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Edel Meade – Sideways

A Broadsheet premiere!

Sideways is an original composition by Edel Meade, a Tipperary-born singer, composer and lyricist now based in Dublin, featuring woozy late night jazz and neo-soul grooves.

Grammy Award-winning audio engineer Bob Katz, who mastered Sideways, describes Edel’s music as “sophisticated, romantic and beautifully unpredictable.”

Video produced and directed by Devi Anna at Dualitymotion, featuring actor Shane Robinson and filmed at 12 Henrietta Street, Dublin.

Edel Meade (Facebook)

This morning.

At Buswells Hotel on Molesworth Street, Dublin 2.

Dick Spicer, of the Humanist Association of Ireland, his son Norman Spicer, and writer and publicist Peigin Doyle, from Sligo, hold a press conference to explain Dick and Norman’s legal challenge over the Government’s decision to give ownership of the proposed National Maternity Hospital at the St Vincent’s Hospital site in Elm Park to the Religious Sisters of Charity.

Niamh Lyons, in the Ireland edition of The Times, reports:

A High Court summons has been filed by two private citizens, Dick Spicer and his son Norman Spicer, against the state, the health minister and the attorney-general.

Dick Spicer, 70, is a founding member of the Humanist Association of Ireland and has a track record of campaigning on church and state issues. He played a significant role in the divorce referendum.

The plaintiffs believe that placing the maternity hospital under the “religious influence” of the SVHG will be judged to be unconstitutional and are demanding that the government abandon the plan.

State to be sued over nuns’ role in new hospital (Niamh Lyons, The Times Ireland edition)

Previously: How Deal Leaves Doors Open For Church Control

Leah Farrell/Rollingnews

This morning.

The Four Courts, Dublin 7

Lyndsey and Alan Byrne have been sleeping in a tent for the last four days outside the Four Courts. Lyndsey has been homeless for 17 years and Alan for 10 years.

A  total of 12 homeless families with over 30 children were told to present to Garda stations on Tuesday night, as there was nowhere else for them to stay.

Earlier: ‘Homelessness Has Become A Business… And Socially Acceptable’

Eamonn Farrell/Rollingnews

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KbQy6ZDoxzY

 

“…I would like to take a moment to speak to our soldiers on the streets of Britain. You are doing your duty as you have done so many times before.

I want to assure you that, under my leadership, you will only be deployed abroad when there is a clear need and only when there is a plan and you have the resources to do your job to secure an outcome that delivers lasting peace.

That is my commitment to our armed services.

This is my commitment to our country. I want the solidarity, humanity and compassion that we have seen on the streets of Manchester this week to be the values that guide our government. There can be no love of country if there is neglect or disregard for its people.

No government can prevent every terrorist attack. If an individual is determined enough and callous enough, sometimes they will get through.

But the responsibility of government is to minimise that chance, to ensure the police have the resources they need, that our foreign policy reduces rather than increases the threat to this country, and that at home we never surrender the freedoms we have won, and that terrorists are so determined to take away.

Too often government has got it wrong on all three counts and insecurity is growing as a result. Whoever you decide should lead the next government must do better.”

UK Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn this morning.

FIGHT!

Pic: Sky News

Meanwhile…

Ah here.

From top: Priory Hall; Kevin Hollingsworth, chartered building surveyor

This morning.

On RTÉ One’s Morning Ireland.

In her fourth of a four-part series on the construction industry in Ireland, journalist Jackie Fox recalled the sub-standard housing developments that were built during the boom, namely Priory Hall and Longboat Quay.

In her report, Ms Fox sought to find out if standards are being met today and spoke to Cian O’Callaghan, from the Geography Department at Trinity College Dublin, and Kevin Hollingsworth, chartered building surveyor.

Ms Fox said that, over the past three years, Mr Hollingsworth has been involved in the remediation works of 29 developments which she did not name.

During the report, Mr O’Callaghan recalled:

“One of the main problems during the boom was that there was so much being built, from 2006, there was something like 90,000 housing units built in the country so local authorities didn’t actually have the staff to regulate the standards properly and what was happening then is there was a process of certification that was brought in to play, where developers would hire their own architect, their own surveyor to sign off on the safety standards for the building, the building regulations.

“So, in the 1990s, the building control regulations relaxed and this kind of allowed developers to self-certify. So this is quite an unusual circumstance. You wouldn’t have it in the UK for example. You’d have an independent body who would be responsible for building controls and responsible to ensure that the quality of things was being kept.”

And Mr Hollingsworth said:

“The building control amendment regulations have been put in place and they’re a large step forward. The assigned certifier has to be there to sign off on critical things so that’s a massive step forward.”

But, he added:

“The assigned certifier can be an employee of the developer, the assigned certifier is also just a professional – they do get paid by the end user. They don’t act independently. They’re supposed to act independently but, once there’s that financial link, that leads to a lack of independence.”

Sigh.

Listen back to the report in full here

Government chief whip Regina O’Doherty

On The Ray D’Arcy Show…

Sinéad Harrington writes:

Following this week’s hugely dramatic events in Fair City, actors Johnny Ward and Amilia Stewart (Ciaran and Katy) will join Ray on the couch this Saturday night.

Fresh from his tour of Australia, funnyman Jason Byrne will be in studio to tell Ray all about his recent exploits and to have fun with some unsuspecting members of the audience!

As the Fine Gael party meets to choose our next Taoiseach, Government Chief Whip Regina Doherty TD drops by to give her perspective on Enda Kenny’s decision to step down and to outline her hopes for the future.

Also two years on from Ireland’s historic marriage equality referendum, Ray will catch up with the one and only Panti Bliss (aka Rory O’Neill), who has also agreed to act as judge and mentor to our very special guest performers in the grand finale of this year’s Ray D’Arcy Show Lip Sync battle.

Seems like a decent mix.

*lights hair on fire*

The Ray D’Arcy Show this Saturday at 9:35pm on RTÉ One.

Rollingnews








Last night.

Red Cow Inn, Naas Road, Dublin 22.

Scenes from the Fine Gael leadership debate aired live on Facebook between Leo Varadkar and Simon Coveney (pic 8), chaired by Gavin Duffy (pic 2) and watched by Minister for Health Simon Harris (above beside Simon Coveney’s brother Patrick) Minister for Education Richard Bruton (pic 7) and former Fine Gael MEP Mary Banotti and former Fine Gael justice minister Nora Owen (far left pic 6).

Last night: FIGHT!

Sam Boal/Rollingnews

This morning.

Hotelier Francis Brennan (middle above, and top), with Specsavers’ audiologists Orla Walsh and Jeff Walbran (above)

At the launch of Specsavers’ Sound Check Ireland 2017 – “a campaign that encourages Irish adults to take a more proactive approach to their hearing health”.

Recent research commissioned by Specsavers shows 69% of Irish adults have not had their hearing tested in the last five years.

Two mobile hearing vans will tour the country as part of the campaign.

Visit here for more.

Leon Farrell/Photocall Ireland