Tag: Recreation

Stormontgate food waste ‘scandalous’ !!!

’66 tonnes thrown out in three years’.

2010 (Sept-Dec) 11,800kg

2011         24,476kg

2012         18,497kg

2013(Jan-Sept)    11,912kg

Total =                   66,685kg

 STORMONT is throwing away more than a tonnes of unused food every month. The assembly has thrown out over 66 tonnes of uneaten food over the past three years, figures obtained by The Irish News can reveal.

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The huge amount of unused food (payed for at the taxpayers expence) is the equivalent of more than 16 full-grown African elephants or 148 polar bears. In some years the assembly produced more than three tonnes of waste in a single month. The alarming figures come as the executive continues to urge householders through environmental campaigns to stop wasting food. Leader of the Green Party in the North of Ireland Steven Agnew described the level of food waste as “scandalous”. The North Down MLA for the assembly to tackle the problem in 2014 by introducing new legislation encouraging unused food donations. “It is scandalous that at a time when so many food banks are opening because people cannot afford food, so much edible surplus food is simply being thrown away at the seat of local government,” he said. “The public are not only paying for that food to be bought, cooked and served but they are also paying for the costs of its disposal and I am very concerned that with the amount of food wasted, ttaxpayers money is not being spent wisely.” Not to mention also the public are paying the wages of the government MLA’s that are wasting the food.

Stormont was provided with more than £165,000 worth of food during 2013, according to figures obtained by The Irish News Through a Freedom of Information (FOI) request. It started recording its food waste in August 2010, with an average of 1,750kg of uneaten food being disposed of by parliament buildings and the wider Stormont Estate on average since then. In a FOI rresponds the assembly said its current waste management contractor was “not commissioned to recycle food waste” but was “committed to do so”. However, it said commercially produced food waste is recycled. Earlier this year The Irish News revealed hungry MLAs have munched their way through more than £180,000 worth of refreshments at assembly committee meetings over the past six years.

Stormonts committee meetings are supplied with trays of tasty snacks, from tea and coffee to sandwiches and variates of biscuits. In October Tesco sparked a food waste debate after the supermarket giant revealed it had thrown away 28,500 tonnes of food in the first six months of 2013. Mr Agnew said food waste was a major environmental problem which if tackled would be the equivalent of taking one in four cars off the road. “While there has been a reduction in the level of food wasted at the assembly over the last couple of years, the fact that so much food is still being thrown away certainly doesn’t set a good example or leave a good impression with the public,” he said. “We need a similar law to the Good Samaritan Food Donation Act in place in the USA to enable organisations to donate excess food without the threat of liability.” A spokesman for the assembly said: “The assembly endeavours to ensure that food waste from all its outlets is minimised.”

With many thanks to: Brendan Hughes, The Irish News.

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Man caught with loaded handgun shouted “tiocfaidh ar la”, judge told.

A MAN allegedly caught with a loaded handgun shouted out “tiocfaidh at LA” as police put him in their car, a judge has heard.

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Belfast Crown Court also heard that when officers stopped the Ford Fiesta car being driven by 29-year-old Mark McGuigan close to a forest outside Omagh, he had to be pulled from the car and struggled throughout. Ciaran Murphy QC, prosecuting, told Judge Corinne Philpott QC, sitting without a jury, that having been restrained and put into a protective forensic suit, Mr McGuigan yelled out the republican mantra ‘our day will come’ as officers put him into a waiting police car. Inside the Ford Fiesta, officer uncovered two socks with one containing a loaded revolver and the other 33 assorted bullets. Mr McGuigan, from Sperrin View in OOmagh, denies possecessing the gun and ammunition with intent to endanger life under suspicious circumstances. Mr Murphy told the court the gun had been deactivated in 2003 but had been reactivated to fire live bullets. He added that the firing pin in the revolver was not long enough, although a small adjustment would have been enough to allow the gun to fire. Three other men who were also in the car, including two men who were hiding under a sleeping bag in the folded down rear seats, have already pleaded guilty and are awaiting sentence. The trial continues.

