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GALWAY GAA: “The Application from the Players Was Very, Very Good” – Kevin Walsh 

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Kevin Walsh

Galway’s senior footballers began their Supers 8s campaign creating history on Sunday (15th July) as they slayed Kerry for the first time in 53 years. 

The Tribesmen were in the middle of their most successful period ever, back in 1965, when they completed back-to-back All-Ireland final wins over the Kingdom on their way to the famous three-in-a-row.

Since then, it was heartache any time they faced up to the Munster kingpins with the 2000 All-Ireland Final and the 2017 quarter-final two examples of painful defeats.

“It puts one or two stats out of the way, maybe,” said manager Kevin Walsh to Pat Nolan in the Irish Mirror after his team’s win in Croke Park. “But, at the end of the day, it is a first win in however number of years so it was important for us to perform today and, you know, everything wasn’t perfect.

“It wasn’t perfect for Kerry either, there were a lot of wides on both sides.

“Something we’ll have to improve on, but, at the same time, the application from the players was very, very good for this game in particularly.

“But it can’t be about any revenge, it has to be about this team going forward, what they’re learning and what we can bring them to.

“And do the best what we can do about developing the panel, and that’s huge for us in particular to have a panel developed up.”

Galway could be in the All-Ireland semi-finals by next Sunday (July 22nd) should they come out of Newbridge with the points against Kildare.  But they’ll have to plan the rest of the campaign without Paul Conroy who suffered a nasty leg injury.

“Paul, unfortunately had a serious injury and Peter [Cooke] came in there and there was a seamless enough transition,” concluded Walsh.  “And that’s important for us as well up against a very good side. It’s about getting the panel as good as we can get.”

“At this stage we have to move on to Tuesday night. It’s Newbridge or nowhere next Sunday so that’s a huge, huge task for us.

“We saw what they were like today. They have a newfound confidence and they are a quality team, anything in the Super 8s are a quality team. That’s our next focus.”

Irish companies take action on Brexit as export sales reach an all-time high

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Galway daily

Enterprise Ireland client companies hit record-breaking €22.71bn in annual exports in 2017.

It is the highest level of export sales recorded in the history of the State agency with the findings showing a 7% increase on the previous year. Exports to the Eurozone region, which account for 20% of all exports, saw strong growth of 9% to €4.61bn in 2017.

Enterprise Ireland supported 89 Irish companies to export to the Eurozone for the first time in 2017.
Exports to the UK, which is the largest market for Irish exports and, representing 34% of exports, delivered growth of 4% to €7.62bn.

In tandem with the announcement of its export results, Enterprise Ireland also released findings of a recent Brexit survey of over 2,400 clients which found that 85% of clients are taking Brexit related actions.

The top measures that they are taking are; diversifying their export markets, improving operational competitiveness, strengthening their business in the UK, developing strategic partnerships, improving financial management and investing in R&D.

Additionally, 53% of clients surveyed said that in 2018, Brexit would not change their ability and ambitions to invest, while 65% said it would not change their employment plans.

Julie Sinnamon, Enterprise Ireland CEO, said:
“We are working closely with UK dependent clients to help them to trade through the unpredictability and to protect hard-won market share in the UK. With our support, Enterprise Ireland clients are taking the necessary actions to offset the impact and manage the risks posed by Brexit.

“At the same time, we are progressing with our strategic ambition to expand the Irish export footprint in diversified global markets, reducing overall UK market exposure to one-third by 2020,” she said.

With the future UK-EU relationship still very much unknown, Enterprise Ireland has been encouraging its clients to prepare for the worst and hope for the best after Brexit.

Aside from the ongoing strong performance for Irish exporters in the UK market, France is the fourth-largest market for Enterprise Ireland companies and exports there grew 10pc in 2017. In German-speaking markets, growth of 5pc was seen last year.
Biotech and pharma saw €450m worth of exports in the Benelux region. Companies exported a value of €3.96bn to the US and Canada. Asia Pacific exports grew by 9pc, while southern Europe, Middle East, Africa and India saw a growth of 6pc.

Welcoming the results, Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation, Heather Humphreys TD said:
“These export figures by clients of Enterprise Ireland reflect the robustness and success of Irish companies across the globe, who are availing of State support to be competitive, innovative and market-diversified. While the Irish exporting landscape is strong and we are winning business worldwide, Brexit is the biggest challenge currently facing Irish business.”

