different levels has been fundamental in winning this award.

“With the award, we hope to attract more tourists to Northern Ireland to discover it.

“A huge thank you to our staff and all our supporters that voted, locally and across the world, to help us reach this iconic goal of being the world’s leading tourist attraction.”

The new title puts the Belfast landmark on a par with previous winners such as the Taj Mahal in India and the

Egyptian pyramids. More than one million votes were cast from over 216 countries.

The Guinness Storehouse in Dublin was also in the running.

Earlier this year, the multimillionpound visitors’ centre beat the Eiffel Tower in Paris, Rome’s Colosseum, the Acropolis of Athens and La Sagrada Familia in Barcelona to scoop the best in Europe accolade.

This year, more than 84 per cent of the visitors came from outside Northern Ireland and the attraction has been described by travel writers as “an inspiring testament to the Titanic and the city that built it”.

TRIBUTES TO OLD BAILEY STALWART

Irish-born court ‘matron’ retires after 51 years Emily Pennink

THE legendar y Matron of the Old Bailey has been honoured on her retirement after 51 years’ service.

Catherine Waters, who has been Matron for the past 23 years, became an unwitting Twitter sensation when she aided Rebekah Brooks during the newspaper phone hacking trial.

But within the walls of the historic Central Criminal Court, the unassuming uniformed nurse has been well known for dispensing kindness and medical care to judges, lawyers, and defendants alike.

Known simply as Matron – or affectionately as Matey – she was once asked if she had ever lost a patient and joked: “Absolutely not, I’m quicker than Jesus, don’t you know.”

Matron sat in the judge’s chair of Cour t One of the Old Bailey for a farewell ceremony led by a glowing tribute by the Recorder of London, Judge Nicholas Hilliard QC. “There are people who are so well known that it’s necessary to refer to them only by their first name – Elvis, Oprah, Boris.” he said.

“There is however one name, whose departure we are marking today, who is known simply by her job description -– Matron.”

There was laughter and tears in court as the judge told how Matron was such an “iconic figure” she even crossed between fact and fiction.

Born in Clare, Matron had eight siblings and left school at 16 to look after the younger ones before going to England at 18 to train to be a nurse.

Emerald Travel

For the best deals and service when travelling to Ireland and beyond!

Seamus and Christina Moloughney at Emerald Travel continuing a family tradition of professional travel service.

Clare-born Catherine Waters has been Matron at the Old Bailey for 23 years.

She married in 1971 and went on to have two children and become a proud grandmother.

Senior barrister Sarah Forshaw QC also paid tribute to Matron, with whom she struck up a lasting friendship after getting stuck with her in the Old Bailey lifts. She described her as “quiet and unassuming” with a “wicked Irish sense of humour”.

When the public first became aware of her existence in the phone hacking trial, people “immediately fell in love”.

Social media went “bananas” for Matron after someone tweeted: “Is it wrong that the only thing of the phone hacking trial that interests me is that the Old Bailey has a Matron?”

There were some who thought Matron was a “public school anachronism”, but she saved lives as well as money, the court heard.

“It is Matron who routinely keeps the show on the road should someone fall ill,” she said.

• Don’t forget we offer: • Great Airfares to Ireland, Europe and round the world • Excellent Car Hire in Ireland • Emergency After Hours Service Emerald Travel Level 3, 316 Queen Street, Melbourne Vic 3000 (3rd floor of the Celtic Club complex)

t: (03) 9670 9696 e: info@emeraldtravel.com.au Licence Number: 32507

10

December, 2016 - January, 2017 I www.irishecho.com.au

AUST R ALIA’S IR ISH NE WSPAP E R

news ‘LINE CROSSED’ WHEN MEDIA TYCOON O’BRIEN’S BANKING DETAILS REVEALED

Media mogul takes aim at separation of powers Brian Hutton ONE of Ireland’s richest men has asked the country’s High Court to rule that a line was crossed when two elected representatives disclosed details of his banking affairs in parliament.

In a case which strikes at the separation of State powers, telecoms and media tycoon Denis O’Brien is suing the entire Oireachtas after remarks made under parliamentary privilege last year.

In a rare public appearance the billionaire, who controls a sizeable section of Irish media outlets, was cross-examined for an hour and 20 minutes about his claim that two TDs acted “recklessly and maliciously” in disclosing his affairs using parliamentary privilege to “usurp” a High Court order barring publication.

He also referred to death threats against him and his family about the time of the affair.

“As a citizen, I went into court to get an order that was deliberately unravelled by two members of the Oireachtas,” he said, adding he expected the High Court order to be watertight.

“Instead it was completely porous

because of members of the Oireachtas.” There was standing room only in the packed court 29 in Dublin Four Courts for the beginning of the hearing, which had drawn a small band of disparate protesters who later heckled the businessman as he left.

Last year, Mr O’Brien sought an injunction preventing State broadcaster RTÉ reporting on what he claims are stolen files of his banking records with the State-owned IBRC, formerly rogue lender Anglo Irish Bank.

The Dubliner, who lives in Malta, said two TDs (MPs) – Independent Catherine Murphy and Sinn Féin’s Pearse Doherty – knew exactly what they were doing when they later read details of the file into the public record.

“I am here today to see if there is a way for this to never happen again for any citizen,” Mr O’Brien told the court.

Barrister Michael Collins SC, for the Oireachtas, said the order never applied to the parliament.

“I subsequently learned that,” Mr O’Brien accepted.

“But ... I would have thought that ... members of the Oireachtas would have respected an order of the High Court.”

Denis O’Brien outside the Four Courts in Dublin after appearing in the case he has brought against the State. Mr O’Brien is suing the entire Oirechtas over remarks made about him under prliamentary privilege. Pic: Brian Lawless

TRUMP’S NEW TAX REGIME COULD HIT JOBS IN IRELAND

US firms will leave Ireland, aide says Brian Hutton

ONE of Donald Trump’s top advisers has warned a “flood of companies” will leave Ireland under the presidentelect’s planned new tax regime.

Stephen Moore, senior economic advisor to Mr Trump, said the centrepiece plan of the new Washington administration was wooing back multinationals with radical business tax cuts.

“I believe that when we cut these tax rates – we’re going to cut our business tax rate from roughly 35 per cent down to roughly 15 to 20 per cent – if you do that you are going to see a flood of companies leaving Ireland and Canada and Germany and France and they are going to come back to the United States,” he said.

“It is going to have a ver y high impact on jobs.”

Mr Moore, formerly a chief economist with US conservative think-tank the Heritage Foundation, said the effort to entice companies back from low corporate tax-rate countries would be central to boosting the US economy.

This was the “single most important thing for our country right now”, he told BBC Radio 4’s World At One. “There is no question about it, and we see day after day in this country that we are losing our businesses and our corporations,” he said.

“They are effectively renouncing their US citizenship and they are moving to Canada, to Britain, to Ireland, to China and Mexico.

“That is a significant loss of jobs and we want to have the jobs here in the United States, we don’t want to have them go abroad.”

The remarks follow a telephone conversation between Mr Trump and Taoiseach Enda Kenny, who said the

Donald Trump’s tax plans could mean American firms will leave places like Ireland for the US.

president-elect praised his economic policy.

“I had a very good conversation with the president-elect,” said the Taoiseach.

“He understands Ireland very well, he was complimentary about the decisions made about the economy here.

“He is looking for ward to doing business with Ireland and I asked him specifically about (St) Patrick’s Day, he is looking forward to continuing that tradition over many years.”

It is tradition for the Taoiseach to travel to Washington on March 17 to present the US president with a bowl of shamrock, to symbolise close ties between the countries.

Mr Kenny said Mr Tr ump has invited him to the White House next year to continue the custom.

Earlier, Mr Kenny told the Irish parliament that “racist and dangerous”

remarks made by Mr Trump during the election campaign were made in the “heat of battle”.

“I recall a comment made in the Dáil, when asked if I would agree that comments made in the heat of battle, in a primary election, by the presidentelect, before he was nominated formally as a candidate, were racist and dangerous,” the Taoiseach said.

“And I said ‘yes’, in respect of those comments. “[But] I listened very carefully to the president-elect [after his election victory], and the first thing he said was, it was now time to heal wounds, to build partnerships, to work constructively with people of the US and every other country and people who want to work with him. I am very happy that the government will work with the new administration when appointed by the president-elect.”

The Taoiseach vowed to work with the new administration in Washington “in the cause of international peace and security”.

“On behalf of the Government and the people of Ireland, I am pleased to offer our sincere congratulations to Donald J. Trump on his election as the 45th president of the United States,” he said. “Ireland and the United States have enjoyed a very close and warm relationship for many generations and I am confident that under his leadership our bilateral relations will continue to prosper.”

Mr Kenny praised defeated candidate Hillary Clinton for being “a friend to Ireland who fought such a tough campaign”. He also congratulated the new vice president-elect, Mike Pence, who, he said, “is a proud Irish American who spent many summers in Ireland as a child”.

Mr Trump owns a golf resort in Doonbeg, Co Clare.

KEY CANALS CLOSED IN DUBLIN

Closure criticised as ‘over the top’ by canal operators Ed Carty

TWO of the country’s premier waterways have been shut down with authorities blaming indiscriminate attacks on boaters and barges.

The Grand Canal and Royal Canal were closed indefinitely in Dublin at the end of September despite up to €50 million being spent in recent years to encourage more traffic to flow.

Water ways Ireland blamed antisocial behaviour and warned of safety fears for its staff and boaters after cataloguing 28 incidents in four years including assault, intimidation, theft, vandalism and arson.

The shutdown was ordered after a gang of youths pelted a couple on a boat with rocks as they were being guided through the lock in Inchicore and blocked the boat from passing through.

The agency claimed its staff have been harassed and threatened elsewhere as they escort up to 70 boats a year through the capital.

Mick Kinahan, of the Dublin branch of the Inland Waterways Association of Ireland and an experienced guide on the Dublin canals, accused authorities of over-reacting.

“I would hate to see that because of a few incidents, some of them minor, that this approach is taken,” he said.

“It’s totally and utterly over the top.

I would question the agenda.”

Waterways Ireland began formally guiding boats in and out of Dublin on the canals in 2007 in order to keep users safe. Anyone wanting to use the routes has to give two days notice.

It said the worst incidents of antisocial behaviour generally occur between the first and sixth locks on the Grand Canal and during spells of good weather.

The incident in August, which is said to have sparked the closure order, involved a couple who wished to travel across Ireland by water, including passing through Dublin.

“The recently reported incident has

The Grand Canal and Royal Canal in Dublin have been closed indefinitely despite opposition from operators.

been the most serious and required an appropriate response,” a spokeswoman said.

“Presently a review is being conducted of the movement of boat in the area identified and the procedures in place.

“Waterways Ireland is taking this opportunity to undertake a review of the wider process, and when it is completed any appropriate updates will be put in place, aimed again at the safety of boaters and staff.”

Waterways Ireland apologised for the closure of the canals but said it expected disruption to be limited as it does not have any current bookings for boats to be guided through the city.

Up to 70 barges and boats travel the route every year.

Mr Kinahan questioned whether Waterways Ireland were attempting to stop boats and barges getting access to the Grand Canal Basin amid concerns over permits and overcrowding at the city centre berths.

“Things are not as bad. These things happen in isolated areas,” he said.

“Anti-social behaviour is going to take place anywhere in the country.

“I would speculate that they have used this to close the canals. But I can’t see how it is for health and safety grounds for these minimum number of incidents.”

A U S TRA L IA’S IRIS H N EWS PAPER

December, 2016 - January, 2017 I www.irishecho.com.au

11

Daniel O’Donnell WITH SPECIAL GUEST

Mary Duff

Newcastle 11 March • Entertainment Centre Melbourne 13 & 14 March • Arts Centre Melbourne, Hamer Hall Tweed Heads 16 & 17 March • Twin Towns Services Club Brisbane 18 March • Convention Centre Canberra 20 March • Royal Theatre Sydney 21 March • State Theatre Adelaide 23 March • Festival Theatre Perth 25 March • Riverside Theatre BOOK AT USUAL OUTLETS danielodonnell.org

12

December, 2016 - January, 2017 I www.irishecho.com.au

AUST R ALIA’S IR ISH NE WSPAP E R

ireland CONSTRUCTION

TAX EMPTY HOUSES TO TACKLE DUBLIN’S RISING HOMELESSNESS, SAYS CHARITY

Jobs, orders Charities call for urgent action to address crisis increase as sector rises Brian Hutton

Lesley-Anne McKeown

GROWTH in the Irish construction industry has hit a seven-month high, new figures indicate.

