Ocean FM News Reports

Customers in the north west are once again set to bear the brunt of a price increase at the pumps. After a series of hikes in the price of both petrol and diesel since late last year, the price of a litre has remained largely unchanged. Fuels for Ireland wants the Government to lower taxes to ease pressure on consumers. CEO, Kevin McPartland says it'll add further pressure to forecourts, particula...

Over 50 children in the north west have nowhere to call home here. The monthly homeless figures, published on Friday, revealed the highest numbers of people living in emergency accommodation in May. Figures show there were 170 adults in the north west accessing emergency accommodation at the end of the month. 91 of them were registered in Sligo, 56 in Donegal, and 23 in Leitrim. 109 of which were...

A memorial cross will be unveiled at the National Army Plot at Sligo Cemetery on Saturday June 28th at 11am. The plot has remained unmarked and unattended for most of the last 100 years, and it is known that at least two Soldiers are buried in the plot. They are Private James Byrne and Sergeant James Skeffington. While another soldier, Private Jack Sweeney, is also buried in Sligo Cemetery, but wh...

A former Donegal TD is fearful over the future of Ireland's neutrality. This follows news that Ireland is set to sign up to a 150 billion euro EU plan that aims to boost defence, which will allow the government to secure military equipment faster and at a lower cost. As tensions increase across Europe and the wider world over international conflict, the EU has highlighted the importance of securit...

Fianna Fail Cllr Paddy Farrell has been elected Cathaoirleach of Leitrim County Council. He replaces Cllr Paddy O'Rourke in the Chair for the next twelve months. Fellow Fianna Fail Cllr Gary Prior has been elected Leas-Cathaoirleach. Speaking to Ocean FM news, Cllr Farrell says it's a privilege to serve the people of Leitrim:

The Health Minister's latest comments on the surgical hub has raised concern in Sligo. Minister Jennifer Carroll MacNeil confirmed that no decision had been reached on the hub between Sligo and Donegal, and also stated that as of yesterday morning, no business case for the hub had reached her desk. It had been expected that Sligo would be chosen as the location, although arguments have since been...

The Minister for Further and Higher Education has admitted that the North West needs more student accommodation. It comes as construction is set to begin on a multimillion euro project at ATU Letterkenny. The new building will also increase capacity of ATU Letterkenny by around 600 students. Meanwhile, there's an ongoing student accommodation crisis in both Sligo and Letterkenny. Speaking to Ocean...

A Sligo-Leitrim TD has raised concerns over new US requirements for those looking to visit the country. All students applying for J1 visas must make their social media profiles public so US authorities can check them. Failure to do so could result in the visa being rejected, and marks a significant shift in relation to online privacy. Sinn Fein Deputy Martin Kenny says it appears that the American...

We’re with Sligo Pétanque Club ahead of Saturday’s Open Day at Mitchell Curley Park. As speculation grows over Reece Hutchinson’s departure from the Showgrounds, we’ll talk to the man Sligo Rovers have brought as defensive cover. Paddy McLean is back in a Rovers shirt for the second time in his career Neuro Diverse FC  is a football club with a differnece. It’s designed to help children with...

Speaking to MEP Mullooly in Brussels yesterday, Marco Panigalli, the EU's Head of Civil Protection Emergency Response, confirmed that emergency assistance could have been placed on standby, ready to be deployed:

Mass North West power and water outages after Storm Eowyn could have been eased if the government had acted sooner. That's according to MEP Ciaran Mullooly, after it emerged that Europe could have provided assistance had the Irish government requested it before the storm hit. The devastating effects of the storm in January of this year left many without basic necessities for weeks. MEP Mullooly sa...

It's been claimed that no North West venues were allocated funding under the Grassroots Music Venues Scheme. This initiative, launched by the Department of Culture, aims to bolster the night-time economy by providing grants of up to €15,000 to small, established venues that showcase emerging musical talent. However it's emerged that just one venue in Ulster was sanctioned funding as other applicat...