With many thanks to : The Irish News.

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Garda in Carlow are searching for two children who have been missing since 6.30pm last night.

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BreakingNews.ie

Eoghan (10) and Ruairi (5) were last seen with their father Sanjeev Chada who is driving a green Ford Focus registered number 06 CW 238.

Contact Carlow Garda Station on 059 9136620 or any garda station if you see them.

FULL STORY: http://brne.ws/b7l

70-year-old ‘DWELLING IN PAST’ HAD BOMBS AND GUNS IN CAR !

ARTICLES: Police-issued photos of the car in which Thomas Maguire was traveling and the ammunition, gun and coffee-jar-bomb components which were recovered from the vehicle and during related searches.

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A 70-year-old former paramilitary prisoner who “just can’t seem to let go of the past” has been jailed for six and a half years after police “fortuitously” found a coffee-jar bomb and guns in his car. Thomas Maguire, from Suffolk Drive in West Belfast – who was jailed for 20 years in 1975 for having explosives with intent to endanger life – was caught with the items when police stopped his Ford Mondeo after a high-speed chase in August 2011.

Kate McKay, prosecuting, told Belfast Crown Court that police uncovered a coffee-jar bomb, component parts of other bombs and a wide variety of guns, 100 rounds of assorted bullets and suspected shotgun propellant. Officers were led to Maguire’s home address after his fingerprint was found on the sliding mechanism of a semi-automatic pistol found during searches in Nearly in September 2010 when police raided a firearms workshop. In March Bryan McManus (56), from Aileen Terrace in Newry, was also jailed for six and a half years after the engineer admitted that he had been involve in reactivating weaponry for dissident republicans. Ms McKay said during two days of questioning, Maguire refused to answer questions but he later pleaded guilty to seven offences of having the firarms and explosives with intent to endanger life and under suspicious circumstances, and having articles for use in terrorism on August 2 2011. He also admitted having a semi-automatic pistol which was found during the Newry searches, also with intent and under suspicious circumstances on dates between September 2007 and September 2010.

“Police would accept that if his print had not been found in the workshop [ of McManus ], effectively they would not have become aware but officers are concerned about the nature of the weapons and the use that they have been put to in recent years,” Ms McKay said, adding that although Maguire’s criminal record is old, “it is significant”. Frank O’Donoghue QC, defending, said it was a “most unusual and striking case” that a man “of his age if not his dotage is involving himself in something that’s really now beyound his capacity”. “He seems to dwell in the past,” Mr O’Donoghue said. He said Maguire had the weaponry more “to protect his ccommunity” rather than any attack on security personnel. The lawyer said Maguire had access to the weaponry through involvement with a west Belfast museum to commemorate the Troubles. Judge McFarland told Maguire he seemed “to be someone who just can’t let go of the past”. “This isn’t just a case of a pike in a thatch, that doesn’t apply to modern Ireland. We have now moved on but sadly, you are not moving on with the times,” she said. Following sentencing, Detective Superintendent Glenn Branch, from the Serious Crime Branch, said police would leave “no stone unturned in our efforts to bring before the courts all those involved in terrorist-linked offences, regardless of age”. Police yesterday released photographs of the items found in Maguire’s car but when asked for a photograph of the pensioner, a PSNI spokesman said they did not believe releasing a image “of the defendant is appropriate or proportionate in this instance”.

With many thanks to : The Irish News.

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WORST IN SHOW

Cruel pit bull fighting women exposed by TV probe swaps blood sports for dog contests.

A CO. Armagh women exposed as a central player in the depraved world of dog fighting is now running family friendly dog shows. Fiona Devlin, 29, pictured here with her prize winning Lurcher, was featured in the 2007 groundbreaking BBC Spotlight expose which unearthed the barbaric world of pit bull fighting.

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Despite her young years Devlin was shown to be an avid fan of the sickening blood sport which sees dogs literally tear each other apart. The brave undercover reporter who exposed the gang, Steve Ibinson, who has since tragically, recorded Devlin boasting about her involvement in the so-called sport. He said : “She may be a woman, but she had absolutely no problems about fighting her dog. She loved pitbull fights.