Activity, new orders and employment all increased at faster rates in October, the Ulster Bank Construction Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) shows.

Companies also increased their purchasing activity, and confidence over future output also improved from September.

Simon Barry, a chief economist with Ulster Bank said: “Overall, the October results paint an encouraging picture of recent developments at Irish construction firms. Solid readings across the headline, new orders and employment indicators highlight that momentum behind the sector’s recovery continues to look strong.”

The PMI, a seasonally-adjusted snapshot designed to track changes, found the commercial construction category was the best performer for the sixth successive month.

Activity on housing projects also rose at a sharp and accelerated pace during October.

The rate of new order growth was substantial, having quickened for the fifth consecutive month to the strongest since February.

As a result, construction firms were encouraged to increase their staffing levels. The rise in new business in October was also a key factor behind an expansion of purchasing activity by construction firms – among the sharpest since the sur vey began in mid-2000.

Business sentiment ticked up in October and remained strongly positive, with about two-thirds of respondents predicting an increase in activity over the next 12 months.

Among the factors supporting optimism were predictions of improving market conditions and a good pipeline of work, the survey said.

“Firms continue to report a strengthening in client demand amid a general improvement in economic conditions,” Mr Barry added.

TAXES should be slapped on Dublin’s 35,000 empty homes as the number of rough sleepers in the capital soars, homelessness campaigners have said.

Latest official figures show a 56 per cent rise in the numbers sleeping on the streets of the capital since last winter. And the true scale of the crisis is believed to be much worse when ‘hidden homeless’ numbers are taken into account.

At least 142 people were sleeping on the streets last month, when a twiceyearly count was taken.

Pat Doyle, chief executive of the housing charity Peter McVerry Trust, said forcing thousands of homes lying empty across the city back into residential use would have an impact.

“There are just over 35,000 vacant private homes in Dublin,” he said.

“While not all of these can be immediately returned to use, a significant proportion can and must be.

“The only way to do this effectively is to introduce a vacant property tax to push the houses back into the system, either for rent or for sale.”

Meanwhile, the number of homeless children has hit record levels, according to one of Ireland’s biggest charities.

Some 2,400 children and 1,200 families are without a roof over their head, Focus Ireland said as it made an urgent plea for help.

Sister Stan Kennedy, who launched the charity’s Christmas appeal, said: “It breaks my heart to think that up to 2,500 children will be homeless on Christmas Day.” “I know from meeting families who are homeless that we support, it’s the children who feel it the worst. Many times, a family who are homeless are often squeezed into one hotel room – three or four people in one room, nowhere to cook or for children to play.

“There are also many single people and couples homeless and they all need a place to call home.”

Focus Ireland’s family team services have supported 230 families and just under 450 children in Dublin to secure a home and escape from the trauma of homelessness so far this year.

One mother, Gillian, who was homeless but has now secured a place to live, said: “I don’t think I’d be here now if it wasn’t for Focus. I wake up every day now and think ‘I have a home’.”

DOWN AND OUT: The housing crisis in Dublin is getting worse, with the numbers of rough sleepers and homeless families recaching new highs.

HOUSING MARKET BOOST ANTICIPATED

Lending rules relaxed Brian Hutton

FIRST-TIME home-buyers should find it easier to get on the property ladder as mortgage lending rules are relaxed in the New Year.

The Central Bank said it was abolishing its 20 per cent deposit demand for home loans worth more than €220,000.

From January onwards, first-time buyers will have to put down a minimum 10 per cent deposit regardless of the house value.

Under the new regime, someone buying their first home for €350,000 will need savings of €35,000.

Under the current rules, the same first-time buyer would need a minimum of €70,000 as a deposit.

Controversial regulations brought in last year capped mortgage lending to 90 per cent of the house value for borrowings less than €220,000, and 80 per cent for loans in excess of that.

But anyone who already owns their

home and is moving will still have to stump up a 20 per cent deposit.

The rules have been overhauled after a lengthy review by the Central Bank. Builders, estate agents and sur veyors broadly welcomed the changes.

Pat Davitt, chief executive of the Institute of Professional Auctioneers and Valuers, said they would give a definite boost to the housing market.

“It will be particularly relevant in Dublin and other urban centres where prices are higher and aspiring purchasers have been disproportionately impacted,” he added.

Tom Parlon, of the Construction Industry Federation, said the changes should help first-time buyers and lead to banks lending to house builders again to start development.

“The changes in new lending by banks over the loan to value ratio should allow banks to lend to more people who can af ford to ser vice

mortgages [and] those with a strong record of paying rent,” he added.

Philip Lane, governor the Central Bank, said: “Over the past 18 months, the measures have helped to ensure that those who buy homes are better prepared to manage their mortgage payments in the event of a future downturn in the economy or in the housing market.

“While our review process affirmed the value of the overall framework, some modifications to the measures were suggested by our evidence-based analysis.”

“The 3.5 times ceiling on the loan to income ratio remains unchanged. The 90 per cent loan to value ratio limit for all first time buyers simplifies the overall framework, with only 5 per cent of lending permitted above this level,” he added.

Rules for buy-to-let borrowers and exemptions for negative equity mortgage borrowers remain unchanged.

RENTS REACH ALL-TIME HIGH

Relentless rise in rents having ‘disastrous’ effect Brian Hutton

RENTS have soared to a new all-time high, inflicting disastrous consequences on the country.

Average rents nationwide have rocketed by about 12 per cent over the past year, smashing through Celtic Tiger levels in many cities and towns.

Ronan Lyons, Trinity College Dublin economist and author of the property website Daft.ie report, described the relentless rise in rental costs as grim.

“The figures from the third quarter of 2016 are worrying,” he said.

“They include a new all-time high for the average monthly rent nationwide, the highest rate of annual inflation on record, as well as the joint highest quarterly increase in rents.”

Rents in most areas of the country – both in Dublin and outside the capital – are rising by more than 10 per cent a year.

The increases are having a “disastrous effect” on communities as well as the country’s economic outlook, Mr Lyons said.

The latest analysis shows average monthly Dublin rents are now at €1,580 – up more than 12 per cent since last year; Cork at €1,087, up by more than 14 per cent; and Galway at €962, up by almost 11 per cent.

Average rents in Limerick are up by more than 13 per cent at €862; while in Waterford they rose by 11 per cent to €735. Around the rest of the country, average rents now stand at €764. The rises are the biggest recorded by Daft. ie since its inception in 2002.

Huge demand for rental properties and too few available homes are being blamed for the sharp rises.

There were just over 3,600 properties available to rent last month. Just two years ago, at the same time of year, there were almost 6,000.

A U S TRA L IA’S IRIS H N EWS PAPER

December, 2016 - January, 2017 I www.irishecho.com.au

13

14

December, 2016 - January, 2017 I www.irishecho.com.au

AUST R ALIA’S IR ISH NE WSPAP E R

ireland SURVEY DEPICTS A NATION OF OVERWEIGHT DRINKERS

Ireland’s ticking health bomb IRELAND is a nation of overweight drinkers with back problems, high blood pressure and allergies, the first survey of its kind indicates.

Almost a 10th of the population is depressed while one in 10 youngsters has seen a psychiatrist, psychologist or psychotherapist over the past year.

The stark findings are revealed in the Irish Health Survey, a state-of-thenation study under a wider European project that polled more than 10,000 households.

It found more than half (53 per cent) of Irish people are over weight or obese. More than a fifth (22 per cent) smoke, with people living in poorer areas more likely to have a tobacco habit. About eight in 10 (81 per cent) people regularly drink alcohol – with a sixth (16 per cent) of the population admitting that they binge drink more than once a week.

The survey found: :: Almost a 10th (8 per cent) of the population said they are at least moderately depressed. :: One in 10 of those aged 15 to 24 said they have visited a psychiatrist, psychologist or psychotherapist over the past year. :: Chronic back pain is the most common condition, affecting almost a fifth (19 per cent) of the population; followed by high blood pressure (16 per cent); and allergies such as rhinitis, eye inflammation, dermatitis and food allergies (14 per cent).

Despite this, the majority of people questioned (83 per cent) said they believe their health to be good or very good. But almost a third (32 per cent) said they have a long-standing illness or health condition.

Damien Lenihan, of the Central Statistics Office which released the report, said the findings give a good overview of the nation’s health.

LITERATURE

UN’S IRISH FORCES ARRIVE HOME

Brian Hutton

Key Points More than half of Irish people are overweight or obese.

Sixteen per cent of Irish people regularly binge on alcohol.

Nineteen per cent of Irish people suffer from chronic back pain.

One in 10 of those aged 15 to 24 have visited a psychiatrist, psychologist or psychotherapist.

“This first release of the Irish Health Sur vey provides a comprehensive picture of self-repor ted health in Ireland,” he said.

“This is due to the breadth of the survey, examining aspects of health such as health status, health care usage, and health determinants.”

The average Irish person visits a GP

six times a year, the poll found. A quarter of the population reported taking at least one day off work over the past year because of a health-related problem.

The survey also revealed one in 10 looks after someone with a chronic health condition or infirmity due to old age. In most cases the person being cared for is a family member. The average number of hours spent providing care is almost 45 hours a week.

Rachel Clark, health promotion manager at the World Cancer Research Fund, said the report is incredibly worrying.

“After not smoking, being a healthy weight and avoiding alcohol are the most important things you can do to reduce your cancer risk,” she said.

“We urgently need to increase awareness across Ireland of the dangers of drinking alcohol and being overweight”, especially in relation to developing cancers, Ms Clark said.

Ireland is confronting a range of health problems, many of which increase the risk of cancer.

No stopping Irish author who spurns full stops Francesca Gosling

AN author who wrote an entire book in a single, novel-length sentence has been awarded a £10,000 prize.

Galway-based Mike McCormack scooped the Goldsmiths Prize 2016 for Solar Bones, which covers just a few hours in the life of Irish engineer Marcus Conway, briefly returned from the dead on All Souls’ Day in 2008.

Published by Tramp Press, the work was chosen from 111 books up for the prize, and is the fourth winner of the competition, founded in 2013.

One of the judges, Professor Blake Morrison, said: “Set over a few hours in a single day, and told in the firstperson voice of a middle-aged engineer, Mike McCormack’s Solar Bones transcends these seeming limits magnificently.

“Politics, family, ar t, mar riage, health, civic duty and the environment are just a few of the themes it touches on, in a prose that’s lyrical yet firmly rooted. Its subject may be an ordinary working life but it is itself an extraordinary work.”

The book begins almost in poetry format, with: “the bell the bell as hearing the bell as hearing the bell as standing here the bell being heard standing here hearing it ring out through the grey light of this morning, noon or night”.

It continues as prose, but without any full stops or full sentences.

McCormack, 51, grew up in Co Mayo and is best known for his collections of short stories, including Getting It In The Head (1996) and Forensic Songs (2012).

“I didn’t think I was going to win,” Mc Cormack said. “It would have been too much of a fairy tale on top of a fairy tale of getting the book published and it being critically well-received. That was it: I didn’t think it was going to go any further but it has.

“It’s about time that mainstream publishers started honouring their readership by saying: ‘Here are experimental books’.”

HOME, AT LAST: Private Robert Hayes is greeted by his children at Dublin airport, as the 53 Infantry Group returns to Ireland after a six-month deployment to the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon. Picture: Brian Lawless

MICHAEL D HIGGINS PRAISES CASTRO; ADAMS IN CUBA FOR FUNERAL

President defends eulogy for Cuban leader Castro Lesley-Anne McKeown PRESIDENT Michael D Higgins has rejected claims he ignored human rights concerns in a statement marking the death of Fidel Castro.

Criticism of the comments in which Mr Higgins described the former Cuban president as a “giant among global leaders” has been unwarranted, his spokesman said.

“Any suggestion that the President neglected human rights concerns is both unsustainable and unwarranted,” the spokesman’s statement said.

“The President has discussed human rights concerns with representatives of the government of Cuba on every occasion he has had meetings, in

Cuba, Ireland and elsewhere. In all of his speeches on human rights the President has emphasised the universality of human rights and has never shirked from the presentation of that view.”

Earlier, Mr Higgins said Fidel Castro would be remembered as a giant among global leaders whose “view was not only one of freedom for his people but for all of the oppressed and excluded peoples on the planet”.

“The President’s statement clearly referred to the price paid for social and economic development in terms of civil society and the criticisms it brought,” the spokeman said.

“This obviously and unambiguously included the human rights organisations and activists who have always had the

support of the President.

