Donie's daily Irish news BLOG Friday

Irish retailers make up 10% of failed businesses here

 

Just over one in 10 of companies that collapsed so far this year were retailers, according to new figures from company information group Vision-net.

Vision-net’s figures show that 12pc of all insolvencies so far this year were in the retail sector, compared with 14pc for the same period last year.

“Retailers are reporting that average transaction values are down and our analysis shows that a higher than average proportion of companies in this sector fall into the high-risk category. However, the run-up to Christmas is always the busiest period for retailers so hopefully the high street will show signs of increased consumer demand at this time of year,” said Vision-net boss Christine Cullen.

After the construction, professional services and real estate sectors, retail businesses were most likely to collapse, according to Vision-net’s analysis.

In an analysis of the period between November 1 and 27 this year, Vision-net’s figures show that 140 companies were declared insolvent, or five companies each day, which is down 20pc on the same month last year.

Of those, 103 were liquidated, 34 entered receivership, and an examiner was appointed to three companies.A county-by-county breakdown of the figures for this month shows that Dublin accounted for 43pc of insolvencies, followed by Donegal and Wexford with 10.7pc and 9.3pc, respectively.

Irish Government’s plan targets multinationals says Richard Bruton

    

Minister for Jobs Richard Bruton said there was an EUR80 billion global market for Irish companies to tap.

Around 1,000 jobs could be created through a new Government plan targeting multinational companies based in Ireland to source
their business locally.

Minister for Jobs Richard Bruton said there was an €80 billion global market for Irish companies to tap, in an attempt to win contracts to supply materials and services.

“We have just less than 14 per cent of that,” Mr Bruton said.
“If we can win even another €500 million, a very small increase in that, that represents 1,000 jobs in Ireland. This is a really tangible opportunity.”

His department, along with Enterprise Ireland and IDA, have identified 65 multinationals they think have potential for Irish business,
the minister said. This was a concrete initiative that could boost Irish sales, exports and ultimately create jobs, Mr Bruton said.

The goal was to achieve this by the end of next year.

As foreign direct investment in Ireland is expected to grow, there would be further potential for this over the coming years.

“There is an €80 billion market here on our doorstep of supplying multinationals with their needs for materials and services,” he said.

Meanwhile, Mr Bruton would not be drawn on areas his Cabinet colleagues Minister for Finance Michael Noonan and Minister for Public Expenditure Minister Brendan Howlin would target in next week’s budget.

But he said he was confident Ireland’s relatively low corporation tax rate of 12.5 per cent would remain untouched over the next few years.

It was important Ireland be seen as an attractive place for corporations to set up business to ensure its economic recovery, he said.

German chancellor Angela Merkel has tried to pressure Taoiseach Enda Kenny during meetings in Europe to raise the tax, calling for an even rate across euro zone member states.

But the Taoiseach has been steadfast, insisting Ireland’s rate should be maintained if it is to continue on the road to growth.

“This is an issue that the Taoiseach and Tanaiste have absolutely buttressed at every opportunity in Europe,” Mr Bruton said.

“It is a key part of our strategy and I think Europe understands now that if Ireland is to deal with the imbalances in our economy and pay back debts, what we have to do is successfully make the transformation to a strong, enterprise-led, innovation-driven, expert economy.”

School Girls more likely to be victims of on-line cyber-bullying 

   

There’s no escape from online taunts, say teens

School Girls are more likely to suffer from the effects of cyberbullying than boys say’s new research. It shows that the bullies are most likely to be girls in the same year but in a different class to their victim.

The study comes after the deaths of three young girls were linked to online bullying.

It says that victims are more likely to be bullied by a single female or small group of females and the anonymity of the bullying online is extremely dangerous.

The research covered four categories of cyberbullying: text, picture or video clip, phone calls and emails. It found that the most common form was phone calls and text messages.

No escape: Teenagers who took part in the exercise by NUI Maynooth felt that all forms of cyberbullying other than bullying over email was worse than traditional bullying, with phone calls and the use of pictures or video being regarded as the most feared.

According to teenagers, cyberbullying was seen as worse than traditional bullying because there was no escape from it.

They also said that cyberbullying could be seen by more people and is unlikely to be noticed by an adult.

The topic has repeatedly made national headlines in recent months after the deaths of Ciara Pugsley (15), Erin Gallagher (13) and Lara Burns Gibbs (12).

Ciara, from Co Leitrim, took her own life in September and Donegal student Erin Gallagher (13) killed herself last month.

