Congratulations to local journalist on law society award – Daly

Cllr Richard Daly, Leas Cathaoirleach of Athy Town Council expressed his congratulations to journalist Chris Fingleton on being recognised with a justice media award by the law society last night.
“Chris is a very committed journalist whose reporting of justice issues has been recognised nationally by the law society in its awards last night. The citation on his certificate compliments him on his accuracy and sometimes humorous reporting of details from the courtroom.
I am delighted to see Chris getting this national recognition as he is a very keen reported who has been deeply involved in reflecting the feelings of our society on not only justice but several other issues. Chris is not only a recorder of local events but he is an active participant in his community particularly in areas concerning the arts”.
“I am delighted for Chris and congratulate him on being a great ambassador for the region.” Concluded Cllr Daly.

Good weekend for Athy schools but more to do– Daly

Amid the alarming cutbacks and gloomy prospects for education nationally the last weekend has been particularly optimistic for some Athy schools according to Cllr Richard Daly, leas Cathaoirleach of Athy Town Council.
“On Friday last, Churchtown National School held the official opening of a three classroom extension with Bishop Eamonn Walsh as the official guest. On the same evening the keys of the new primary school which will house a section of St Patrick’s Primary school were handed over to the school authority and on the same 25 acre education campus work begins on the new Athy College after a nine year campaign.
I am particularly delighted that the three of these projects have made such advances. I have been long campaigning on education issues and in particular for the construction of the college and it is almost incredible that on the same weekend there should be good news for all three.
Athy and its hinterland will now be better poised to combat the economic downturn and work towards developing a knowledge based economy which will be to our advantage when the economic climate changes. Indeed it will also benefit from the construction period of the new college and the further primary schools which will locate on the campus.
I am at the same time deeply concerned that the promised school in Nurney is still lingering on the waiting list and will be continuing to lobby for justice for the staff, students and parents of that area who have been sadly neglected by the Department of Education and Science. As the other schools in the area receive good news the plight of Nurney school now becomes more pronounced and as parents, educationalist and neighbours we should give their campaign every support. I am only too aware of how it feels to spend almost a decade on the building list.”
In relation to the education cutbacks Cllr Daly said “I am also appalled that education has been so savagely attacked in the recent cuts and unless some of the cuts are withdrawn the provision of service at primary and second level schools in the area will suffer greatly and also be inequitable. These constrictions and cutbacks must be challenged by all of the parents and teachers within the county and the country.”

Minister Ahern is going after the wrong guns - Daly

Minister Ahern’s knee jerk proposals for the withdrawal of handgun licences shows how out of touch he is with the current situation according to Cllr Richard Daly, leas Cathaoirlaech of Athy Town Council.

“It beggars belief that the Minister’s proposal to limit unlicenced handguns is to immediately penalise the owners of legal handguns. This is akin to banning all driving licences because some drivers drive cars without having a licence. Does the Minister for Justice not know that the problem with gun crime is exclusively in the use of unlicenced guns which are often supplied with drug shipments and not the members of highly monitored gun clubs where members participate in national and international competitions?

Throughout the troubled period in Irish history where the violence in Northern Ireland predominated licenced handguns or gun ranges were not permitted in the south although in the North where the main violence was taking place handguns and gun clubs were still permissible.

Following the Peace Process the licensing of hand guns and the growth of the clubs began. The minister seems surprised that the number of licences handguns has increased after it became legal. This is because for the first time in our history it has developed as a sport.

Gun clubs are strictly regulated and monitored and the storage and control of the handguns is undertaken very seriously.

The minister uses as his excuse the fact that if any of these guns were stolen and used to kill anybody then it would be unacceptable. It would be equally unacceptable if somebody stole a car and killed somebody with it but that should not prevent the ordinary citizen from owning a car.

The gun fraternity are as abhorred as the rest of the country by the recent killings in our country and have become even more vigilant in the operation of their clubs. Like the rest of society they want the minister to go after the drug dealers and illegal guns not the compliant citizens who might have their guns stolen.

Minister Ahern further implies in his statement that if the seizure of all legal handguns doesn’t have the desired effect he will extend it to all legally held firearms.

The implication that the removal of legally held firearms is a response to national gun crime is an insult to the thousands of citizens who own guns and are as far removed from crime as the minister himself.

Most gun owners would agree with stringent regulation for the safe use and storage of their guns. Gun clubs of all descriptions have been proactive in providing safety training for their sportspeople who operate these guns. I am unaware of any instance of the misuse of any of the licenced guns for crime and I am doubly disappointed that the minister’s attack on illegally held guns is directed at the legally held ones instead.

By misdirecting his attack I believe that the minister has shot himself in the foot and has tarnished legal gun owners throughout the country” said Cllr Daly.

Car parking charges at rail station puts unfair cost on Athy Commuters– Daly

The introduction from next Monday of parking charges at the rail station in Athy is being strongly criticised as “anti commuter” by Cllr Richard Daly, leas-Cathaoirleach of Athy Town Council.

“In an era when we should be prioritising public transport and making every effort to take traffic off of our roads the introduction of parking charges at railway stations is counter productive. The rail system is already being subsidised by the same taxpayer who is now further being charged for using the service.

Not only is the commuter being charged twice but the very imposition of this charge is like a supermarket putting a fee on its car park. It makes bad business sense. In the cases where supermarket have fee paying car parks they provide a validation system to allow free parking to customers. Surely Iarnród Eireann should adopt a similar approach.

The provision of a security guard who would patrol the parking area would also be a much more acceptable alternative to the CCTV which is in operation at rail car parks. This might help to prevent damage or theft rather than a camera system which, from my own personal experience, can supply you with a record of when your property was taken or damaged.

Commuters who opt for public transport are already faced with transport difficulties in the city unless they are fortunate enough to work adjacent to the Luas line. The lack of an underground or overground system which access the wider city puts added difficulty of those who chose the green option and the introduction of parking charges makes it a more unfriendly option.” Said Cllr Daly

“Public transport must be made the cheapest and friendliest option if commuters are to convert to it.” He added