The minister went on to say: “Our officials in Enterprise Ireland are very focused on supporting clients to prepare for a hard Brexit and clearly this work is paying off, so I would urge any homegrown firm not currently tapping into this offering to consider doing so.”

REPORT: Five Star Galway Complete Minor LGFA Super Six

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Galway Minor LGFA

All-Ireland Minor Ladies Football Final – Sunday, 15th July 2018 

Galway 5-7 Cork 2-15 

Darren Kelly in Gaelic Grounds (courtesy: Ladies Football Association) 

GALWAY denied Cork their fourth consecutive All-Ireland minor title on Sunday and clinched a first win in the under 18 grade since beating the same opposition in 2014.

An Andrea Trill hat-trick and other majors from Aoife Thompson and Kate Geraghty secured Kieran Collins’ side a one-point win to follow on from their 2017 All-Ireland U16 triumph.

For Full Match Report, Click the link Below for the Ladies Football Association’s website 

Scorers:  

Galway – Andrea Trill 3-2 (two frees), Aoife Thompson 1-1, Molly Hynes 0-2, Kate Geraghty 1-0, Ciara McCarthy 0-1, Chloe Miskell 0-1 

Cork – Emma Cleary 0-7 (four frees), Rachel Murphy 0-2, Katie Horgan 0-1, Ellie Jack 0-1, Katie Quirke 1-1, Clare Nevin 1-0, Laura O’Mahony 0-1, Ciara McCarthy 0-1, Abbie O’Mahony 0-1 

Galway: Karen Connolly; Lorraine Meehan, Maeve Flanagan, Chelsie Crowe; Kate Geraghty, Laura Ahearne, Lynsey Noone; Shauna Boyle, Amy Coen; Aoife Molloy, Chloe Miskell, Ciara McCarthy; Aoife Thompson, Andrea Trill, Molly Hynes.  Subs used: Lara Finnegan for Boyle (47 mins), Katie Quigley for Flanagan (55 mins), Aoife Coen for Amy Coen (59 mins).

Cork: Sarah Murphy; Katie Horgan, Clare O’Shea, Rachel Sheehan; Georgia Gould, Sarah Leahy, Jennifer Murphy; Ciara McCarthy, Eve Mullins; Laura O’Mahony, Emma Cleary, Rachel Murphy; Ellie Jack, Katie Quirke, Fiona Keating. Subs used: Abbie O’Mahony for Gould (43 mins), Sarah O’Brien for Jack (46 mins), Clare Nevin for Mullins (50 mins).

Referee: Gus Chapman (Sligo)

Galway secondary schools join NASA study of Jupiter

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Galway daily news Galway secondary schools to take part in Nasa study of Jupiter

Five secondary schools in Galway will join NASA’s study of Jupiter, the sun, and the milky way through the ‘Connacht Schools Radio Telescope Network’.

Eight secondary schools in Connacht, including four in Galway will have radio telescopes installed on their grounds this year to encourage more young people to get involved in planetary sciences and inspire the next generation of physicists and engineers.

This initiative is being backed by the Europlanet Consortium, a €9.95 million project funded by the European Commission under Horizon 2020.

It announced it’s backing of Connacht’s schools in its 2018 Outreach Funding Scheme.

The schools in Galway that will have a radio telescope installed are: Ardscoil Mhuire, Ballinasloe; St. Joseph’s (The Bish) on Nun’s Island; Presentation College, Headford; and Coláiste na Coiribe in Knocknacarra.

Each radio telescope, 20 feet long, 10 feet high and looking somewhat like two washing lines, will observe the poles of Jupiter, where the gas giant’s version of the aurora borealis occur.

The information they gather when operational will be transferred to a server at NUI Galway, contributing to a larger network of NASA’s Radio Jove facilities studying Jupiter’s magnetosphere.

Project leader Dr. Aaron Golden from NUIG’s School of Mathematics explains the benefits of the project, “Practical activities in astronomy have great potential for inspiring school students in Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM) subjects.”

“However, there are limited opportunities due to the need for specialised equipment and facilities, to work at unsocial hours and, of course, clear skies, certainly for optical astronomy.”

However radio radio astronomy can be conducted at any time, day or night, regardless of the weather.

These schools were also chosen for the project because the lower population density around them will limit interference from other device emitting radio frequencies.