The death of Lara Burns Gibbs in Kilcock, Co Kildare, has also been linked to bullying, although sources close to her family say they do not know why she took her own life.

The study, among Irish second-level school pupils aged 12 to 18, found cyberbullying usually goes on for one to two weeks — but in some cases it can last for several years.

It found that 17pc of children had been victims of bullying and a quarter of victims did not confide in anyone.

One in ten of the students who took part in the study admitted to being bullies themselves.

The report also coincides with the young age of the suicide victims and says that victims of bullying were more likely to be younger (30pc) than older (10pc), according to the students who took part in the research.

The research was carried out with a group of pupils in two co-educational schools who were asked a range of questions about cyberbullying.

Some 21pc of the students who took part in the study said that they had been victims of traditional bullying during the six months before the research.

There was no significant relationship between cyberbullying and issues such as family circumstances or time spent by teenagers using the internet or mobile phones, the study showed.

The research found that cyberbullying in rural schools was generally lower than those found in studies elsewhere, which typically reported rates of 25-35pc for victims of bullying.

The study was limited to only certain types of bullying, meaning that incidence of cyberbullying could be much higher.

The study did not cover websites, chatrooms and instant messages, partly because of the time required to complete the research.

Lily Mae Song (Tiny Dancer) hits No 1 spot on pop charts

   

Brave Clare-galway toddler Lily-Mae Morrison pictured above with Mum Judith after turning on the Christmas lights in Eyers Square Galway

She is recovering at Crumlin Hospital today, following surgery to remove a tumour earlier this week.

A cover of an Elton John classic sung by an array of Irish artists in aid of a little Claregalway girl with a rare form of cancer has topped the official Irish single chart. 

Tiny Dancer – A Song for Lily Mae was recorded by singers including Paddy Casey and Mary Black along with a 300-strong choir to raise money and awareness for 4-year-old Lily Mae Morrison who has Stage 4 Neuroblastoma, a rare and extremely aggressive childhood cancer of the nervous system.

Lily Mae says thanks!

The single hit No 1 on the iTunes chart last week and Elton John has tweeted and posed a message of support for Lily Mae and the song on his official website.

The organisers are now trying to keep the song at No 1 for Christmas.

For more information on how you can keep Tiny Dancer: A Song for Lily Mae at the top check out the facebook page here:

Watch the performance here:

You can read the full single and album chart rundown here:

Top 10 singles

1 (this week) TINY DANCER – A SONG FOR LILY-MAE VARIOUS (COLLECTIVE MGMT)

1 (last week) 2 BENEATH YOUR BEAUTIFUL LABRINTH FEAT. EMELI SANDÉ (SYCO MUSIC)

7 3 DIAMONDS RIHANNA (DEF JAM)

2 4 LITTLE THINGS ONE DIRECTION (SYCO MUSIC)

3 5 TROUBLEMAKER OLLY MURS FEAT. FLO RIDA (EPIC)

5 6 CANDY ROBBIE WILLIAMS (ISLAND)

9 7 HO HEY LUMINEERS (DECCA)

12 8 LOCKED OUT OF HEAVEN BRUNO MARS (ATLANTIC)

6 9 GANGNAM STYLE PSY (ISLAND)

11 10 GIVE ME LOVE ED SHEERAN (ASYLUM)

Elton John backs fundraising campaign for four-year-old Irish girl Lily-Mae with rare cancer

 

Family bids to raise over a million dollars for treatment for Lily-Mae

Pop superstar Elton John is backing a campaign to raise funds for a four-year-old Irish girl battling a rare form of cancer.

The singer’s Tiny Dancer tune has been re-recorded to help finance treatment for Galway girl Lily-Mae Morrison.

The tot’s family were amazed when the rock star tweeting his support for the new version of his worldwide smash hit.

Lily-Mae was diagnosed with stage four neuroblastoma last summer when she complained of a pain in her back.

The rare cancer affects one in every 100,000 kids in Ireland and treatment could cost the family over a million dollars.

Mum Judith and dad Leighton are self-employed dancers and choreographers but they can no longer work as they must bring Lily-Mae to hospital in Dublin every seven days for treatment.

With a survival rate of just 30 to 50 per cent, her treatment is vital with a 70 per cent chance that the cancer could return.

Now singers Declan O’Rourke, Paddy Casey and Mary Black have joined a choir of 250 voices on the new version of the Elton John’s classic Tiny Dancer and it’s already a YouTube hit.

Mum Judith told the Irish Sun: “I just could not believe the number and calibre of stars that came to record the song. It was pretty emotional.

