Ireland's Eye: What's going on in the old sod this week

A look at news from around Ireland

“I feel so sick and queasy. I am also struggling to keep my food down, and I cannot sleep properly at night,” she explained.

The morning after the incident, Irene approached Sinn Fein city councilor Maurice Quinlivan and her local Garda (police) station at Mary Street.

Both parties contacted Limerick City Council who immediately sent staff to the area to clean up the rubbish.

Limerick Leader

Filthy Backyard

A BALLINROBE man who has thrown large amounts of rubbish, including soiled nappies, into the rear garden of his home has been given two weeks to get it cleaned up or else face jail.

Tom Sweeney had failed to appear before Castlebar District Court in May. The court heard how a three-foot high “mountain” of dirty nappies was among the large quantity of waste that residents Tom and Ann Sweeney had continually refused to remove from their own back garden.  A bench warrant was issued in May for their arrest.

Des Hannick, environmental enforcement officer with Mayo County Council, said that nothing had been done to address the problem.

Tom Sweeney appeared before the court and produced a receipt for a skip which he said would arrive the following day. Judge Mary Devins said that one skip would not clear the rubbish.

Cathy McDarby, defending solicitor, said that her company had been putting pressure on the Sweeneys to get the matter sorted and that the garden was “disgusting.”

“I pity the poor people living nearby, they must have all sorts of furry friends,” she told the court. She asked for one adjournment to try to have the problem dealt with for once and for all.
Ward McEllin, solicitor representing Mayo County Council, said it was time something was done.

“You’ve young kids and one on the way and you are subjecting them and your neighbors to this squalor. The dirty nappies are thrown in a heap in your back garden. How can you consider this acceptable in a modern day society?” he said.

Devins said she didn’t know how a newborn could be brought home to such a dwelling, and said if the Health Service Executive called they might find they need to take the children away.

Devins said the new child will have to cope with having their father in jail if the mess was not cleared up by the time of the next court sitting, July 18. Sweeney also has to bring evidence that he is subscribing to a regular bin collection.

Mayo News

Men Leaving for Work

OVER the past year, the number of men on the live register in Kildare dropped from 12,114 in June 2011 to 11,851 in June 2012, and the number of women on the register increased from 6,897 to 7,169.

According to Teresa Whelan from the Kildare Resource Centers for the Unemployed, less men are availing of their services because they have left the country.

“It’s very simple, the reason that the number of men on the register is falling is because they are emigrating. The Kildare area is experiencing a massive problem with emigration and that is having a bearing on the figures that we are seeing. While there are many couples who are leaving it is primarily men going abroad for work,” she said.

​
Nster.com