Irish Echo Feb/Mar 2017

POLITICS

CELTIC CLUB

PAGE 10

PAGE 4

Kenny’s Time Running Out As Backbench Loses Faith

Club Leaders Ponder Next Move After Sale Windfall

For breaking news visit www.irishecho.com.au

AUST RALI A’ S I RI S H N E WS PA P E R February 23 - March 8, 2017 | Volume 30 – Number 2

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Fatally Engaged

Daithi Walsh, who died from stab wounds in Sydney last weekend, pictured with his fiancée, Tina Cahill, who is accused of his murder.

Wexford father-ofthree stabbed to death in Sydney, Irish fiancée charged with his murder SEE PAGE 3

THE PRESIDENT OF IRELAND HAS VISITED MANY, MANY COUNTRIES SINCE 2011, BUT NOT THIS ONE

Micheal D’s Aussie blind spot multiple trips to Britain and the United States. But he has also visited Italy, China, Vietnam, Per u, Colombia, Mexico, France, Laos, El Salvador, Poland, Belgium, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Costa Rica, Cuba, Croatia, Spain, Portugal, Turkey, Ethiopia, Malawi, and South Africa.

President Mar y Robinson visited Australia within the first two years of her presidency. President Mar y McAleese took a little longer to get here, arriving in 2003 some six years after her election. But there was an

official visit by the Taoiseach Bertie Ahern in the year 2000.

Similarly, President Patrick Hillery visited in 1985 during his second term.

But many believe that the country which has welcomed more Irish nationals than any other over the past two decades might be closer to the top of the current head of state’s priority list. Apparently not.

Australia has also been largely overlooked for the Pr esident’s Distinguished Service Awards for the Irish Abroad. Of the 50 awards handed

out since 2012, only two have gone to Irish Australians.

President Higgins, who has yet to decide whether he will stay on for a second term, has family connections in Australia. In 2005, while serving as a TD, Mr Higgins revealed: “I have had an interest in Australia for a long time because an aunt and uncle of mine are buried there. My uncle was involved in building the railways and is buried in Toowoomba. His uncles and aunts in turn had emigrated from Clare to New South Wales and Queensland.”

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

President Michael D Higgins Print Post No 100007285

AS Michael D Higgins enters his sixth year as President of Ireland, there is speculation that he may not visit Australia before the end of his term.

All three of his immediate predecessors visited this country, but there is now concern that President Higgins will buck the trend.

Michael D Higgins has been in the job since November 2011 and he has made many overseas visits.

He has travelled to other countries that share considerable heritage connections with Ireland including

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A U S TRA L IA’S IRIS H N EWS PAPER

news DESPAIR OVER QIA DEBACLE

Irish Club to be converted into cinema

OFFALY TROUBADOUR RETURNS TO OZ

Aoife Grace Moore

BRISBANE’S Irish community is in a state of “disgust and despair” as the city’s iconic Irish club is set to be transformed into a cinema complex following the century-old institution’s liquidation two years ago.

Sources close to the club said it was with a heavy heart the club filed for liquidation, as soaring debts caught up with the Queensland Irish Association.

The two-storey building, also known as Tara House, is listed as a state and local heritage place, and housed dif ferent community groups and a grand ballroom used for community dinner dances and award ceremonies.

A number of different efforts were tabled to help lift the club out of debt; h o w e v e r, a l l w e r e r e j e c t e d b y liquidators.

A local private investor paid $8.1 million for the 2,200 sq metre property.

It was the first time the building has changed hands in almost 100 years.

A former committee member told the Irish Echo that members were left feeling helpless as liquidators “kept the community in the dark”.

“We have been going through this process for over two years while the liquidator barely spoke or consulted with members,” the former committee member, who asked not to be named, said. “We don’t doubt we were in a lot of trouble for many years. There was a general lack of maintenance and over the years it went into decline.

“We were promised a meeting back in December 2015, which never happened and still hasn’t. This whole process of selling up and going to court all happened without talking to members.”

Although the dif ferent groups involved have found new bases from which to operate, there is no longer an Irish Club in Brisbane.

“The band have found themselves a new home, and the dancers have found new places to operate from, which aren’t ideal but will do for now, but we don’t have a club – and won’t have a club,” he said.

The Irish Club in its heyday.

“A group from Queensland Irish Association are running the St Patrick’s Eve dinner this year, which has been running now for 100 odd years. It will be held at the Pullman Hotel on March 16. The St Patrick’s Day parade will still be going ahead too.

“But for a building of that nature to be redeveloped is devastating. For the façade and the lovely ballroom to be turned into a cinema is a waste of a real jewel,” he said.

Brisbane City Council received a development application for the seven-cinema complex at 179 Elizabeth St on September 20, 2016, and been given a unanimous tick of approval by planning of ficers. All pictures and memorabilia of cultural or historical significance will be removed from the building and stored until a new home for them can be found.

The application for the restoration was submitted by brothers Stephen and Peter Sourris – the team behind the New Farm Cinema restoration and owners of the Yatala Drive-in.

The submitted plans showed there would be two cinemas on the basement level, three on the ground floor and two on the first floor.

Liquidation firm David Clout & Associates were approached for comment for this article, but did not respond.

Legendary Irish singer-songwriter Mundy can’t wait to be reunited with his fans in Australia.

No blue Mundy ahead of Aussie tour Aoife Grace Moore Mundy is looking forward to reconnecting with his Aussie fans at a series of gigs over the next month.

The 41-year-old Offaly native has enjoyed huge success since his debut in 1996 which saw his song To You I Bestow featured in Australian director Baz Luhrmann’s movie Romeo + Juliet.

From then it’s been support slots for Oasis and The White Stripes and a few trips to Glastonbury in between.

He says although he loves Australia, he’s aware Irish audiences are well catered for: “This will be my fourth or fifth trip to Australia; I really love the country. Every city is different and there’s a familiar feeling with the people, especially the humour.

“You have to be careful though, there’s a lot of traffic and people run out of pocket to attend all the concerts that are on. When I got to Australia, I was blown away by the amount of Irish music that was scheduled to play over a few weeks.

“However it’s a long overdue return – I’ve a friend in New Zealand who offered me a tour and I said that I could only come if I did Australia, so he put

me in touch with somebody to help it happen. He came back straightaway with Port Fairy Folk Festival and Blue Mountain Folk Festival offers – it was a no brainer.”

This year’s Port Fairy Folk Festival features a heavy mix of Irish and Australian acts such as Tash Sultana, Aoife Scott and Gretta Ray. Born Edmund Enright in Sweden, Mundy was brought up in Birr, Co

“

So the future for me is creating new songs. It’s the itch that won’t go away.

The feeling of a crowd singing back every word.

”

Offaly, and says his popularity around the world is bittersweet and serves as a remind him of the amount of Irish people who have been forced to leave the country.

“A lot of my age group emigrated to Australia and the US after the recession in Ireland. There are usually a good few Irish at the concerts. I’d say the ratio of Irish to everyone else is 60/40.”

Mundy says he plans to continue touring as long as he has an audience to play for.

“I just love to play. Be it on a beach, at festivals, in a playground – the feeling of a crowd singing back every word. New songs are the key to prolonging the career and I want to do this for a long time.

“So the future for me is creating new songs. It’s the itch that won’t go away,” he explains.

“I’m always surprised when I travel far from home and the crowds turn up. It’s a great feeling. I am still blown away that I have lasted this long in an ever-changing business without holding down another job; though I do manage myself, which is a bit of a task!”

MUNDY TOUR DATES March 9: Spotted Mallard, Melbourne 10-13: Port Fairy Folk Festival 16: The Caravan Club, Melbourne 17: The Basement, Sydney 18-19: The Blue Mountains Folk Festival

SHOCK AND DESPAIR AFTER WEXFORD MAN’S STABBING DEATH

Fiancée charged with partner’s murder

THE Sydney Irish community is in shock following the violent death of a 29-year-old Wexford man in the suburb of Padstow last Friday night.

Subsequently, a 26-year-old Irish woman – believed to be his fiancée – was charged with his murder.

Cathrina (also known as Tina) Cahill, who has been charged with the murder of 29-year-old Daithi Ian Walsh at their home in Sydney, did not apply for bail when she appeared before Parramatta Local Court and will have faced Burwood Local Court by the time this article is published.

Mr Walsh, a father-of-three from Enniscorthy, Co Wexford, was found with a stab wound to his neck after police were called to an altercation involving a number of people at a house on Watson Road, Padstow, in the south-west of Sydney.

He was treated by paramedics, but

pronounced dead at the scene.

After the stabbing, Ms Cahill, originally from New Ross, Co Wexford, was arrested and questioned along with another man, a 36-year-old from the nearby Revesby area in Sydney.

Ms Cahill was later charged with murder. She and Mr Walsh had become engaged before Christmas.

The man arrested and questioned at Bankstown Police Station in the city was released without charge.

In a statement New South Wales Police said their detectives were being assisted by officers from the State Crime Command’s Homicide Squad.

The New South Wales Police said it was also working with the Irish Consulate in Sydney.

Tributes were paid to Mr Walsh in Enniscor thy, where his death was greeted with shock.

Local councillor John O’Rourke

remembers a headstrong young man with a great interest in sports, who was known to his friends as “Motcha”.

“I coached him under 12s for Ajax soccer team here in the town,” said Cllr O’Rourke. “The news has come as a massive shock to everyone here.

“He comes from a family that would be well-respected within the local community. He was a decent chap and anytime we met he would always have a word for you and he’d reminisce about the all the good times on the pitch when he was playing.”

Cllr O’Rourke said the 29-year-old leaves behind three young daughters in Enniscorthy. Mr Walsh was involved in the building trade and worked in carpentr y. He moved to Australia around 2012 and had got engaged.

Cllr O’Rourke said: “It’s a sad time for the town and for his family and out thoughts and prayers are with them.”

A Facebook selfie of Daithi Walsh and his partner, Tina Cahill.

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AUST R ALIA’S IR ISH NE WSPAP E R

local news MELBOURNE’S CELTIC CLUB

Club ponders next move after sale Aoife Grace Moore

THE committee of Melbourne’s Celtic Club are mulling different options for their next move after the historic sale of the club premises recently.

The home of Australia’s oldest Irish club has been sold to Malaysian developer Beulah International for $25.6 million.

The Celtic Club has occupied the 140-year-old premises on the corner of Queen and Latrobe Streets since 1959.

The location has become prime real estate space in the city centre as property prices continue to rise.

A total of 274 voting members backed the deal with only 68 against, which marked the end of a long debate between club members over whether to cash in on rising land values in the city centre. Those against the sale argued the club could have traded its way out of its financial problems.

However, the deal has been mired in some controversy since. Currently five members are under taking legal action against the club.

The club’s premises was sold through commercial real estate services giant CBRE and a permit is in place for a 48-level tower on top of the 676 square metre site.

As part of the deal, the club has the option to buy back 2,000 square metres of the Queen Street premises, including the ground and first floors to establish a new and updated club.

The new owners have indicated the elaborate Victorian-era facade would be retained in any new development.

Sources close to the club said they were “ver y impressed” by the care Beulah International had taken to accommodate the club and its members.

“We have to make a decision on whether we decide to buy back the club premises at the time of settlement. We will need to see detailed plans and costings then we’ll be in a better position to decide.

“Our other option is that we could buy somewhere else and redevelop it ourselves.

“Either way we’re in a good position, we stand to walk away with an enormous sum after we pay our debts.”

In the meantime, developers and the club have been scouting for alternative premises while redevelopment and construction is under way – however the club say they expect to continue trading in the current site until July this year.

“We’re confident we’ll have a temporary place for the club that accommodates everyone,” said the committee member.

Established in 1887, the Celtic Club was Australia’s first Irish club.

At the time of the sale, Beulah International said they were well aware of the historical importance of the premises and the club itself.

“We recognise the importance of the Celtic Club in Melbourne and Australian history and it’s important for us to work closely with the club to discuss any concerns or reservations the club may have,” said Beulah International’s head of sales Jamie Baldwin. “We have presented the Celtic Club with the option to buy back a portion of the Queen Street site, and if purchased, would be a free-hold property owned by the Celtic Club and its members.”

The Celtic Club may remain at its current site as part of a buy-back deal offered by the new owners of the building.

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St Patrick’s Day Edition 2017 OUR Bumper St Patrick’s Day Edition will go on-sale from Thursday March 9 and include comprehensive details of all Irish festivities across Australia.

If you have an event or business you wish to advertise or promote, email ads@ irishecho.com.au as soon as possible.

The deadline for bookings and artwork is Thursday March 2.

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

Telephone: +61 2 9555 9199 Seo Linn are playing the Groundswell Festival in East Gippsland, Victoria, on March 11.

Gaeltacht rockers jet in for one-off festival gig Aoife Grace Moore IRISH band Seo Linn are embarking on their first trip to Australia as they gear up to play at Groundswell Music Festival in Lake Tyers, Victoria.

After meeting at the Gaeltacht in Connemara as teenagers the band have enjoyed enormous success in the last year.

Their YouTube videos of chart hits performed as Gaelige kicked off their career garnering over 18 million views.

Their popularity eventually lead to their single The Irish Roar being used by the FAI as the official song for Ireland’s Euro 2016 campaign.

Lead singer Stiofán Ó Fearail says although it’s a flying visit, the band are hoping to return down under again: “We’re only staying a week really; we would love to be staying longer down

under, but March is such a busy month at home with Seachtáin na Gaeilge (Irish Week) and Paddy’s Day. “None of us have ever even been to Oz before, but hopefully this trip will the first of many.”

Groundswell’s stellar line-up this year includes Aussie rock legend Jimmy Barnes, fellow Cold Chisel guitarist Ian Moss, and Hunters & Collectors icon Mark Seymour among others.

“Cristina Campbell [the sister of Groundswell event organiser Kevin Campbell] spotted us playing in Croke Park at an event and liked what she saw.

“Since then we met with Kevin while he was visiting Ireland and played him some tunes and next thing we know, we’re on the same billing as Jimmy Barnes,” said Stiofán.

Seo Linn’s whirlwind success is in part thanks to their YouTube channel

and their covers of chart hits like Hold Back The River by James Bay and Fairytale Of New York, which have been viewed 50,000 times respectively.

“We never expected the videos to go as viral as they did. We are so grateful because it gave us a kick-start into our dream jobs. We love making music and we love the Irish language so we’re just delighted to be able to combine both.

“It’s part of our mission to normalise Gaeilge for people and show it in a modern, contemporary context through music, so it’s great to see that there is an appetite for it,” said Stiofán.

Although they enjoyed success across social media, it was their Ireland anthem, The Irish Roar, that made the band a household name.

After a meeting with FAI chief executive John Delaney, the single was used as the official Ireland song for

France 2016 and became an instant hit with fans worldwide.