“The President made a further reference to civil society later in his statement in the context of the opportunities provided by restoration of diplomatic relations with the United States, and the response which has come from the visit of Pope Francis.

“The President was here referring to the release of prisoners,” he added.

Earlier, Irish Foreign Minister Charlie Flanagan said President Higgins was “entitled” to make his own views known about Mr Castro.

He told RTÉ the former Cuban leader was a complex figure who had left behind a mixed legacy.

“I very much respect the right, in the first instance, but also the view of

Michael D Higgins,” the foreing mnister said. “If you go back over the last 40 years, no one in Irish politics has done so much work or had such a level of association with Latin American politics than Michael D Higgins himself.”

Fianna Fáil’s spokesman on foreign affairs, Darragh O’Brien, said Mr Higgins’ statement was not as balanced as it could have been.

Meanwhile, Sinn Féin leader, Gerry Adams, travelled to Cuba for Fidel Castro’s funeral.

“Fidel Castro was a global leader and a good friend of the Irish people,” Mr Adams said.

“I am proud and honoured to travel to Cuba to represent Sinn Féin, as we remember Fidel Castro.”

A U S TRA L IA’S IRIS H N EWS PAPER

15

December, 2016 - January, 2017 I www.irishecho.com.au

140 CAMPBELL PARADE

BONDI BEACH 78 Bronte Road

BONDI JUNCTION Visit thechipshop.com.au facebook.com/thechipshop

49-55 St Pauls Street (THE SPOT)

RANDWICK Call 1300 CHIP SHOP

@the_fish_shop

the_chip_shop_syd

16

Comment

December, 2016 - January, 2017 I www.irishecho.com.au

AUST R ALIA’S IR ISH NE WSPAP E R

A U S TRA L I A’ S I RI S H N EW S PA P E R

Brexit, Trump herald a year of living dangerously

BY THIS time next year, Britain may have completed its painful departure from the European Union. France, possibly under President Marine Le Pen, may be preparing to follow suit. New US President Donald Trump may have started a global trade war and both Ireland and Australia may be forced, once again, to the polls as unstable governments lose their grip on power.

Western democracies have been rocked this year by the rise of ultra-nationalism, anti-globalisation sentiment, hostility towards migrants and working class discontent.

It is a powerful cocktail.

In Australia, sadly, we have seen opportunistic politicians from both sides spurn the opportunity to challenge simplistic notions around protectionism and xenophobia.

Instead, they have sought to dog whistle their way into the hearts and minds of those voters who have drawn comfort from the shock of Brexit and the emergence of Trump.

On the Liberal side, we saw the unlovable Immigration Minister Peter Dutton castigate the late Malcolm Fraser for giving visas to Lebanese Muslims in the 1970s.

Meanwhile, the increasingly unrecognisable Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull is trying to sound more intolerant than the intolerant. During the interminable debate over the backpacker tax, he decided to point the finger at “rich, white” European working holidaymakers who might, he posited, be getting a better tax deal than Pacific Island migrant workers who might be sending money back to “their villages”. A bizarre rant.

On the Labor side, we saw Bill Shorten callously and disingenuously take aim at the 457 visa scheme which, he alleged, was taking ‘Aussie jobs’.

Be sure to tell your friends and relatives in Ireland considering

Since when did our politicians decide that they have lost the power of persuasion; that it is more politically beneficial to merely be subservient to prejudice, rather than to challenge it? the 457 path that Australia politicians are demonising them even before they arrive.

This is dangerous, lazy politics.

Any serious economic investigation of the 457 visa scheme has found it to be a big winner for Australia.

But now is not a time for facts, it seems.

Since when did our politicians decide that they have lost the power of persuasion; that it is more politically advantageous to merely be subservient to prejudice, rather than to challenge it; that to appeal to the better angels of people’s souls is to appear weak?

Since the re-emergence of Pauline Hanson’s One Nation, politicians and conservative commentators have been quick to assert that those who voted her in “need to be listened to”, that “600,000 Australians” can’t be ignored.

But Hanson, like Trump and UKIP, espouses openly racist

policies. In a decent society, surely racism should not ever be cynically accommodated for political expediency.

We teach our children to respect difference and to not make judgements about people based on their race or creed. But as the forces of discontent rise, that message is being undermined by our leaders who want to jump on board the bandwagon of discontent, fuelling prejudice as they go.

As 2016 ends and 2017 begins, lets hope that the Western world can find a way to pull back from the ever-growing urge to build walls and point fingers.

THE Irish Echo lost a trusted friend last month. Seumas Phelan was a legendary figure in Irish and Australian journalism. Over a five-decade career that began at the Irish Times, Seumas carved out an undisputed reputation as a gifted journalist who brought integrity, intelligence and good humour to all aspects of his work.

Apart from winning many plaudits of his own – including multiple Walkley Awards – Seumas skillfully taught and mentored many young, and not so young journalists. The Irish Echo was one of many publications to benefit from his expertise. He was also much loved by colleagues, friends and family. We offer our deepest sympathies to his partner Liz, children Liam and Amanda, daughterin-law Dani and grandchildren Grace, Ruairi, Conor and Rosa.

We would like to wish all of our readers, subscribers, advertisers and contributers a very happy and safe Christmas and a peaceful and prosperous new year. Thank you for your continued support as we approach our 30th year in print. Since 1988, the Irish Echo has been the newspaper of record for the Irish in Australia and we look forward to the next chapter in our story.

editor@irishecho.com.au

Dubliner Isabel Hayes has resettled in Ireland after seven years in Australia.

Unfair city, Dublin’s property conundrum

a native once again

Isabel Hayes

“

First-time buyers now just need a 10 per cent deposit, no matter how much they borrow. But the salary restriction remains in place, so for most people, it’s little cause for celebration.

”

RECENTLY I went house-hunting with a friend in Ballybough, Dublin 3. It was a two-up, two-down terraced house extremely close to Croke Park – what might be some people’s idea of a nightmare come summer time. It’s not the most gentrified of areas either, although extremely central.

This tiny 63-square metre house would traditionally have appealed to single people or maybe a couple. It was beautifully presented but it wasn’t much bigger than a small apartment.

However, the hordes of families piling in to view the property seemed to think they could make it work for them.

There were several couples with two children in tow viewing it. It might be tiny – the second bedroom could hardly hold a single bed and there was no scope to extend – but for many families desperate to escape the spiralling rental market and buy their own home in Dublin, this size of house, with an asking price of €250,000, is their only choice.

A report recently found that people buying a house in Ireland in the eighties paid far higher interest rates than new buyers these days.

But that’s of little consolation to those who are currently house-hunting.

It may not be true to say it’s never been so difficult, but it is definitely extremely hard.

The mortgage lending restrictions introduced last year prevent buyers from borrowing more than three-and-a-half times their salary. And until recently, they also had to provide a deposit of 20 per cent on any lending over €220,000.

Last week however, the Central Bank announced it was repealing the last measure.

First-time buyers now just need a 10 per cent deposit, no matter how much they borrow. But the salary restriction remains in place, so for most people, it’s little cause for celebration.

For someone borrowing €300,000 (which currently gets you an apartment or a two-bed house in an area like Ballybough in Dublin’s inner city), the relaxation of the deposit rule means that instead of having to save €38,000, they need a deposit of €30,000. It’s not much relief.

The main barrier is the salary restriction. Many people can’t reach a mortgage of €300,000, even when taking two salaries into account. Those who

can are battling it out for an extremely small number of desirable properties, with demand far outweighing supply.

That house in Ballybough had an asking price of €250,000, but a furious bidding war was still underway last week between several parties and it had reached €310,000.

It’ll probably sell for higher.

Another friend recently lost out in a bidding war for a two-bed apartment in Dublin 12. It sold for €30,000 over its asking price.

These kinds of bidding wars are exactly what my husband and I went through when we were house-hunting 18 months ago.

We bought our house within two weeks of our mortgage approval running out.

If we hadn’t managed it, we would have been subject to the new regulations and would never have been able to afford our current home.

Panic at the impending regulations caused us to bid higher than we would have done otherwise, and we eventually bought our home for €20,000

more than the asking price. But we’ve never regretted it, especially when we see that people are still having to engage in bidding wars that are as heated now – if not more so – than they were before the restrictions were put in place.

Properties of a certain price are still selling for far beyond their worth because they are in such short supply and people are so desperate to buy them.

Rents are higher now than they were at the height of the boom and for the majority of people, paying a mortgage is far cheaper than paying a rent.

My friends are still house-hunting and engaging in more bidding wars.

Hopefully they will eventually find a property they love. But it’s quite possible they’ll get property they can just about live with – if they’re lucky enough to secure them. And they firmly believe that the relaxation of the deposit rule will just throw more competition into an already overcrowded house-hunting pool.

December, 2016 - January, 2017 I www.irishecho.com.au

time out

17

18

time out

December, 2016 - January, 2017 I www.irishecho.com.au

Mal Rogers scans Ireland’s regional media for what’s making news in your county LOUTH

Man rang former wife 120 times in a single night A MAN accused of breaching a barring order rang his former wife 120 times in one night, Louth district court has heard.

The Argus reports that Derek Clelland, 45, from Dundalk, had denied two counts of breaching the order, taken out by his former wife on November 26 last year.

The defendant pleaded not guilty to alleged breaches of the order on two occasions.

Clelland was found not guilty on the first charge and the second incident, about which it is alleged he contacted his former wife 120 times by phone, has been adjourned until January.

On receipt of the first complaint an officer went to speak to Clelland and told him he believed he was in breach of the barring order. Clelland asked: “How did I breach the order?”

The garda officer told the court that Clelland was highly abusive after his arrest, telling one garda officer: “I hope your marriage breaks up and your children and taken away from you.”

However the judge decreed that there was insufficient evidence to convict.

Clelland’s former wife gave evidence alleging a second breach of the barring order. She told the court that she started receiving calls from a blocked number at about 11pm and initially ignored them. However when she eventually answered, she claimed she heard her husband telling her: “I’m out the back garden.”

The second time she said he told her he was watching her and could see her.

She said the calls continued until 6.30am and there were 119 missed calls on her phone. She said the calls frightened her because she was in the house on her own.

Judge Brennan adjourned the case until further evidence could be collected.

GALWAY

Inis Mór islanders face withdrawal of winter ferry GALWAY Bay FM News reports that the Minister of State for Gaeltacht Affairs and Galway West TD Sean Kyne is being urged to provide a contingency plan for Inis Mór islanders who could lose their winter ferry service very soon.

It comes as Island Ferries reaffirmed its intention to suspend the Aran Island service over the winter months until March 2017 – citing the “negative fiscal conditions” created by the local authority.

The dispute with Galway County Council concerns the imposition of passenger levies to be charged at Kilronan Pier.

Galway West Sinn Fein Senator Trevor O’Clochartaigh says alterna-

tive arrangements must be put in place to ensure islanders are not stranded.

Councillors are to be asked to reduce the passenger levy from 80c to 40c per passenger – and to outright scrap the €5 passenger fee for permanent residents on the island.

The move follows a meeting held with acting county manager Kevin Kelly to discuss the dispute, which centres on a bylaw in 2011 that introduced a per-passenger levy.

A spokeswoman for Island Ferries, Jason O’Sullivan, said the council had left the company with no other option other than to withdraw the Inis Mór service.

Council has announced that a service will continue over the Christmas period until January 4.

LIMERICK

Drink and drugs played a role in fatal Limerick boating accident THE consumption of drugs and/ or alcohol over a protracted period of time affected the judgement of four men who were involved in a fatal boating accident on the River Shannon earlier this year, an official report finds.

The Limerick Leader reports that in the early hours of Thursday, February 4, 2016, four young men took a boat from Castleconnell Boat Club and launched it into the River Shannon. One of the men drowned.

The report, published recently by the Marine Casualty Investigation Board (MCIB), says the men had been taking drugs and/or drinking alcohol since the previous afternoon.

“The men were in the water for approximately two and a half hours struggling with the assistance of the rescue services to keep their heads above the surface of the water in a very fast flowing river,” the report states.

“It is possible that they may not have been aware of their limitations in ability to handle a boat and the assessment of the dangerous water conditions,” the report adds.

The report states that four young men, aged between 25 and 32 years “had been drinking and/or taking drugs to varying degrees during the day.

“Although none of the men knew anything about boating, they took the boat out onto the river.

“Given the poor visibility and the amount of drugs and alcohol consumed they did not notice that the drain plug was missing in the transom, which resulted in the ingress of water.”