“We brought Lily in at the end to meet everyone, she knew the song was about her, that she was the tiny dancer and she was so happy.”

The family were stunned when Elton told fans he’d added the video to YouTube and also created a link to his official website and Facebook page.

The statement on his website said: “A beautiful version of Elton and Bernie’s song Tiny Dancer has been recorded in Ireland as a way to raise money for the care of Lily-Mae Morrison, a four year-old Irish girl who has neuroblastoma, a rare and extremely aggressive childhood cancer of the nervous system.

“We encourage Elton’s fans to like the video, and we especially encourage you to visit iTunes and buy the song!”

Mum Judith said: “We just could not believe it.

“It’s like a dream come true to have Elton himself endorse it.”

Lily-Mae is to undergo surgery to have cancerous tumours removed at Crumlin Hospital on Monday and will remain in an isolation unit for two months.

The ‘Tiny Dancer’ single is now available on iTunes.

Five humpback whales stir up excitement in Baltimore harbour Cork

  

Five humpback whales are creating a stir as they feed on shoals of sprat and herring off Baltimore Harbour in West Cork.

Humpback whales are regular winter visitors to Irish waters, but the Irish Whale and Dolphin group says it is unusual to see this number in the one place.

A school of common dolphins is the first sign that the herring and sprat – this morning’s breakfast – are close by and, if they are, the humpbacks are probably here too.

Then, just after 9am, our first two humpbacks of the day – and they’re hungry!

The whales are bubble feeding – a sight rarely captured in Irish waters.

Padraig Whooley of the Irish Whale and Dolphin Group is watching on board the nearby Holly Joe.

Photographer Youen Jacob’s pictures have alerted the public to the presence of the humpbacks.

It may be November, but the visitors are already beginning to arrive here.

The tourist season has just kicked off in Baltimore.

Donie's news Ireland daily BLOG

The Halappanavar family now to take their case to European court

 

Gerard O’Donnell, solicitor for Praveen Halappanavar (above right), said his client had decided to take a case to the European Court of Human Rights.

The husband of the late Savita Halappanavar (Praven) has decided to proceed with an application to the European Court of Human Rights.

He decided on this option because the Minister for Health James Reilly did not agree to a public inquiry into the circumstances of her death by a deadline, set by the family, of today.

Praveen Halappanavar’s solicitor, Gerard O’Donnell said he was identifying a team of junior and senior counsel for the action. “I expect to sit down with them and my client early next week to draw up papers to submit to the European court”.

Mr Halappanavar has said the two inquiries established into his wife’s death did not satisfy him or her family.

The first was set up by the HSE, while a second, by the Health Information and Quality Authority (Hiqa), while separate to the former, was instigated at the HSE’s request. Both will be held in private.

Mr O’Donnell said the family had received offers of support from women’s and human rights groups across the world in his quest for a public inquiry into her death.

“So as we speak I am identifying a team of junior and senior counsel. I expect to sit down with them and my client early next week to draw up papers to submit to the European court.

“We have had a lot of offers from international organisations, women’s and human rights, to support us in this,”

He had had an acknowledgement from the office of Minister for Health, James Reilly, to his letter sent on Monday calling for a public inquiry.

“They said they were ’looking at’ the request.”

Ms Halappanavar died on October 28th at Galway University Hospital, having presented a week earlier with back pain. She had been 17 weeks pregnant and was found to be miscarrying.

Mr Halappanavar has said she asked repeatedly for a termination of the pregnancy but was refused, he says, as the foetal heartbeat was still present and “this is a Catholic country”.

The miscarriage lasted from October 21st until 24th, according to Mr Halappanavar. His wife contracted septicaemia and died on October 28th.

Irish Coroner has no regrets over his suicide remarks

  

Coroner Terence Casey said the rate of suicide is reaching crisis point

A coroner who claimed people who die by suicide do not think about the hurt and sorrow they leave behind has been reported to the Justice Department for his comments.

In an interview in today’s Irish Examiner, Kerry coroner Terence Casey said comments he made earlier this year, after suicide verdicts were returned in six out of eight inquests before his court, led to him being reported to the Department of Justice.

“There was one comment I passed, where I said that if only those who committed suicide could see what I see, the pain and the misery and the suffering left behind, they probably wouldn’t do it,” said Mr Casey.

“I’ve been reported to the Department of Justice for making comments like that. The department asked me for a report. I reported back and they accepted it, and that was that. But they still had to go through the procedures and investigate.”