“We are very proud of the track and everywhere we go people ask us to play it. The trip to France was amazing too. The craic was brilliant – the fans really outdid themselves this time around,” said Stiofán.

Looking to the future, Stiofán said the band have no plans to slow down and hope to be performing for many years to come: “We’re releasing two singles very soon and our album is coming out on March 3.

It’s a kind of unique form of folk/pop that we’ve developed over the past number of years.

“We’re delighted with how it’s sounding, we’d love to do a second album, so watch this space.”

The Groundswell Festival takes place on March 11.

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 Services

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Sydney St Patrick’s Day Organisation Update Welcome to our regular update. With only 4 weeks to go to the 2017 Sydney St. Patrick’s Day Celebrations I want to share some of the highlights of this year’s event.

Our organising committee has placed special emphasis on children’s activities with the focal point for families being the Children’s Parade. Kids and adults alike are invited to join the march through Prince Alfred Park and fancy dress is encouraged! Parents can register their family for the Children’s Parade at www.sydneystpatricksday.com.au​ Entries close 3 March and places are limited. As well as the parade, there will be a dedicated children’s area in the park featuring free entertainment, music, storytelling, bouncing castles, face painting and children’s workshops. This will commence after the parade through to 6pm.

We haven’t forgotten about the adults! Our entertainment committee are really excited to reveal a new addition to the main stage this year, the ‘Sessions Tent’. Musicians from all across NSW will join the session, for what promises to be a wonderful afternoon of traditional Irish music. Described as a fusion of Irish dancing and contemporary, Cross Rhythm Dance Company will perform on the main stage along with The Bottlers, Aine Tyrell and many more soon to be announced acts. So stay tuned here or subscribe to our newsletter on the website for more information over the coming weeks.

At the heart of Sydney St. Patrick’s Day are our stalls, creating a vibrant space that caters for every taste. We are still accepting applications for food and craft stalls and urge you to apply, especially those offering Irish and Celtic themes.

A reminder that the local Irish bars have organised some great fundraisers to support the main event in March. P.J. O’Brien’s is hosting our Fundraising Jersey Raffle on 24 February where you can win your county GAA jersey signed by the team. Our committee are selling raffle tickets now so don’t miss out! P.J’s is also hosting a Golf Day on 26 February. The Australian Youth Hotel is hosting a Green Gathering Poker Classic on 3 March with $1,000 for first prize. Thanks to all for your continued support!

I look forward to seeing you on 19 March from 12 noon at Prince Alfred Park.

Many thanks.

Robert Kineavy

Email: RobertK@sydneystpatricksday.com.au

Email: andrew@australianvisas.com.au

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

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AUST R ALIA’S IR ISH NE WSPAP E R

news IRELAND TO OPEN AN ‘INJECTION ROOM’ FOR HEROIN USERS TO TAKE DRUG UNDER MEDICAL SUPERVISION

Sydney fix for Dublin drug addicts Ed Carty

IRELAND is to open its first pilot project “fix room” for heroin users to inject under medical supervision.

The location of the unit in Dublin city centre has yet to be decided, but the Government decision signals a radical shift in dr ug policy and follows examples set in Switzerland, Sydney, Paris and Glasgow.

Proposed new laws will allow the Health Minister to issue a licence for a facility – staffed by medics trained to deal with overdoses – where users can access sterile needles to inject drugs they have brought with them.

It would ef fectively legalise possession of heroin in the unit, but it would still be illegal to sell or supply drugs inside or outside the facility.

Drugs Minister Catherine Byrne said the centre would be a “safe harbour” for chronic drug users.

“They will provide a controlled place

for people to inject, but will be much more than that – a place to rest, have a chat and access the services people need,” she said.

“I believe in a health-led and personcentred approach to the drug problem.

CATHOLIC SHAME

EMIGRATION

‘Shocking’ scale of child abuse revealed

Ireland is to trial its first injecting room for heroin users.

For me, this is all about people and looking after the most vulnerable and marginalised in our society.”

It is estimated that about 400 people inject on the streets of Dublin every month.

Discarded needles, dr ug paraphernalia and overdoses are a recognised problem as a result of street injecting, particularly in Dublin.

The Depar tment of Health said injection rooms are par ticularly effective in reaching out to chaotic drug users and marginalised groups, especially those who use drugs on the streets or in other risky conditions.

It said the experience from 90 facilities around the world showed a reduction in fatal overdoses and the transmission of blood-borne diseases, less drug-related litter and no increase in drug usage or drug-related crime.

A former NSW police commander spoke at a conference on drugs in Dublin recently, offering the benefit of his experience from Sydney’s injecting room.

Superintendent Pat Paroz said it was “critical” that Garda management was clear about the law regarding such centres and develop a document on

policies and procedures in implementing it on the ground.

Mr Paroz, former Commander of Drug and Alcohol Co-ordination for the New South Wales Police Force, said the attitude of police before an injecting centre was established in Sydney in 2001 was simple.

“The traditional approach, probably the same as here, was that drug use was something police were opposed to and that our job was to try and stop it by arresting people,” he said.

Research has shown that accidental deaths from heroin and other opiates in Australia rose from 307 in 1989 to 1,116 in 1999. Evaluations on the Sydney injecting centre in 2011 found that 4,400 drug overdoses had been successfully managed by the centre, without a single fatality.

Mr Paroz said the aim of the centre was to r educe the har ms from unsupervised injecting and improve the quality of local areas.

Kristen Gelineau

THOUSANDS of children reported sexual abuse at more than 1,000 Catholic institutions across Australia, an inquiry has been told.

It was revealed that seven per cent of priests in Australia’s Catholic Church were accused of sexually abusing children over the past few decades. The extent of the crisis was revealed at a hearing of Australia’s Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse.

The royal commission has been investigating since 2013 how the Catholic Church and other institutions responded to the sexual abuse of children over decades.

The commission has previously heard har rowing testimony from scores of people who suffered abuse at the hands of clergy.

But the full scale of the problem was never clear until last week.

Commissioners surveyed Catholic Church authorities and found that between 1980 and 2015, 4,444 people repor ted they had been abused at Catholic institutions, said Gail Furness, the lead lawyer assisting the commission.

The average age of the victims was 10.5 for girls and 11.5 for boys.

Overall, seven per cent of priests in Australia between 1950 and 2010 were accused of sexually abusing children, said Ms Furness.

Francis Sullivan, chief executive of the Truth Justice and Healing Council, which is co-ordinating the Catholic Church’s response to the inquiry, said the data reflected “a massive failure” by the church to protect children.

“These numbers are shocking, they are tragic and they are indefensible,” he told the commission. “As Catholics, we hang our heads in shame.”

Several senior Australian Catholics will be testifying over the next few weeks. The commission’s final report is due by the end of this year.

More than 21,000 Irish emigrants returned to live in Ireland between April 2015 and April 2016.

No empathy for returning emigrants, Dáil told THE Irish Government has been accused of having a “complete lack of empathy” for returning emigrants.

Speaking before a panel of the Dáil Committee on Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, Ciarán Staunton said the State’s treatment of returning Irish citizens has been “appalling” in many instances.

The committee was hearing evidence on the challenges faced by Irish citizens who return home.

Staunton, who serves as chairman of the US-based Irish Lobby for Immigration Reform (ILIR), said the Irish state treated returning expats as “diluted” citizens because they often had to wait years before being allowed to access essential services.

He told the committee “We need to simplify the process of getting car insurance, buying [a] house, getting education for our children, returning to family farms, getting electricity, getting health insurance.”

Staunton noted that most American driver’s licences were not exchangeable for Irish licences – unlike those from Canada – and said this meant many

people were having to post L plates (for learner), take lessons and retake driving tests.

He also said returned Irish people had more trouble opening bank accounts than the undocumented in America. “It is easier for an illegal to open a bank account in America than it is if they return home,” he insisted.

Karen McHugh, CEO of Safe Home Ireland which helps elderly people retire to Ireland, said many never managed to and that “unfortunately for our cohort of over 60s, they want to come back to die and that’s quite sad because some don’t get back to die. They get back unfortunately to be buried.”

Staunton told Irish Central he deplored how “returning Irish citizens who had to go abroad during bad economic times are being penalised”.

He was dismissive of the Government’s “Coming Home” campaign, which aims to encourage 70,000 Irish people abroad to make the move back to Ireland. “They haven’t removed any the barriers that we have addressed,” he said.

“Now those barriers have only come

in in the last number of years. The Irish emigrants who emigrated in the ’80s and came back in the ’90s, who built the foundations of the Celtic Tiger did not have any of these barriers in front of them. And what has happened now is that the people who have been away for a few years have almost been diluted of their full citizenship.”

He noted that a number of Irish people who had emigrated and returned to Ireland had changed the course of Irish history. Not least Thomas Clarke, Major John MacBride and James Connolly who were executed for their roles in the Easter Rising.

The Irish Government previously promised they would meet regularly on the issue with Minister for Diaspora Joe McHugh. Since that promise was made, he says, seven meetings should have taken place, but not one has happened.

“What he need now is some action,” he concluded.

Irish Echo readers agreed that more needed to be done for returning emigrants.

“There are no programs to help repatriating citizens,” David Forsyth

wrote on Facebook.

“I have struggled to find a job that pays more than 12 euro an hour since returning to Ireland and would seriously recommend that anyone thinking of coming home only do so if they have a position already with a company here.”

Lisa Dineen wrote: “Completely short-sighted and typical backward thinking at home where the politicians don’t have the brains to realise that the thousands of emigrants who actually want to return home would bring with them essential skills and experience, not to mention a huge amount in tax payments, which would only be of benefit to the economy.

Remove these barriers, it’s not rocket science!”

Overall, an estimated 400,000 people have left Ireland since the year 2006. The vast majority left during the years when the economy was in recession and unemployment rose.

The most recent figures show that between April 2015 and April 2016 21,100 Irish citizens returned to live in the Republic – a 74 per cent increase on the previous year.

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A U S TRA L IA’S IRIS H N EWS PAPER

brexit - ireland ANTI-BREXIT CAMPAIGNERS DISRUPT TRAFFIC IN WARNING AGAINST HARD BORDER

Back to the future mock border a dark reminder Michael McHugh ANTI-BREXIT campaigners have brought traffic to a crawl along the border.

A convoy of protesters staged a noisy motorway go-slow near Dundalk in Co Louth using lorries and tractors to highlight the impact of predicted customs checks on the local economy.

Contingency work has begun to identify places where checkpoints could be set up once again, in preparation for the UK leaving the EU, the Irish Government said.

Opponents of a hard Brexit have argued it could undermine peace process measures which helped transform a militarised zone pockmarked by the Troubles and overlooked by Army watchtowers and barriers into an invisible boundary.

While minor roads were once cratered and closed to control north/ south traffic – and to combat a thriving market in smuggled goods as well as IRA movement – since the end of the conflict people and goods have passed largely unimpeded along the border.

A trailer-load of sheep going to market and passport-toting residents

took part in a theatrical “checkpoint” staged to highlight the detrimental impact of any such border.

A rusty Second World War-era bicycle placed alongside a mock customs hut reinforced the message that a hard border was a return to the past which British Prime Minister Theresa May has been adamant she wants to avoid.

Demonstration organiser for Border Communities Against Brexit, Declan Fearon, said: “We are really in the eye of the storm of Brexit and we intend to make sure that this does not happen.

We never want to see this community going back to what it was before.”

Mock border officers wearing traditional greatcoats waved down traffic in front of a stage customs hut.

More than 20 years ago there were 270 crossings along the almost 500km long border between Northern Ireland and the Republic.

But Mr Fearon said: “It seems as if Theresa May and the British Government has no intention of listening to us. They don’t seem to have any of our interests here along the border at heart and we want to make sure our voices are heard.”

A mock customs post is set up at Ravensdale, Co Louth, as anti-Brexit campaigners hold a go-slow protest on the main road between Northern Ireland and the Republic to highlight concerns about the impact on trade. Pic: PA

TAOISEACH CONFIDENT ‘DIVISIVE BORDER’ WILL NOT RETURN

All-Ireland response needed, says Kenny Brian Hutton

ENDA Kenny is confident the European Union will not allow “one of the most divisive borders in the world” to be reimposed on the island of Ireland after Brexit.

In what has been billed as a major policy speech, the Taoiseach said Ireland has “no choice” but to successfully resist a renewed land frontier once the UK leaves the EU. “I have stressed this point to every European leader I have met,” he said.

“In addition, all Gover nment ministers have engaged intensively with their counterparts to ensure that Ireland’s position is well understood.”

Mr Kenny added: “I am confident that the European Union will not bring us back to a border of division.”

Ireland will be negotiating from a

position of strength as one of the 27 EU countries sitting across the table from Britain after Theresa May triggers Article 50, which starts the process of the UK pulling out of the EU, the Taoiseach said. But he war ned a political vacuum in Northern Ireland, which is facing a snap election after the collapse of the power-sharing executive, could relegate the region’s best interests during the Brexit talks.

In an address to an Institute of International and European Affairs, he said he would do his best “to put forward the interests of the North”.

But he warned all political forces on the island of Ireland needed to come together to achieve a good outcome.

“We have no choice but to work together, North and South, all of us,” the Taoiseach said.

Mr Kenny also defended what he

characterised as his minority Fine Gael-led gover nment’s focus on Northern Ireland in the lead-up to the imminent Brexit negotiations.

“Fewer than 350,000 people voted for Brexit in Northern Ireland, out of a total population of more than 1.8 million,” he told the audience in Dublin. “But every man, woman and child in Nor thern Ireland will be affected by the outcome. And the vast majority of those affected are entitled to be Irish, and therefore European Union, citizens.

“When I hear people say [we are] too focused on the North, I urge them to consider how you would feel if Ireland was to be removed from the EU in similar circumstances.”

Brexit had led Ireland to a crossroads facing “challenges to our peace, and challenges to our prosperity”.

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BREXIT CAMPAIGN

DUP quiet on Brexit funding Deborah McAleese

PRESSURE is mounting on the Democratic Unionist Party to reveal who bankrolled its expensive UK-wide pro-Brexit campaign.

More than a quarter of a million pounds is believed to have been spent by the DUP to promote its “leave Europe” message.

As part of that campaign, the party paid for an expensive four-page Vote To Leave EU advertisement in the British Metro newspaper. The paper is available in London and other cities, but not in Northern Ireland.

Questions have arisen over how the DUP raised the cash for such a costly Brexit campaign.

DUP leader Arlene Foster has admitted that the par ty received donations after registering as a “leave the European Union” campaigner.

However, when pushed for details about the donors she would only say: “From an organisation in England that wants to see the Union kept and make sure we can have a United Kingdom.”

Donations to political par ties in Northern Ireland are kept confidential

for fear of identifying donors.

But Sinn Féin has demanded that the DUP clarify who funded its “lavish” pro-Brexit advertising campaign.