“Radio astronomy offers a very cost effective alternative for teachers and students to participate in actual observations of radio-bright objects such as the Sun and the planet Jupiter,” said Dr. Golden.

“To participate in the wider astronomical community’s study of this most fascinating of the solar system’s planets.”

The project will be formally launched in Berlin this September at the European Planetary Science Congress along with others that received backing from the Europlanet Consortium.

 

Hit and run driver left while other driver was on the phone with gardaí

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Galway Daily courts

A man involved in a hit and run with another car last year left the scene while the other driver was on the phone with the gardaí describing the incident.

Michael Collins (20), of 3 Cois na Coille, Ballybane, was charged with driving without insurance and failing to stay and give his information at a road traffic collision.

The court heard that on March 11 last year gardaí received a call from a woman saying that an Opal Astra had hit her car on Prospect Hill.

While she was still on the line with the gardaí she said that the other driver, was leaving the scene.

Garda Damian Walsh later located the Opal Astra in Ballybane, and from that he identified Collins as the driver involved in the hit and run.

When questioned, Collins admitted that it was his car.

Solicitor for the defence Olivia Traynor said that Collins should have stayed at the scene, but panicked because he was driving without insurance at the time.

Collins brought €300 in compensation for the other driver to court with him, “It’s not what I’d want, but it’s something.” said Ms. Traynor, noting that her client is currently unemplyed.

The total damage to the other car came to €1,700.

Judge Mary Fahy said that Collins should have to repay at least half of that amount, and ordered him to bring another €550 at his sentencing hearing.

While no-one was injured in the incident, Judge Fahy said that being in any kind of a crash is a distressing experience, even more so what the other person leaves without giving their details.

Collins received a two year immediate disqualification for driving without insurance, and a one year concurrent disqualification for failing to give his information after a collision.

Sentencing was adjourned until October 1 for Collins to produce the rest of the compensation ordered by the court.

Taoiseach says no EU funding for Galway transport projects

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Galway Daily news Taoiseach Varadkar meeting with local businesses in Ballinasloe visit

An Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has warned that there’s no “pot of money” from the EU for transport projects in Galway laid out in the Government’s Project Ireland 2040.

He was speaking in Westport this week at a conference on rural regeneration initiatives along with Minster for Rural and Community Development Michael Ring, and Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine Michael Creed.

Speaking after the conference, Taoiseach Varadkar said his government intended to reinstate the crossborder “western arc” into the EU’s trans-European (Ten-T) network funding programme.

Transport projects that would be included in this western arc include the Galway outer-bypass, improving line speed on existing rail routes, and upgrading road links between Castlebar, Westport, and Sligo.

According to the Irish Times the Taoiseach warned that there was a “misperception” about how EU funding works and that including these projects in the Ten-T programme doesn’t guarantee a cheque from Brussels.

“There isn’t a pot of European money to invest in Irish roads and railways anymore.” the Taoiseach said.

“The chances are that the projects that get funding are ones that are trans-European, ones that are cross-border projects, for example ports and airports.”

The Taoiseach had been highly criticised during his time as Minister for Transport for deleting any reference to the west coast from the Ten-T programme.

This essentially meant that no transport projects in Galway would qualify for EU funding before 2030.

He defended that choice on Friday, saying that if they had been included the government would have been obligated to build them, but might only have received a small amount of money for them from the EU.

These transport initiatives going ahead now will be funded by the Irish taxpayer, the Taoiseach said.

Ros-a-Mhíl seafood factory

During the conference, questions were also put to Minister Creed about a fish processing factory in Ros-a-Mhíl which said this week fish quotas could force it to close.

Iasc Mara Teoranta fish processing factory has said that unless it finds a new buyer, it will have to close because fishing boats in Ros-a-Mhíl are being bought up by operators in Killybegs.

Minister Creed said that he was unable to help Iasc Mara Teoranta, as fishing quotas are tied to boats, not factories or ports, by the EU’s Common Fisheries Policy.

Delays to National Broadband Plan cannot continue, says Galway TD

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broadband plan

Minister Denis Naughten should set out a timeline for the signing of the contract for the National Broadband Plan, according to Galway West TD Éamon Ó Cuív.

He said that despite submitting a series of Parliamentary Questions, Minister Denis Naughten has failed to give any indications as to when the contract for the National Broadband Plan will be signed.