Investigators established that once the boat capsized, the men had no safety equipment available, such as flotation devices, and for two and half hours that they were in the water.

“Once the boat had capsized two of the group were trapped, one by the boat and one by branches underwater after his footing slipped,” the report states.

Despite the best efforts of the

CHILLING OUT: Punters brave the cold at Punchestown Racecourse in Kildare, Ireland, as the last of the golden autumn leaves continue to fall. Brian Lawless/PA Wire rescue services one man whose foot had become entangled in undergrowth was later pronounced dead. The death of Noel Quinlivan, 27, Castleconnell, the report states, was due to drowning.

KERRY

Kerry may erect signs amid risk of Lyme disease KERRY may be the first county to erect signs warning walkers and outdoor adventurers about the risks of the highly debilitating Lyme disease.

The Irish Examiner reports that the disease is spread by ticks from deer and other animals.

Lyme disease has remained high profile in the Kingdom after a former Kerry footballer became a casualty and spoke out.

Consultation between Kerry County Council, public health officers and wildlife services follows a motion by Tralee councillor Norma Foley.

“We need to encourage people involved in outdoor pursuits to be vigilant,” she warned.

“We should show leadership in this county about the risks involved,” said Ms Foley, a teacher.

While the disease is primarily “an HSE issue”, she said it was hugely important for Kerry, with its reliance on the outdoors and popularity of walking for tourism income.

The small ticks associated with Lyme disease need to be attached to the body a number of hours before passing on the infection.

Ms Foley said “signage would be of benefit” encouraging people to remove the ticks promptly.

ARMAGH

Surgeon Sellu ‘sorry’ about death of Armagh man A SURGEON whose conviction for gross negligence after the death of a Co Armagh construction boss was overturned on appeal has said he still feels “very sorry” for the victim’s family.

James Hughes, 66, was under the care of consultant David Sellu when he died at the Clementine Churchill Hospital in Harrow in 2010.

Mr Hughes became ill after a routine knee replacement carried out by another surgeon.

Mr Sellu later carried out surgery to repair a perforated bowel, but there had been delays in carrying out that operation and Mr Hughes died two days later.

The conviction has now been quashed by the Court of Appeal after the top medic had served 15 months in jail.

In an interview with the Mail on Sunday, Mr Sellu described his conviction as the “worst day” of his life.

Speaking about the Appeal Court verdict, Mr Sellu said he feels “no jubilation, only a little relief”.

“I still can’t sleep properly. I’m on beta-blockers to stop my heart racing. And I feel like a pariah.

“I’ve had to cope with headlines that called me ‘Doctor Death’ and ‘Killer Surgeon’.

“That doesn’t go away. The Crown Prosecution Service know they made a hash of this case. My hope now is that they will think twice before trying to criminalise others working in healthcare.”

DONEGAL

Stained glass window finds home in Donegal after 50 years A WINDOW commissioned for a New Zealand church in the 1960s has ended up in Killybegs, reports the Donegal Democrat. The glass window has now been unveiled at the church of St Mary of the Visitation in Killybegs.

The Donegal Democrat reports that the three-panel stained glass window, which is boxed and lit, is entitled God the Father. It was made

by Harry Clarke Stained Glass Ltd in Dublin in the 1960s, before the company closed the following decade.

Harry Clarke, who died in 1931, is recognised as one of Ireland’s greatest stained glass artists.

The window was commissioned for a church in New Zealand but never reached its destination. The reasons for this are unclear, but are believed to be the high cost of transport.

The piece had been kept in storage and was publicly auctioned in the summer of 2015 when it was acquired by the parish.

The window was unveiled at a

special St Catherine’s Day Mass. It has been installed above St Catherine’s altar.

Fr Colm Ó Gallchóir said the parish was very lucky to have acquired the window.

BELFAST

Belfast among most congested cities in Europe, study finds BELFAST is among the most congested cities in Europe, a new study finds.

The Belfast Telegraph reports that traffic analysis company Inrix surveyed road use in 123 cities in 19 European countries using data from the likes of satellite navigations systems, mobile phones and road sensors.

It then ranked the cities in terms of “traffic hotspots,” that is when congestion forces the driver to cut their speed by 65 per cent for at least two minutes.

The UK was found to be the worst in Europe with more than 20,000 hotspots in cities with a population of 250,000 people or more.

Belfast was the 10th worst in the UK. The Inrix report also found that congestion in the city is estimated to cost the Northern Ireland economy £800m by 2025.

TYRONE

£8 million payout for Royal Marine A ROYAL Marine veteran from Dungannon who caught a serious illness while serving in Afghanistan, can expect to receive about £8 million ($13.6 million) in compensation from the Ministry of Defence, his legal team has estimated.

The Tyrone Courier reports that Phillip Eaglesham, 35, now living in Somerset, contracted Q fever in 2010. He caught the disease while on tour with Taunton-based 40 Commando and became unwell as he travelled back to the UK. Corporal Eaglesham sued the Ministry of Defence for alleged negligence in his medical treatment, claiming the Ministry of Defence did not do enough to prevent him developing the disease.

The Tyrone man won his case when a High Court Judge refused to give the Ministry of Defence more time to submit its defence. Mrs Justice Andrews found in favour Eaglesham, from Dungannon, at the High Court in London The Judge criticised the Ministry of Defence for the delays that increased the suffering of 34-year-old Corporal Eaglesham.

December, 2016 - January, 2017 I www.irishecho.com.au

time out

19

St Patrick’s Day Organisation Update Welcome to our regular update. In this column, the Sydney St Patrick’s Day Organisation will give you the latest news on the big event in March.

We are very excited to be returning to Prince Alfred Park for the 2017 Green Gathering on March 19th.

Currently, our Events Team is investigating all options so we can have the best quality event, with all ages in the community included. We hope to confirm and announce plans in late January.

Our fundraising team are very busy, developing a Corporate Sponsorship Programme and planning more events. We need to raise $200,000 to pay for the Event and the committee has so far raised $100,000 including funds raised at our Christmas Ball. It also includes grants from the Irish Government’s ESP Programme, City of Sydney and NSW Multicultural.

We’d also like to thank the Cock n’Bull, The Mercantile Hotel, PJ O’Brien’s, The Tea Gardens and the Norton’s Irish Pub for funds raised in draws and during the Conor McGregor fight in November.

Our first Christmas Ball, held last Saturday was a fantastic night as almost 400 people got into the festive spirit. I would like to thank our sponsors on the night and all who supported the raffle. We’ll continue to fundraise as we still have $100,000 to raise prior to St Patricks Day. So check out this column or our Facebook page to keep updated with upcoming events, or if you would like any further information on sponsorship opportunities, please contact me on the email below.

The Sydney St Patricks Day Celebrations is a community event and it is only with your support that we can ensure the longevity of the celebrations; we hope to see you all there.

Many thanks.

Robert Kineavy

Email: RobertK@sydneystpatricksday.com.au

CHRISTMAS AT P.J.O’BRIEN’S

Tis’ the season to throw a party!

Eat, Drink & Be Merry! Cocktail Parties, Lunch, Dinner or just Drinks?

Hold your festive celebration at P.J‘s. Visit pjobriens.com.au for more

Christmas Eve & Christmas Day

Enjoy a traditional Christmas Feast on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day at P.J’s Melbourne 03 9686 5011 or P.J’s Sydney 02 9290 1811.

Bookings essential, call or book online pjobriens.com.au

SIX GREAT BRISBANE VENUES RIVERSIDE QUEEN STREET MALL INDOOROOPILLY

BRUNSWICK STREET KING GEORGE SQUARE WEST END

PIGNWHISTLE.COM.AU

New Year’s Eve

All P.J’s are open for New Year’s Eve ‘Craic’ Visit pjobriens.com.au to find out more Adelaide Cairns Melbourne Sydney

20

time out

December, 2016 - January, 2017 I www.irishecho.com.au

Unsung hero EXACTLY 60 years ago, towards the end of 1956, two Wicklow-men made a major impact on Australia.

One you might have heard of. Ron Delany, Olympic champion.

The other you probably haven’t come across but he made a valuable contribution to Australian culture.

Legend has it that songwriter Gordon Parsons was handed a scrap of paper at the Taylors Arms Hotel in NSW with the words of an ‘anonymous’ verse written on it.

The words appealed to Parsons so much he wrote a melody around them. Although not the most cerebral of songs, it ultimately became famous throughout the English speaking world, and indeed topped the charts in Belgium.

But in fact the poem wasn’t written by ‘anonymous’ — the author was Wicklow man Dan Sheahan who had emigrated to Australia in 1905. He worked as a cane farmer in North Queensland. On a day during the Christmas season of 1943 Dan finished work early, and gasping for a drink, rode 20 miles to the town of Ingham in the area known as Long Pocket.

He was told by the barmaid Gladys Harvey that, sadly, US soldiers had been in the pub the previous evening and had drunk the place dry. (You can probably see where this is going.) Dan was told he’d have to make do with a glass of wine (warm). But in temperatures that were close to 100F degrees – Xmas Down Under is at the height of their summer – it was a sad substitute.

Dan, disappointed, eventually headed back home. Being a bit of a poet he sat down on his veranda and duly penned A Pub With No Beer.

Slim Dusty was the singer who made the song famous, although acts from Johnny Cash to alternative rock band Dead Man Ray also recorded the poignant lament.

Slim always gave Sheahan full credit for his part in writing the original lyrics of the song, and believed that some sort of memorial to Sheahan (who died in 1977 at the age of 95) should have been inaugurated.

Today Sheahan is credited on any

listing of the song as the co-writer, but aside from that few people have ever heard of him.

Lions of love BRITISH and Irish Lions head coach Warren Gatland (below) gave two rugby fans the shock of their lives when he delivered a ‘team talk’ live at their wedding in Shropshire.

Dubliner Rebecca Seery met Shropshire native Harry Johnston at the third Test of 2013’s Lions tour in Sydney, Australia.

Warren Gatland’s men inspired a spectacular victory to seal a series triumph that night, but it wasn’t the only event that would live long in memory.

As Ireland and England fans, Rebecca and Harry would have been ardent adversaries at any other game, but on that chilly evening in Sydney they were united as British and Irish Lions – and they’ve never looked back.

Fast forward three years and Warren Gatland was again on hand to provide a bit of magic.

“How brilliant is that for an Irish woman and an Englishman to meet on a Lions Tour and end up getting married,” the 53-year-old asked. “I understand you met in 2013 at the third Test. For me it was an incredibly

special day and obviously it was for you too. I just want to wish you all the best for a happy and long life together and hope you have a really special day.”

Gatland’s message to the newlyweds was played during the best man’s speech at the couple’s reception, to their complete surprise.

Rebecca reminisced over their encounter as the only two Lions fans in a sea of green-and-gold-clad Wallabies supporters.

“To my right were some very boisterous Aussies and I thought ‘Oh no, I’m going to be on my own here’,” Rebecca said. “Then this Englishman sat next to me with the same red Lions scarf on as me.”

Donegal the coolest NATIONAL Geographic Traveller (UK) has announced its Cool List 2017, highlighting the 17 must-see destinations for the year ahead.

Chosen by its team of editors and writers, the hotly anticipated list of countries and cities is revealed in the Jan/Feb 2017 issue of the magazine.

Pat Riddell, editor of National Geographic Traveller, said: “Travel piques our curiosity and it’s that curiosity that informs our annual Cool List what’s happening in the world, what’s interesting and, most importantly, what’s in it for you?”

So which uber-cool destination tops the list this year?

That’s right ... Donegal.

The home of Daniel O’Donnell, Enya and Pat The Cope Gallagher is now uber cool.

“With a weather-nibbled coast spotted with sea stacks, Blue Flag beaches and offshore islands, Donegal is a land that feels undiscovered,” National Geographic travel scribes wrote.

“Last summer, scenes for Star Wars: Episode VIII were filmed on the Inishowen Peninsula. But this area of Ireland is also expecting 2017 to be a big year; there’s an array of reasons to visit, from surfing beaches in Magheroarty and Ballyhiernan Bay to Horn Head a driving, walking or cycling loop that squeezes the 1,600-mile Wild Atlantic Way into a 4.5-mile nutshell.”

Quiz

Crossword

1. What is the name of the coronation stone kept in Scotland, but which originally came from Ireland?

2. What links James Joyce, the film director John Ford, and the singer Elvis Costello?

3. Laudabiliter was a papal bull issued in 1155 by Adrian IV, an Englishman, which granted Henry II of England what?

4. Lane Pryce, a leading character in US series Mad Men, is played by the son of an Irish actor and the Welsh actress Elizabeth Rees-William. Who are father and son?