“The DUP took hugely expensive newspaper ads in a London newspaper, which is not circulated in the North, and DUP campaign material was also used in other British cities where they do not stand for election,” said Sinn Féin’s John O’Dowd.

“The DUP need to come clean and clarify who gave them the money and how much they received.

“It is vitally important in the wake of other scandals that the DUP clarify this in order to ensure integrity in the political process,” he added.

Mr O’Dowd said there are strict rules around corporate sponsorship and “there can be no place for anyone attempting to get around those rules”.

The DUP has refused to release any details about the donations and its advertising campaign.

In a statement, a party spokesperson said: “All advertising was paid for out of party funds. All eligible donations are registered with the Electoral Commission in the required manner.”

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AUST R ALIA’S IR ISH NE WSPAP E R

ireland TRANSPORT CHIEFS URGE DUBLIN NETWORK OVERHAUL

Pedal power push for policy Brian Hutton

Dublin’s public bicycle rental scheme has been a huge success.

THE number of people cycling into central Dublin during rush hour has nearly tripled over the past decade, latest figures show.

Transport chiefs say a “steady shift” being witnessed from the car to more sustainable commuting demands an overhaul of the capital’s road, path and cycleway network.

The National Transport Authority (NTA) carries out a survey every year of people crossing the Grand and Royal canals into the city between 7am and 10am. The latest results show that more than 12,000 commuters travel by bicycle into the centre every day – up from over 4,800 just 10 years ago.

People are also walking more.

Last year, almost 21,500 commuters crossed the canals on foot during rush

hour, up from around 17,000 in 2006.

Over the same period, the number of motorists choosing to negotiate the morning gridlock has gone from 58,500 to less than 52,000.

Anne Graham, chief executive of the NTA, said a notable change in commuting patterns is under way.

“What we are witnessing here, not just in 2016, but over a period of the past six years or so, is a steady shift from the car to the more sustainable alternatives like public transpor t, cycling and walking,” she said.

“To build on this momentum, we need an ambitious investment programme around bus prioritisation measures in the Dublin area, just as we need to copper-fasten investment in plans such as those for Metro North and the Dart Expansion.

“We also need to continue to build

on the success of our cycling pr ogrammes by building mor e cycleways and by working with Dublin City Council and the other local authorities in the area to expand the Dublin Bike share scheme.”

The Green Par ty said the latest figures show the appetite the Irish public has for cycling.

Ciarán Cuffe, Green councillor who chairs Dublin City Council’s Transport Committee, said investment is now needed in decent cycle lanes and footpaths, both in Dublin and other towns and cities around the country.

“People want to walk and cycle – imagine the increases we would see if we had dedicated cycling infrastructure in our towns and cities,” he said.

“We are seeing improvements in cycling facilities, but these changes are happening too slowly.”

SHARK AMONG 11 SPECIES CLASSED AS BEING ‘ENDANGERED’

Once-hunted basking shark now at risk of extinction Ed Carty

THE daunting but harmless basking shark is one of 11 species at risk of extinction in Irish waters.

The Red List of marine life classed as critically endangered or endangered also included another 25 types found of f our coasts that are said to be vulnerable or near threatened. The report warned that while none of the species are fished commercially, some are still taken as by-catch in fisheries.

Fifty-eight species were analysed by scientists with the future of Portuguese dogfish, common (blue)

skate, flapper skate, white skate, and porbeagle and angel sharks ranked as critical.

Basking sharks are the second biggest fish in the world, after the whale shark, and were once hunted by coastal communities along the west coast for the oil in their livers. They are now widespread and increasingly common visitors to plankton-rich shorelines, but their future remains uncertain.

“Although the targeted fisheries have ceased, population recovery is known to be very slow in certain species, such as the basking shark,” the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht said.

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EDUCATION

Neeson calls for integrated school push Deborah McAleese

HOLLYWOOD star Liam Neeson has backed a new campaign in favour of integrated education, claiming the time has come for all children in Northern Ireland to be educated together.

The Ballymena actor has released a short video supporting an initiative from the Integrated Education Fund (IEF) to make integrated education available in almost every school across the region.

“We look to our children for the future, so why do we continue to educate them apart: different religions, dif ferent backgrounds, dif ferent schools?” he asked.

“There is another way. Most people agree that educating children together is a better way forward for our society.

“It’s time to turn our aspiration into reality, to believe in your children and believe in their future.”

The campaign, called Integrate My School – I’m In, aims to give parents the power to influence schools to transform to integrated status.

At the centre of the campaign is a website – www.integratemyschool.com – where parents of school-age children in Nor ther n Ireland can register support for transforming their school to an integrated one.

A U S TRA L IA’S IRIS H N EWS PAPER

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news ECONOMY

Chinese stake in Ireland up to €3 billion Deborah McAleese

CHINESE investment in Ireland rose to almost €3 billion last year, it has emerged.

The record investment in 2016 places the country among the top five recipients of Chinese foreign direct investment (FDI) in Europe, law firm Baker McKenzie has said. It is a massive increase from 2015 when China invested just €19.27 million.

The law firm said the “unprecedented rise” in investment into Ireland was largely down to the purchase of Irish aircraft leasing business Avolon by China’s aviation and shipping giant HNA Group for $2.5bn(€2.32bn).

The deal, which closed in early 2016, saw Avolon become part of HNA’s extensive interests in the aviation sector, spanning stakes in 20 airlines and nine airports in China.

Ireland’s energy sector also saw a significant boost in Chinese investment, with a €370m investment from China General Nuclear Power’s European energy arm, into 14 Irish wind farms owned by Gaelectric.

Other sectors in Ireland to have received Chinese investment in 2016 were ICT, Financial and Business

Services, Electronics, Entertainment, and Industrial Machiner y and Equipment.

Tim Gee, M&A partner from Baker McKenzie, said: “Ireland’s surge in investment from China is indicative of a trend throughout Europe, as Chinese investors look to the transport, energy, ICT and industrial machiner y and equipment sectors.”

Paul Kavanagh, Ireland’s Ambassador to China, told the Global Times that he sees further opportunities in Ireland for Chinese investors.

“I am looking especially at two sectors where Ireland offers a very excellent platfor m for Chinese corporations to invest. The first one is ICT. Nine of the top 10 world ICT corporations are already invested in Ireland. Secondly, financial services.

Ireland is the fifth-largest financial centre in the EU after London, Frankfur t, Paris and Luxembourg.

Nearly 40 per cent of global hedge funds by value are administered from Ireland,” he said.

Ireland is the largest exporter of life insurance in Europe, and more than half of all commercial aircraft leased in the world today are owned and leased from Ireland.

SPIRIT OF GENEROSITY LIVES ON IN IRELAND

An online donation campaign has raised more than €750,000 for Shauntelle Tynan‘s cancer treatment.

Teenager breaks Euro fundraising record Michael McHugh A STRICKEN Carlow teenager has broken a European record for the most successful appeal for money for cancer treatment.

The dramatic cash boost following a social media post that went viral has helped pay for potentially life-saving therapy in the US for an “overwhelmed” Shauntelle Tynan.

The total hit more than €750,000 as we went to press and will allow the family to cover at least a year’s worth of potentially life-saving care.

Her delighted mother, Leona Tynan, said it was the most successful fundraising campaign ever run in Ireland and in the top 20 in the world.

“It is the fastest amount ever earned in Europe,” she said. “It is just incredible.”

Shauntelle, 18, said her Texas-based doctor had told her that her chances of recovery depended on how long she could spend in the US. The money was raised for the Carlow woman on crowdfunding site www.gofundme. com in a matter of days. Before that, the family had spent more than a year trying to raise the money.

Leona said: “To know that whatever she needs is there, there are no words to describe how we feel.”

Shauntelle said it had been an incredible experience.

“I would never have thought this would be possible. Everyone came together and helped me so much, I cannot thank you enough,” she added.

Shauntelle was diagnosed nearly two years ago with a rare form of multisystem Histiocytosis X/Langerhans cell histiocytosis (LCH). Since her diagnosis the cancer has spread to her gastrointestinal system, colon and skin.

PROPERTY MARKET

House prices soar in West but renters feel the pinch Ed Carty

HOUSE prices grew faster in parts of the west of the country than anywhere else last year, official figures say.

According to the Central Statistics Office (CSO), the lowest rate of growth was in the Fingal region of nor th Dublin, where values were up by just 3.2 per cent over the course of 2016.

Overall prices in the West were up 17.8 per cent.

In south Dublin, values grew by 9.7 per cent, while other strong markets were the Midlands, up 12 per cent, and the Mid West, South East and South West all seeing growth of more than 10 per cent.

The CSO said the recovery in the market has left prices about a third below where they were when the property bubble burst in early 2007.

Meanwhile, rents are also rising at their fastest rate in at least 14 years, a recent report suggests.

The latest figures from property website Daft.ie show a 13.5 per cent increase in average rents around the country last year.

It is the highest jump recorded since the fir m star ting publishing its quarterly rental reports in 2002.

Ronan L yons, T rinity College Dublin economist and repor t author, said the “grim” figures show recently introduced rental caps could be making the housing crisis worse for many people.

“While measures to control rental inflation may help sitting tenants, they do little to address the underlying

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House prices are up, but rents have soared due to lack of supply.

issue of a lack of supply,” he said.

“Indeed, they may hinder supply by encouraging the exit of existing landlords who had not substantially increased rents in recent years.”

Mr Lyons said construction costs needed to be slashed to help the building of more housing.

Average rents countr ywide have reached a new high at €1,111 a month.

In Dublin, rents have soared 14.5 per cent to an average of €1,643 a month; in Cork, they are up 12 per cent to €1,096; in Galway, up 10 per cent to €975; and in Limerick up 12.5 per cent to €875. There were less than 4,000 properties available to rent nationwide at the start of February – a quarter of the available properties five years ago, the report shows.

“The latest figures from the rental market remain very concerning,” Mr Lyons said.

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AUST R ALIA’S IR ISH NE WSPAP E R

ireland - politics KENNY OFFERS FULL APOLOGY TO GARDA MAURICE MCCABE

‘Appalling’ smear campaign against Garda whistleblower Ed Carty TAOISEACH Enda Kenny has offered a full apology to whistleblower Sergeant Maurice McCabe.

As he faced down an attempt to collapse the Government over the handling of allegations of a smear campaign against the respected officer, Mr Kenny said the unfounded child sex abuse slur was appalling.

“I therefore offer a full apology to Maurice McCabe and his family for the treatment that was meted out to them,” the Taoiseach said.

A judge-led tribunal is to be held into allegations that the top brass of the Garda orchestrated a black propaganda campaign against Sergeant McCabe among journalists and politicians.

Hearings are to be held in public, with the inquiry expected to be extended to cover other Garda whistleblowers who have also alleged victimisation. An independent international policing expert is to be brought into the country to carry out a “root and branch” audit of the Garda, focusing on the administration, ethos and culture of the force.

Mr Kenny defended his minority

coalition’s handling of allegations of a sex abuse smear campaign following days of obfuscation over who knew the details of the unfounded slur.

“The Government’s sole objective in responding to the recent protected disclosures has been and remains to get to the full truth,” he said.

“The false allegations against Sergeant McCabe are simply appalling.

Sex abuse is the worst crime a person can be accused of.”

Judge Peter Charleton, of the Supreme Court, is expected to lead the tribunal into the McCabe affair.

Fellow Garda whistleblower Keith Harrison also wants his case examined

by Judge Charleton.

He claims he and his girlfriend endured covert and overt Garda surveillance, referrals to Tusla – the Child and Family Agency – and that they were the victim of rumour, innuendo and malicious falsehoods.

Mr Harrison, who was previously nominated for a Scott Medal for bravery, was stationed in Athlone when he stopped a colleague on suspicion of drink driving in 2009.

He also raised concerns about drugdealing investigations.

Maurice McCabe was the victim of an apparently orchestrated smear campaign that included false allegations that he had sexually abused his own children.

GARDA SCANDAL ENGULFS GOVERNMENT, INQUIRY LAUNCHED

Tribunal to examine ‘public nightmare’ Brian Hutton

A PUBLIC inquiry into allegations that Garda chiefs orchestrated a smear campaign against a high-profile whistleblower has been extended to cover other of ficers who exposed wrongdoing.

The tribunal will also investigate Tusla, the State child and family agency, for its role in the scandal, relating to its file containing false allegations of sexual abuse against Sergeant Maurice McCabe.

In terms of reference agreed by the Cabinet, the inquiry will also look at allegations of “inappropriate contacts” between the force and T usla in relation to Garda Keith Harrison and other officers. It will investigate any “pattern of the creation, distribution and use by Tusla of files containing allegations of criminal misconduct” against rank-and-file Gardaí who alleged wrongdoing in the force and of the use of the files “knowingly” by top brass to discredit whistleblowers.

Supreme Cour t judge Peter Charleton, who will head the tribunal, will have to issue an interim report within three months.

Whistleblower Maurice McCabe has accused Garda chief Nóirín O’Sullivan of privately discrediting him while publicly declaring her support over his horrific ordeal.

The sergeant – who was targeted in a smear campaign that now threatens to topple the government – has also demanded Taoiseach Enda Kenny, Justice Minister Frances Fitzgerald and other ministers reveal if they were ever briefed on false sex abuse claims peddled against him.

In a rare statement from Mr McCabe and his wife, Lorraine, they called for politicians and police to tell the truth immediately about who knew of the false allegations being spread about Mr

Garda Commissioner Nóirín O’Sullivan has been accused of privately discrediting whistleblower Maurice McCabe

McCabe as he tried to expose wrongdoing within the force.

“We have endured eight years of great suffering, private nightmare, public defamation and State vilification, arising solely from the determination of Maurice to ensure that the Garda Síochána adheres to decent and appropriate standards of policing in its dealings with the Irish people,” the statement said.

The McCabes said their personal lives and family life – including the lives of their five children – have been “systematically attacked” in a number of ways by State agencies.

“We have also been the subject of a long and sustained campaign to destroy our characters in the eyes of the public and public representatives and in the eyes of the media,” the couple said.

Garda Superintendent Dave Taylor made the allegation of a smear campaign against Mr McCabe in a protected disclosure last year.

He returned to work last week after being suspended for almost two years while a separate investigation ran into the alleged leaking of information to

the media. Garda Harrison, who has been on extended sick leave from the force, claims he and his girlfriend endured cover t and over t Garda surveillance, referrals to Tusla and that they were the victim of r umour, innuendo and malicious falsehoods.

Mr Harrison, who was previously nominated for the Garda Síochána’s highest honour, was stationed in Athlone when he stopped a colleague on suspicion of drink driving in 2009.

The inquiry has been encharged to look at whether Commissioner O’Sullivan “influenced or attempted to influence broadcasts on RTE” on May 9 last year with briefing material “purporting to be a leaked account of the unpublished O’Higgins Commission Report, in which Sergeant McCabe was branded a liar and irresponsible.”