Idolised

“She idolised Stephen Barriskill because he was the top man in dog fighting. Devlin had no bother watching the dogs rip each other apart and she wasn’t concerned about the sight of blood. “She often said that she liked nothing better than to bring her dogs to a fight. She may well have attended legitimate dog shows, but she loved the fights.” Immediately after the broadcast Devlin went into hiding and refused to apologise or acknowledge her role in the vicious and illegal sport. But it wasn’t long before Devlin was nabbed again this time by Dungannon Borough Council who ordered her to surrender her pitbull terrier she claimed she kept as a pet. After a member of the public raised concerns about the animal, it was examined by the council’s dog warden and later removed from her home. Animal lovers feared the dog-fight organiser had been grooming the animal to appear in future fights. Devlin moved to Co. Tyrone from Armagh after she was subjected to verbal abuse by animal lovers at legitimate dog shows in the county. Calls were also made for Devlin to be banned from dog shows across the North of Ireland.

But, it was all water under the bridge now and Devlin is back in the heart of the closely knit and competitive world of dog shows. As our exclusive pictures show Devlin is no longer camera shy now poses with her prize winning pooches at events across Ireland and the UK. On Saturday Devlin smiled as she welcomed dog lovers and children to her event “Fiona Devlin’s Dog Show which took place at the Annaghmore Raceway in Co. Armagh. A flyer for the show reads : “The Northern Ireland Sporting Dog Club are holding their Dog Show and Racing on Saturday the 1st June 2013, at Annaghmore Raceway. “Racing for Lurchers and Whippets. Entries from 10am “The show will be the qualifer for the 5 Nations at Birr Castle, and both the winners of the under and overs will be qualifers for the Master McGrath. “ALL WELCOME “And anyone who wants to come up from the south over night or further afield, Please ring Fiona in good time for dog friendly Bed and Breakfast if they plan an overnight stay.” A member of the publc who contacted the Sunday World said Devlin is a familiar sight in the area walking her dogs. “She is rarely seen without her dogs actually. I can’t get my head around anybody that claims to be a dog lover but is capable of even watching a dog fight. “It dosn’t make any sence. It is one of the most horrific forms of animal abuse.” Stephen Philpot chief executive of the USPCA told the Sunday World he was unaware of Saturday’s dog show.

Radar

“This is the first I have heard about it,” he said. “It sounds like it is a legitimate and Fiona Devlin hasn’t been on our radar for years. Maybe she learnt her lesson from then.” Illegal dog fights are a huge source of income for criminal gangs with thousands of pounds being wagered on each bloody contest. Cops suspect that may bde one of the reasons behind a spate of recent dog thefts around Northern Ireland. The BBC Spotlight programme revealed there were 15 dog fighting gangs operating in Nortern Ireland. The programme alleged that a prominent figure in the illegal sport was All-Ireland medal winner  Geard Cavlan who was fined £650 and ordered to pay more than £4,000 costs after he was caught with an unmuzzled and badly scarred pitbull terrier. The Dungannon man was dropped by the Tyrone GAA team but insisted he did not own the dog and did not cindone dog fighting.

With many thanks to : Eavan Murray, Sunday World.

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DEVICE THROWN AT POLICE VEHICLE !

A Device has been thrown at a Police Land Rover in the Twinbrook estate on the outskirts of West

Belfast.

It happened just after midnight on Wednesday 6th June as officers were investigating a report of damage to a property in Whin Park.

NO-ONE WAS INJURED IN THE ATTACK !!!

The PSNI said it was committed to providing a service ” regardless of the threat posed by a minority of individuals and groups who would seek to try to kill it’s officers”.

Siúlóid Ná Saoirse – Walk of Freedom

Thanks again for registering to take part in the Sperrins Challenge 2012. There are a few things we need to mention ahead of the walk.

Dogs are not permitted

    • Please note that, due to the Lambing Season, no dogs are permit on the hike. Apologies for any inconvenience this may cause.