“These delays are having a serious impact on the hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses who are still waiting to be connected to the network,” he said.

The Fianna Fáil TD argued that this has had a major knock-on effect, particularly in rural Ireland, which he claims is most affected by the delays.

“Farmers cannot complete online applications for payments, schools are unable to access educational aids and businesses are unable to operate fully functional online services.

“I have recently noticed that the Minister’s language has changed – claiming that 90% of the country will be covered by 2020, while completely ignoring the fact that the bulk of the remaining 10% of people who won’t be covered are living and working in rural Ireland.

“They need this service as urgently as anyone else.

“The current impasse cannot be allowed to continue.

“The Minister needs to announce a date for the contract to be signed so that the scheme can be rolled out to the areas which need it most,” added the Galway West TD.

 

Renmore man defrauded woman of thousands meant for home improvements

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Galway Daily crime investment fraud soaring

A Renmore man appeared before the District Court for defrauding a woman of €4,200 for home improvements that never happened.

Stephen Kelly (41), of 3 Murrough Drive, Renmore was charged with inducing Lisa Galvin to deposit money into his account by deception.

He had pleaded guilty at a previous court appearance on June 11 and was in for sentencing on this date.

The court heard that on March 30, 2015 at the Eyre square branch of Permanent TSB, Kelly had Ms. Galvin transfer €4,200 into his account.

The money was a supposed payment for home improvements, specifically plumbing and heating equipment, which would never materialise.

Since the time of the crime, Kelly has repaid the full amount he defrauded from Ms. Galvin.

Mr. Kelly was charged under section 6 of the Criminal Justice (Theft and Fraud Offences) Act of 2001.

Solicitor for the defence Olivia Traynor said the Mr. Kelly had been struggling to keep his business open during the recession, which led to the offence described here.

He is a father of one, she said, and has been struggling in a turbulent industry.

Kelly repaid the moeny he took from Ms. Galvin in two installments, €1,000 on February 19 and €3,200 on May 2, before appearing today.

Ms. Galvin was given the opportunity to appear at Kelly’s last court date and give an impact statement, but she didn’t want to come in to court.

Judge Fahy said she was considered a suspended sentence as an incentive for Kelly to conduct his business dealings properly.

Kelly received a three month sentence, suspended in its entirety for one year.

Sunday July 15 – ‘Putin on the Ritz’ World Cup party in support of Russian LGBTQ community

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Galway Daily what's on World cup party in support of russian lgbtq people

Tomorrow is the 2018 World Cup Final in Moscow’s Luzhniki stadium, and Amach LGBTQ Galway thinks it’s the perfect chance to support LGBTQ people in Russia.

Amach LGBTQ Galway is inviting anyone interested down to Teach Solais on Merchant’s road for the 4pm kick-off for their ‘Putin on the Ritz’ world cup party.

In keeping with the spirit of the World Cup there’ll be a pool with a diving board.. nah I’m kidding. There’s going to be snacks from around the world, a world cup themed mocktail, and other games.

And the match. The final. Of the World Cup. You know the one.

Entry is free, but any donations given on the night will be passed to a Russian LGBTQ charity.

While Russia has presented a very welcoming and media friendly face to the world these last few weeks, it has incredibly restrictive laws on how LGBTQ people can live their lives.

Ostensibly to protect children from exposure to non-traditional values, Russia’s “gay propaganda” laws force LGBTQ people to hide their relationships and themselves from public view.

Beyond the law itself, LGBTQ people in Russia face homophobia, often violently expressed, in their daily lives.

Amach LGBTQ would like to show solidarity with the LGBTQ community in Russia by raising funds for local groups supporting them.

 

 

Thief who skipped last court date gets prison sentence

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Galway Daily courts Galway courts

A thief who skipped town before his last hearing received a seven month prison sentence this week after being arrested on a bench warrant in Dublin.

James O’Malley (24), of 35 Cuan Glas on the Bishop O’Donnell road, was charged with three counts of theft and one count of failure to appear for skipping his last court date.

He pleaded guilty to all the charges leveled against him.

The oldest theft charge O’Malley faced was from November 19 last year, at Maxol in Whitestrand.

The court heard that at 7.15 in the morning, O’Malley stole €25 worth of groceries from the shop. He was identified from cctv, which showed that he wasn’t even trying to conceal his theft.