In the Seanad, Michael McDowell, a former Tánaiste, Justice Minister and Attorney General, plied pressure on Ms O’Sullivan to step aside until the tribunal has investigated the affair.

Ms O’Sullivan issued a hard-hitting statement insisting she will not step aside and declaring: “I am innocent.”

TAOISEACH UNDER PRESSURE

Shamrock US trip may be swansong for Kenny Ed Carty

ONE of the favourites to take over from Taoiseach Enda Kenny has called for a speedy transition in the Fine Gael leadership after St Patrick’s Day. Housing Minister Simon Coveney said Mr Kenny should go to Washington DC next month, but hoped for an orderly change soon afterwards.

Both Mr Coveney and Social Protection Minister Leo Varadkar are tipped to run for the leadership.

Mr Coveney told RTE’s The Week In Politics: “My opinion is that the Taoiseach should go to Washington because there has been a huge amount of work in preparation for that visit and it is in the country’s interest that he go.

“But I think after that visit you will see, I hope, an orderly and quite a quick transition after that to a new leadership within Fine Gael.”

He added: “But I trust the Taoiseach to use his own judgment on this, he has been around a long time and my sense is that he will provide that certainty quickly.”

Mr Kenny made a commitment last year to step down as Taoiseach before the next election. He has been in the job for almost six years after leading Fine Gael since 2002 and taking the party to a landmark victory in 2011 and a second election success in a row in early 2016. But questions over his future circulated this week amid criticism over his handling of allegations of corruption in policing and his minority coalition Government being forced to launch a public tribunal into the treatment of whistleblower Sergeant Maurice McCabe.

Fine Gael backbencher Alan Farrell has broken ranks to demand Mr Kenny stand down as leader, claiming his position was untenable.

But Mr Coveney has war ned against trying to force the Taoiseach out and said ousting him would be wrong. Mr Varadkar has said the Taoiseach will know when the time is right to step aside.

Taoiseach Enda Kenny is struggling to maintain the support of his party.

There had been speculation recently that the political fallout might culminate this coming week in a vote of no confidence in Mr Kenny by his colleagues.

His close allies have defended him and said some in the parliamentary party remain loyal.

One other cabinet member who has been mentioned as a potential leadership candidate, Minister for Public Expenditure and Refor m Paschal Donohoe, ruled himself out of any contest.

Bookmaker Paddy Power has suspended betting on the next Fine Gael leader following a string of large wagers on Mr Varadkar. Spokesperson Féilim Mac An Iomaire said: “If money talks, it’s screaming at us that Varadkar is in pole position.”

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AUST R ALIA’S IR ISH NE WSPAP E R

ireland BOOM IN NEW CONSTRUCTION JOBS AS FIGURES SOAR TO NEAR RECORD LEVELS

New jobs in construction and IT

David Young

mode, though the pace of growth has eased in recent months.

“Respondents continue to judge the Irish construction outlook to be very favourable. Confidence about future activity prospects remained strongly positive in January amid further solid gains in new orders, despite some easing in the rate of increase.

“Indeed, buoyed by the ongoing increase in work volumes, last month saw a substantial and accelerated rise in staffing levels with the rate of job creation picking up,” Mr Barry added.

“One note of caution stems from fur ther evidence of building cost pressures with the rate of input cost inflation picking up to its quickest in almost 10 years.

“Respondents repor ted higher prices for oil-related products and for items sourced from UK suppliers, the latter effect consistent with growing signs of Brexit-related price and costs increases in the UK economy.”

• Computer giant Microsoft is to create 600 jobs in Dublin. The expansion of operations at its Sandyford campus takes its workforce in the capital to about 1,800 with new staff taken on mainly in sales roles.

The investment follows 500 roles being announced midweek for job recruitment site Indeed.

Dublin will now host one of Microsoft’s four international sales centres as it takes on 500 sales staff and another 100 in various divisions including finance and engineering.

Taoiseach Enda Kenny was at the announcement in Sandyford.

“The Government has worked hard to make Ireland an even more attractive place to invest and growth substantial European operations.

“Today’s announcement underlines the strong commitment of Microsoft to its Irish operation and the strength of leadership of its Irish management team,” Mr Kenny said.

A SURGE in new construction jobs reached near record levels in Ireland last month, new figures indicate.

The number of firms repor ting workforce expansions (27 per cent) in the latest Ulster Bank Construction Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) was the second highest recorded since the monthly survey was first run more than 16 years ago.

The PMI noted that activity in the Irish construction sector continued to rise sharply in Januar y. This was prompted by an increase in new orders.

On the price front, the rate of input cost inflation quickened to the sharpest since February 2007.

The PMI provides a seasonally adjusted index that tracks changes in total construction activity.

Simon Bar r y, Chief Economist Republic of Ireland at Ulster Bank, said: “Irish constr uction activity

continues to grow at a healthy pace according to the latest results of the Ulster Bank Construction PMI. “The headline PMI index remained comfortably in expansion territory in January, albeit that the pace of growth eased for the third month running consistent with a modest loss of

NEW JOBS

US TECH FIRM TO SHUT DOWN ITS MAIN PC AND PRINTING OPERATION IN IRELAND

Animation hub draws new partner

Recruitment firm Indeed has announced 500 new jobs for Dublin.

momentum early in 2017 after a robust end to last year,” said Mr Barry.

“Ver y encouragingly, residential activity remains a par ticular bright spot with housing activity continuing to rise at a rapid pace, while commer cial activity also ver y much remains in expansion

Ed Carty

HUNDREDS of jobs are being created with investments by an animation and a tech company.

Car toon Saloon is opening new studios in Kilkenny in a partnership with Canadian firm Mercur y Filmworks.

About 140 jobs will be created in the venture over the next three years.

The new Lighthouse Studios will create animated children’s and family television enter tainment to be distributed around the world.

Meanwhile, US tech company Red Hat is to invest €12.7 million expanding operations in Waterford.

The software company will take on 60 people over four years.

The company also has offices in Cork and Dublin.

Elsewhere, the Centra chain of stores is to expand this year with 20 new shops and 460 jobs being created.

In Cork, a US technology company has vowed to create 100 jobs.

Nginx said it will open its European, Middle East and African headquarters in the southern city as part of a rapid global expansion.

It will recruit for roles in sales, marketing, finance, business development, software architecture, engineering, and research and development over the next three years.

The company, which has its headquarters in San Francisco, helps customers like Netflix and Instagram power and secure their websites.

It already employs around 100 people worldwide.

The Irish expansion is being supported by the State investment agency IDA Ireland.

“Many of the world’s leading technology firms are expanding their presence in Ireland because of the availability of highly skilled talent, the quality of life, and its strong relationships across Europe – and Nginx is no exception,” Taoiseach Enda Kenny said.

“We welcome Nginx for both the job and economic advancement it will bring to Ireland.”

The soon-to-be-closed HP facility in Leixlip, Co Kildare. Below: Maurice O’Connell, general manager of the Leixlip site.

Closure of HP’s Kildare plant means 600 job losses Ed Carty GLOBAL technology firm HP is to shut its main operations in Ireland with the loss of several hundred jobs.

The multinational’s facility in Leixlip, Co Kildare, focuses on products for the PC and printer market, which is under increasing pressure from the fall in traditional computer sales, the move away from printing documents and preference for tablet technology.

Jobs Minister Mary Mitchell O’Connor said there had been extensive but unsuccessful talks with the company to avoid the closure of the plant.

“It is important for the workers to know that I have asked that all the supports of the State will be made available to any workers affected by this decision,” she said.

The HP plant is set to close by February next year.

Ms Mitchell O’Connor added: “I have asked the IDA to continue with their efforts to ensure jobs are delivered to the region. They will continue to work

with the company in the time ahead to help secure a buyer for the Leixlip site.

Securing investment for Kildare and the surrounding region is a priority.”

HP said in a statement: “In line with our previously communicated strategy, HP’s global print business is working to drive continuous efficiencies and cost savings that enable investment in new market opportunities and growth initiatives, such as 3D printing. As a result, we have made the decision to close our global print business at the Leixlip site.

“It is likely that close to 500 HP employees will be impacted and leave the business over the next 12 months.”

Hewlett Packard split into two separate companies in 2015, HP Inc and Hewlett Packard Enterprise.

The latter, which focuses on new technology such as cloud computing, is unaffected by the announcement and continues to employ 2,100 staff at its sites in Leixlip, Galway and Cork.

Opposition politicians called for the Government to seek State and

European supports for workers to get new jobs, retrain or upskill.

Labour’s Alan Kelly said: “Efforts must also be made by the IDA to source a replacement industry for the region to deal with the jobs vacuum that will be left.

“We’re entering into a time of major uncertainty with Brexit and the election of President Donald Trump, and it is vital that Ireland is pitched as an attractive place to do business

with a highly skilled workforce.”

Local Fianna Fáil TD Frank O’Rourke said: “The Government needs to put in place a multi-agency task force to assist workers in finding alternative employment.”

HP said the Leixlip facility has been an important site for operations over the past 20 years and that it has “a long history of valuable contribution, innovation and business excellence”.

“This decision is not a reflection on our Ireland employees or on the site’s performance,” it said.

“We are very aware of the impact this decision will have on our employees in Ireland and we are focusing all of our efforts on supporting them, on identifying opportunities for them and on providing a programme to help them prepare for the transition ahead.”

Hewlett Packard first set up a sales office in Ireland in 1976 and the Leixlip facility – a major employer in the Kildare region – was established in 1995, producing ink-jet printer cartridges and working on research and development.

February 23 - March 8, 2017 I www.irishecho.com.au

A U S TRA L IA’S IRIS H N EWS PAPER

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February 23 - March 8, 2017 I www.irishecho.com.au

AUST R ALIA’S IR ISH NE WSPAP E R

ireland SOCIAL SERVICES

Women hit hardest by pension cuts Ed Carty

OLDER women are twice as likely to be hit by pension cuts introduced following the countr y’s economic collapse.

Research for Age Action revealed that about 36,000 pensioners have suffered as a result of stricter rules on the State pension and that almost two thirds of them are women.

Thousands of retirees, mostly women who gave up a job to rear their children in the home in the ’60s, ’70s and ’80s, are losing about €1,500 a year as a result.

The tougher criteria for getting a full State pension was introduced by former Tánaiste Joan Burton in budget changes in September 2012 and penalised workers who took time out of their careers, including to care for their children or family, and missed making small, weekly contributions.

Justin Moran, Age Action spokesperson, said women are being

ENVIRONMENT

Euro threat over sewage dysfunction

Women are disproportionately affected by pension cuts.

punished for taking time out of the workforce to raise a family.

“These are women who were working and made a conscious decision to give up their job to rear their childr en. Ther e wer e no other supports, no creches, to enable them to keep working,” he said. “They raised

their families and went back to work and because of those choices they are substantially less well off.”

Figures from the Department of Social Protection showed 22,248 women who retired since 2012 are getting smaller pensions due to time out of the workforce.

Age Action branded the pension changes drastic and said the system is unfair. The charity said the revised welfare rules average out the number of PRSI contributions a worker has made over their lives using calculations based on the number of years between the first day of work and retirement.

Justin Moran continued: “Under the old system, if you had an average of 20 contributions you would be entitled to €228.70. But after 2012, this dropped to €198.60, a cut of more of more than €30 each week.”

Age Action is calling on Social Protection Minister Leo Varadkar to reverse the pension cut introduced and backdate it to restore the incomes of tens of thousands of pensioners.

Senator Alice Mary Higgins said: “This report sheds much needed light on the disproportionate impact which recent changes to the contributor y pension criteria have had on women in Ireland, adding a further injustice to the deep historic gender inequalities

within our pension system.”

A spokesperson for the department said pension rates had been increased across the board rather than reversing the changes “to the benefit of every pensioner”.

“It is also expected that this will be the main focus of pension rate changes in Budget 2018,” the spokesperson added.

• Aged pensions in Australia are more generous and the eligibility criteria is broader than in Ireland.

The maximum Australian aged pension for an individual is 30 per cent higher than the Irish equivalent. In Australia, aged pensioners receive a maximum of $797.90 per for tnight (€574) compared to €444 in Ireland.

The payment rates start to taper if the individual has assets greater than $250,000, not including their primary place of residence. In Ireland however, the pension rate starts to diminish if an individual has more than €20,000 in assets, not including the family home.

IRISH LANGUAGE

Ed Carty

EUROPE’S environmental watchdogs are taking Ireland to court over the pumping of raw sewage into rivers and the sea.

They say 38 towns and cities have inadequate treatment plants for waste water, putting human health at risk, and leaving the countr y potentially liable for millions of euros in antipollution fines.

The European Commission is taking the case to the European Court of Justice after the Irish Government failed to meet deadlines set for sewage plants to built or upgraded by the end of 2000 and 2005.

Inspectors have identified inadequate sewage treatment plants in Clonakilty, Cobh, Cork city, Fermoy, Mallow, Midleton, Ringaskiddy, Youghal, Rathcor mac, Passage/ Monkstown and Ballincollig, all of which are in Cork.

I n D o n e g a l , G a o t h D o b h a i r, Killybegs and the Ballybofey/ Stranorlar area are similarly classed.

In the Midlands and the east of the countr y issues were identified in Arklow, Castlecomer in Kilkenny, Dundalk, Enniscorthy, Oberstown and Ringsend in Dublin, Navan, Athlone, Monksland, Enfield, Longford and Portarlington. Elsewhere, treatment plants ar e not suitable for the populations of Nenagh, Thurles, Roscrea in Tipperary, Killarney and Tralee in Ker r y, Cavan, Clifden, Roscommon town, Shannon town, Tubbercurry and Waterford city.

Authorities in Brussels said Ireland had until the end of 2000 to ensure any urban area with more than 15,000 people had adequate sewerage systems and until the end of 2005 to stop discharges from medium-sized towns into waterways.

Irish Water has estimated all sewage treatment plants will be upgraded by 2021 at a cost of €1.25bn.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) repor ted that raw sewage was being discharged from 43 areas in 2015 into rivers, estuaries and coastal waters.

Irish language advocates protest outside the Belfast High Court dressed as crocodiles after DUP leader Arlene Foster (inset) said of Sinn Féin demands for an Irish Language Act “If you feed a crocodile, it will keep coming back for more.”

‘More people speak Polish’, DUP leader’s Irish jibe Michael McHugh and Deborah McAleese THE DUP will never agree to an Irish Language Act, party leader Arlene Foster has insisted.

Mrs Foster said if there was to be an Irish Language Act, there should be a Polish Language Act because more people in Northern Ireland speak Polish than Irish. But advocates have claimed that an Irish Language Act would remove negative politics around the issue in the north of Ireland.

Hostile politicians have deliberately misused their remarks about the contentious demand, added Janet Muller, the director of advocacy organisation Pobal.

