Author Archives: Chompsky

There May Be Delays

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PASSENGERS FLYING from Dublin Airport will face additional security measures for a number of months after an EU audit identified two deficiencies in security. The European Commission has taken formal proceedings to get Dublin Airport to address the problems, and it will temporarily impose additional restrictions on flights out of the airport.

Oh. Right, well let’s all stay calm and not make an already embarrassing situation worse, shall we?

Ryanair chief executive Michael O’Leary said it was “unacceptable” that there had not been an “open, transparent and honest answer” about the security issues from either the Department of Transport or the Dublin Airport Authority.

He said it had been confirmed that the authority knew of the security failure for more than a month, and it was “so serious that Dublin-originating aircraft will now be treated as the same security risk as flights originating from Afghanistan and Somalia”.

*sigh*

Extra security measures for Dublin Airport as audit reveals shortfalls (Irish Times)

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This Is Worrying

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Dublin City Council has revealed that it will hold a secret meeting to deliberate the results of a damning judgement handed down against it last month.

In an unprecedented move, the council will exclude the media on May 28, as the fallout from the rezoning of religious land continues.

The council was left reeling after the Commercial Court upheld a challenge by the Sisters of Charity to the imposition of more restrictive conditions on development of their land in the new Dublin City Development Plan.

In this meeting, all 52 city councillors will be briefed on what went wrong in the court case, and what their options will be. After consulting their lawyers in secret, the council will then re-open its doors for the media.

 

City Council Bans Media From Secret Meeting On Rezoning (Kevin Fagan, Evening herald)

Why The Pope is Not Going To The Eucharistic Congress

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A strange report from Rome on the forthcoming Eucharistic Congress in Ireland.

How it will help heal a “wounded church” in it’s “process of renewal” and -- via Archbishop Diarmuid Martin -- why we’re just not ready for a visit by Pope Benedict.

“The Pope himself and he said this to me. He would like a visit to Ireland to be an integral part of this process of renewal. And he would make a journey, even if it was difficult for him, to contribute to that. [But] Just at the moment I don’t think that process of renewal, particularly renewal in faith, has got far enough to be able to use that visit by the Pope in a way that would strengthen the faith.”

Fair enough.

The Wilson Picket

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Former H W Wilson workers including, above from Margaret Hopkinson and Caitriona Lally outside the Dail this afternoon.

Collette Willis writes:

Last summer, the H.W. Wilson Company, a leading provider of library resources, was taken over by Ebsco Publishing. Forty staff in the Dublin office lost their jobs. Ebsco refused to talk with these employees and has now decided to ignore a recommendation from the Irish Labour Court, which said Ebsco should issue a redundancy payment in line with industry norms. We’re calling on this giant multinational to do the right thing and abide by the Court’s recommendation. The company no longer has a physical presence in Ireland, so we are forced to use social media instead. It would be great if you could mention our campaign and/or put up links to our petition (here), blog (here) or Facebook page (here). Thanks for your support.

 

(Sasko Lazarov/Photocall Ireland)

Meanwhile, In Cork

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Mr Tynan said the seven-year-old collapsed in the classroom. Social services were alerted and the child was examined by a doctor. Mr Tynan said the social worker assigned to the case was reluctant to describe the child as malnourished, but confirmed the child was “severely undernourished”.

He said the child’s mother, who was surviving on social welfare payments, had an empty fridge last Wednesday and could not afford to restock it until this Thursday. St Vincent de Paul Cork branch chief Brendan Dempsey said the undernourishment case was “bound to happen”.
“700,000 people are on the breadline living in poverty, 200,000 are children, and I know of mothers and fathers going hungry to feed their children.

“Two or three years ago we were being asked for shoes or help with the rent. Now we are simply being asked for food.”

‘Undernourished’ Child Collapses (Eoin English and Fiachra Ó Cionnaith, Irish Examiner)