      Protecting our environment – ‘Leave No Trace‘ approach

      The organisers of the Sperrins Challenge are asking all participants to adopt a‘Leave No Trace’ approach and to leave the route of the hike in as good a condition, or better, than that in which they found it.

      I have attached a link to Mountaineering Ireland’s recently adopted policy on Organised Events in Ireland’s Mountain Areas. This document includes practical guidelines for event organisers and also participants.

      We hope that you will take a few minutes to consider how this policy and that you will take on board the positive spirit of the guidelines for the benefit of the mountains, the local community and other hillwalkers.

      Should you require further information, please do not hesitate in getting in touch.

      Thanks you in advance for your cooperation. Wishing you well for the Sperrins Challenge 2012!

      Regards,

      Sperrins Challenge Organising Committee.

      http://www.mountaineering.ie/documentbank/uploads/MI%20Events%20Policy%20-%20final%20-Mar%202012.pdf

  • Declan Mc Aleer
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WE THINK IT’S NOW TIME AL HUTCHINSON FOR YOU TO RESIGN ” COLLLUSION IS NOT AN ILLUSION”

 
 
    
 
 
 
CIPR Specialist Website of the Year 2011
Investigations & Analysis – Northern Ireland
 

Loughinisland: the Ombudsman’s report – but key issues remain unaddressed

The aftermath of the Loughinisland massacre in 1994

BY BARRY McCAFFREY

THE Detail can today reveal the conclusions of the Police Ombudsman on the Loughinisland massacre: that the failure by police to secure convictions afterwards was down to incompetence and a lack of commitment – but not collusion.

The final report also leaves unanswered a key question of the families of the six men killed at The Heights bar 17 years ago: what the role of Special Branch was either before or after the attack.

More >

The six men killed in the Loughinisland massacre

Where was Special Branch in Loughinisland massacre?

BY BARRY MCCAFFREY

IF the Police Ombudsman’s report into the McGurk’s Bar atrocity highlighted his reluctance to grapple with collusion, his report into Loughinisland is startling by its absence of another crucial piece of the picture: the role of Special Branch both before and after the massacre.

Mr Hutchinson states that he studied all “available intelligence” connected to the killings but important intelligence-related aspects of the case are not even mentioned in the report, raising questions over just how deep his investigation went in this case and, again, drawing attention to a “civil war” within his own office.

More >

THE Attorney General John Larkin has confirmed that the inquest system here shall have a role “front and centre” in how Northern Ireland deals with the past.

 

AOH/LAOH Benefit for Susan Wilson

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Time
26 June · 14:00 – 18:00
Location
AOH Division 39 7227 Tulip St. Philadelphia, PA19135

 
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As a result of a fire, my mother Susan Wilson has 2nd degree burns on her torso, arms, and now has trouble breathing and speaking. She also lost all of her possesions. Currently she is still recovering at Temple Hospital. We are having a Beef n Beer Benefit on June 26, at 2pm. We will have food, fun, music and an all around good time. In addition we will have a chinese auction; baskets; gift cards or any appropriate donations are appreciated. These items can be dropped off at the club the week of June 19th. Ticket cost: $25.00 (Includes food, draft beer, wine, and soda). For tickets or more information, contact Ed Dougherty 215-338-4315 or Nancy Cullen 215-322-0223. If you cannot make this fundraiser and would like to make a donation, you can mail a donation to:
AOH Divison 39
c/o Ed Doughery
7229 Tulip Street
Phila., PA 19135

POSTED ON BEHALF OF AOH/LAOH BY :  Timothy Wilson

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The Lounge/Old Attic Fundraising gig!

Time
24 June · 20:00 – 23:00
Location
The Room AT The Top, Bathgate

 
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Would you like to see The Lounge and The old Atticback open again?We are having a gig to raise funds to open the place again on Friday 24th June.

If you would like to see the place back open again then make sure you are there, £2 a drink and only £5 entry.

Some great local bands playing too.

POSTED ON BEHALF OF :  Attic Bathgate invited you · Share · Public event

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