Ms Muller said legislation would allow Irish services to be treated as a simple administrative matter.

“We just need really to take the wind out of the sails of negative politicians and say: ‘Get over yourselves. This language is for everyone, embrace it.’”

Ms Muller joined scores of children and activists at a protest outside Belfast High Court where a legal challenge was launched against what critics term the Stormont executive’s failure to introduce a language strategy.

She said: “It is extremely frustrating and it is part of the picture of negative politicking that we have seen over the last 10 years and I think has come to a head again quite recently.

“We don’t want the Irish language to be a contentious issue.

“Part of that desire is what is behind wanting legislation, so it would take the issue of language services and recognition and status for the language out of the political arena and really make it a much simpler administrative issue.

“It is very difficult but certainly I think there is a deliberate use of and misuse of very hostile and negative language about the Irish language from certain sectors of political life.”

Around a tenth of the population in

Northern Ireland has some knowledge of Irish and Ms Muller said it brought medical and educational benefits.

DUP leader Arlene Foster,

“

Polish is safe in Poland, if Irish is not safe in Ireland where is it going to be safe?

”

addressing Sinn Féin demands for an Irish Language Act, said: “If you feed a crocodile, it will keep coming back for more.”

In response to Ms Foster’s comments, Sinn Féin’s Gerry Adams joked: “See you later, alligator”.

Two men in green crocodile suits joined the protest in Belfast Dozens of school children educated in Irish also took park as well as Assembly candidates from Sinn Féin

and People Before Profit.

The 2011 census showed 189,000 people in Northern Ireland had some knowledge of Irish and Ms Muller said the total was increasing.

“There is certainly not that number of people who have knowledge of any ethnic minority language.”

She said minority tongues like Polish deserved equal respect.

“But that is not treated in the same way anywhere in the world as the rights of speakers of indigenous minority languages. Polish is safe in Poland, if Irish is not safe in Ireland where is it going to be safe?”

President of Conradh na Gaeilge Cóilín Ó’Cearbhaill said: “We are talking about simple measures relating to children, Irish at home, visibility of the language; things that will make a demonstrable difference to the increasing numbers of people living their lives through Irish.

“The courts must act when the executive doesn’t.”

February 23 - March 8, 2017 I www.irishecho.com.au

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February 23 - March 8, 2017 I www.irishecho.com.au

Royal appeal OK, now we all like to sink a schooner but usually, we don’t alert royalty with the news.

But then we are not all like William Mulhall, no bad thing perhaps.

William is the owner of a Danish-built Tall Ship which sank in Strangford Lough in Co Down last month. The schooner, which was built in Denmark in the 1930s, “toppled over” while moored in Portaferry.

A marine event organiser said the sinking was an accident waiting to happen and had warned the authorities about the danger months earlier. An Ards and North Down Borough Council spokesperson said the schooner was moored at the jetty without its permission and it made numerous requests to the owner to move the vessel.

But owner William Mulhall said he could not move it then because of an issue over insurance and was receiving mixed instructions from different branches of government.

Mr Mulhall said the vessel’s name – Regina Caelis – meant Queen of Heaven in English and he had written to the Queen of Denmark to help sort out the problem.

“I wrote an email to the Queen of Denmark [Margrethe II] asking for help. From one queen to another.”

He said: “She will sail proud – all it needs is a golden opportunity.”

One wonders what Margrethe might make of it all.

sensible policies he could be very effective.

“The media don’t like him but then they didn’t like [president] Ronald Reagan either. They all thought he was some mad cowboy when he got elected.

“We should wait to see what Trump does over the next two years and if it’s successful, great.”

Pricey pints

Trumpeting Trump US President Donald Trump could be a “very effective” leader, Ryanair boss Michael O’Leary has claimed.

The chief executive of the low-cost airline urged people to “wait to see” what the president achieves during his time in the White House.

Speaking at an aviation summit in Brussels, Mr O’Leary said: “If he implements some of his stated policies – reducing taxes, promoting fracking, lowering the price of oil – it would be very good not just for the US economy but for the world economy generally.

“Some of the other stuff I don’t understand. Why you care how many showed up to your inauguration is beyond me. You’re already the president. It shouldn’t matter.

“If he carries out some of the

William Mulhall with his sunken schooner.

Quiz

1. Which GAA football manager, himself an AllIreland medal winner, steered Dublin to three All-Ireland titles between 1974 and 1983?

2. In 1939, WH Auden wrote on the death of which Irish poet: “He disappeared in the dead of winter …”?

3. Feargal Sharkey’s first solo top ten hit was A Good Heart. Which band did he play for?

4. The Earl of Ulster is a courtesy title used by the eldest son of which English duke?

5. How many Irish-born cardinals are there currently in the Vatican?

6. Which is Ireland’s largest prison outside Dublin?

7. In 1874 Emilie Charlotte Le Breton married 26-year-old Irish landowner Edward Langtry.

How was Ms Le Breton better known subsequently?

8. Dr Thomas Joseph Kiernan was the first person to occupy which post in Australia (taking up the post in 1946)?

9. Private James Daly, a soldier in the Connaught Rangers was court-martialled in 1920 and executed by firing squad; he is the last member of the British army to be executed for mutiny. In which country was the mutiny staged?

10. Who was the first Irish actress to win an Academy Award?

TOURING Irish comedian Aidan Killian (inset) said he’s started a detox after finding out the price of pint in Australia, at least we think that’s what he said.

“Jesus spent 40 days in a desert, Buddha spent 40 days under a tree and now I’m facing 40 days, performing comedy in Australia.

Jesus and Buddha both overcame temptation; Buddha’s first temptation was three beautiful dancing women, but he said, “No” … Not even the lick of a nipple! Jesus was only offered bread, which in my humble opinion, it was a lame first offer from the lord of the underworld. I wonder what would have happened if he was offered a cold pint of Guinness. ‘Ah go on Jesus … just have one.’”

So back to those pricey pints.

“A pint in Perth is $14 and it’s not even real pint. Instead of calling them schooners they should call them NEAPs; Not-Even-A Pint. Heaps NEAPs! No thanks Australia. It’s diet and detox time for this Irish man.”

Killian, who is performing gigs in Adelaide, Melbourne, Byron Bay and Sydney in coming weeks, later conceded that his diet and detox lasted three days.

Killian says wherever he goes in the world, the Irish are there.

“I did one of first ever gigs in Burma a few years back and about 15 Irish turned up … one of them said she saw me do a gig in a small bar called Anseo in Dublin once. Fair play to her.”

While he’s keen to explore all Australian experiences he will not be trying “that veggie marmite shit they pretend to enjoy”.

They said it...

“I no longer have confidence in the ability of Enda Kenny TD to lead Fine Gael, and I believe his position is now untenable … We must have a new leader in place who will inject a new impetus and provide a new direction for Fine Gael.”

Alan Farrell TD (Fine Gael, Dublin Fingal) speaking as calls mount for the Taoiseach to resign.

“Confession in the traditional sense is dying, and I am glad of it.”

Father Iggy O’Donovan, who believes that regular confessions

by Irish Catholics came to an end sometime in the 1970s and accompanied the ending of the notion that sex was a sin.

“It was a tragedy because not only was he killed, but there were other people killed that were not associated with the royal family or with British military or establishment. I presume in the eyes of those that went out at the time to kill him, viewed him as a legitimate target because he was a member of the British military.”

Conor Murphy, an ex-IRA volunteer and election candidate for Sinn Féin, speaking about the killing of Lord Louis Mountbatten in 1979.

“Anyone who wants to see a way forward recognises that commemoration events – as the royal family have recognised, as the British state has recognised, as political leaders have recognised – need to treated sensitively that people need to remember their own dead in a respectful way and we need to give space to allow people to remember their dead with dignity and respect.”

Dr Peter Doran, the Sinn Féin candidate for Lagan Valley, speaking about the Sinn Féin leader Michelle O’Neill’s decision to speak at an IRA commemoration event.

“Nobody put a gun to my head and said you must be a priest. In fact, everybody said to me, ‘You shouldn’t be a priest’. I choose to be a priest.

But I would have been a far better priest had I married.”

Father Brian D’Arcy, one of Ireland’s best known priests who regularly appears on RTE and the BBC. “Without such a designation a hard border is inevitable.”

Sinn Féin’s Gerry Adams, saying that a hard border dividing Ireland is inevitable unless a special EU status is secured for Northern Ireland.

“There are suspicions that the super trawlers are killing these dolphins and then throwing them back into the sea.”

Fine Gael MEP Seán Kelly, who has written to the European Commission to ask them to look at the increase in the number of dead dolphins being washed up on Irish shores.

Crossword Clues across:

Clues down:

1. Boggy area spoils hot country (9)

1. Edible skeletal part found scattered on me barrow (10)

5. Part of horse equipment easy to make a mess of? (5) 8. Writer, Irish connections, handy for shipping supplies (8) 9. Mustered, then raced in a car? (7) 11. Tune found in Tournamacairney (3) 12. Herb we hear marks out the passage of the clock (5) 13. Mystified by place of rest surrounding big Australian birds (7) 14. Irish paramilitaries and life force lead to person from Middle East country (5) 16. Confusingly, I ran an invented country

by Belfast man (6) 17. Terror organisation found in disillusionment (4) 20. You might want to do this if what you’re up to is only just legitimate, with me and friend removed! (3,2) 22. Short Irishman we hear with a fuss makes an emperor famed in opera (6) 25. A cobweb barely conceals a tidal flow (3) 27. Dire prospects confounded by team’s togetherness (6,2,5) 28. Golfer could learn showy wayward shots (5,5) 29. Try another way of hiding Irish family (4)

1

2

3

4

2. A noble usher haphazardly shows way to Dublin digs (10) 3. A harp that’s hard to believe, we hear (4)

9

10. Irish god with 500 in Rome with elemental silver and short Irish father (5) 15. It dangles eye-level, so difficult to spot this island facing Ireland (8) 18. In confusion I’d scare if I saw this usually one-wheeled vehicle (7) 19. Dublin townland or snow vehicle (6) 21. Have a doze in front of the public address system in wine-growing valley (5) 22. Lord O’Neill’s principal US state we hear (5) 23. This size usually manages to disguise a Greek god (4) 24. To make a mistake in Derreannaclogh (3) 26. Healthy cereal given to Ulster mythological dog? (4)

14

15

7

10 11

5. Incline towards peckishness, leading to Cork-based du Maurier novel (6,4)

7. Planner, for example Patrick’s position shortened, picking up speed for nub of the matter (10)

6

8

4. Confusingly, redo thy northerly name (7)

6. Molly and Bugsy on Belfast thoroughfare (6)

5

12 13

16

17 19 21

23

18 20

22 24

25

26

27

28

29

LAST EDITION’S ANSWERS: Clues across: 1. The Joshua Tree.

8. Yahoo. 9. (Robert) Peel. 12. Keener. 13. Obsolete. 15. Ass. 16. Murphy.

18. Allgood. 19. Altar. 20. Fez. 23. Lemass. 24, 32 across: A bottle of whiskey.

26. Adam. 28. Ypres. 31. Era. 32. see 24 across 33. David.

Clues down: 1. Tayto. 2. Ethos. 3. Oxo. 4. Hop. 5. Tolka. 6. Earnest.

7. Barry Fitzgerald. 10. Emerald. 11. Kenya. 14. Orphanage. 16. McAuley.

17. Box. 21. USA. 22. Sodoku. 24. Ambit. 25. Treys. 26. Down. 29. Pea. 30. Sod.

Answers: 1. Kevin Heffernan; 2. WB Yeats; 3. The Undertones; 4. The Duke of Gloucester; 5. Four: Desmond Connell, Sean Brady, Keith O’Brien (removed from his post as archbishop, but still a cardinal), Kevin Farrell; 6. Portlaoise; 7. Lillie Langtry; 8. He was Ireland’s first ambassador to Australia; 9. India; 10. Brenda Fricker, who won the Best Supporting Actress award for her part in My Left Foot.

February 23 - March 8, 2017 I www.irishecho.com.au

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review

February 23 - March 8, 2017 I www.irishecho.com.au

Bones of a story THERE is a growing trend among modern novelists to seek some unusual angle to make their work stand out. A gimmick, if you like.

Eimear McBride did it in both her books by using a scattergun stream-of-consciousness narrative.

Sara Baume’s angle in Spill Simmer Falter Wither was to have the central character talking to his dog. In his most recent book, Nutshell, Ian McKewan uses a third-trimester foetus as his first person narrator (and for what it’s worth, I think it works brilliantly). And now we have Mayo man Mike McCormack using a dead person as his central character. Not only that, but he writes the entire book without a single full stop – just a single 223-page sentence.

The story is told in the voice of Marcus Conway, the chief engineer for Co Mayo. The fact that he is dead is actually pointed out in the blurb on the back cover, but since this reviewer never reads those little promotional trailers, he had to wait until the final few pages to understand what was going on. It was a disjointed and grumpy read, often using the argument that since I have got this far, I might as well finish. No hope of breaking for dinner at the end of a chapter since such things do not exist.

That being said, the fact that Marcus is dead helps to explain why the decision to write the book as a single sentence was more than just another gimmick; after all, the dead need not worry about full stops. Oddly enough, they do, however, use commas.

The other thing the dead need not worry about is anything resembling chronological sequence, so that

presents

the story can ramble backwards and forwards in time and place, sometimes expanding on matters that have little to do with the main story. So we learn about the narrator’s father and his last year of life and about his method of navigating on Clew Bay without instruments. There are sections describing the efforts of Marcus to deal with local council and with the local TD. He describes the first time he voted at the age of 18 when he cast a vote for a candidate who sounds suspiciously like Pee Flynn.

Marcus’s daughter is an artist whose first exhibition greatly offends her father. His son is on a working visa in Queensland and their communication, via Skype, always ends with the directive that he should cut his hair. Towards the end of the book, his wife is one of a large number of people in the locality who are suffering from cryptosporidium poisoning resulting from water pollution.

If you feel that all of that seems a bit thin for a full novel, you would not be far off the mark. Still, the book won the prestigious Goldsmiths Prize, which is awarded for innovation in fiction. It also won the Irish Novel of the Year in 2016 against very strong competition, some of which were reviewed in these pages last year.

This reviewer’s tentative endorsement of the book is accompanied with the strong advice that you should read the blurb before you start the book.

THE front cover gives a hint of what to expect in the story. It shows a desolate winter landscape with only

BOOKS SOLAR BONES

By Mike McCormack Tramp Press 223 pp €12.21

CCC

THE GOOD PEOPLE

By Hannah Kent Picador 386 pp $32.99

CCCCC Frank O’Shea a single scraggly tree to break the bleakness. But it is a hawthorn tree, the favourite of the fairies, and as the William Allingham poem reminds us, “If any man so daring / As dig them up in spite, / He shall find their sharpest thorns / In his bed at night.”