5. Rugby player Rory Best recently joined four other players who have more than 100 international caps.

The list includes John Hayes and Paul O’Connell, but which other two players make up the quintet?

6. Who are the only two people to have won a Nobel Prize and an Academy Award (an Oscar)?

7. Which industry, in which Ireland once led the world, includes processes such as winnowing, beetling, scotching and heckling?

8. Which two counties border Antrim?

9. How are the following places known in English: (a) Leitir Ceanainn; (b) Bealach an Doirín; (c) Inis Ceithleann?

10. What links blaa; barm; finger; Vienna?

Clues across:

Clues down:

1. Flowery Joycean character (5)

2. A wary Irish person, we hear (5)

4, 8 across: A rampant comic, sir, confusingly one of Shakespeare’s Irish characters (7,9)

3. Dublin street, not named after Christy (5)

Answers: 1. The Stone of Scone, or Stone of Destiny; 2. The name Aloysius: James Joyce had the middle names Augustine Aloysius: John Ford gave his name as Sean Aloysius O’Feeney, Elvis Costello was born Declan Patrick Aloysius McManus. 3. The right to assume control of Ireland. The papal bull also granted him the right to apply the Gregorian Reforms to the Irish church.

4. Jared Harris, son of Richard Harris; 5. Brian O’Driscoll, Ronan O’Gara; 6. George Bernard Shaw and Bob Dylan; 7. The linen industry; 8. Derry and Down; 9. (a) Letterkenny; (b) Ballaghdereen; (c) Enniskillen; 10. They are all bread rolls.

10. County might provide canine restraint, we hear (5) 11. This Joe is seasonally a Rooney (4) 13. A challenging town in Limerick?

(5) 15. Ye born rake haphazardly plays for Ireland (3,7) 16. Spirit in Glasheencoombaun (4) 19. Series of events leading to mode of transport (5) 21. A coarse hit confuses legislative body (10)

“I don’t anticipate him coming back into the party. Bertie resigned four years ago in the aftermath of the Mahon Tribunal and he effectively resigned from politics and I think he has been enjoying his retirement.”

Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin, speaking about the possible return of the former Taoiseach into the party.

“I listened very carefully to the president-elect this morning, and the first thing he said was, it was now time to heal wounds, to build partnerships, to work constructively with people of the US and every other country and people who want to work with him. I am very happy that the Government will work with the new administration when appointed by the presidentelect.”

Taoiseach Enda Kenny, speaking about Donald Trump.

“I recall a comment made in the Dáil when asked if I would agree that comments made in the heat of battle, in a primary election, by the president-elect, before he was nominated formally as a candidate, were racist and dangerous. And I said ‘yes’, in respect of those comments. . [however] Ireland and the United States have enjoyed a very close and warm relationship for many generations and I am confident that under his leadership our bilateral relations will continue to prosper.”

Taoiseach Enda Kenny clarifying earlier remarks he made about Donald Trump.

“Fidel Castro will be remembered as a giant among global leaders whose view was not only one of freedom for his people but for all of the oppressed and excluded peoples on the planet.”

President Michael D Higgins on the death of Fidel Castro.

“Mr Higgins’ statement is unfortunate.”

José Miguel Vivanco, Human Rights Watch’s Americas Director.

“Any suggestion that the President neglected human rights concerns is both unsustainable and unwarranted. The President has discussed human rights concerns with representatives of the government of Cuba on every occasion he has had meetings, in Cuba, Ireland and elsewhere.”

A spokesman for President Michael D. Higgins responding to his praise for Fidel Castro.

“The flag and the anthem means a lot to the GAA and will continue to do so, but who knows in the future? In the future, if there are different agreements in place for the whole of Ireland, of course the GAA would be inclusive in that.”

The GAA President Aogán Ó Fearghail.

“I’ve had the most wonderful, fantastic, robust, good health all my broadcasting life. It’s my turn now. Many, many people much worse off.

Thank you for your good wishes.”

Gay Byrne speaking after announcing he is being treated for cancer.

1

2

3

4

8

5

9

6

7

10

4. Dundalk family’s melodies, we hear, are pirates (8) 5. Granuaile encloses Irish woman (6) 6. Original Irish people confusingly went into Chile (9)

11

9. Heavyweight political acumen could be an asset this MP badly enquires (13) 12. See! We hear, the Christmas story in this book (4)

22. O’Brien’s quiche, we hear (4) 23. A reign, seen to be confused by mechanics (9)

17. A drab rig a devil might use to find an army unit (7)

27. A hero, me? Oh, much better to look to Shakespeare (5)

18. Pain registered in Garranmachenry (4)

28. To chide sin obliquely could lead to sensual self-indulgence (10)

20 & 26 down: Battle of 1598 in Co. Armagh, or NY cab coloured car (6,4) 24. Sister not there, we hear (4) 25. Gaelic in verses (4) 26. see 20 across

12

13

14 15

7. Found out police detective has back-up (10)

14. Medical man with nothing extra heads for town (7)

29. Friendly flower part? (3)

They said it...

16

17

18

19

20

21 22 23

24

25

26 27

28 29

LAST EDITION’S ANSWERS: Clues across: 1. Joe Schmidt (Ireland rugby coach). 8. Uretic. 9. Mayo. 11. Aidan Gillen. 13. Leno (Jay). 14. Roast.

15. Angus. 18. Glug. 19. Irvine. 20. Ashe. 22. Run. 23. Airt (compass point).

25. Moa. 26. McKenna. 28. Nun. 31. Knees. 33. Armagh. 35. Shoe.

37. Argentina. 38. Gartan.

Clues down: 1. Jim Larkin. 2. Enya. 3. Hogan. 4. Imogen. 5 & 7 down: Turlough O’Carolan. 6. Rebel. 7. see 5 down 10. Oilslick. 12. Newgrange.

16. Slemish. 17. Dean. 20. Aranmore. 21 & 29 down: St Ninian. 24. Ink. 27. Comber. 29. see 21 down 30. Tadhg. 32. Esker. 34. Gina. 36. Otto.

December, 2016 - January, 2017 I www.irishecho.com.au

time out

21

22

review

December, 2016 - January, 2017 I www.irishecho.com.au

Manoeuvres in the dark OK, let’s sort this out. Norman is a writer and he is gay. He appears to be the central character in the story, he and the woman who is sharing his apartment. Her name is Joanne and she grows marijuana on their windowsill and has a story of her own that involves her former partner Peter Coffey. Norman’s own partner is Kenneth who has left him and is suing another lover named Daniel Einhorn who has a daughter named Rachel who had a brief fling with a French farmer that resulted in an abortion.

Bear with me for a moment because there is another story interweaved with all this. It concerns the Feldman family, notably Nate whose father had an affair with Norman’s mother. Nate dodged the Nixon draft by escaping to Canada where he met Ursula who had her own back story involving a native American named Frank Grey Eyes who also has his own story. Then there is Ahmet and Dave and Sheryl and Robert Hoyt and Jessie Farmer, all with their own confused lives needing to be explained. And Thomas Strait who “had read every Reader’s Digest going back a decade.”

If a brief summary like that sounds confusing, it is even more so when all mixed together in a narrative that jumps back and forth in time and place. But this is less the story of Norman and Nate and Joanne than an extended rumination on the decline of America, particularly the way that the country was seduced by shady characters with impeccable breeding and expensive education.

This is the world of Ponzi schemes and financial scams, the grey

BOOKS

ecosphere of bonds, securities and derivatives.

When we move to the South, we enter a world of fundamentalists “who went down on their knees and thanked God before they got a hard-on, praising Jesus through the act and praying right after intercourse.” Here we find “latter day Tea Party conservatives with their mega-church ministers calling for moral accountability, tough love and lower taxes”.

Though set in America, the targets of the author’s analysis are almost universal. “Why were chefs now so popular, why was the

THE DEATH OF ALL THINGS SEEN

By Michael Collins Head Of Zeus 330 pp $29.95

CC THIRTEEN WAYS OF LOOKING

By Colum McCann Bloomsbury 242 pp $29.95

“

CCCCC

This is the world of Ponzi schemes and financial scams, the grey ecosphere of bonds, securities and derivatives.

Quinn. Then Quinner … or perhaps there was a Dublin slang in it he could never recognise.” He fell in love with Eileen Daly; they would meet many years later and marry; she has recently died and is now constantly in his thoughts. His son Elliot is in the shady hedge fund world of New York; his problems are mainly hinted at, though he seems to be a thoroughly unpleasant character.

The other thread of the story concerns the efforts of detectives to work out a reason for the murder, their only help coming from footage taken from cameras in Mendelssohn’s building, in the street outside and in the restaurant where he is killed. “The evidence could be there in the oddest of moments, the briefest of glances, the slightest of shoulder rubs.”

If this review appears to quote more than usual from the book, it is because this is writing of the very highest quality, a kind of poetical prose, livened by improbable puns and phrases that pull the reader up with their daring.

Here is Mendelssohn talking about the housekeepers who work in mid-Manhattan penthouses.

“The Help, some people say. What a terrible thing to call them, but what

Frank O’Shea

”

kitchen part of a new eroticism, and why were there so many goddam cookbooks on the market?” Amen, brother. And there are multiple references to 9/11 and “the boxcutter, the great Excalibur of the disenfranchised.”

The author is a native of Limerick, now living and working as an academic in the United States and with a name as an ultra marathoner.

Though his writing is clever and post-modern in the way it presents different versions of truth, the reader may have difficulty summoning enthusiasm for this book.

IN JUNE 2014, Colum McCann was hospitalised after coming to the aid of a woman being attacked on a Connecticut street. That event has echoes in this book which consists of a 143-page novella and three short stories. If there is a central focus, it is the attempt through fiction to try to understand the motivation for random acts of evil.

The main story concerns the New York murder of an old man named Mendelssohn, a former judge, as he leaves a restaurant. A kitchen hand is charged with the crime, but as the story finishes, the reader is not told whether he is found guilty. This is because the story is not so much about guilt and innocence as about the background series of seemingly unconnected events that led, almost logically, to the killing.

Mendelssohn is “like a character from an old epic, all hat and history.” A refugee from Lithuania, he spent his childhood in Dublin, where “for some reason he could never work out, he was called

other word is there. Not servants.

Not domestics. Not aides, God forbid, they’re no disease.” Then as he leaves the building it is to a snowstorm and “the applause of windshield wipers.”

If the word masterpiece can be attributed to a work of prose, this novella must surely qualify. But it can also be applied to the final story in the book, an examination of guilt and forgiveness and the capacity or otherwise of people to change. The book is worth whatever number of dollars and ninety-nine cents you pay for that final story.

To fully appreciate it, you would need to know that the word “puta” in the languages of central and South America means “whore” or “slut”, because the meaning is not obvious from the context.

The expression “award-winning” is used freely by publishers, but is one which applies in spades to Colum McCann as any internet search will confirm. This reviewer has enthused about his earlier books like “Let the Great World Spin”, “Transatlantic” and “This Side of Brightness”, and is happy to say that this is equally brilliant. Here is a writer at his best, surfing a wave of words and ideas while the rest of us paddle in the sandy shallows.

THE TOP 10 BOOK CHARTS FROM IRELAND BESTSELLERS

ORIGINAL FICTION

1

The Midnight Gang

David Walliams

1

Holding

2

The Battle

3

Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Double Down

Paul O’Connell

2

Jack Reacher: Night School

Jeff Kinney

3

Game of Throw-Ins

4

Holding

5

Guinness World Records: 2017

Graham Norton

4

Guinness World Records

5

6

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

7

Girl Online: Going Solo

J. K. Rowling Zoe Sugg

8

Born to Run

9

Jack Reacher: Night School

10 The Story of Ireland from Then Until Now

The Girl on the Train (Film Tie In)

2

Saints and Sinners

3

The Light Between Oceans (Film Tie In)

4

A Gift for You

5

Asking for it

6

After You

7

Me Before You (Film Tie In)

8

My Husbands Wife

9

Of Mice and Men (Penguin Modern Classic)

1

The Battle

Paul O’Connell

Lee Child

2

Guinness World Records: 2017

Ross O’Carroll-Kelly

3

Born to Run

Conclave

Robert Harris

4

Pippa: Simple Tips to Live Beautifully

Lyrebird

Cecelia Ahern

5

The World of the Happy Pear

6

This Was a Man

Jeffrey Archer

6

Bolloxology:An Unreliable Guide to Ireland

7

Username: Regenerated

Joe Sugg

7

What Do You Think of That?