The defence said that O’Malley was very drunk at the time, and the €25 of items were actually sweets.

In addition, on February 18 this year, it was alledged that O’Malley stole a bottle of vodka from Aldi in Westside worth €22. The alcohol was not recovered.

Lastly, on May 11, O’Malley was detained by security at Debenham’s on Eyre street when he tried to shoplift a bottle of Hugo Boss scent worth €72. Garda Maria Freely was called to the scene by staff, and arrested O’Malley for the attempted theft.

O’Malley failed to appear at a previous court date in Galway, also to answer for these charges, on May 22. A bench warrant was issued for him on that day, and he was later arrested in Dublin and conveyed back to Galway.

Judge Mary Fahy challenged the defence’s assertion that O’Malley was holding up his hands and taking responsibility by pleading guilty.

She said she didn’t see any responsibility in his attitude, just: “Defensiveness, and no remorse.”

“He would not be here today, dealing with these matters, except he was arrested.” Judge Fahy added, dismissing any further attempts by the defence to speak before sentencing, “I have other cases to hear.”

O’Malley received a seven month prison sentence in total for three of the four charges.

Five months for the theft from Aldi in Westside, one month consecutive for attempting to rob Debenham’s, and another one month consecutive sentence for failing to appear at his last hearing.

For the drunken sweet robbery from Maxol, O’Malley received a one month concurrent sentence.

Five lifesaving First Responder groups receive €45,000 in CLÁR funding

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Galway daily news five first responder groups receive €45,000 in CLÁR funding

Five lifesaving organisations and community projects have received a total of €44,955 in funding under the CLÁR programme’s support for first responder groups.

The largest allocation was to the Galway branch of the Irish Red Cross, who received €20,400 to purchase a boat.

Killascobe Defibrillator Group have been granted €10,460 for emergency defibrillator’s and other equipment, and Galway Mountain rescue will get €9,223 to upgrade their vehicle and other equipment.

The last two grants are €5,844 to the Irish Community Rapid Response in Galway for assorted equipment and €4,080 for the Eyrecourt and District Cardiac First Responders.

Galway East TD Sean Canney welcomed the funding, which he said would help save lives, “These community groups are providing a very important life-saving service within their communities and it is important that we continue to support them financially from central Government.”

This is the third round of funding allocations from the CLÁR programme in 2018. Measure 3 of the programme is designated for First Responder Support projects.

The first two rounds of funding announced earlier this month were for Health and Safety upgrades and Play Areas at schools and other community facilities in Galway.

Announcing the funding this week, Minister for Rural and Community Development Michael Ring praised the work done by first responder groups.

“These community-based volunteer organisations do life-saving work. They need to have proper equipment and training in order to ensure they can perform their work,”

“This support will mean that if someone gets into difficulty, these groups will be better equipped to help them.”

The CLÁR programme provides targeted investment in small scale infrastructure projects in rural areas that have been hit the hardest by population decline.

It’s goal is to make these communities more sustainable, a vital project at a time when rural areas in Galway are increasingly draining into the city, which is itself undergoing a housing crisis.

“I have great respect for the volunteers that put themselves on the line in order to help others,” said Minister Ring of first responder groups.

“I know that this funding will go towards keeping members of our communities safe and well.”

In total, €1.2 million in funding for 70 first responder groups around Ireland was announced this week.

It will be spent on specialist equipment for mountain and aquatic rescue groups, vehicles for local ambulance groups, and public defibrillators for communities.

Sunday July 15 – Food collective ‘The Domestic Godless’ take over Galway Arts Centre

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Galway Daily what's on The Domestic Godless food artists at Galway arts centre

Galway Arts Centre are welcoming anarchist chefs/artists (who knew that was a thing) The Domestic Godless for the next two weeks to show us the strange side of food.

Describing themselves as, “a thorn in the foot of Irish gastronomy” the Cork based food collective are known for their disregard of culinary trends, to put it lightly.

Their occupation of Galway arts centre on Dominick street for International Arts Festival will include slide shows, menus, sculptures and a custom built kitchen.

While they’re in town they’ll have constant samples of their classic and more recent concoctions including the 14- allergen layer cake, a guide to post-industrial foraging and aperitifs designed to combat predatory sexual behaviour in intoxicated males.