You will still find single hawthorn bushes in otherwise tilled fields in many parts of today’s Ireland, a throwback to their association with the little people. Certainly, you will find them in Kerry and more specifically in the region known as The Black Valley, a beautiful but barren landscape that lies below the road between Moll’s Gap and Ladies View on the Ring of Kerry. It is the

setting for this wonderful work of imaginative fiction.

The year is 1825, priests are no longer hunted, but they have to preach their message against a background where old superstitions are still taken for granted. The people are in survival mode, working to save enough for the dreaded rent day; they sell whatever eggs or butter they can spare and have little time for the penny they are supposed to contribute to Daniel O’Connell’s campaign for Catholic Emancipation. And when things are not going well, they look for signs to explain their misfortune. So when an apparently healthy Martin Leahy suddenly drops dead and is carried back to his wife, Nora, her first concern is to hide her young grandson Micheál who is severely disabled physically and mentally and whose condition could be used as an omen that the Good People are unhappy with the community.

Nora hires a young girl to look after the child and they consult with a local wise woman healer named Nance.

She believes that the original Micheál has been taken by the fairies and the crippled boy is a changeling, sent in his place. (It was believed that only male babies were taken by the fairies which is why infant boys – probably including this reviewer – would be dressed as girls until the age of five or so). None of Nance’s attempts to get the original child back from the fairies is successful and her final attempt is the core of the story.

Hannah Kent should be given the freedom of Kerry for the way she describes the county and its people.

Her descriptions are little gems: a graveyard “slouched next to the little church”, puddles “glossy with sky”, a wind “that smelled of … the vinegar tang of windfall apples”.The priest is “slack-jawed and slumped with the spine of a scholar”. And as winter sets in, “Men planted themselves by the fire, coughing up the season, and the women carded wool and kept company with their spinning wheels, as though compelled to wrap themselves and their families in more layers of homespun. “ It would be easy to mock or demean the beliefs of the people in the valley, but they and their understanding of the natural world are always presented sympathetically. “There are worlds beyond our own that we must share this earth with,” Maggie told her, “and there are times when they act on one another.” That may not resonate with modern Maggie, but she may need to take care because today’s physics seems to veer close to that very idea.

Whether you admire the easy writing style or marvel at the research or are pleased that rural Ireland can be captured so perfectly by an Australian, this book is a delight, a story for the ages.

February 23 - March 8, 2017 I www.irishecho.com.au

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FRIDAY 17TH MARCH

MIGHTY IRISH SESSION

TUNES AND SINGING - SHARE THE CRAIC 5PM TIL LATE - FREE ENTRY

SATURDAY 18TH MARCH

JOE & HARMONY’S MAGIC CARPET RIDE.

1 P.J. O’BRIEN’S, SYDNEY 2 DURTY NELLY’S, PERTH 3 SCRUFFY MURPHY’S, SYDNEY 4 JB O’REILLY’S, PERTH 5 P.J. O’BRIEN’S, MELBOURNE 6 COCK ‘N BULL, SYDNEY 7 WENTWORTH PLAZA, PERTH 8 THE QUIET MAN, MELBOURNE 9 MERCANTILE HOTEL, SYDNEY 10 O’MALLEY’S, BRISBANE

Acoustic tye-dye interpretations of revolutionary songs from the 1960s, man, and it’s far out!! Hippy Clothing Optional.

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MIGHTY TUNES SESSION FOLLOWED BY AOIFE SCOTT, GALLIE AND AINE TYRRELL

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1 P.J. O’BRIEN’S 2 THE QUIET MAN 3 THE IRISH TIMES 4 THE DRUNKEN POET 5 P.J. O’BRIEN’S, MELBOURNE AIRPORT 6 BRIDIE O’REILLY’S 7 SEAMUS O’TOOLE 8 THE CELTIC CLUB 9 IRISH MURPHY’S, GEELONG 10 THE SNUG 1 DURTY NELLY’S 2 JB O’REILLY’S 3 WENTWORTH PLAZA 4 CROWN 5 MURPHY’S 6 JOONDALUP RESORT 7 FEINIANSÍ 8 BAILEY BAR & BISTRO 9 ROSE AND CROWN 10 PADDY MALONES

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February 23 - March 8, 2017 I www.irishecho.com.au

time out

21

Options for your parents DEAR RL,

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.

My sister and I are permanent residents in Australia.

Our parents have been out to visit several times and as we are their only children they are looking for ways to stay here for longer.

The parent visas are wildly expensive but we’ve heard parents can now get five-year visitor visas? Is this true?

What options would they have?

RL.

PARENT visas can be a difficult stretch. The contributory parent visa currently takes about two years to be approved, and costs around $45,000 per parent.

The non-contributory option is much less expensive, but current waiting time is a ridiculous 30 years or more.

A visitor visa is a fast and cheap alternative to bring parents to spend time with family in Australia.

And yes, longer validity visitor visas are now available for parents of Australian permanent residents and citizens.

Normal short-stay visitor visas can be applied for online, and approval is usually quite fast – often within 24 hours. These allow multiple entries, but a maximum of three months for each stay in general.

Now if you have Australian permanent resident or citizen children, you can get a longer stay visitor visa.

These longer visitor visas can only be applied for while you are outside Australia.

If you have applied for a parent visa and are currently in the queueawaiting grant, you may get a longer

stay visitor visa of up to five years.

But while the visa is valid for five years and allow multiple entries, they only allow up to 12 months’ maximum stay for each visit.

If you are not in the parent queue, you can still get a longer stay visitor visa. The duration of the visa will depend on whether you have had a history of travelling to Australia previously and leaving

“The non-contributory

option is much less expensive but current waiting time is a ridiculous 30 years or more.

See more www.border.gov.au/ Trav/Visa-1/600If you get a long-stay visitor visa, you will need to show that you are spending at most 12 months in each 18-month period in Australia.

For instance, if you have just spent 12 months in Australia, you would need to spend at least the next six months outside Australia. Otherwise, Immigration may deem you are trying to take up residence in which case you could be denied entry to Australia and or have your visitor visa cancelled.

The advantages over a permanent parent visa are the low cost and fast processing time, but the disadvantages of shorter stay, no

”

within your visa period.

Three-year visas are given to people with a good history of visa compliance.

If it’s your first visa to Australia it will be granted for 18 months.

For these longer-term visitor visas you will need to obtain high-level private health coverage. Immigration is likely to ask for evidence of insurance.

work, and no access to Medicare need to be considered.

So the longer stay visitor visas can be a good alternative to parent visas, as can allow your parents to spend a significant amount of time in Australia. On the other hand, if your parents do wish to live in Australia long term, applying for a parent visa sooner rather than later may still be the better option.

Consider asking a registered migration agent for a personalised assessment. See mia.org.au

MARCH 11 LONG WEEKEND

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LAST TICKETS AT

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22

recruitment

to advertise call (02) 9555 9199 or email ads@irishecho.com.au February 23 - March 8, 2017 I www.irishecho.com.au

Project Engineer/Manager Required Well established formwork/concrete structure subcontractor seeks Project Engineer.

Due to projected increase in upcoming projects we require a Project Engineer to assist with: • Tendering, estimation and pre-contract award duties • Contract admin during projects incl management of SWMS etc • Contract variations • Procurement and pre-planning in relation to materials and subcontractors CANDIDATE REQUIREMENTS: • Min 2 years similar role with exposure to RMS requirements & B80 Specifications • Experience with concrete structure construction and Formwork • Provide technical and administration support to site staff • Team player with strong communication skills • Ability to maintain and develop relationships with clients, site supervisors and tradesmen On offer is a package negotiable on experience and the opportunity to grow with a well established and respected Sydney based company specialising in complex concrete structures who have a well established client base and are known for producing reliable and quality structures for our clients.

This role could potentially suit someone wanting to step back from major contractor role and a flexible working arrangement could be negiotiated.

Written applications including current resume should be sent to: gwconstructions@outlook.com

CONSTRUCTION LABOURERS We are seeking labourers with 2 year’s experience to join our construction team in delivering projects.

Key Duties and Responsibilities include (but not limited to): • Follow direction from site engineer, team leader and operations manager as required.

• Using hand and power tools as required (saws, drills, etc). • Undertake Kerb, Gutter, Footpath, Road works, Drainage. • Form work • Concreting • Clean and prepare sites • General labouring • Assisting operators/contractors • Civil construction including drainage, roads, kerb, gutter, paving, landscaping, footpaths. • Spotting of excavation and backfilling.

To be eligible for the role you must have the following skills/experience: • Previous experience working on construction sites as a labourer.

• Construction Induction -­‐ Blue or White Card (Essential) • A strong safety focus • Current resume with two recent and contactable work references • Hold a current Drivers’ Licence and have reliable transport • More than 2 year’s experience in civil works

Please contact Mr Ahmad Mourad on 0404 819 657 to arrange an interview Sydney Civil Pty Ltd is a leading civil construction company highly experienced in local government, and major commercial and industrial projects with a reputation for providing a professional, integrated service to its clients.

Daly’s Constructions (Australia) Pty Ltd has been providing specialist construction services to the Energy Infrastructure Industry for over 45 years across Australia.

Due to sustained growth in our URD (Urban Residential Development) business we have a number of challenging and rewarding positions available.

POSITIONS AVAILABLE: • Cable Jointers • Cable Haulers These are full time positions operating from our Laverton office.

Applicants must have experience in the URD market.

Attractive packages will be negotiated with the successful applicants and will be commensurate with skills, experience, ability and formal qualifications.

Interviews will be conducted with applicants who can demonstrate required experience.

All resumes will be treated as confidential and reviewed by the Directors only.

Please email all resumes to: cable@daly.net.au

Established in 2004, RSG operates from Mackay, Queensland with branch offices in Moranbah and Clermont Qld and Darwin NT to support our expanding operations in Queensland, Northern Territory and NSW.

FIND IRISH STAFF

Email ads@irishecho.com.au Call 1300 555 995

Our customers are typically large public companies or government bodies, these include Anglo American, BHP Billiton, Rio Tinto, Santos, Murphy Pipe & Civil, Leighton’s, SunWater and Local Government.

CURRENTLY SEEKING • CIVIL ENGINEERS (x2) • ESTIMATOR PIPELINE/CIVIL EXPERIENCE (x2) • PIPELAYERS • OPERATORS • POLY WELDERS • TRUCK DRIVERS GOOD CONDITIONS AND TOP PAY RATES

Contact Brendan Lenihan on 0418 718 525 or send CV to: blenihan@reaygroup.com.au

to advertise call (02) 9555 9199 or email ads@irishecho.com.au February 23 - March 8, 2017 I www.irishecho.com.au

recruitment

KILLARD EXCAVATION IS SEEKING EMPLOYEES FOR THE FOLLOWING ROLES:

• Project Manager • Project Engineer • Plant Manager & Fitter • Site Manager • Pipe Layers • Skilled Excavator Operators • Labourers We are looking for experienced, reliable and hardworking employees to join the Killard Excavation team with IMMEDIATE START. LOCATIONS: Sydney Metro, Northern Beaches, North & South West Sydney APPLICANTS MUST HAVE: • 3 year’s experience operating excavators ranging in size up to 5-35 tonne machines • Experience working with pipe laying crews • Experience in trenching / final trim works • Experience in rock hammering trenches

APPLICANTS MUST HAVE THE FOLLOWING TICKETS: • White card • Excavator Statement of Attainment or Workcover ticket • Excavator VOC (Verification of Competency) • Overhead Awareness (5009) • Drivers Licence / Own Transport (truck licence an advantage)

WE WILL ALSO OFFER SPONSORSHIP FOR THE RIGHT CANDIDATES.

To apply or for further details, please call Jerry on 0417 267 147 or email: jerry.daly@killard.com.au

23

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time out

February 23 - March 8, 2017 I www.irishecho.com.au

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

‘Dead-beat dad’ jailed A JUDGE jailed a “dead-beat Dad” – who has received €266,000 in two personal injury claims – for failing to pay arrears in the €90-a-week maintenance payments for his two children.

The Journal.ie reports that Judge Patrick Durcan who was presiding in the Family Law Court in Ennis, made the rare move of jailing the Co Clare man for 21 days over his failure to pay any of the €6,490 arrears owed to his estranged partner and mother of their two children.

The man arrived to the hearing in a top-of-the-range car valued at around €60,000, but in court denied that he owned it and said that it belonged to his mother.

Judge Durcan regularly reminds recalcitrant fathers that Limerick prison “can be a very stuffy place this time of year” and this usually results in cash being paid into court.

However, in this case, Judge Durcan had issued two previous warnings without response.

In the latest hearing, Judge Durcan told the accused, “You recovered a total of €266,000 in the past four years in personal injury claims.”

He replied: “Yes, your honour and I paid for my house and I’m living by myself and I pay my own bills.”

He offered to pay the arrears off at €10 a week.

Judge Durcan was unmoved, saying, “On 2 February, I imposed a 21-day prison sentence with the warrant to issue at 12.30pm today.

“I adjourned the case to today’s date to see if you had made any progress – in other words to see if you had shown any decency in this case.” As no decency, or money, had been forthcoming he said that he was signing the warrant immediately.

Garda James Hanley then placed the shocked man in handcuffs and led him off to jail.

LEITRIM

Good Samaritan deed left man out of pocket A MAN who acted as a Good Samaritan by helping at an accident in Keshcarrigan was left out of pocket after emergency services cut the roof and doors off his car to remove a young woman and take her to hospital.

The Leitrim Observer reports that Tamara Jade Huxtable from Drumshanbo, a back-seat passenger, was injured after the car she was in struck a wall.

Paul Egan from Sligo Town arrived at the accident scene and tried to help. “I saw her [Tamara] standing on the side of the road … She was distressed and I offered her a seat in my car,” Paul said. “She then lapsed in and out of consciousness.” When the emergency services arrived they didn’t know the extent of her injuries and decided to cut the roof off the 2008 Opel Astra estate car to remove her.

Mr Egan said her mother, Sue, subsequently rang him to thank him

and said that Tamara is now out of hospital.

However Paul’s car was destroyed and all his personal belongings were thrown on the side of the road.

Paul, who works for the HSE and needs his car for work, then found himself in difficulty.

But as news of his plight spread, local web designer Leon Quinn established a “YouCaring” page which invited members of the public to make donations to help assist Good Samaritan Paul.

The story quickly drew national attention and was featured on RTE’s Liveline. The website has so far raised more than €7,000 for Paul.

CORK

Vigilantes warning in Cork GARDAÍ are investigating an assault and posts on a Facebook page which warn of vigilantism against drug dealers in a Cork suburb.

The Irish Examiner reports that a senior Garda spokesperson confirmed they were aware of the page which threatens direct action.

Its first post read: “Time to clear the heroin scum out of Mahon.”

