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[Enda Kenny, top, this morning and John Tierney, head of Irish Water, above]

Former Dublin City Council manager and CEO of Irish Water John Tierney will have to explain the €95million spend on the unbuilt Poolbeg Incinerator to the Public Accounts Committee..

Taoiseach Enda Kenny told reporters outside the Dáil that he expects Mr Tierney will deal with any issues that arise when he appears before PAC.

Enda Kenny:“Irish Water, as you know, is a public utility and will subject to the Freedom of Information Act and all of the expenditure issues that go along with it. So, there’s a very major project to deal with the future of our country, in terms of supply of high quality water for people and business alike. We can’t have a situation where households have to boil water everyday, we can’t have a situation where 40% of what we produce, and then you pay for is leaking into the ground. you have to have consistency and a very high standard and Mr Tierney is heading up the utility called Uisce Éireann, or Irish Water, to deliver that.”

Journalist: “And he’s the right man for the job?”

Kenny: “Well, he’s the Chief Executive of Irish Water. I have every confidence in him to do his job as expected.”

Now Irish Water chief faces PAC over €96m Poolbeg bill (Irish Independent)

Previously: Incinerating Poolbeg

Chief Running Water

Mark Stedman, Laura Hutton/Photocall Ireland

2fm

“2fm was established in 1979 in a different era, to play pop music aimed at young people when there were no legally licensed broadcasters other than RTE. (It) has been totally eclipsed by independent radio stations, doing what 2fm used to do, doing it far better and at a fraction of the cost.”

John Purcell, Independent Broadcasters of ireland

RTE said 2fm was an “integral part of its overall suite” designed to meet the needs of a diverse audience, and that its financing had been approved by the Government. It said that 2fm’s ability to generate money from advertising was “considerably less” than independent radio stations, since laws restrict it to playing four minutes and 30 seconds worth of ads per hour rather than the nine minutes afforded to other broadcasters.

Fight!

RTE rejects claim 2fm is a waste of public cash (Sarah McCabe, Independent.ie)

Pic: Adforce

Higgins

[Sabina Higgins and President Michael D Higgins]

Áras an Uachtaráin has confirmed that Sabina Higgins, wife of President Michael D Higgins, visited Aosdána member and peace activist Margaretta D’Arcy in Limerick Prison at the weekend.
Ms Higgins’s visit was undertaken in a private capacity, a spokesman said. The visit took place less than a week after Ms D’Arcy, who is 79 and undergoing treatment for cancer, was jailed for refusing to sign a bond to uphold the law and keep away from unauthorised zones at Shannon airport.
…
Both women have been friends in Galway for many years, and President Higgins spoke at the funeral of D’Arcy’s husband, playwright John Arden.

Meanwhile, over on the the Galway Alliance Against War Facebook page:

DArcyFB

President’s wife visits activist Margaretta D’Arcy in prison (Irish Times)

Galway Alliance Against War

Previously: Meanwhile, At The Department of Justice

Free At Lunchtime?

Laura Hutton/Photocall Ireland

horse horse 2

You may recall the controversial horse hair jewelery stocking fillers from December?

Jenny Doran writes:

You kindly featured us in your Christmas gift guide towards the end of last year, We wanted to send you on 2 new pieces that we have just unveiled – the Amor horse hair bracelet and the Eternity horse hair necklace. We’ve also started to offer a ‘readymade’ collection which is made from hair trimmed from our own horse’s tails, for people who love horses but may not be lucky enough to have a horse right now.

Finally.

Gemosi.com

Irish made crafts and ‘stuff’ to Broadsheet@broadsheet.ie. No charge.

Broadsheet.ie