There has been no decision made on where the surgical hub will be located between Sligo and Donegal. Although it was expected that the hub would be placed at Sligo University Hospital following a business case being submitted by the HSE, it's now been argued that Letterkenny University Hospital should be the priority. Over 170 clinicians from Donegal issued a statement to the Department of Health,...

A Sligo Teaching Union official says the ASTI says it will seek an official resolution to teachers’ concerns about the Senior Cycle Redevelopment Programme.   It comes after 68 per cent of teachers voted against a package of measures to support them in the new curriculum.   The union says it will invoke "dispute resolution mechanisms" to try resolve the impasse.     General Sec...

Sligo Cathedral is due to reopen this week. It was shut for over six months for renovation works. Liturgies for the duration of the closure were being celebrated in Nazareth Chapel. Ocean FM paid a visit to the Cathedral ahead of the opening:

Regional imbalance has been blamed for accessibility issues among those with a disability in the North West. The lack of accessible footpaths, roads, buildings, transport and internet connectivity in the region are all said to have been highlighted at two recent workshops in Donegal. Pippa Black, Donegal Community Development worker for the Independent Living Movement of Ireland says it's clear th...

Work is finally set to start on the Fintra Bridge. An official sod turning ceremony is set to take place tomorrow, marking the beginning of the construction stage. The upgrade has been in the pipeline for many years. Independent Cllr Jimmy Brogan says while it's positive that it's finally getting underway, the project should have been priority. He also says it's time for other key pieces of infras...

The Irish Government is being urged to intervene in the major setback on the A5 project. The road upgrade has been deemed vital for the future needs of the North West region.   The Stormont Executive's decision to proceed with the upgrade was quashed at the High Court in Belfast this week as the Judge felt the proposed scheme breached elements of the Climate Change Act 2022.   There have...

The Irish Government is being urged to intervene in the major setback on the A5 project. The road upgrade has been deemed vital for the future needs of the North West region. The Stormont Executive's decision to proceed with the upgrade was quashed at the High Court in Belfast this week as the Judge felt the proposed scheme breached elements of the Climate Change Act 2022. There have been more tha...

'Wee pockets' said to be left behind by the local link in south Donegal. While the bus service caters to vast areas of the county, it's thought there could be improvements in places like Ardara, Lough Eske, Mountcharles and Glenties. Service reviews of the area are due to take place shortly. Speaking in the Seanad earlier, Fine Gael Senator Manus Boyle says it should be a scheme that caters to eve...

A Sligo man has cycled over 2000 kilometers to get to Glastonbury. Ollie White began the cycle from Madrid to the festival on the 29th of May, and landed at the Pyramid Stage this morning. The 25-year-old says he was craving a new challenge:

The backlog problems facing the dermatology service in Sligo University Hospital has been highlighted on the floor of the Dail. The current consultant dermatologist is taking leave next month, with no temporary solution put in place. As it stands, the current waiting list for the service has thousands of patients waiting to be seen. Speaking this afternoon, Sinn Fein Deputy Martin Kenny says the N...

North West farmers are expected to benefit on European pressure to prevent vegetarian and vegan products using traditional food terms. A ban is being sought on such products using terms like sausage or burger. It's been argued that corporations are taking advantage of the rich history of meat and dairy products, and are trying to smuggle their own items past the public. President of the ICMSA, Den...

The government has come under fire for halting its plan for social homes locally. The Journal are reporting that a stalled housing project of almost 500 social homes, which included sites in Sligo twice passed government financial appraisals. It’s understood that Housing Minister James Brown abandoned plans over multi-million-euro costs for the project. The social housing developments were underst...

The newly elected Chair of the Regional Health Forum West wants a surgical hub to be considered for Donegal. A business case has previously been submitted by the HSE for the hub to be located in Sligo, with a greenfield site also identified as a potential location for the facility. However, more than 170 doctors based in Donegal have requested that Letterkenny be chosen as the location for the hub...