A Co Monaghan man was fined a total of €84,000 by Judge Flann Brennan at Carrickmacross District Court yesterday for continuing to contravene a breach of the planning regulations in respect of works at the entrance to a house on the Carrickmacross/Dundalk Road.
The defendant, Kevin Dempsey, of Donogue, Carrickmacross, who was prosecuted by Monaghan County Council as the planning authority, was also ordered to pay €12,036.55 in costs and €346.45 expenses.
The court was told that Dempsey continued the breach between June 3rd, 2004, and November 17th last.
He said the breach was in contravention of a notice served by the council on October 11th, 2002, upon Dempsey for failure to comply with the provisions of the council's planning regulations.
New Athlone to Galway train
Iarnród Éireann yesterday launched a new early morning train service between Athlone and Galway.
Some 45 people were on the inaugural 7.05 a.m. train yesterday. Iarnród Éireann spokesperson Mr Myles McHugh said this is 12 more than travelled on the first "red-eye" between Athlone and Dublin which started almost 20 years ago.
"When we started the Athlone-Dublin train in 1986, 33 people travelled on the first train. Now over 400 people travel on it every morning," he said.
Single mums need €350 a week - SVP
Single mothers require a minimum of €350 per week to look after their families, according to the St Vincent de Paul organisation in Castlebar, Co Mayo.
Mr Martin Waters said yesterday that up to 50 women, aged between 20 and 35, are being helped by the society in Castlebar at the moment, having been abandoned by the partners and families.
He said a single mother would need a minimum of €350 a week to look after her family but does not get near that.
"She can't get a job because who will mind her children, and child costs are too high. She can't afford to get sick because she must be strong for her children and she can't afford for her children to get sick because medicine isn't cheap either.
"Yet she will go without food so her children will have the latest toys for Christmas."
According to Mr Waters most people presume it is the elderly who benefit most from the work carried out by the St Vincent de Paul, but this is often not the case.
TD wants gas pumped to Mayo
The Government has been urged to apply to the EU for a public service obligation in respect of the delivery of Corrib gas to towns and villages in Co Mayo.
The demand has come from Dr Jerry Cowley, Mayo Independent TD, who said that without such a derogation, communities will not receive any benefit from the gas find.
He said current competition law precluded the Government from subventing the delivery of gas to towns in the county.
"The reality is that Bord Gáis Éireann claim it is not economically viable to deliver the gas to communities in Mayo and therefore do not plan to provide the spur lines necessary for a Mayo network," said Dr Cowley.
"In the past there was no problem providing State assistance to ensure that small towns along the run of the pipeline were connected to the national gas grid.
"Now however, because of changes in competition law, the State is precluded from providing that assistance and once again the communities in Mayo will be made to suffer."
Dr Cowley said there was no legal reason why the Government could not provide funds for spur lines in Mayo once they established the case with the EU for a public service obligation.