Ocean FM News Reports

Funding has been granted for a large extension to St Clare's Comprehensive school in Manorhamilton. The extension comprises of three mainstream classrooms, and a number of other rooms including a science lab, an art room, and a special education classroom. Minister for Education Norma Foley TD has confirmed the allocation for the Leitrim school. Fine Gael Deputy Frank Feighan praised all those inv...

A Sligo Leitrim TD has questioned the timing of the creation of a new register which aims to crackdown on the so called 'Cow Boy Builders'. The register which will be created later this year will afford the Construction Federation Authority power to access sites, seize documents and enter homes of builders.     Fianna Fáil TD Eamon Scanlon comes from an auctioneering background.   H...

Quick action has been urged in Leitrim following an outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease in Germany. Northern Ireland has restricted animal imports from that part of the country, with the situation being labelled a ‘significant concern’ by Stormont’s Agriculture Minister. Meanwhile, the UK has already banned pig, sheep and cattle imports from Germany. Ballinamore Cllr Brendan Barry says a swift resp...

Local Councillor comments on "disappointing" fuel price increases

ATU alumni are now eligible to vote in Seanad Éireann elections as part of a newly established six-seat Higher Education constituency. This will replace the existing National University of Ireland (NUI) and Trinity College Dublin constituencies, and comes into effect on June 1, 2025. Graduates who hold bachelor’s, master’s, or doctoral degrees from ATU and meet the eligibility criteria can now reg...

Funding is being sought in Donegal to target the issue of ash dieback. It's believed that over 90% of ash trees are diseased, which will result in their death. There are fears that if not addressed proactively, the trees will fall down and prove a dangerous hazard. Independent Cllr Jimmy Brogan says the council must act before homeowners take matters into their own hands:

Local Councillor calls for consideration to reopening of closed garda stations

There's specualation that the Yeats Country Hotel in Rosses Point could be sold for direct provision purposes. The hotel, which had been used to house Ukrainian refugees for the last couple of years, went on the market late last year at a guide price of seven million euro. It had been hoped then that the premises would be returned to much needed tourist accommodation for the area. However, rumours...

North West TD confirms Sinn Féin will oppose Independents demands for Dáil rights

Sligo TD says establishment of new register is an insult to Reputable Contractors

Rosses Point’s Elayne McDermott remains to date Sligo’s sole Irish senior hockey international. She played 35 times for her country in the late 1980s and early 1990s. More recently, she has spent some time living in Africa, namely in the Sudan and Kenya - and it was there that she got an opportunity to coach the Kenyan women’s under 21 international team. Elayne spoke to Ocean FM Sport's Austin O'...

Sligo has, to date, produced just one senior international hockey player for Ireland. And her most recent hockey assignment has been in Africa, to coach an international team. Elayne McDermott talks coaching in Kenya – and civil unrest in the Sudan. Here comes the Lidl national football league. Sligo and Leitrim begin the scramble to climb out of Division 4. We’ll assess their prospects with the r...

Donegal TD hits out at national development programme

€3 million has been announced for active travel projects in Sligo. In the total since the scheme was introduced, the county has received in excess of €15 million of government funding. The allocation is targeted towards improving infrastructure within and around villages. Fine Gael Cllr Thomas Walsh says there’s around 47 active schemes availing of the resources:

Midlands-North West MEP Ciaran Mullooly has welcomed the government’s stance towards the EU Mercosur trade deal. The Mercosur deal aims to import a large amount of beef from South America, which could severely reduce Irish farm profits. The government have stated in their newly published programme for government that they want to work with other EU countries to oppose the current trade deal. MEP M...

Restaurant owner gives credit to Independents for reduced VAT rates

Local Councillor calls for hospital parking charges to be addressed

It's hoped that a dedicated Minister of State for Fisheries & Marine will result in a much needed boost for the sector in Killybegs. Plans also include publishing a comprehensive five year Fisheries Sector Strategy, which will examine and improve processing capacity and economic viability. The programme for Government also outlines intentions to address inequities in the Common Fisheries Polic...

It's hoped that the Sligo - Connolly line will be prioritised in an expected roll out of a new dedicated transport police force. The long awaited move is included in the Programme for Government and while the finer details have yet to be revealed, it's understood that they would have the powers of arrest. It comes following a rise of antisocial behaviour incidents on the Sligo line, with an Irish...

There's said to be widespread anger in parts of Donegal over what's been described as an alarming increase in dogs roaming loose and chasing sheep. It has led to major fears that sheep or other livestock could be attacked and killed. There have several incidents in the county lately and dog owners have come under fire for behaving irresponsibly. Independent Cllr Michael McClafferty has issued a st...

Speculation mounts that local TD will secure junior ministry position

A Leitrim publican is warning that the decision taken by Diageo to increase the price of it's draught products will lead to a spike in the numbers of pub closures in the North West.   Diageo confirmed this week that it was putting up the price of products such as include Guinness - by SIX cents per pint on the February Bank Holiday.   The Vintners' Federation of Ireland has criticised th...

Plans to establish a transport police in the Programme for Government have been welcomed by unions.     SIPTU says the introduction of the service, which would have the power to arrest in a similar fashion to the airport police, is long overdue and will protect transport workers.     The union is looking to meet the next Transport Minister to ensure the measure is brought in as...

A new report claims that over four hundred and forty five thousand euro has been taken in car parking charges at Sligo and Letterkenny University Hospitals in 2023.   The data published by Irish Country Living claim the charges are adding to the financial burden experienced by patients and their families.   Nationally Irish hospitals took in 15.7 million euro in car parking fees in 2023....

The new programme for Government includes an ambition to build a surgical hub in Sligo. The document was published today, and has a proposal to explore the provision of an additional hub for the north west. This could potentially address some of the long-term calls for additional health infrastructure in the region. Fine Gael Deputy Frank Feighan has welcomed the developments: