Ocean FM News Reports

Sinn Féin TD Martin Kenny says the government has failed to tackle soaring insurance costs, leaving families, businesses, and community groups under financial pressure. He says insurance companies are making massive profits while customers face rising premiums across car, home, and health cover. Deputy Kenny is backing a Dáil motion calling for transparency and action to reduce prices across the s...

The Presidential campaign teams will be analysing how their candidates performed in the first television debate last night. There was a focus on the conflict in Gaza, with the triple lock on overseas deployment and the occupied territories bill also featuring. Speaking on North West Today, Donegal Cllr Brendan Byrne said that presidential debates are still important.

A public consultation on Ballisodare town centre is set to begin early next month. The riverside area of the town is set to be regenerated, following public guidance on the measures taken by Sligo County Council. Multiple buildings on the site in question have been placed on the derelict sites register. Sligo Fine Gael Cllr Thomas Walsh is urging Ballisodare residents to have their say in the cons...

A new indoor market is set to begin in Sligo. This Sunday will see the Canopy in Sligo town host a new indoor market from 11am to 4pm. The move is seen as a spiritual successor to the now-closed Strandhill People's Market. Clodagh Higgins, one of the driving forces behind the project, has said that there are a large number of traders looking to set up shop.

The median price of a home has shot up by 26 percent in Sligo since last year. The next highest increase according to the CSO was Limerick, at 17 percent. Meanwhile the median age of a home buyer has not changed, it remains at 40. Social Democrats Housing Spokesperson, Rory Hearne says young people are badly affected:

There have been no new commercial units built in Enniscrone in the last 15 years. Of the urban areas in Sligo surveyed by GeoDirectory, Enniscrone had the lowest commercial vacancy rate at 18.1% - still well above the national average. Independent Cllr Joe Queenan is warning that from a business point of view, the community of Enniscrone is trying to keep current unit open with great difficulty. H...

Sinn Féin’s Pearse Doherty has accused the government of allowing “open season” for price gouging, with banks, insurers, and energy firms making what he called “obscene profits.”   He claimed energy companies are hitting households with double-digit price hikes, while bailed-out banks pay no tax and consumers face the highest electricity prices in Europe.   Doherty slammed government ina...

Data on Sligo's commercial vacancy rate has been brought into question. The latest report from GeoDirectory once again indicates that County Sligo continues to have the highest commercial vacancy rate in the country at 20.8%. The report has also found that the highest commercial vacancy rates were located in the west of the country, with Sligo, Donegal, Leitrim and Galway recording the highest pro...

An Oireachtas committee has heard that a change to planning regulations will mean what happened to student accommodation in Sligo can never happen again. The Committee has been hearing about the chronic shortage and high costs of student accommodation in the North West and across the country. Last week, Fine Gael TD Frank Feighan stated that the developer of Milligan and Benbulben Court in Sligo p...

The Health Minister has confirmed that the new Sligo to Galway bus will operational in the coming weeks. The issue has been ongoing for nearly a year, after the old vehicle reached end of life. Since then, a service has been catering to cancer patients locally but it has been lacking in toilet facilities and wheelchair access. The issue was raised in the Dail yesterday by Fine Gael TD Frank Feigha...

Sligo University Hospital still hasn’t filled two approved consultant dermatologist positions.   That’s despite extensive recruitment efforts in 2025.   The HSE is now reshaping the roles, with one full-time position planned for Letterkenny and one for Sligo.     Cllr Marie Casserly whos also a member of the regional health forum tells Ocean FM News that the posts will be re-ad...

The Cleary Centre in Donegal Town is moving ahead with its design phase. The Suitability Assessment Questionnaire (SAQ) is currently out for tender, with construction expected to start in early 2026, pending approvals. The new facility aims to provide more space and support for families in need of respite care. Cllr Micheal Naughton says, Until we see contractors on the ground, we won't believe it...

There are renewed fears over how the closure of the Donegal ISPCA centre will impact animal welfare in the North West. The centre closed a couple of weeks ago and was unable to come to the aid of 14 dogs which were discovered in deplorable conditions in the Glenties area in recent days. The traumatised animals were seized by Gardai. 100% Redress Party TD Charles Ward says the service is clearly ne...