On Sunday, July 15 from 1-3pm they’ll be officially opening their exhibition (once the health inspector’s been nice and liquored up).

After that they’ll be there for two weeks July 16-19, from 10am to 5pm every day. Entry to the main exhibition is free for all that want to see what can (if not necessarily should) be done with food.

Since 2003 artists Stephen Brandes and Mick O’Shea, later joined by Irene Murphy, have been using food in humorous and flat-out weird ways to convey… something.

Some of their more infamous creations include the Sea Urchin Pot Noodle, Foot & Mouth Terrine, Carpaccio of Giant African Land Snail and Victorian high tea wrought from all manner of fertilizer.

As well as the main exhibition there’ll be a free children’s event on July 18, and from July 20 on they’ll have a number of performance events.

Special events include: ‘A forage of Pataphysical gastronomy’ (Eh?) on July 20-21 from 6.30-8.30pm; ‘Amuse Bouche’ (okay that’s just an appetiser cake but I’m sensing a twist) on Friday, July 27 also 6.30-8.30pm.

And lastly – ‘Porridge not porridge’ on July 28 with three shows from 11am to 2pm. Porridge not porridge? Is it about the words or there something deeper I’m missing. When is porridge not porridge?

Tickets for their special performances cost between €5 and €30 and can be booked online.

 

 

Sinn Féin to challenge Michael D. Higgins in Presidential election

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Galway Daily news President Higgins continues to draw NUI Galway pension while in office

Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald TD has confirmed that Sinn Féin will be contesting the Presidential election later this year.

She said that Michael D. Higgins is a ‘President we can be proud of’ and commended President Higgins and his wife Sabina on how they have represented Ireland since 2011.

However, she said, this election will be about the next seven years and the party wants to have a ‘progressive conversation about building a new, agreed and United Ireland’.

Michael D. Higgins won the 2011 Presidential Election after the late Martin McGuinness accused front-runner Sean Gallagher live on RTÉ of collecting a cheque for €5,000 from a ‘convicted criminal and fuel smuggler’.

Mr Gallagher denied the accusation at first during the debate, before remembering the incident later in the programme.

The Ard Chomhairle has appointed a committee to oversee the process of selecting a candidate.

Mary Lou McDonald TD said: “Ireland and the world have changed in the seven years since we last had a presidential election.

“A new generation has become politically engaged and have been central to changing Ireland for the better as we saw in the marriage equality referendum and in the referendum to remove the Eighth Amendment. In those referenda, young people voted in unprecedented numbers.

“It is right that we give this generation the opportunity to be part of a wider conversation about what a better Ireland should look like.

“These citizens should be given the opportunity to be part of deciding who our President is.  Those under the age of twenty-five have never voted in a Presidential election.  They shouldn’t have to wait until the age of thirty-two to have this opportunity.

“It is simply wrong that citizens be denied their right to vote because the political establishment of Fianna Fail, Fine Gael, and Labour do not want an election.

“A presidential election can be a very positive thing for Ireland.

“We believe that there is an appetite for political and social change.

“President Michael D Higgins sought and received a mandate to serve as our President for the past seven years. I want to commend President Higgins and his wife Sabina on how they have represented Ireland during the term of his presidency.

“He is a President we can be proud of.

“But this election will be about the next seven years, about who is best to lead our country into that future. An Uachtarán that can represent the future as well as our proud past.

“We are entering this race because we want to bring our vision for the future of all of Ireland to the people. We will seek during the campaign to have a progressive conversation about building a new, agreed and United Ireland. And we will ask the people to endorse that vision for the future.”

City council backs Make Way Day campaign supporting people with a disability

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Galway daily news Public spaces in the spotlight for Make Way Day

Galway City Council is supporting creating a national Make Way Day recognising the obstacles people with disabilities have navigating public spaces.

The Make Way Day campaign is the product of 14 different organisations who fight for the rights of people living with a disability, and marks the first time those groups have come together for a campaign.

Along with the Disability Federation of Ireland, some of the other groups behind the campaign are the Irish Wheelchair Association, Fighting Blindness, Enable Ireland, Arthritis Ireland, Multiple Sclerosis Ireland and many others.

The private motion supporting the campaign was brought forward by councillor Frank Fahy at a recent city council meeting.

It acknowledges that people with a disability have the same right to make use of public spaces as everyone else.