In the past, Mr Casey has hit the headlines for claiming that tougher drink driving laws were responsible for an increase in suicides among older men.

Mr Casey said society was less inclined to examine the reasons why an older person might take their own life, while claiming that a lack of respect for their lives is one reason why younger people do it.

“Peer pressure has a lot to do with it,” said Mr Casey. “I think the lack of respect for one’s life is another thing. The lack of respect for one’s neighbour’s property, for one’s own property, for one’s own life, has gone downhill over the past 10, 15 years.”

He also said the removal of corporal punishment “was the downfall of a lot of things” and that there was a general lack of punishment in society.

“We no longer have the same respect for our neighbour,” said Mr Casey. “We don’t have the same respect for the gardaí. I think it’s something that has to be brought back — more respect for your life, your family…

“Personally, I think the day we got rid of corporal punishment, was the downfall of a lot of things. The respect for your neighbour’s property has gone out the door, since corporal punishment went out the door.

“We were afraid of getting a slap when we went to school. We were afraid of getting a beating from our parents if we did something wrong. That no longer happens. I don’t think you can blame parents or schools… There’s just a general lack of punishment.”

Mr Casey said that while his frankness on the subject of suicide had caused him trouble, he would continue to speak out.

New formula calculator calculates baby’s obesity risk

 

A simple formula can predict at birth a baby’s likelihood of becoming obese during childhood, researchers say.

The formula, which is available as an online calculator, estimates the child’s obesity risk based on its birth weight, the body mass index of the parents, the number of people in the household, the mother’s professional status and whether she smoked during pregnancy.

The researchers behind the study hope their prediction method will be used to identify infants at high risk and help families take steps to prevent their children from putting on too much weight.

The researchers developed the formula using data from a study set up in 1986 following 4000 children born in Finland.

They initially investigated whether obesity risk could be assessed using genetic profiles, but the test they developed based on common genetic variations failed to make accurate predictions.

Instead, they discovered that non-genetic information readily available at the time of birth was enough to predict which children would become obese. The formula proved accurate not just in the Finnish cohort, but in further tests using data from studies in Italy and the US.

“This test takes very little time, it doesn’t require any lab tests and it doesn’t cost anything,” said Professor Philippe Froguel, from the School of Public Health at Imperial College London, who led the study.

“All the data we use are well-known risk factors for childhood obesity, but this is the first time they have been used together to predict from the time of birth the likelihood of a child becoming obese.”

The 20 per cent of children predicted to have the highest risk at birth make up 80 per cent of obese children. The researchers suggest that services such as dieticians and psychologists could be offered to families with high-risk infants to help them prevent excessive weight gain.

“Once a young child becomes obese, it’s difficult for them to lose weight, so prevention is the best strategy, and it has to begin as early as possible,” said Professor Froguel. “Unfortunately, public prevention campaigns have been rather ineffective at preventing obesity in school-age children. Teaching parents about the dangers of over-feeding and bad nutritional habits at a young age would be much more effective.”

Although common genetic variants did not prove to be helpful for predicting childhood obesity, the researchers say about one in 10 cases of obesity are caused by rare mutations that seriously affect appetite regulation.

Tests for these mutations could become available to doctors in the next few years as the cost of DNA sequencing technology falls.

10% of Ireland’s teens would not seek advice on sexuality

    

One in ten of 13-year-old would not approach anybody for information on sexuality

A national study of 13-year-olds in Ireland has shown that one in ten would not approach anybody for information on sexuality.
Almost 7,500 teenagers were interviewed for the study and were asked who they would most likely turn to for information on relationships and sexuality.

Over four in ten said they would ask their mother, but only 6% (all boys) opted for their father.

Almost a quarter of those interviewed favoured going to friends, while 9% said they depended on teachers; 6% depended on the internet and print media, but 10% said they would go nowhere for such advice.

The study – ‘Growing Up In Ireland’ – was sponsored by the Department of Children and Youth Affairs.

Senior civil servant Jim Breslin called the sex education findings “worrying”.

He said it was very important that his Department continued to develop and support the consistent teaching of Relationship and Sexuality Education.

The study also found that 60% of 13-year-olds exercised six or more days in a fortnight, but almost a quarter of those surveyed were overweight or obese.
Almost 40% of girls in the age group were trying to lose weight.

The research found that the number of their families reporting financial difficulties had doubled since the group was last interviewed four years ago.

They said the most frequently recorded effects were reduction in wages and social welfare payments, and families not being able to afford luxuries.