Photos of several men have been posted on the page, alleging their involvement in drug dealing.

The threats come days after two men, understood to be known to each other, were attacked in the Mahon area. One of the men suffered a number of broken bones and spent several days in hospital.

Gardaí are now trying to establish if there is a connection between the assaults.

Superintendent John Quilter said there is no place in society for this kind of vigilante activity.

One of the alleged assault victims told 96FM’s Opinion Line that he is a recovering heroin addict and was confronted at the door of his home on by two men armed with baseball bats.

He said the men called him a scumbag and warned him to leave the area, then began to beat him on his back and legs.

Sinn Féin councillor Chris O’Leary urged people to desist from vigilante activity and called for the Garda authorities to given local Gardaí adequate resources to tackle such issues.

LIMERICK

Jailed for robbing circus workers in Limerick A TEENAGER who falsely imprisoned and robbed two circus workers at a house in Limerick city has been jailed for 18 months.

The Limerick Leader reports that Gary Bermingham, aged 18, of Castlebrook, Castletroy, pleaded guilty last year to charges relating to an incident in the early hours of February 1, 2014.

The victims, both British nationals, were members of Circus Vegas who had arrived in Limerick

Zoe Kapica, 4, from London, looks at a heart-shaped balloon tied to a cannon on the historic city walls of Derry overlooking the Bogside area of the town. Pic: Brian Lawless/PA Wire the day before the incident.

The men, aged in their 20s, were socialising in the city centre when they encountered a number of local youths, including the defendant.

They were taken, under false pretence, to the rear of a house at Johnsgate village where they were forced into a garden shed and threatened with a Stanley knife.

Bermingham played an active part in the robbery by searching the men’s pockets and removing their valuables.

During last year’s sentencing hearing, Mark Nicholas SC said his client, who has 18 previous convictions, was the youngest of the group.

He said the teenager has had a difficult upbringing and that his father is “not the best of role models”.

Imposing sentence Judge Tom O’Donnell noted the teenager did not use any violence during the incident.

He noted than an older man, who was also prosecuted, previously received a lengthy prison sentence.

None of the other culprits have been brought before the courts.

Judge O’Donnell said Bermingham’s admissions and his guilty plea were mitigating factors in the case as was his age at the time of the offence.

He imposed a three-year prison sentence, suspending the final 18 months.

WESTMEATH

Crowdfunding campaign to save St Patrick’s Day parade AN ONLINE “crowdfunding” campaign has been launched in a bid to give Athlone’s St Patrick’s Day parade a much-needed boost.

The Westmeath Independent reports that the parade committee hopes the Go Fund Me page would raise enough funds to deliver “the festival that Athlone deserves”. So far the fund, which “went live” at the end of January, has attracted 12 donations, amounting to a total of €1,390. This is well short of the €30,000 needed.

Michelle Doyle of the St Patrick’s Day parade committee said the decision to look for funding online was taken after the committee had little success when approaching businesses, door-to-door, with requests for support.

The parade receives funding from the council, but Doyle said this is only enough to pay for public liability insurance, security, and the main band on the day.

The standard of the town’s St Patrick’s Day parade came in for criticism last year, with Athlone Chamber of Commerce saying there had been a low level of engagement with the event from traders and other organisations in the town.

TYRONE

Anger as council cuts down union jack pole A UNION Jack flag and flag pole in Magherafelt town centre, removed

by Mid-Ulster District Council within 24 hours of its installation, has provoked an angry reaction.

The Tyrone Courier reports that footage emerged on social media showing the unauthorised flag pole being cut down by councilappointed contractor.

The scene was watched over by officers of the PSNI. The clip sparked outrage from some quarters, while others commended the removal of the flag.

A group calling itself the British Truth Forum had put up the flag.

The group’s spokesperson, William Lennox, said it was funded by “victims, ex-veterans, members of the Orange Order and non-members of the Orange Order”.

The Orange Order has distanced itself from the incident but local unionists remain annoyed.

“The cutting down of the flag pole by a council-appointed contractor demonstrates a total disregard and lack of respect for the Union Jack, the flag of our nation,” stated DUP group leader on Mid Ulster Council, Cllr Paul McLean.

Sinn Féin party candidate, Ian Milne, commented: “As far as I’m concerned it was put there illegally in the hours of darkness. I think whoever put the flag up is going against the spirit of the shared space in Magherafelt. Unionism has to realise that there are two communities living in this area and we all have to be accommodated.

As far as we’re concerned it’s an affront to our neutrality.”

A post on the Facebook page “proud to be Protestant banter” said that a number of flags were erected across Cookstown and Magherafelt in protest.

TYRONE

Council ‘booze & snooze’ junket MID ULSTER Council is remaining tight-lipped over the cost of a junket to Dublin.

The Tyrone Courier reports that four councillors and a council officer enjoyed a night out “across the border” at the ratepayers’ expense.

The five enjoyed a drinks reception at the Crowne Plaza Hotel near Dublin Airport, a three-course meal and music and dancing.

Accommodation was provided for each council representative, as well as mileage expenses.

They were making the trip to attend the local authorities’ LAMA Community & Council awards, for which the Seamus Heaney Centre was nominated in the “Best Heritage Project” category.

The meal cost around £150, per head; the council has not revealed the additional costs of accommodation and mileage. It is also not known if those visiting were given “plus ones”.

The Courier checked the price of hotel room where the function was held – they cost up to £205 for the night, meaning the council could face a bill of close to £2,000 for the excursion.

The five councillors who attended were from the UUP, the SDLP and Sinn Féin.

WATERFORD

Man insists he had to use force A MAN accused of murdering a man in a row over the breeding of chihuahuas insists he had to use force to defend his friend.

The Waterford News and Star reports that Wayne Cluskey and his friend Josh Turner, both of Mooretown in Ratoath, Co Meath, have pleaded not guilty to the murder of Christopher Nevin.

Nevin died from injuries sustained outside his friend’s house in Navan in November 2015. Both Turner and Cluskey admit striking him with an axe.

The row erupted over a pedigree chihuahua that failed to father enough pups.

The prosecution’s case is that Nevin was unarmed; however an eye witness told the Central Criminal Court that the deceased man had a hatchet.

On behalf of Mr Cluskey, solicitor Shane Costelloe told the jury that his client grabbed an axe when he saw his friend being confronted

by Mr Nevin – a man he knew had previously served time for a serious assault. He said he had an honestly held belief that he needed to use force to defend his friend and that the force used was proportionate.

The case continues.

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February 23 - March 8, 2017 I www.irishecho.com.au

A U S TRA L IA’S IRIS H N EWS PAPER

sports Robbie Keane in possible UAE move ROBBIE Keane has been pictured training with Al-Ahli as he prepares for his next career move.

The former Republic of Ireland captain left LA Galaxy in November and, as a free agent, has been linked with a host of English sides.

But the United Arab Emirates side tweeted photographs of Keane training with them last week, captioned: “Irish star Robbie Keane participates in morning drills.”

Al-Ahli currently sit fourth in the Arabian Gulf League table.

Keane started his stellar career in 1997 with Wolves, going on to play for Coventry, Inter Milan, Leeds, Tottenham, Liverpool, Celtic, West Ham and the LA Galaxy. Last year he retired from international duty as the Republic of Ireland’s record goalscorer with 68 in 146 matches.

He was appraoched by a number of Australian clubs, but it is understood that they could not make an attractive enough offer.

Pogbas’ ‘magic’ night fails to delight Roy PAUL Pogba enjoyed a “magic” evening against brother Florentin, but the frivolity around the St Etienne encounter bemused Manchester United great Roy Keane.

Build up to the Old Trafford encounter was dominated by chatter about the siblings’ first competitive meeting on a stage far grander than the artificial pitches they grew up playing on in the Parisian suburb of Roissy-en-Brie.

The whole Pogba family were in tow for an occasion Florentin marked by having both his and Paul’s numbers shaved into his hair.

But Keane thought the whole occasion was a bit weird in relation to the Pogbas.

The former midfielder joked it was “almost like a testimonial”, with the brothers walking off together at half-time chatting.

Asked if seeing that had bothered him, Keane told ITV: “Yeah, it does.

“Listen, the boy, Pogba, he’s a bit of a free spirit, a bit of a character.

“They’ve spoke more tonight than I have to any of my brothers in the last five years, so it’s all a bit strange.

“But all this stuff before and after the game, a lot of nonsense – but that’s the modern player, I’m afraid.”

Preston’s McGeady hits rich vein of form PRESTON manager Simon Grayson hailed Aiden McGeady after the Republic of Ireland winger dazzled in his side’s 4-2 victory over Brentford.

McGeady, who is on a season-long loan from Everton, initially levelled for the Lilywhites in the first half before his superb finish past Daniel Bentley from 25 yards put the hosts in control. Callum Robinson and fellow Irishman Daryl Horgan also scored in the second half either side of McGeady’s second as Preston ended their six-game losing streak against Brentford in style.

“Everybody knows Aiden’s quality and what he’s got – both feet, he can go past defenders,” said Grayson.

O’Riordan makes Swans senior debut TIPPERARY AFL recruit Colin O’Riordan made his senior debut for the Sydney Swans last weekend in the pre-season competition loss to North Melbourne. The 21-year-old acquitted himself admirably off half-back, accumulating almost 20 possessions. Having made a strong impression in the reserves last year, O’Riordan is tipped to get his chance in the AFL this year.

GAELIC GAMES :: SPENDING SPLURGE REVEALED

Team spending tops €20m

Mayo county board spent more than €800,000 on its senior football team during the 2016 season.

THE total figure spent on GAA intercounty teams has gone over the €20 million mark, it has emerged.

The figures relate to 2016 and show that a combined €23,315,284 was spent on Gaelic football, hurling and development teams.

According to the Irish Independent research, six counties spent over a million each on their setups. They are Mayo, Dublin, Cork, Galway, Tipperary and Roscommon, while Kerry spent just shy of the €1 million mark.

All Ireland senior football runners up Mayo topped the table with just over €1.6 million.

Irish Independent’s Colm Keys said the spending has been going up anything between five and 10 per cent each year. He also alleged that certain players are “looked after” even though payments to players are outlawed in the GAA’s amateur code.

“The overall percentage increase in five years is 25 per cent. So it’s high.

OLYMPICS

IRISH PUNTERS SPENT UP BIG AT CHELTENHAM FESTIVAL

But I suppose you have to factor in a couple of things,” Keys said.

“We’ve all heard the anecdotal evidence of the slush funds for certain counties and there’s no doubt about it, they’re there. They’re a facility to look after certain players in certain cases, to look after certain coaches. That happens,” he added.

“I know of one county last year who were pitching their preparations at €900,000 if they reached an All-Ireland final in September and that didn’t come to pass. But still the overall figure for the county came in at a good bit less than that. That’s probably what you’re dealing with there, that there is this hidden treasure of money that’s also being spent that is not in the figures.

“But yes, it’s been increasing by 25 per cent and it’s been going up since 2011,” Keys said.

“It did dip in the early years of the recession around 2009 and 2010 where it started to come down and there was

a lot of belt tightening. But now it’s full steam ahead.”

But as Keys explained, the revenue generated balanced out the rise in spending. On the individual spending of counties, big dual counties like Dublin, Tipperary, Cork and Galway would be expected to be high on the list. But on others, Keys described Roscommon’s figure of over €1 million as a “real eye opener”.

Mayo county board shelled out a staggering €800,000 as their senior footballers went on a tour of the qualifiers and made it to an All-Ireland football final replay.

Keys acknowledged that Mayo were a “surprise too”, although in their case “you’d have to qualify that €150,000 of that was carried over from the previous year and also their under-21s won the All-Ireland title, they had an under-21 B Hurling team in the Nicky Rackard and then a replay as well, so that’s a lot of trips down to Dublin for their teams.”

New Olympic chief elected SWIM Ireland chief executive Sarah Keane (above) will succeed Pat Hickey as president of the Olympic Council of Ireland (OCI).

The OCI has confirmed Keane was elected at an extraordinary general meeting in Dublin last week.

The election was held after Hickey stood down following 28 years in charge. Hickey, 71, was arrested in Brazil on suspicion of alleged illegal ticket touting during last summer’s Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. He was given permission to return to Ireland in December on health grounds. He has denied any wrongdoing.

Keane received 29 votes, finishing ahead of acting president Willie O’Brien (12) and Basketball Ireland secretary general Bernard O’Byrne (two).

Keane said in a statement from Swim Ireland: “I feel humbled and privileged to have been elected as President of the OCI. “I am grateful for the support and confidence shown to me by the Olympic sports federations and I look forward to working with the other newly-elected officers and executive committee members to reform and rebuild the OCI after what has been a very difficult few months for the Olympic movement in Ireland.”

Hickey was not in attendance after recently undergoing a heart procedure, but issued a statement earlier in the week. He said: “As you will remember, at the beginning of 2016 I announced that Rio would be my last Games as president and that I would stand down immediately after the Games.

“Accordingly, the time has now come to pass the Irish Olympic torch to a new generation and I wish nothing but the best of luck and success to the new president, officers and executive committee of the OCI.”

An Irish reveller at last year’s Cheltenham Festival.

Irish crucial to Cheltenham coffers Rod Minchin IRISH punters spent €22 million at one of the UK’s biggest horse racing events last year, according to a new study.

Almost one in three tickets for the Cheltenham Festival are purchased by Irish racegoers, research carried out by the University of Gloucestershire found.

Last year they spent €22.3 million, which was spread across travel, accommodation, tickets and entertainment.

Fans based in Ireland bought 57,375 tickets and on average 14,343 Irish visitors attended each day of the four-day Festival. A crowd of more than 260,000 attend the annual Festival, which is due to begin on March 14.

The study sought to measure the direct economic benefit of punters who travelled from Ireland to Prestbury Park.

The analysis was compiled from 810 completed questionnaires and supplemented by data from the racecourse.

In addition, statistical analysis of ticket booking data has shown that since 2010 the number of Irish punters has increased by 22 per cent.

Ian Renton, chief executive of the Cheltenham Festival, said: “The Festival is one the biggest and most successful sporting occasions of the year involving Britain and Ireland.

“Over the years, it has become synonymous with Ireland through the participation of its great horses, trainers, jockeys, owners and staff.

“This is the first time we have studied the economic impact of Ireland’s participation and the results demonstrate the very significant ongoing role played by Irish fans to the success of the Festival.

“Irish fans make up close to one third of our attendance over the week, helping to create a truly unique atmosphere and experience for all racegoers.Our mutual love affair with the Festival, of course, involves so much more than statistics.

“Our shared love and passion for our sport creates an enduring relationship and long may that continue.

“We look forward greatly to hosting our Irish racegoers once again in a few weeks’ time for the 2017 renewal.”

Brian Kavanagh, chief executive of Horse Racing Ireland, added: “When

Ian was appointed at Cheltenham, I told him he now had one of the most important jobs in Irish racing.