But badly parked cars, bicycles, billboards and overgrown hedges create obstacles that make it harder to get around in public areas.

These are obstacles for everyone, but are particularly impeding for someone in a wheelchair or with some other disability affecting their mobility.

The petition calling on the government to create a national #makewayday currently stands at nearly 12,000 signatures on change.org.

The campaign says that creating this day will send the message that, “we don’t want our villages, towns and cities to be obstacles courses for family, friends and neighbours with disabilities, we want them to be warm, welcoming and inclusive.”

Supporters of the campaign can buy stickers off their website to slap on badly placed obstacles in order to let people know they’re blocking the path.

Make Way Day sticker on a keg blocking the path

Most obstacles faced by people with disabilities, councillor Fahy’s motion claims, are caused by thoughtlessness and a lack of understanding more than anything else. This event could help people understand the difficulties their actions cause other.

The motion passed quickly with unanimous support from the councillors.

Galway city council will write to An Taoiseach Leo Varadkar, along with each individual Minister and Junior Minister asking for them to create, support and fund a national Make Way Day on September 26, starting this year.

The council will also support and promote a local #Makewaydaygalwaycity every year as part of a larger campaign.

 

Disqualified driver with no licence or insurance gave false name to gardaí

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Galway daily news Galway had Ireland's third highest number of road deaths in 2021

A Galway man received a six month sentence after pleading guilty to driving while disqualified and giving a false name to gardaí.

Anthony Barrett (19), of 17 Fana Glas, Ballybane pleaded guilty to multiple charges involving driving without insurance or a licence, driving while disqualified, and giving false information to the gardaí.

On January 19 of this year, Garda Phillip Staunton pulled Barrett over on Castlepark road in Ballybane where he was found to be driving without a licence or insurance.

He failed to produce a valid licence or insurance at Mill st. garda station within ten days of the stop, as was required, and his car was seized by gardaí.

Then, the court heard, Barrett was involved in another road traffic incident with gardaí just last week.

On Saturday, July 7 at five to four in the afternoon, Barrett was stopped by gardaí while driving a different car in Summerfield, Claregalway.

Since he still had no licence or insurance, Barrett initially gave a false name and address to the garda, though he admitted the truth soon afterwards.

Judge Mary Fahy warned that it was a strong mark against Barrett that he picked up further, similar charges after his car had been seized and he had been disqualified from driving.

“He went out knowing he was disqualified and got a different car,” she said.

Mr.Barrett’s solicitor said that his client wasn’t offering any defence for his actions and was in the court’s hands. There was no application for bail made in this case.

For driving while he was disqualified, Barrett received a five month prison sentence, and has been disqualified from driving for a further four years.

For giving false information to the garda officer who pulled him over Barrett received a one month consecutive sentence

He also received one month and three month concurrent sentences for driving without a licence and driving without insurance.

 

 

NUI Galway researchers find insight into male fertility problems studying fruit flies

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Galway daily news Galway researchers find insight into male fertility problems

Researchers from NUI Galway’s Centre for Chromosome Biology has uncovered new insights into male fertility by studying cell activity in the common fruit fly.

Dr. Elaine Dunleavy at NUIG is the lead author of a study that has found new links between genes normally responsible for energy production, and male fertility.

The study found a link between proteins in the cell that have traditionally been considered solely responsible for producing energy, and the creation of sperm.

The study was carried out on the fruit fly, and while that may seem on the surface like it has no bearings on humans, we share approximately 60% of the same genes, making the fruit fly an excellent proxy to study gene functions.

“Our use of the fruit fly allowed us to carry out genetic experiments that would have been very difficult to perform in humans.” said Dr. Dunleavy.

In the cell, energy production is carried in a compartment called the mitochondrion (as anyone who took biology no doubt found themselves repeating robotically as they read this), while DNA is stored separately in the cell nucleus.

Those experiments found that fruit flies lacking these energy producing proteins were unable to get their DNA to produce sperm.

These findings could be highly relevant to further studies of human sperm development and fertility, and how influencing this pathway might benefit people with fertility problems.

Professor Noel Lowndes, Director of the Centre for Chromosome Biology at NUIG, praised the work of their newest recruit.

“In the Centre we take advantage of simple cellular systems to discover new biology of relevance to humans and, in this case, the work of Elaine and her team will have impact in the field of human fertility.”