All of those interviewed for this study had been previously interviewed at aged nine.

The survey showed they were mostly positive about school and their teachers. However, 13-year-olds in first year were more positive than 13-year-olds in second year.

The principal investigator of the study said obesity has a huge impact on a child’s life and would have an effect in their later lives.

Speaking on RTÉ’s Morning Ireland, Professor James Williams, said that being overweight as a young person increases the risk of developing illnesses such as asthma and diabetes.

He said the study showed differences in terms of gender and in terms of the social background and that boys were more inclined to exercise than girls and it was more common for children from socially advantaged backgrounds to exercise.

Prof Williams said the study showed that children who are overweight and obese are trying to do something about it.

It also showed that children are getting on well with their parents and they said they have more fun with their fathers.

He said the study did show some disengagement as students progress through the second level school system.Strong focus on US in Tourism Ireland 2013 plans

Strong focus on US on Tourism Ireland 2013 plans

  

Minister Leo Varadkar TD and Niall Gibbons, Tourism Ireland chief executive

Tourism Ireland plans to roll out a new three-year marketing plan in the US in 2013 called ‘Make Ireland Jump Out’ with the aim of increasing the number of American visitors by 20pc between 2013 and 2015.

Stating that North America and Mainland Europe hold the key to tourism growth next year, the agency has predicted a 5pc increase in visitor numbers to the island to 7.6 million, contributing €3.7bn to the economies, north and south.

Mainland Europe now delivers more holidaymakers and revenue than Great Britain. For 2013, Tourism Ireland aims to welcome almost 2.5 million European visitors (an increase of 4.4pc).

The organisation’s resources will be prioritised in the two key markets of Germany and France, followed by Italy, the Nordics, Spain and the Netherlands.

And a new strategy for Great Britain – ‘GB Path to Growth’ – will be implemented, to grow the number of British holidaymakers by 20pc, ie an additional 200,000 holiday visitors per year by 2016.

Details of Tourism Ireland’s new website Ireland.com have also been unveiled. The new site, which will go live in time for January 2013, will appear in 11 different language versions for over 30 individual markets around the world.

It has been redeveloped to capitalise on the importance of the internet in planning and booking holidays and to harness the phenomenal growth in social media.

  The major focus of Tourism Ireland’s promotions next year will be The Gathering Ireland 2013, which aims to attract 325,000 extra visitors next year.

Tourism Ireland will promote The Gathering throughout the year to the 70 million people across the world who feel linked by family, friends or otherwise with Ireland.

Regarding 2012 performance, latest estimates indicate that, by year end, 7.27 million people will have visited the island in 2012, generating revenue of around €3.51bn.

Niall Gibbons, chief executive of Tourism Ireland, said: “2012 has been something of a mixed year, with Dublin and other cites, as well as the tourism ‘honeypots’ doing quite well, but with rural and outlying areas finding the going harder.

“Visitor numbers from North America and long-haul markets like Australia look set to reach or even exceed the records levels of 2007. The performance of Mainland European markets has also been quite strong. However, visitor numbers from Great Britain, our largest tourism market, have been disappointing, with a flat economy and weak consumer confidence having a significant impact on travel by Britons throughout the year.

Sea-level rise from polar ice melt finally quantified

  

Melting of polar ice sheets has added 11 mm to global sea levels over the past two decades, according to the most definitive assessment so far.

More than 20 polar research teams have combined forces to produce estimates of the state of the ice in Greenland and Antarctica in a paper in Science.

Until now different measurement means have produced a wide range of estimates with large uncertainties.

But sea-level rise is now among the most pressing questions of our time.

Polar ice has a tremendous capacity to cause massive rises – with huge potential impacts on coastal cities and communities around the world.

But the remoteness and sheer size of the ice sheets mean accurate measurements are a serious challenge even for satellites which have to distinguish snow from ice, and the rise of the land from the shrinking of the ice.

One number

The new estimate shows that polar melting contributed about one-fifth of the overall global sea level rise since 1992; other factors include warming that causes the seawater to expand.

The study does not seek to forecast future change.

Supported by US and European space agencies Nasa and Esa, the research brought together data from satellites measuring the surface altitude, the flow of the glaciers and the gravitational effect of the ice mass to produce the first joint assessment of how the ice sheets are changing.

The results show that the largest ice sheet – that of East Antarctica – has gained mass over the study period of 1992-2011 as increased snowfall added to its volume.

However, Greenland, West Antarctica and the Antarctic Peninsula were all found to be losing mass – and on a scale that more than compensates for East Antarctica’s gain.

