Galway Bay fm - News

Galway West TD Hildegarde Naughton responds to ’opportunistic’ label in condemning interview with John Gilligan

Virgin Media has accused Galway West TD and Drugs Minister Hildegarde Naughton of being opportunistic in condemning the station's three-part programme on convicted drug dealer John Gilligan
The comments were made as John Gilligan is due before a Spanish court today to face drugs and weapon charges.
His son Darren and six others are also due to stand trial.
The three-part programme about John Gilligan begins on Virgin Media tonight.
Minister for Drugs Strategy Hildegarde Naughton and Veronica Guerin's brother Jimmy are among those who've expressed concerns about the show.
Minister Hildegarde Naughton has responded to claims she was being opportunistic by voicing her concerns:

Virgin Media accuses Galway West’s Hildegarde Naughton of being opportunistic in condemning interview with John Gilligan

Virgin Media has accused Galway West TD and Drugs Minister Hildegarde Naughton of being opportunistic in condemning the station's three-part programme on convicted drug dealer John Gilligan
The comments were made just before John Gilligan was due before a Spanish court to face drugs and weapon charges, along with his son Darren and six others 
In the last hour John Gilligan has been handed a suspended prison sentence on drug smuggling charges.
Lawyers for the 71 year old confirmed a plea bargain had been struck with prosecuters.
He admitted to smuggling cannabis and powerful sleeping pills into Ireland - and being the owner of a gun found in the back garden of his Costa Blanca home.
He was handed a 22-month suspended sentence as part of the deal.
Meanwhile The three-part programme about John Gilligan begins on Virgin Media tonight.
Minister for Drugs Strategy Hildegarde Naughton and Veronica Guerin's brother Jimmy are among those who've expressed concerns about the show.
The programme's producer David Harvey accepts it's upsetting for the Guerin family, but dismissed Minister Naughton's response.

Multi-use games area now available for public booking in Rahoon

A refurbished multi-use games area at Bishop O Donnell Road in Rahoon is available for public booking from today (mon sept 4)
The astroturf facility is ideal for 5-a-side basketball, soccer or hockey games, you can book an hour-long slot through 'sports key' on the city council website.
A number of hours have also been set aside for local sports teams.
Local Councillor John Connolly says the fully floodlit facility is a huge benefit to the community:

Oranmore based Marine Institute to host European science expedition

The Marine Institute in Oranmore is to host a first of its kind science expedition.
The expedition brings together more than 150 research teams from over 70 institutions in 29 European countries.
It aims to explore the interactions between the land and sea, in order to better understand how these ecosystems interact.
The mobile lab will be based at the Marine Institute in Rinville for daily coastal sampling  until Thursday week Sept 14
It will be working simultaneously with a French sailing ship called the Tara Schooner, which is essentially a floating laboratory.
Fiona Grant from the Marine Institute outlines some of the free events available to the public during the expedition:

Galway Atlantaquaria launches new automated National Coastwatch Survey

Galway Atlantaquaria has hosted the launch of a new automated National Coastwatch Survey for Autumn.
The survey, which is carried out by volunteers, is designed to give an overview of the state of the coast.
People can now book in to carry out a survey of 500 metres of shore when the survey goes online in 2 weeks time.
Sarah Slevin attended the launch and brings us this report

Historic day for school secretaries across Galway as new pay contracts introduced

It's a historic day for school secretaries across Galway, and indeed the entire country. 
It's because as of this morning, they're now paid directly through the Department of Education, on a Clerical Officer salary scale. 
Previously, the amount paid varied from school to school - and some secretaries were paid less than minimum wage. 
Lousia Carty works at Ballymana National school in Craughwell and is chair of the FORSA School Secretaries National Branch. 
She told David Nevin the campaign spans years - but started gathering momentum in 2019 with the "Support our Secretaries" or SOS campaign. 

HSE to close back gates at Merlin Park during morning peak hours

The HSE has confirmed that it will be closing the back gate at Merlin Park during peak morning hours from next week. 
It follows considerable pressure from locals to tackle so-called "rat-running" through Merlin Park Lane and the Merlin Park campus. 
The HSE was also recently granted permission for a new surgical hub - and one condition was that it take steps to tackle the rat-running. 
Now, it's confirmed that from Friday September 8th, the back gates will be closed from 7.30am and 10am during weekdays on a trial basis.
Councillor Alan Cheevers has been speaking to David Nevin.

Galway has country’s third highest number of spare rooms in houses

Galway has the country's third highest number of spare rooms in houses according to data from last year's census
Nationally, 390-thousand homes have at least two or more spare rooms which is 21 per cent of households
It's estimated there are 250-thousand spare rooms in Dublin, 139-thousand in Cork, and more than 73-thousand in Galway.
Lecturer in Social Policy at Maynooth University, Rory Hearne, says the rent-a-room scheme needs to be promoted more:
 

Galway city has lowest proportion of adults living with parents

Galway city has the lowest proportion of adults who are still living with their parents.
According to the CSO, more than half a million over-18s across the country are living at home - with half of those in employment.
9 percent of adults in Galway city still live at home - with the highest proportion of 16 percent in Dublin.
The latest figures show that almost 6,000 adults in Galway city are living at home, while there are over 20,000 doing so across the county.
The report also found that one in 10 adults in Galway City West were living with their parents, the highest rate in the city.
In County Galway, Ballinasloe had the highest rate, with 15 percent of those aged 18 and over living with their parents.
Nationally, while the number of adults living at home is high at over half a million, the percentage remains in line with previous years when population growth is taken into account.
Deirdre Lynch, Statistician with the Census section of the CSO, outlines some more of the findings:

Bus Eireann expands city school transport to Rosscahill

School transport for children traveling to and from schools in the city has been expanded to Rosscahill 
Previously, the pick up point started and finished in Drimcong in Moycullen. 
Senator Sean Kyne says the expansion to Rosscahill is a very important change that has been sought for a very long time.