Bruce Springsteen

8

Days Without End

Sebastion Barry

8

Ripley’s Believe it or Not! 2017

Lee Child

9

Small Great Things

Jodi Picoult

9

Jamie Oliver’s Christmas Cookbook

Fatti & John Burke

MASS MARKET FICTION 1

HARDBACK NON-FICTION Graham Norton

10 Wrong Side of Goodbye

Michael Connelly

PAPERBACK NON-FICTION

Guinness World Records Bruce Springsteen Pippa O’Conner

David Flynn & Stephen Flynn Colm O’Regan Kieran Donaghy Random House Books Jamie Oliver

10 The Little Green Spoon: Deliciously Healthy....

Indy Power

CHILDREN’S

Paula Hawkins

1

Lean in 15: The Shape Plan:15 Minute Meals..

Joe Wicks

1

The Midnight Gang

Edna O’Brien

2

Talking to Strangers: And Other Ways.....

Michael Harding

2

Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Double DOwn

David Walliams Jeff Kinney

M.L. Stedman

3

Win or Learn:MMA, Conor Mcgregor and Me John Kavanagh

3

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

Patricia Scanlan

4

Waterford Whispers News: You Couldn’t Make It Up!

4

Girl Online: Going Solo

Louise O’Neill

5

Then There Was Light: Stories from Ireland’s Rural Electrification

5

The Story of Ireland from Then Until Now

Fatti & John Burke

Jojo Moyes

6

I Read the News Today, Oh Boy

Paul Howard

6

Pigin of Howth

Kathleen Watkins

Jojo Moyes

7

Ken Mcgrath: Hand on Heart

Ken McGrath/Michael Moynihan

7

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child (Special Edition) J. K. Rowling

Jane Corry

8

Out of Control: How My Addiction... Cathal McCarron, Christy O’Connor

8

The World’s Worst Children

John Steinbeck

9

The Get Up and Go Diary 2017

9

Tom Gates: Dog Zombies Rule (for Now)

10 To Kill a Mockingbird (Penguin Modern Classic)

Harper Lee

10 Lean in 15: 15 Minute Meals and Workouts...

Eileen Forrestal Joe Wicks

10 Christmas Colouring Fun

J. K. Rowling Zoe Sugg

David Walliams Liz Pichon Watson Brown Press

December, 2016 - January, 2017 I www.irishecho.com.au

Irish

time out

1 DURTY NELLY’S, PERTH 2 P.J. O’BRIEN’S, MELBOURNE 3 O’MALLEY’S, BRISBANE 4 JB O’REILLY’S, PERTH 5 MURPHY’S, MANDURAH 6 MERCANTILE HOTEL, SYDNEY 7 WHALE & ALE TAVERN, CLARKSON 8 P.J. O’BRIEN’S, SYDNEY 9 SCRUFFY MURPHY’S, SYDNEY 10 FEINIANSÍ PERTH

John O’Neill, Angela and Patrick Gallagher from PJ Gallaghers with Tim Harrowell of Emirates.

1 MERCANTILE HOTEL 2 P.J. O’BRIEN’S 3 SCRUFFY MURPHY’S 4 MALONEYS HOTEL 5 THE PORTERHOUSE 6 COCK’N’BULL 7 KING O MALLEY’S 8 KELLY’S ON KING 9 CRITERION HOTEL 10 FORTUNE OF WAR

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

AIF board members (from left) Peter Ryan, Jane Cosgrove, Dr Tom Moore, John O’Neill, Ambassador Breandán Ó Caollaí, Teresa Keating and Yvonne le Bas.

O’MALLEY’S, BRISBANE IRISH MURPHY’S WAXY’S IRISH PUB PADDY’S, PORT DOUGLAS P.J. O’BRIENS, CAIRNS O’MALLEY’S, MOOLOOLABA IRISH CLUB, TOOWOOMBA HOOLIHAN’S, TORQUAY FIDDLERS GREEN, SURFERS PARADISE THE D’ARCY ARMS, SURFERS PARADISE

1 P.J. O’BRIEN’S, MELBOURNE 2 THE QUIET MAN 3 THE DRUNKEN POET 4 THE IRISH TIMES 5 IRISH MURPHY’S, GEELONG 6 ELEPHANT & WHEELBARROW 7 P.J. O’BRIEN’S, MELBOURNE AIRPORT 8 THE 5TH PROVINCE 9 THE CELTIC CLUB 10 THE SNUG PUBLIC HOUSE 1 DURTY NELLY’S 2 JB O’REILLY’S 3 MURPHY’S 4 WHALE & ALE TAVERN 5 FEINIANSÍ 6 WENTWORTH PLAZA 7 CROWN HOTEL 8 ROSIE O’GRADY’S 9 WOODBRIDGE HOTEL 10 FIBBER MCGEES

MC Richard Wilkins.

Shane Lloyd and Alan Joyce, of Qantas.

1 2 3 4 5

SHENANNIGAN’S, DARWIN P.J. O’BRIEN’S, ADELAIDE VERVE BAR, ADELAIDE MICK O’SHEA’S, HACKHAM GLOBTROTTER’S LODGE, DARWIN

1 2 3 4 5

Colin, Melissa and Jo Fisher, with Sabine Hochbaum and Teresa Keating.

AUSTRALIA IRELAND FUND GARDEN PARTY

FAIRWATER, SYDNEY

NEW SYDNEY HOTEL IRISH MURPHY’S PADDY WAGONS HOTEL MOLLY MALONES, DEVONPORT THE IRISH, LAUNCESTON

23

24

time out

December, 2016 - January, 2017 I www.irishecho.com.au

Comings and goings Dear John,

VISA-BILITY YOUR IMMIGRATION QUESTIONS ANSWERED...

Co Antrim native and registered migration agent John McQuaid provides a uniquely Irish perspective on current visa and migration issues.

Send your immigration questions to John at

visability@irishecho.com.au

This Migration Column is intended to provide general information on migration issues and does not constitute legal or migration advice. While all care is taken, no responsibility is accepted by the Irish Echo or John McQuaid for the accuracy of material in the column.

People seeking advice on migration law should seek advice from a registered migration agent.

We are permanent residents here in Australia but looking at returning to Ireland for a year or two.

I thought permanent residence meant we could return to Australia anytime, but I’m now told the visa expires after five years?

Is this true? Can we renew a PR visa?

What are our options?

Carmel P.

DEAR CARMEL, IF YOU have lived here for the last four years with at least one year as a permanent resident, you can consider applying for citizenship.

Permanent Residence visas are for life, but only have a five-year travel component.

This means you could live in Australia indefinitely as a permanent resident.

But after the five-year mark, to travel and return to Australia, you need a Resident Return Visa (RRV), or citizenship.

If you are unable to apply for citizenship, the RRV lets you maintain or regain your permanent residence.

The RRV can be applied for in or outside Australia but best to apply before the five-year period is up, and from within Australia.

There are three versions of the RRV, valid for five years, one year or three months.

Each has different criteria to be met. To be eligible for the five-year 155 RRV, you must have lived in Australia as a permanent resident for at least two out of the five years at time of applying.

If you meet this, you get an RRV with a multiple travel facility valid for five years.

If you have not lived in Australia for at least two years in the last five you also need to show you

have substantial ties of benefit to Australia.

If you meet this you will likely be granted an RRV 155 visa with a travel facility valid for one year only.

To meet substantial ties with Australia – you need substantial business, cultural, employment or personal ties which are of benefit to Australia. And not have been absent from Australia for five

“Permanent

Residence visas are for life, but only have a five-year travel component.

years or more unless there are compelling reasons.

”

An offer of employment in Australia is an employment tie.

Personal ties can be ownership of a home or assets in Australia; or close family members here who are permanent residents or citizens.

Business ties requires involvement in a business, having some ownership and daily

involvement at senior level. The RRV application fee is $360 Read more at https://www. border.gov.au/Trav/Visa-1/155The three-month RRV (157) is for people who have lived less than two years in Australia and have not established substantial ties.

You may be eligible if you have spent at least one day in Australia in the past five years and can show a compelling and compassionate reason for having to leave.

If you have been outside Australia for more than three months before applying, you must also show that you were absent for a compelling and compassionate reason.

It is wise, if time allows, to apply after having been in Australia for at least three months and apply before travelling.

If you are granted a 157 visa, the travel facility is usually for three months from date of grant.

It is best not to leave Australia without an RRV grant as you risk not being able to return.

Allow a couple of weeks for visa processing.

If you have lived in Australia for less than two of the last five years, getting an RRV can be difficult.

Seek professional assistance from a registered migration agent, Find an agent at mia.org.au

December, 2016 - January, 2017 I www.irishecho.com.au

Irish

time out

25

THE SYDNEY ST PATRICK’S DAY CHRISTMAS BALL Photos: David Rouse

The ball committee (left to right): Leanne Higgins, Katherine McDermott, Eimear O’Farrell, Siobhan Luddy, Tina King-Garde, Aishling Murtagh, Elaine Ryan, Trisha Dixon and Shauneen Campbell.

Caroline Quinn and Roisin Trainor.

Katie McQuaid, John McQuaid and Geraldine Cullen.

Robert and Kelda Kineavy.

Sean and Helen Cullinane.

Cin and Moira Murphy.

Niall Casey and Aishling Murtagh.

Eva and Randall Milington.

Sydney Rose, Brianna Parkins and Damin Damjanovski.

26

recruitment

to advertise call (02) 9555 9199 or email ads@irishecho.com.au December, 2016 - January, 2017 I www.irishecho.com.au

STEEL FIXERS REQUIRED NSW & QLD (REGIONAL CENTRES)

Vacancies for Civil Engineer, Pipe Layers and Plant Operators Civil Construction Projects Central Coast, Newcastle and Central West.

Tel: 02 4362 7200 • Mob: 041 232 3452 • email: devlin@ozemail.com.au

MINIMUM 2 YEARS EXPERIENCE 457 SPONSORSHIP AVAILABLE FOR RIGHT CANDIDATES

CONTACT 0405 830 838

P&T Formwork Looking to recruit for work in Sydney:

Experienced Formworkers Experienced Concrete Finishers Experienced Labourers

To apply, please send resumes to sandeep@ptformwork.net Ph: 02 9661 8927

FIND IRISH STAFF Email ads@irishecho.com.au Call 1300 555 995

to advertise call (02) 9555 9199 or email ads@irishecho.com.au December, 2016 - January, 2017 I www.irishecho.com.au

recruitment

27

Ascent Training Solutions

PH: 1300 445 446

For All Your Training and Licensing Requirements HIGH RISK LICENCES

• Slew Cranes • Tower Cranes • Self Erecting Tower Cranes • Dogging • Basic Rigging • Intermediate Rigging • Basic Scaffolding • Intermediate Scaffolding • Forklift • Elevated Work Platform • Verification of Competencies RII COMPETENCIES

• Excavator • Skid Steer loader • Roller • Front End loader • Telescopic handler • Gold Card • Yellow Card • White card • Dozer • Articulated/Rigid Haul Truck • Grader • Tip Truck • Traffic Control • Fist Aid • Working at Heights • Confined Spaces GOVERNMENT FUNDED QUALIFICATIONS

Certificate III Courses: • Civil Construction • Plant Operations • Concreting • Pipe Laying • Road Construction • Driver Operations • Level 1 & 2 Surface Extraction Certificate IV Courses: • Training & Assessment • Civil Supervision

Current courses offered meeting the current Australian immigration in-demand skills list.

• Certificate III in Landscape Construction • Certificate III in Pipe Laying If you have experience in Pipe Laying, Landscaping or Construction, we may be able to help you gain the above qualification through recognition of prior learning to enable you to meet immigration requirements.

Trainers and Salespeople required for Brisbane & Sydney. Phone 1300 445 446

FOR ALL YOUR TRAINING AND LICENSING REQUIREMENTS AUSTRALIA WIDE CONTACT: Kevin Gallagher - 0420 583 297 or John O’Connor - 0410 217 756 Email: info@ascenttrainingsolutions.com.au

www.ascenttrainingsolutions.com.au

28

December, 2016 - January, 2017 I www.irishecho.com.au

AUST R ALIA’S IR ISH NE WSPAP E R

sports :: rugby IRELAND’S WIN OVER ALL BLACKS HAILED AS A GREAT MOMENT FOR IRISH SPORT

Chicago victory joins Ireland’s best days

Sean O’Brien in action against the All Blacks in Aviva Stadium in Dublin. Picture: Brian Lawless

LIONS TOUR OF NEW ZEALAND

Schmidt ruke out Lions as New Zealand tour looms Nick Purewal

JOE Schmidt has ruled himself out of joining Warren Gatland’s British and Irish Lions coaching set-up for next year’s New Zealand tour.