The findings of the study were published this week in renowned scientific journal Nature Communications.

Dr. Dunleavy’s research uses fruit flies as a way to understand the cell division that creates eggs and sperm to better understand human health issues.

Through it, she aims to discover the genes that are important for fertility in men and women.

Outrage at cowardly attack on Gerry Adams’ home by dissidents

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gerry adams home attacked

Galway City Councillor Mairéad Farrell has said she is outraged at the attacks on the homes of former Sinn Féin President Gerry Adams and Bobby Story late yesterday evening in West Belfast.

Nobody was injured in either of the attacks in which two explosive devices were thrown.

One of the devices caused damage to a car.

North Belfast MLA Gerry Kelly said that the attacks were ‘reprehensible and cowardly’  and that grandchildren were in the driveway of Gerry Adams’ home just minutes before the attack.

He said: “I would appeal for calm. These attacks are the desperate acts of increasingly desperate and irrelevant groups.”

The cowardly attacks came just hours after a protest in Derry against what Mary Lou McDonald described as a ‘sustained attack on this city and the people of this city’.

The PSNI said two explosive devices and 74 petrol bombs were fired at officers on Thursday night which was the sixth successive night of violence in the Bogside, mostly carried out by teenagers and some children not even in their teens.

Responding to the mindless violence by so-called republican dissidents, Sinn Féin President Mary Lou McDonald said: “The people of Derry have a proud history of standing up for what is right.

“It is the city of Martin McGuinness and John Hume.

“It is the city of Civil Rights and in such a place, sectarian attacks should not be aimed at anyone.

“Pensioners should not be terrified in their homes. Mothers should not be afraid to allow their children out of their front doors.

“And young people should not be exploited as cannon fodder to do the bidding of those with failed political and personal agendas.

Saturday July 14 – World premiere of Katie Taylor documentary ‘Katie’

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Galway Daily what's on World premiere 'Katie'

Galway Film Fleadh is showing the world premiere of sports documentary ‘Katie’ at the Town Hall Theatre this weekend.

Six amateur European championships, five amateur World championships, and an Olympic gold medal from London 2012,

Boxer Katie Taylor was well on her becoming an Irish sporting legend when she went down in the first round of the Rio 2016 Olympics, despite being the favourite to win.

Director Ross Whitaker (Unbreakable: The Mark Pollock Story) follows Taylor as she rebuilds her career after an incredibly bad year, deciding to go pro after Rio 2016.

‘Katie’ digs into the reasons behind Taylor’s career low, and shows the grit and drive that brought her back and made her an International Boxing Federation world champion.

Katie Taylor is one of only seven women to have titles across every weight division in the sport, and the first women to headline a sports show on Sky Sports.

‘Katie’ is on at the Town Hall Theatre on Saturday, July 14 at 4pm. Call them at 091-569777 to inquire about tickets, but there’s only a few left.

Driver stopped by Gardaí near City doing nearly twice the speed limit

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garda tweet photo of car going twice the speed limit

Gardaí have today tweeted a photo of a car that they stopped on Friday that was travelling at nearly twice the speed limit.

The driver of the Mercedes, which was going 178km/h in a 100km zone near the City, said that he was “test driving it”.

Saturday July 14 – Debate on women in Irish media ‘Accelerating Gender Equality: Time for Quotas?’

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Galway daily what's on debate on gender equality in Irish Media

A panel discussion on gender equality in the Irish film and television industry. Is it time to introduce quotas? Or are they a ‘threat to quaility’?

The Equality Action Committee of the Writers Guild, Screen Directors Guild, and Women in Film and Television Ireland want people to come and add their voice to the discussion.

This free event is on at this Saturday, July 14 at the Galway Rowing Club in Woodquay at 2pm. Seating is first come, first serve.

Afterwards there’ll be a drinks reception with a free drink for members of the WGI, SDGI, and WFT. If you’re not a member you can join now register on the night.

(So long as you’re willing to admit that joining a guild for a free drink is a pretty big leap).

Writer and Director Liz Gill will deliver the opening remarks, and afterwards there’ll be a debate with panelists Dr Annie Doona (Chairperson, Screen Ireland), Michael O’Keefe (CEO, Broadcasting Authority of Ireland), David Collins (Producer), Orla O’Connor (Director, National Women’s Council of Ireland), and the moderator – Dr Susan Liddy.