The study’s headline conclusion is that the polar ice sheets have overall contributed 11.1mm to sea level rise but with a “give or take” uncertainty of 3.8mm – meaning the contribution could be as little as 7.3mm or as much as 14.9mm.

The next big challenge… is to predict what will happen over the next century”

The combined rate of melting from all the ice sheets has increased over the past 20 years with Greenland losing five times as much now as in 1992.

The lead author of the research, Prof Andrew Shepherd of Leeds University, said the study brought to an end 20 years of disagreement between different teams.

“We can now say for sure that Antarctica is losing ice and we can see how the rate of loss from Greenland is going up over the same period as well,” he added.

“Prior to now there’d been 30 to 40 different estimates of how the ice sheets are changing, and what we realised was that most people just wanted one number to tell them what the real change was.

“So we’ve brought everybody together to produce a single estimate and it turns out that estimate is two to three times more reliable than the last one.”

Prof Shepherd said the measurements were in line with climate change predictions.

“We would expect Greenland to melt more rapidly because the temperatures have risen,” he said.”We would expect West Antarctica to flow more quickly because the ocean is warmer. And we would also expect East Antarctica to grow because there’s more snowfall as a consequence of climate warming.”

Dr Erik Ivins, a co-author from Nasa’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, said one issue that had “plagued” ice-sheet studies was land springing up in a process called “post-glacial rebound” – with effects as high as 1cm per year.

But the use of GPS to measure vertical motion and estimates of the ice sheets’ movements over the past 21,000 years had allowed the rebound effect to be properly understood.

“The new estimates from space gravity for Antarctica’s ice sheet loss rates are lowered by using these improved post-glacial rebound models,” Dr Ivins said.

“The results, then, are more consistent with other space observations that were taken over the past decade. This is one of the major findings in the inter-comparison effort by this international team of scientists.”

The findings are in line with the broad range of forecasts in the 2007 assessment by the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.

And they were completed in time to be considered for the next report, due in September next year.

Another author, Dr Hamish Pritchard of the British Antarctic Survey, said: “The next big challenge – now that we’ve got quite a good understanding of what’s happened over the last 20 years – is to predict what will happen over the next century.

“And that is going to be a tough challenge with difficult processes going on in inside the glaciers and ice sheets.”

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Irish Cabinet at odds over plans to deduct property tax from the dole

    

Ireland’s Ministers are at loggerheads over proposals to make social welfare recipients liable for the property tax – and take it straight from payments like the dole.

And some cabinet members are now fearful they will be bounced by Finance Minister Michael Noonan into tax proposals without debate on Budget day.

Social Protection Minister Joan Burton is insisting “under no circumstances” will people on welfare have to give the property tax straight from their payments.

Sources also say she does “not accept” the concept that people on welfare will have to pay the tax. The Irish Independent understands deducting the tax directly from welfare payments is one of the recommendations in the Thornhill Report, given to the Government on property tax.

“No, that is not accepted,” a source close to Ms Burton said.

“It’s a no-go as far as she’s concerned.”

Sources also warned that such a proposal would open Labour up to further attacks on its left at a time when the party is steadily losing support. In particular, it is feared it could lead to floods of damaging court challenges to the tax.

Ms Burton first detailed her concerns in a letter to Environment Minister Phil Hogan when he was considering the Thornhill Report in the summer, and she said taking the tax from welfare payments could lead to “a farcical system”.

“She has repeated these concerns but they appear to have fallen on deaf ears,” a source added.

Mr Hogan has refused to rule out people on welfare paying the tax, while Transport Minister Leo Varadkar and junior finance minister Brian Hayes said everyone must make some contribution to the property tax.

Hardship

Mr Noonan is designing the tax, which will be one of the centrepieces of next week’s Budget. Welfare recipients were obliged to pay the €100 household charge, but those in local authority housing were not.

However, the property tax will be much higher, and could cause further financial hardship and “drive people back to the community welfare officer”, it is claimed.

In her letter to Mr Hogan, seen by the Irish Independent, Ms Burton said it could lead to “a farcical system whereby the payment of this range of system charges would simply result in additional demands on the funding of the social welfare system”.

This would cause “a circular movement of funds around the Exchequer and the multiplication of administrative overheads and information maintenance requirements, with all resulting costs arising in both the programme and administrative budgets of the social welfare system”.

Deducting from source “cannot be implemented” and is “not feasible” from a policy or logistical point of view, she added. However, it is now said to be “doable but tricky”.