Lions head coach Gatland admitted there could be “potential” for Ireland boss Schmidt to join his backroom staff for the 2017 All Blacks battle. But Schmidt has instead opted to focus on Ireland, intent on leading his nation’s summer tour to the USA and Japan.

Gatland is widely tipped to take Andy Farrell to New Zealand as defence coach, and Schmidt said he would be “delighted” for Ireland’s assistant to join his second-successive Lions tour.

“A big part of the motivation for me not being involved in the Lions was going to the USA and Japan and working with this next cadre of players,” said Schmidt.

“The best of our players will go on the Lions and the more the better. That would be fantastic and hopefully a few more will put their hands up.

“But the ones that don’t go, they will become a really interesting group for us. And for me, I want to make sure I get to know those guys.

“And getting away on tour is one of the best ways to do it.”

Ireland boss Schmidt was initially considered out of contention for Lions duty when his long-ter m future remained up in the air.

Schmidt only last month signed a new contract with Ireland, committing

IRELAND ended New Zealand’s record 18-match winning run in rugby union Tests with a 40-29 success in Chicago last month. We look back at some more great moments in Irish sport.

SIX NATIONS GRAND SLAM Ireland have been regular quarter-finalists at the Rugby World Cup but their most memorable recent success came in 2009 with a Six Nations Grand Slam.

Led by player of the tournament Brian O’Driscoll and leading points scorer Ronan O’Gara, Declan Kidney’s side went into their final game against Wales with the title on the line and won 17-15 thanks to a late O’Gara drop-goal. It was their first Grand Slam since the 1948 Five Nations Championship.

ITALIA 90 World Cup quarter-finals are harder to come by in the round-ball game, but Jack Charlton’s Republic of Ireland managed the feat in Italy after group stage draws with England, Egypt and Holland.

They then beat Romania 5-4 on penalties in round two before a narrow 1-0 defeat to the hosts in the quarter-final.

More was to follow four years later in the United States as Ray Houghton’s famous goal earned them victory over the Azzurri, though they lost to Holland in round two.

O’BRIEN STUNS ENGLAND Ireland may not have qualified from their group at the 2011 Cricket World Cup but they picked up a breathtaking win over England along the way.

Required to chase 328 after halfcenturies from Jonathan Trott, Ian Bell and Kevin Pietersen, they were behind the rate until Kevin O’Brien smashed the fastest World Cup century, reaching the mark from 50 balls and finishing with 113 off 63. He was dismissed in the

penultimate over but John Mooney saw Ireland over the line.

OLYMPIC GOLD MEDALS After a 44-year drought, Ireland returned to the gold-medal step of an Olympic podium thanks to boxer Michael Carruth at Barcelona 1992.

Swimmer Michelle Smith, later De Bruin, won three golds and a bronze in Atlanta four years later. Her career ended with a drug ban in 1998 but her medals were not affected. Boxer Katie Taylor won Ireland’s ninth and most recent Olympic gold at London 2012.

McILROY BUILDS MAJOR TOTAL For a long time, Fred Daly’s 1947 Open win was Ireland’s only major golf championship. That has changed dramatically since 2007, when Padraig Harrington won the same event. The Dubliner retained his title the following year and added the US PGA Championship before Daly’s Northern Irish compatriots took over – Graeme McDowell starting the run at the 2010 US Open, Rory McIlroy following suit the next year for the first of his four major titles to date and Darren Clarke adding the 2011 Open. For good measure, Paul McGinley holed Europe’s winning putt at the 2002 Ryder Cup and captained the team to victory in 2014.

THE BLACK-BALL FINAL Dennis Taylor’s snooker World Championship win over Steve Davis in 1985 marked the peak of the sport’s television boom in that decade, with more than 18 million viewers watching the match which finished well after midnight. Taylor had trailed eight frames to nil, as well as 62-44 in the eventual deciding frame, but cleared to the pink and finally potted the decisive black after Davis’ missed cut.

RISING STAR FURLONG MODEST ON LIONS SELECTION

Furlong ‘embarrassed’

by Lions speculation Nick Purewal

NO LIONS: Joe Schmidt will not be a part of the Lions tour to New Zealand next year.

until after the 2019 World Cup. The 51-year-old Kiwi had seriously weighed up a return to New Zealand for a Super Rugby coaching berth, with family considerations leading to a protracted deliberation period.

Schmidt’s decision to stay in Ireland had reopened the opportunity to join the Lions’ coaching staf f, but the former Leinster coach has quickly, but politely, shut that down.

While Schmidt has moved himself out of the Lions frame, the Ireland boss handed his assistant coach Farrell enthusiastic blessing to tour New Zealand if his services are requested.

“I would be delighted if Andy went,” said Schmidt, of Farrell.

“Firstly, because he is a tremendous coach and he does a fantastic job. And it would also mean that Andy would keep a bit of an eye on our guys.”

TADHG Furlong has admitted feeling “embarrassed” by being tipped to win selection for next summer’s British and Irish Lions tour to New Zealand.

Ireland completed a 2016 clean sweep over the southern hemisphere’s big three with Saturday’s 27-24 victory over Australia in Dublin.

The increasingly-influential Furlong has catapulted himself to the front of the queue for the Lions’ number three shirt next summer with a string of fine November performances.

But the 24-year-old Wexford native has insisted he feels a “big, big step” away from the Lions picture.

“It’s kind of daunting in a way, to be honest with you,” said prop Furlong of links to next summer’s Lions squad.

“Because you know in your own head that ‘jeez, my scrum wasn’t great there’ or ‘my entry wasn’t great here, and if I do this against a really great scrummaging pack, I’m going to be torn apart here’.

“That is your thought process. And with people throwing that out, you get kind of embarrassed.

“The Lions is synonymous with such a big brand and so many great players have played there. Do I see myself there at the minute? No. “I think I have a long journey to go

LIONS KING: Tadgh Furlong looks likely for the tour to New Zealand.

and, as I said, I’ve only started four games for Ireland, two Heineken Cup games for Leinster and it is a big, big step to be making those shouts.”

England’s Dan Cole, Wales’ Samson Lee and Scotland’s WP Nel will all be in the mix for Lions selection, but Furlong has emerged as the standout tighthead of the autumn series.

Furlong’s bullish ball-carrying, his unyielding drive and smart set-piece work have all helped Ireland move on their tight game further.

Furlong is refusing to let himself get carried away, insisting his emergence

as Ireland’s starting tightead remains in its infancy.

The Leinster star also laid much of the credit for his own progress at the feet of provincial team-mate and veteran of 61 Ireland caps Mike Ross.

“Mike has been a stalwart for years and years and he’s delivered so well for Ireland that no other tighthead has really got a look-in, in terms of his consistency in the scr um,” said Furlong. “He’s been a really good mentor for me I suppose to step out of his shadow and get a few games has been really good for me.”

29

December, 2016 - January, 2017 I www.irishecho.com.au

A U S TRA L IA’S IRIS H N EWS PAPER

rugby :: sports INJURY RAVAGED IRELAND DIG DEEP TO OVERCOME WALLABIES

Depleted Irish edge Wallabies in Dublin thriller Nick Purewal

INJURY-ravaged Ireland became the first European team since 2003 to complete calendar-year victories over the southern hemisphere’s big three by fending off Australia 27-24 in Dublin.

Ireland lost Rob Kearney, Andrew Trimble and Jared Payne to injury in a bruising contest, having entered the clash without Johnny Sexton, Robbie Henshaw and Sean O’Brien.

Iain Henderson, Garry Ringrose and Keith Earls claimed Ireland’s tries, while Dane Haylett-Petty, Tevita Kuridrani and Sefanaia Naivalu crossed for the Wallabies.

Australia flanker Dean Mumm was fortunate to escape a red card for a dangerous tackle on Tadhg Furlong, while Bernard Foley was sin-binned late on for a challenge on Devin Toner.

Ireland wound up with replacement scrum-half Kieran Marmion on the wing and Joey Carbery at full-back, but still produced a stirring victory over the Wallabies.

Joe Schmidt’s men shrugged off all their injury concerns to beat New Zealand, South Africa and Australia all in the same year – the first northern hemisphere side to complete the feat since England 13 years ago.

Ireland ripped into Australia from the off, but wasted three ideal platforms in the visitors’ 22 after punting kickable penalties to the corner.

Some 17 Irish phases came and went on the move of the half that carried no reward, with Trimble hauled down just shy of the line.

Ireland had a penalty in the bag but Mumm – selected at six to disrupt the

Simon Zebo turns the Wallaby defence around during Ireland’s impressive win over Australia at Dublin’s Aviva Stadium. Picture: Brian Lawless Ireland 27 Australia 24 home lineout – did exactly that.

Israel Folau then left a knee in on Kearney as he shipped out wide, effectively forcing Ireland’s full-back out of the contest. Kearney had only just beaten a concussion picked up in last week’s 21-9 New Zealand loss, and was again withdrawn due to head injury checks here.

Paddy Jackson slotted a penalty to put Ireland 3-0 to the good after

Stephen Moore slipped off his feet at a ruck. And then came the half’s controversy. Mumm dumped Furlong at a ruck with Australia on the attack.

Referee Jerome Garces awarded Mumm a yellow card.

An unfazed Ireland seized full advantage, Simon Zebo conjuring a try for Henderson thanks to a cute chip that Earls regathered before feeding the onrushing Henderson inside and the Ulster lock got over the line.

Jackson’s conversion had Ireland 10-0 ahead before Trimble was forced off with ankle trouble, with Carbery slot-

ting in at full-back and Zebo switching to the wing.

Ireland fluffed a maul peel at the back of the lineout, only for Ringrose to scoop up the loose ball and wriggle home for the hosts’ second try.

Before the break, Haylett-Petty finished courtesy of a neat inside ball from Folau as Michael Cheika’s men left the tie neatly poised, with Ireland leading 17-7.

Ireland lost Payne at half-time. Yet another backline reshuffle saw Earls shift to 13 and replacement scrum-half Marmion enter the fray on the wing.

Kuridrani added a second try for the Aussies before replacement wing Naivalu tuched down with his first touch as Ireland lost their defensive shape.

A Foley conversion and penalty handed Australia a four-point advantage on the hour, but Ireland somehow found another gear.

Earls raced in from Zebo’s scoring pass thanks to bullish carries from CJ Stander, Furlong and Peter O’Mahony.

Jackson’s nerveless conversion pushed Ireland back into a 27-24 lead and they hekd out for a famous and brave win.

FIVE THINGS WE LEARNED FROM IRELAND’S AUTUMN INTERNATIONALS

Irish now look ahead to Six Nations Nick Purewal

IRELAND pulled off the calendar-year clean sweep over the southern hemisphere’s big three in a hugely-impressive autumn series.

Here, we examine five key lessons from the November Test run.

1. Ireland and England are the frontrunners for Six Nations glory

Gary Ringrose has announced himself on the international stage with impressive performances against the All Blacks, Canada and Australia.

Ireland backed up their June win over South Africa with victories over New Zealand and Australia this month.

Joe Schmidt’s side are the first European Test team to beat the southern hemisphere trio in a calendar year since England in 2003.

Ireland now sit fourth in the world rankings, but with a stellar Six Nations might even overhaul the Wallabies into third.

England remain second in the world standings behind New Zealand. All this points to a potentially monumental Six Nations closer between Ireland and England in Dublin on March 18. By that point England could even be scenting a record 19th consecutive win. Should Ireland also remain unbeaten in the tournament and the match become a grand slam decider, Dublin could play host to one of the Six Nations’ most dramatic finishes yet.

2. Tadhg Furlong emerges as a genuine British and Irish Lions prospect

Tighthead prop Furlong has not just nailed down Ireland’s number-three shirt this autumn. He has also laid down a massive Lions marker. The Wexford native will definitely be on the plane to New Zealand next summer.

3. Garry Ringrose is the real deal

Leinster’s young centre Ringrose finally came of Test-match age this autumn, offering graft and robustness to add to his linebreaking abilities. The 21-year-old was forced to operate out of position at inside centre against Australia, but acquitted himself extremely well under duress. His game-breaking abilities of fer boss Joe Schmidt a serious alternative to defensive captain Jared Payne at outside centre.