More than 800 volunteers across the Northwest took part in this year's Big Beach Clean, with over 500 in Donegal and 300 in Sligo removing large amounts of marine litter. The clean-up was part of a nationwide campaign that saw nearly 11,000 people collect over 60 tonnes of waste from coastlines and waterways. Fishing gear, plastics and even umbrellas were among the most commonly found items along...

The Justice Minister is under increasing pressure to meet with the family of Leitrim farmer Liam Farrell in the coming weeks. In the Dail yesterday, Minister Jim O'Callaghan agreed to meet with the family but a date has yet to be set. There are ongoing calls for the case into Liam Farrell's death to be reopened, particularly in light of a recent RTE Prime Time report. The 87 year old was found bad...

Orchard Care Group is hosting a Recruitment Day tomorrow to mark the opening of their new office in Sligo. They are hiring for roles across Sligo, Mayo, Roscommon, Longford, Leitrim, Cavan, and Galway, including social care workers and healthcare assistants. The event will help fill positions in their growing network of care facilities. Speaking to Ocean FM News, HR Manager Yvonne Branigan said th...

A number of proposals have been put forward for Knockbeg Road in Sligo. It follows a key meeting held last night between residents along the route, local Cllrs and members of the Roads Department at Sligo County Council. There are a number of major safety concerns over the current state of the road. The meeting, while said to be positive, was told that there is no funding currently in place to pro...

The process for securing a new Sligo to Galway cancer bus is still ongoing.   A bus currently catering to patients does not have toilet facilities or wheelchair access after the previous vehicle reached end of life several months ago.   It had been hoped that new bus would be on the road by now, and while local fundraising efforts have raised 80% of the money needed, the remainder of the...

The Justice Minister is to meet with the family of Leitrim farmer Liam Farrell to discuss their concerns relating to the investigation into his death. There are ongoing calls to reopen the case, particularly in light of a recent RTE Prime Time report into his death. The 87 year old was found badly bruised outside of his home in Rooskey in January 2020. Speaking in the Dail yesterday, Sligo Leitrim...

An action plan to deal with the winter surge at Sligo University Hospital is currently being finalised. It comes as Emergency Department attendances in the North have increased by 4% this year compared to 2024, with rises of 6% in July and 7% in August. As a result, over 5,000 additional bed days have been lost the region due to Delayed Transfers of Care in the first seven months of 2025 compared...

Leitrim County Council has confirmed the return of textile recycling banks, with all 39 sites across the county expected to be operational by the end of September. The move follows successful discussions with the Department of Climate, Energy and the Environment, securing much-needed funding. Cllr Brendan Barry is urging the public to reuse or donate good-quality clothing where possible, and to su...

Minister Marian Harkin says she will nominate Maria Steen so she can run in the Presidential election. Ms Steen currently has around 14 members of the Oireachtas backing her, and needs to reach 20. Independent Ireland's four TD's are meeting this morning to decide if they will back her bid for the Presidency. The deadline for close of nominations is tomorrow. Marian Harkin says she is signing Mari...

There's a warning that insurance costs for hauliers are crippling rural Ireland. The Irish Road Haulage Association has demanded urgent Government action, warning that soaring premiums are forcing small businesses across rural Ireland to shut down. The association has submitted proposals to the Department of Finance as part of the new Insurance Action Plan 2025-2029 consultation. IRHA President Ge...

A meeting is taking place this evening over ongoing safety concerns on the Knockbeg Road in Collooney. The stretch between Collooney and the N17 is said to be experiencing a number of issues including overgrowth, lack of public lighting and other infrastructure. A key meeting with a delegation of residents is getting underway later with a view towards putting pressure on the road department at Sli...

The Government has made an utter mess of the immigration system and Donegal is the perfect example of that. That's according to Donegal Sinn Fein TD Pearse Doherty who has been reiterating comments he made in the Dail last week as meeting of the Oireachtas Migration Committee gets underway today. Justice Minister Jim O'Callaghan and department officials will discuss the management and operation of...