“We have been aware for some time of the value of the racing and breeding industries to the Irish economy which is estimated at over €1.1 billion per annum, so it is fascinating to now see the value of the Irish impact on Cheltenham.

“Ireland has long had a love affair with Cheltenham because they put on a wonderful festival where we see the best National Hunt horses in the world taking each other on.

“The importance of Cheltenham to Ireland goes beyond just the punters and racegoers as winning there is of vital importance to owners, breeders, trainers and jockeys and can be the highlight of a career, or the making of a horse’s pedigree.

“Cheltenham has often been described as the Olympic Games of jump racing and we are all counting the days to March 14,” said Kavanagh.

The average spends per Festival attendee included: entertainment €556; tour package €508; accommodation €419; and food and drink €374.

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ANTHONY FOLEY WIDOW: MESSAGES OF SUPPORT SHOW THE GOODNESS IN PEOPLE

Response has been amazing, says Olive Foley Ed Carty THE widow of the late rugby legend Anthony Foley says she sees the amazing goodness of people despite her grief.

Olive Foley gave thanks for the messages of support and sympathy she has received in the months since her husband’s death, as she was presented with a book of condolences with 10,000 signatures.

The messages were signed in Limerick in the days after Foley’s death in Paris on October 16 last year.

“As dreadful as this has been, I cannot help, even at the most difficult of times, but see the amazing goodness of people,” Ms Foley said.

“You’re dealing with something that is almost too much at times but there’s always someone at your side, some message coming through.

“The greatness of this is really that it’s there for everyone, every time there’s a tragedy, people respond in amazing ways.

“Ireland is a special place in that regard and Limerick, too.

“We had incredible support in Killaloe but it was like there was a small bridge between Killaloe and Limerick at that time, and very much since.”

The Foleys were presented with the Limerick book of condolences at a ceremony hosted by Mayor Kieran O’Hanlon.

“To have 10,000 people sign a book of condolences says it all about Limerick,” Ms Foley said.

“It has a huge place in our hearts and even the journey home with Anthony,

Olive Foley, the wife of the late rugby legend Anthony Foley (inset), is presented with the Limerick book of condolences with 10,000 signatures at a ceremony hosted by Kieran O’Hanlon, Mayor of the City and County of Limerick. passing Thomond Park and seeing so many people there, is something we will never forget. We thank everyone across the city and county for their support and for all these signatures.

We will never forget it.”

Foley, Munster’s head coach, died suddenly hours before the Irish

province’s scheduled Champions Cup opener against Racing 92.

The 42-year-old had won 63 caps for Ireland and spearheaded Munster’s rise to the top of the European game, as the Thomond Park province won two Heineken Cup titles.

Mr O’Hanlon paid his own tribute.

BRIAN O’DRISCOLL DEFENDS BRITISH AND IRISH LIONS TOURS

No to shorter tours Duncan Bech

BRIAN O’Driscoll insists the current length of British and Irish Lions tours must be preserved if they are to remain viable. The number of fixtures could be slashed from 10 to eight or even five if the game’s powerbrokers target the Lions in their bid to create space for the new global season, which is to commence from 2020.

O’Driscoll, who led the elite of British and Irish rugby to New Zealand in 2005 and is a veteran of three other tours, insists any reduction in games would impact the chances of toppling the southern hemisphere giants.

“They’re not viable if you star t condensing them,” said O’Driscoll.

“You can’t condense them any further than has already been done if you want to pull together as a team for a scenario that shouldn’t work, but has worked in the past.

“In my experience from the four tours I’ve been on it works because people are able to buy into it, but you need a little bit of time to bed in. As it stands there are only four weeks before the first Test and you have to give the

Brian O’Driscoll pictured during the British and Irish Lions tour to Australia in 2013.

oppor tunity to get combinations working together so that players can develop that element of telepathy.

“If you’re reducing that to five weeks, a couple of weeks leading into the first Test, it will be more difficult to take on one of the superpowers.

“Something will have to give, of course, and player welfare is vitally important, but some of the traditions of the game need to be upheld.

“The Lions is one of the really important and special traditions from a player perspective having been on a few tours myself.”

Meanwhile, Lions coach Warren Gatland insists fans should be among those consulted over the future of the British and Irish Lions and questions whether self-interest is behind proposed changes to condense tours.

Gatland believes British and Irish Lions tours must be retained in their existing format and even expanded to include more preparation time.

And with 20,000 to 25,000 supporters expected to travel to the home of the rugby world champions for the three Tests that unfold over June and July, Gatland insists their opinions should be canvassed.

“On any decisions on future tours there’s a lot of people that need to be consulted,” said Gatland.

“The biggest issue we have at the moment is not about the number of games, it’s about preparation.

“It’s an incredibly special brand and it needs to be protected. The potential for it to grow is enormous and it should be something we savour.”

“Anthony achieved so much in his all too short time here with us, but was a really modest person,” he said.

“I think it’s because of that he had a special place in our hearts; a down-toearth guy who did so well.

“His death, therefore, deeply impacted so many people and the

number of people who signed the book of condolences reflected that.

“We never saw anything like it. So many people wanted to honour Anthony that we even increased capacity on our website to enable them to do so.”

Anthony Foley is also survived by his two sons.

RUGBY :: PRO 12 WRAP

Carbery on song for Leinster JOEY Carbery marked his first start since December with two tries as Leinster earned a 39-10 PRO12 bonuspoint win over Edinburgh at the RDS. Back in blue following ankle surgery, Carber y pressed his Ireland claims with a lively display but flanker Josh van der Flier’s shoulder injur y will cause concern for Ireland head coach Joe Schmidt.

Winger Barry Daly’s second ever try for the province was the difference at half-time, Leinster leading 8-3 despite Edinburgh having a lot of front-foot ball.

A run of tries from Carbery (2) and Daly between the 47th and 55th minutes saw Leo Cullen’s men take a firm grip on proceedings as they moved temporarily to the top of the PRO12 table.

The final quar ter brought about three more tries, Duncan Weir’s lone seven-pointer for Edinburgh being sandwiched by further scores from Leinster’s man-of-the-match Dan Leavy and fellow replacement Bryan Byrne.

Munster, meanwhile, snatched victory from the jaws of defeat as Dave Kilcoyne’s late try saw them secure a 25-23 success over the Ospreys at Liberty Stadium.

In a tight encounter, Hanno Dirksen and Kieron Fonotia had exchanged first-half scores with Jack O’Donoghue and Francis Saili with Sam Davies and Tyler Bleyendaal booting the rest of the points.

It meant the Ospreys went into the break 20-18 ahead and Davies’ secondhalf penalty looked like giving them the win but Munster refused to go away and incessant late pressure saw them finally find a way over the line as prop Kilcoyne dotted down for the game’s vital score. The tr y made it 25-25 and Bleyendaal’s conversion ensured Munster moved back to the top of the table.

Connacht’s push for a bonus point never materialised but two early tries proved just enough in a dour 14-9 win over the Newport Gwent Dragons at the Sportsground.

Ulster racked up a second bonuspoint win in succession over Scottish sides when they defeated a weakened Glasgow War riors 37-17 at the Kingspan Stadium.

The five-try victory took Ulster up a place to fifth in the Guinness PRO12 table as Les Kiss’ side, who still have a game in hand, continue their push to break into the top four.

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A U S TRA L IA’S IRIS H N EWS PAPER

rugby :: sports JOE SCHMIDT PRAISES PADDY JACKSON AFTER IRELAND’S BIG WIN IN ROME

Tougher tests await Schmidt and his men Nick Purewal

Garry Ringrose leaves the Italian defence in tatters as he sprints to the tryline.

JOE Schmidt insists Paddy Jackson has done enough to ensure Johnny Sexton will not be an automatic selection for Ireland’s RBS 6 Nations clash with France.

Ulster fly-half Jackson equalled the Six Nations record of nine conversions in one match in a flawless kicking display as Ireland thumped Italy 63-10 in Rome.

The 25-year-old bossed Ireland’s backline again as head coach Schmidt’s side claimed a record Six Nations win over the sorry Azzurri, with CJ Stander and Craig Gilroy both claiming hat-tricks.

Schmidt confirmed he expects Sexton to be fit to face France in Dublin on February 25 after calf trouble – but admitted the British and Irish Lions playmaker could now have to battle Jackson for the start.

“Johnny has proven that he can come straight back into a side and hit the ground running, and he’s done that for us on other occasions,” said Schmidt. “I guess this window has allowed Paddy to put his hand up and say, ‘Well, that shouldn’t be an automatic choice.’”

Jackson equalled former England star Johnny Wilkinson’s record of nine conversions in a Six Nations match as Ireland romped past Italy at the Stadio Olimpico.

Keith Earls claimed a brace and Gar r y Ringrose a neat score too, as Ireland coasted to a nine-try victory.

Stander became the first forward ever to score a hat-trick in the Six Nations in a bullish, man-ofthe-match performance.

Italy’s capitulation was such that Gilroy claimed his treble inside 20 minutes, and Ireland secured their maiden Six Nations bonus point in just 34 minutes.

Schmidt expects Sexton, Peter O’Mahony and Andrew Trimble all to return to contest selection for the France clash, with Ireland now considering their campaign back on track after the 27-22 loss in Scotland.

“I think Paddy certainly learned a lot in South Africa through that summer series,” said Schmidt.

“He lear ned a lot in November as well, particularly in that game against New Zealand where he came under a lot of pressure and had to make some decisions with ver y little time and space.

“And then again last week he did very well to lead us back into the game. He kicked well again today, but his second conversion was one of the ugliest I’ve seen! The flight of the ball – it looked like a wounded duck – and when he turned around to Richie he couldn’t quite believe it had gone over either. But it was the same two points as the others he str uck superbly. And the wounded duck was a bonus.”

Italy boss Conor O’Shea insisted his side can still move forward and forge a competitive Six Nations side despite another hefty defeat.

“We have to learn, we have to get mentally stronger, and we have a lot to change in Italian rugby to get that,” said former Ireland full-back O’Shea. “But I could name a lot of players in the 90s who were great Irish rugby players and without the right support were not able to fulfil what they could do.

“I hate days like this. But we know what we have to do. But I still want the short-term to be great performances.”

O’Shea also again defended Italy’s place in the Six Nations, with continued calls from the likes of Georgia and Romania for the introduction of promotion and relegation competition.

IRISH BOUNCE BACK FROM SCOTTISH DEFEAT WITH IMPRESSIVE ITALIAN JOB

Stander a stand out as Irish excel CJ STANDER and Craig Gilroy both bagged hat-tricks as Ireland claimed a record RBS 6 Nations victory over Italy with a 63-10 thumping in Rome.

Ireland set their Six Nations campaign back on track in comfortable style after the 27-22 loss in Scotland, with Keith Earls claiming a brace and Garry Ringrose also crossing.

Rob Kearney trudged off late on, however, with a suspected biceps injury that proved the sole concer n for boss Joe Schmidt. Kearney has been ruled out for this weekend’s crucial clash with France.

Ireland shrugged off the late loss of captain Rory Best to a stomach bug before kick-off, to nail their maiden Six Nations try bonus point in just 34 minutes.

Italy head coach Conor O’Shea had vowed this was not the “same old Italy”, but Ireland sadly exposed far too many basic flaws in the underpowered hosts. Stander became the first forward to register a Six Nations hat-trick as Ireland exposed Italy’s soft underbelly straight from the off.

Simon Zebo should have scored despite waiting an age for Ireland to feed him on the left touchline. The Munster wing dropped the ball when spinning over the whitewash.

Earls had no such qualms on the right flank, easing home thanks to Robbie Henshaw’s tight line and Paddy Jackson’s wide pass, with Zebo offering a neat decoy line.

Carlo Canna’s penalty proved scant respite for the hosts, with Stander quickly on the scoresheet. Jamie Heaslip’s cute offload in the 13 channel teed up a fine break for Cian Healy, and Zebo’s flat cut-pass sent Stander in at the corner.

The move of the half laid on Ireland’s third score, Jackson and Henshaw switching around a scrum to set Zebo loose on the blindside flank.

Several tight phases later, Earls cantered in all too easily out wide.

Italy 10 Ireland 63

Jackson’s conversion pushed Ireland into a 21-3 lead, only for the hosts to force a penalty try.

Donnacha R yan was sinbinned for sacking the second of two fine Italian lineout drives, and referee Glen Jackson had little hesitation awarding the penalty score.

Canna conver ted to cut Ireland’s lead to 21-10, but not for long.

Italy were pinged for blocking at the kick-of f, and despite missing a man Ireland wrapped up the bonus-point score.

Schmidt’s men kept it tight from the penalty lineout, with Stander eventually blasting his way home.

Italy forced the issue at the death of the half, only for Luke McLean to kick away cheaply in Ireland’s 22 – then concede a turnover penalty when the hosts pressed again.

Ireland led 28-10 at the break and then negotiated the end of Ryan’s sin-bin without setback.

The visitors in fact emerged seven points in credit from that 10-minute period with 14 men.

Stander then completed his 45-minute hat-trick by cutting a fine blindside line off Murray around the r uck. Ireland’s scrum-half delayed the pass long enough to split the defence.

Ireland’s dominance was such that boss Schmidt could bring of f power ful centre Henshaw as a precaution with more than a quar ter of the match to play.

Ulster flyer Gilroy stepped his way to a smart score, before Ringrose scythed home.

Gilroy then added a sickening second as Stander’s clearance hoof bamboozled Maxime Mbanda, and the Ulster wing cantered home all too easily.

And when Gilroy raced in for his third from Jackson’s wide pass, Ireland’s cakewalk was complete.

Man-of-the-match CJ Stander on his way to scoring one of his three tries against Italy in Rome.

IRELAND’S JAMIE HEASLIP PENS NEW DEAL WITH IRFU UNTIL 2019

Back rower to complete career in Ireland IRELAND number eight Jamie Heaslip has signed a new contract with the Irish Rugby Football Union up to the 2019 World Cup. The veteran forward will continue to play his domestic r ugby with Leinster in that period, the IRFU has announced.

Heaslip, 33, has won 93 caps and scored 13 tries for Ireland since making his debut in 2006.

He has started 36 of their last 41 internationals and

captained the side in Ireland’s RBS 6 Nations victory over Italy.

“My aim when I started my professional r ugby career was to leave the jersey – either the blue of Leinster or the green of Ireland – in a better place than when I first put it on, and this new contract gives me the chance to continue to chase this dream,” he said.

Heaslip, who has twice toured with the British and

Irish Lions, has also made 227 appearances for Leinster over the past 12 years.

IRFU per formance director David Nucifora said: “Jamie continues to illustrate why he is one of the top per for mers in international rugby.

“He is a leader for both his country and province, and delivers a high level of performance every time he pulls on the green or blue jersey.”

Jamie Heaslip inks new contract.

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