4. New Zealand still lead the pack, but are human after all

Most neutral observers ended October pondering whether Steve Hansen’s All Blacks could be rugby’s greatest team of all-time. But then Ireland ended their record 18-match winning streak with the historic 40-29 victory in Chicago on November 5. The All Blacks recovered some poise with their 21-9 win over Ireland in Dublin two weeks

later, but will have left Europe fairly frustrated with their overall tour performance.

The All Blacks remain the world’s best team, but Ireland have proven they can be toppled.

England for one will have watched that Soldier Field triumph with glee.

5. Disciplinary chiefs must keep clamping down on dangerous play

Governing body World Rugby has issued a number of crackdowns on dangerous and head-high tackles this month. The first seemed to go unheeded, if New Zealand’s hits in Dublin against Ireland were anything to go by. The fall-out from Jaco Peyper’s officiating in that 21-9 defeat left disciplinary chiefs admitting the South African referee ought to have sent off Malakai Fekitoa, rather than issue a yellow card. The mere penalty for Sam Cane’s head-clattering shoulder hit that left Robbie Henshaw concussed was ruled as the right punishment.

But one week on World Rugby were again issuing mandates reminding players to focus on safety. Australia’s Dean Mumm was perhaps fortunate to avoid a red card for dumping Furlong on his head in the Wallabies’ defeat to Ireland. But a yellow card there at least again reiterated the general mood to force players to take greater care of each other in battle.

30 sports :: football

December, 2016 - January, 2017 I www.irishecho.com.au

AUST R ALIA’S IR ISH NE WSPAP E R

REPUBLIC WINGER JAMES MCCLEAN: ROY KEANE WOULD’VE KILLED ME IF I’D MISSED TARGET

McClean’s clinical finish sees off Austrians JAMES McClean fired the Republic of Ireland to a precious World Cup qualifying victory in Austria to spare himself a showdown with Roy Keane.

The 27-year-old West Brom winger scored the only goal at the Ernst Happel Stadium in Vienna with a sweetly struck left-footed drive, and later revealed he had assistant manager Keane on his mind as he raced in on goalkeeper Ramazan Ozcan.

McClean told Sky Sports after the 1-0 win: “If I had missed the target, Roy would have killed me. He hammers us in training that we must hit the target.

I hit it sweetly and it flew through the keeper’s legs. It was without a doubt my biggest goal for Ireland.

“I’ve been around now for four or five years. Only now am I starting to lay down a place and make that my own.

You play on merit and the performances you put in, so I want to keep pulling my weight.”

McClean played in Vienna after recovering from a back injury which threatened to rule him out, and his individual display earned him praise from manager Martin O’Neill, who handed him his chance in the Premier League as a youngster during their time together at Sunderland.w “I gave him his full debut. James had played a reserve game just before that and I saw someone with great desire, and I think over the past couple of years he has improved and that is great for us,” O’Neill said.

“He loves playing for us, which is very, very important and he is as proud as anything now. He has been excellent for us. He has really proven his worth

James McClean celbrates his third goal in two qualifying matches for Ireland after scoring against Austria in Vienna. and he is becoming a big player for us, which is great.”

Ireland, who had not beaten Austria since 1963, rode their luck during a difficult first half with Marcel Sabitzer hitting the bar six minutes before the break, but emerged with another three points to go with the seven they had collected from their first three games to ensure they remain firmly in the

hunt for qualification from Group D. O’Neill characteristically refused to take anything for granted afterwards, but he could not hide his delight at how the campaign has panned out.

“Austria will naturally be disappointed because they have dropped all three points here, they drew at home here with Wales and were beaten by Serbia,” he said.

“Something tells me that they still have a chance and while I believe, and have always believed, this group will be tight, I think teams will still take points from each other. I’m genuinely pleased that we have won the game, really pleased to have 10 points on the board from four matches. But there’s a million miles to go.”

Austria counterpart Marcel Koller

HARRY ARTER HOPEFUL ABOUT IRELAND’S WORLD CUP CHANCES

NORTHERN IRELAND

As happy as Harry Damian Spellman

HARRY Arter is hoping the Republic of Ireland have finished off Austria’s World Cup qualification hopes to reduce the field in the Group D race for Russia.

Last month’s 1-0 victory in Vienna left the Republic two points clear at the top of the group and the Austrians trailing in their wake with only a single win and a draw from their opening four fixtures.

Given that the group looked likely to be a four-way scrap between Ireland, Austria, Wales and Serbia when it was drawn, a six-point gap to the Irish even at this stage represents a yawning chasm for Marcel Koller’s men, and while Ireland counterpar t Mar tin O’Neill has predicted that they will bounce back, Arter is keeping his fingers crossed that they are in trouble. “ We d i d n ’ t h a v e a g r e a t record here. In fact it was a very poor record, so it’s good to come here and get a result,” O’Neill said.

“It puts us in a great position, and them in a lot of trouble for the rest of the qualifying campaign.

Harry Arter won his first full irish competitive cap in the World Cup qualifier against Austria.

“You looked at the group and you probably would have viewed them as one of the favourites, so it’s great to take three points. Everything’s looking good at the moment.”

There was also satisfaction that the win had been achieved without a raft of key men, Stephen Ward, James McCar thy, Shane Long and Dar yl Murphy among them, a sign of the growing depth of O’Neill’s squad.

McCarthy’s absence prompted the manager belatedly to hand Bour nemouth midfielder Ar ter a competitive debut - he won the first of his four caps in a friendly against England in June last year - and the 26-year-old did not let him down.

Asked if his selection was a demonstration of the manager’s trust in him, he replied: “Yes. I suppose I always thought that was part of the reason that I hadn’t played so much in the past.

“I had to just keep on working hard with Bournemouth and I’m really grateful that he has given me my chance. Thankfully we got a positive result and hopefully he was happy.”

He will now hope to keep his place for the clash with Gareth Bale and company, although McCarthy, proving relations with Everton boss Ronald Koeman are a little more cordial, and Glenn Whelan, who limped off during the first half in Vienna, could once again stand in his way.

“It’s good to be part of a team that has won,” Arter said.

“It won’t do me any harm, but I’ve four months ahead with Bournemouth and hopefully I can keep doing well.”

was understandably disappointed at a result which leaves his team six points adrift of Ireland. “It is very difficult for us and they are big points for Ireland, who are well ahead of us now and will take a lot of self-confidence into the winter break,” Koller said, “but there are still six games and 18 points to play for. We will do everything we can to be successful.”

North march to Moscow Liam Blackburn

THE year of 2016 was a memorable one for Northern Ireland and Niall McGinn is hoping the next 12 months can be equally unforgettable.

Michael O’Neill’s players will next be back together under the Northern Irish banner in March for a World Cup qualifier with Norway in Belfast.

Although they concluded the calendar year with a 3-0 defeat to Croatia, the preceding months brought success not seen for years by The Green and White Army, who competed at a major tournament for the first time since 1986 at the Euros in the summer.

Any fear that a post-France hangover would grip O’Neill’s team has been banished by an impressive start to the World Cup qualification campaign and thoughts of reaching Russia in 2018 are ver y much at the forefront of Northern Irish minds.

They will almost certainly have to do so via the play-offs given Germany are set to top Group C, but Aberdeen winger McGinn believes his nation can follow their 2016 exploits with more success in 2017.

“There is no reason why we can’t make it a great year too,” McGinn said.

“I think the spirit in the squad is obviously high, the players are playing well and the momentum is still there.

“We’ve always played well at Windsor Park over the years so we want to keep that going with an important game in March. Hopefully we can get three points from that.”

Last month’s 4-0 home triumph over Azerbaijan lifted O’Neill’s team into second but Nor way, the Czech Republic and the Azeris themselves will have designs of finishing directly behind world champions Germany.

“The group is obviously tough and if we get to March and win that game it will definitely set ourselves up nicely,” added McGinn. “We just want to keep the momentum going. The most important thing was to win that game on Friday and we’ve done that.

“We’ve played Germany and Czech Republic away so the most important thing is getting as many points as we can from these home games coming up. The home games we have coming up we are capable of winning.

“You have to fancy our chances to get to 19 points, but we know how difficult international football is. If we can just keep the progression and momentum going, who knows?”

31

December, 2016 - January, 2017 I www.irishecho.com.au

A U S TRA L IA’S IRIS H N EWS PAPER

sports INTERNATIONAL RULES

AUSSIE RULES

Australia to host two-Test Tadhg just his series against GAA’s best doing job, says

Action from the most recent International Rules test in Perth in 2014. The 2017 series will be played over two Tests with Melbourne almost certain to host one of them.

AUSTRALIA will host Ireland in a two-Test International Rules Series in the southern hemisphere in 2017, the GAA has announced.

Next year will see the return of the series played over the weekends of November 11 and 18, with venues for the games still yet to be decided.

“We are pleased to confirm the reinstatement of a two-game series commencing next year in Australia when Joe Kernan will bring the Irish team Down Under,” said GAA President Aogán Ó Fearghail.

“We believe the two-game series is a logical development after the success of the last two single games series, given the distances involved and the potential to generate even more momentum around the games.

“We look forward to renewing rivalries with the best the AFL has to of fer and we acknowledge the progress made in recent months with our AFL counterparts in helping to confirm the plans for 2017.”

More recent editions of the contest have been Australia’s victory over Ireland in Perth in 2014 and Ireland’s victor y in 2015 in Croke Park.

The Inter national Rules Series will return to Ireland in 2019, with an agreement in principle to play a two-Test

series on these shores. “The one-off Test matches in Perth and Dublin over the last two years were two high-class encounters played in front of very strong crowds,” AFL general manager football operations Mark Evans said in a statement.

“Australian and Irish fans have shown they want to see a spectacular and competitive contest played between the most talented AFL players and Ireland’s best Gaelic footballers.

“Restricting selection to only a player who has earned All Australian selection through his AFL career has ensured the prestige of playing in the International Rules Series and we look forward to hosting the Irish side again next year.”

The series is sure to draw spectators with the recent two close contests and also from an Australian point of view that some of the finest young GAA players in the countr y have gone to the southern hemisphere to play in the AFL, most recently Meathman Conor Nash who has signed a rookie contract with Hawthorn.

Sydney has been overlooked for previous International Rules Test series despite being the largest enclave of expat Irish.

The stadiums for the games

haven’t been picked, but Perth’s strong attendance history for International Rules contests is expected to count in its favour when venues are assessed.

AFL matches are scheduled to move to the new stadium at Burswood in 2018 and it had been thought that the last major game at Subiaco, the home of WA football for more than 100 years, was likely to be next year’s WAFL grand final.

But WA Football Commission chief executive Gavin Taylor has confirmed that Domain Stadium would bid to host one of the Tests, which are due to be played in November.

“It is a pretty exciting opportunity,” Taylor said.

“We would be very keen to host it again. Last time we put together a package with Eventscorp and Tourism WA to make sure we maximised the whole event. We had an Irish festival prior to the start of the match. We turned it into a bigger event than just the game.

“We are really keen to see if we can build on that again.

“We see it as really significant and a great way to say goodbye to Domain Stadium if it is the last major event there.”

AFL spokesman Patrick Keane said Perth had a good record of pulling big crowds to International Rules matches.

Cooper

WHILE he would prefer it to not be happening, Colm Cooper believes it is Tadhg Kennelly’s prerogative to recruit Kerr y players to the AFL. Former Kerry All Ireland and AFL Premiership winner Kennelly heads up scouting in Ireland for the Aussie Rules and has attracted some of Kerry’s brightest young stars Down Under in recent years.

Marc Ó Sé is one Kerry man who wishes Kennelly would look elsewhere for upcoming talent, having seen minor star Mark O’Connor recently sign with Geelong. And while Kennelly searches all of Ireland for talent, another five Kerry youngsters have been at the Europe Combine, where potential recruits try out for AFL. “Would we like him not to be taking the Ker r y lads? Of course we would but I think that’s just the nature of the beast at the moment.”

However Cooper doesn’t see what can be done about it.

“It is his job. I’m sure there are some people who aren’t too happy about it, that he’s coming taking the best players from his county, but at the end of the day it’s his job.”

PROUD SPONSORS

The BIGGEST GAA club event in Australasia!

Will YOU be there?

SUNDAY 19th FEBRUARY 2017 GAELIC PARK, KEYSBOROUGH Team Registration: pearses7s@gmail.com Padraig Pearses GAC

32

December, 2016 - January, 2017 I www.irishecho.com.au

AUST R ALIA’S IR ISH NE WSPAP E R