Public Spending Minister Brendan Howlin is to bring proposals on €2.1bn of spending cuts to Cabinet today, but it is unclear if Mr Noonan is bringing his tax plans.

This is now causing serious worry around Cabinet, and comes after grumblings about how the Budget has been kept “drum tight” by the Economic Management Council, which comprises Mr Howlin, Mr Noonan, Tanaiste Eamon Gilmore and Taoiseach Enda Kenny.

A source said there were concerns “we will have no opportunity to discuss it” and that “it will not have been politically proofed by Cabinet”.

Rank-and-file TDs are also concerned the secrecy surrounding the Budget will cause major trouble after the €3.5bn cuts-and-taxes plan has been announced on December 5.

Meanwhile, Joan Burton has promised Labour backbenchers that her social welfare cutbacks will be more targeted on a small number of schemes.

Last year, she had to implement more than 25 separate social welfare cutbacks, which included cuts to child-benefit payments, disability payments, lone-parent schemes and community employment schemes.

She told Labour backbenchers in a private briefing that the current €540m of social-welfare cutbacks in next week’s Budget would be focused on a smaller number of schemes – with sources putting it at between 10 and 20 schemes.

But Labour backbenchers are still bracing themselves for the impact of the social welfare cutbacks – which will be higher this year at €540m compared to €475m last year.

Ms Burton repeated her public pledge that there would be no cuts to core social rates – which are defined as weekly payments such as job-seekers and the state pension but excludes child benefit.

Labour sources said child benefit is not going to be means tested or taxed, but they are still expecting cuts in payment rates.

She also promised – as reported earlier this week in the Irish Independent – that the number of places on the Tus and Rural Social Schemes would be expanded to cater for more unemployed people.

The number of Irish ghost estates now down to 1170

   

Nearly two-thirds of Ireland’s ghost estates are in dire need of development. Almost two-thirds of the country’s 1,770 ghost estates are in a seriously problematic condition, it has now been revealed.

New data showed the number of unfinished developments has fallen in recent years, but 1,100 estates remain in dire need of development.

Just a fraction of those are expected to be bulldozed despite lacking basic services like roads, street lights and sewage treatment systems.

Jan O’Sullivan, Minister for Housing and Planning, said the latest national housing development survey revealed steady, quantifiable progress in tackling unfinished housing developments but she was “still keenly aware that hundreds of families are still enduring the stress and strain of living on an unfinished development.”

An inspection off 185,665 houses and apartments in 2,973 developments found: 1,770 estates were unfinished, down 37% since 2010 when the first survey was carried out; 1,100 of these were in a seriously problematic condition; 6,154 properties have been completed and occupied within the year;16,881 finished homes were still vacant;1,200 developments previously included in the survey will be removed because they are either substantially complete or development never commenced.

Elsewhere it showed the county of Leitrim had the worst vacancy rate, with 35 empty units per 1,000 households, followed by Longford with 30, Cavan with 26, Sligo with 19 and Roscommon with 17, compared with just two in Waterford and Limerick cities.

Ms O’Sullivan said the focus of the Government’s actions will shift to resolving the most problematic developments, adding that recent experience showed how a realistic approach to estate completion involving all stakeholders can deliver results.

“However it must also be recognised that some of these developments are commercially unviable due to location, demand and build quality,” she said.

“The most prudent course of action in relation to these developments from a public safety, planning and commercial perspective is to seek the agreement of owners/funders to clear the site and return it to some beneficial use.”

Ms O’Sullivan said her department hopes to have a plan in place to deal with the issue by next summer.

Ireland’s Obesity problem now an epidemic and costing us a whopping €1.1bn 

      

Obesity is costing Ireland a whopping €1.1bn a year, according to a study from Safefood.

One third of the sum — €398m — is incurred via direct healthcare costs, such as hospital stays, GP consultations and drug costs to treat weight-related conditions such as cardiac disease, type 2 diabetes, cancer and strokes.

But a massive two thirds, or €728m, relates to the knock-on effect on businesses in Ireland.

Lower back pain is a major cause of absenteeism and productivity loss.

Martin Higgins, Safefood’s chief executive, said the figures were just the tip of the iceberg.

“We now have reliable contemporary and locally relevant figures for the annual economic cost of weight-related ill health in Ireland,” he said.

“While it is acknowledged that these are conservative figures and don’t reflect the human and social costs, they show a compelling case for obesity prevention, based on changes in our food environment and activity levels.”

Safefood’s Dr Cliodhna Foley-Nolan said that the problem was a ticking time bomb for our health services.

“Excess body weight is associated with a significant burden of chronic disease, with negative effects on overall life expectancy, disability-free life expectancy, quality of life, healthcare costs and productivity,” she said.

“The findings from this research are critical for establishing priorities in health policy development and to guide and inform our response to the issue of excess weight in our society, which is fundamentally preventable.”

Professor Ivan Perry of University College Cork, who led the research, said that, although the Government and society have a role to play, individuals and food producers must also take responsibility.

“The current findings on the cost of overweight and obesity highlight the extent of societal involvement in diet and health and the limitations of approaches that emphasise the role of personal choice, responsibility and market forces in relation to diet and health,” he said.

  “The current obesity epidemic in children and adults represents a clear example of market failure with external/third party costs defaulting to taxpayers.

wellbeing

“The food sector is currently regulated to ensure food safety.

“Policy makers need to consider whether there is a need to extend this regulatory framework to address the effects of diet on health and wellbeing,” he added.

The Safefood research, led by a team from UCC, found that overweight and obesity combined accounted for a similar burden of disease and cost in the Republic and in Northern Ireland.

Ryan Tubridy to front up battle against Irish domestic violence

  

Ryan Tubridy has revealed how a chance caller to his radio show led him to lend his support for a campaign against domestic violence.

He plans to follow in the footsteps of veteran broadcaster Gay Byrne by using his profile to discuss the problem across the airwaves.

Speaking at the launch of Safe Ireland’s ‘Man Up’ campaign, the RTE star described how a caller to his 2fm radio show four weeks ago had recounted on air how she had been assaulted by her husband.

“She couldn’t understand how the man she loved could do this to her with their kids upstairs. For us it opened the floodgates to hundreds of other calls from women in the same awful position.”

Praising Byrne for first highlighting the problem on his daily radio show, the 39-year-old said he felt the “the baton” had now been passed to him.

“I’m not a natural born advocate but I give a damn, and I have a radio show with an audience. I want to try and stop this happening,” Tubridy said.

“If a man hits a woman, it’s no longer a domestic. It’s intervention time. Be nosey. Get involved. The silence has to stop.”

New figures show that nearly 8,000 women and 3,000 children received support from domestic violence services in 2011, up 15pc since 2010.

11 Irish tech companies through to finals of European Business Awards

  

Eleven Irish companies and organisations have been chosen as national champions to go through to the next round of the European Business Awards.

The companies going through to represent Ireland at a European level include web-content management company TerminalFour and software company The Now Factory.

The 11 companies and organisations that will represent Ireland to compete in the next round of the European Business Awards were announced at an event that was hosted by the British Ambassador to Ireland, Dominick Chilcott, along with UK Trade & Investment and RSM Farrell Grant Sparks, the awards’ sponsor and organiser.

  The winners that will represent Ireland are Netwatch, TerminalFour, Helix Health (above left), The Now Factory, Saongroup.com, Aer Lingus, Glennon Brothers, Home Instead Senior Care, Coillte,

  Eirgrid and Valeo Foods.

As part of the competition each company or organisation submitted a video case study to the European Business Awards’ website. An online voting mechanism meant members of the public could choose their favourite videos. One of the national champions was chosen via the online votes, while the other 10 winners were chosen by a panel of judges.

“This year, thanks to the video case studies, we have been impressed by the innovation and determination shown by the Irish entrants, many of whom are experiencing high levels of growth despite difficult global trading conditions,” said Aidan Scollard, partner at RSM Farrell Grant Sparks.

Wicklow town residents baffled after 60 foot snowman mysteriously disappears

 

Residents and shoppers of Wicklow town have been left baffled after a 60 foot inflatable snowman mysteriously disappeared.

The giant inflatable snowman, called Snowy, was taken from the roof of a shop in the town centre sometime on Monday night.

“We don’t understand why Snowy was targeted”, said a spokesperson.

“We also have a life-size ballerina, life-size toy soldiers, giant Victorian shoes, candy canes, musical instruments and lanterns on buildings throughout the town. They haven’t been touched”, they added.

Business people in the town have issued a plea for Snowy to be returned in time for the Christmas festival.

“He was a central attraction in Victorian Wicklow. You couldn’t miss him. The kids in the town really miss him”, the spokesperson said.

“We would appeal to his kidnappers to return him. Please bring him back and we won’t take it any further”.

Christmas treats are being offered for anyone with information leading to Snowy’s return.