Ryanair flies over 70 journalists to London in a major charming offensive
Ryanair went on a major charm offensive in London yesterday, flying in over 70 members of the media from all over Europe as it unveiled further initiatives it says will transform the carrier’s service.
The airline is also poised to make a significant jobs announcement in Dublin next week, according to the airline’s boss, Michael O’Leary.
That announcement is expected to focus on generating additional employment through its digital initiatives.
Looking surprisingly unfamiliar with the current Ryanair website, Mr O’Leary and newly-appointed chief marketing office Kenny Jacobs, said the latest version of its website will launch on April 10.
Mr O’Leary said it may launch sooner. It’s been undergoing testing for the past two months.
It will enable customers to more easily browse flight offers, allowing them to instantly see where and when they can fly with the available fares.
It will make it “much easier” for people to get the cheapest fares, according to Mr O’Leary.
As he slogged his way through Ryanair’s old website, the airline chief said that “none of this as a user experience is joined up”.
Ryanair placed an order for 175 new Boeing aircraft last year, which will increase its feleet size to over 400 aircraft. The first of those aircraft will be delivered in September.
The airline is targeting business travellers and families to help boost passenger numbers to close to 110 million by 2019. Last year it flew 81.5 million.
Mr O’Leary said that means having to soften its image, something it’s been doing since last autumn. Improving its interaction with customers and service has been dubbed the ‘Always Getting Better’ plan by the airline.
He said for families, new initiatives may include offering free checked-in baggage and free allocated seating for kids. The airline will also offer an on-board milk-warming service for babies. New family fare offers will be unveiledin April.
Muslims think they can beat their wives says an Irish Judge
Muslims think they can actually beat their wives, a judge has told a Tallaght Court.
Judge Anthony Halpin made his claim yesterday as he was dealing with a man accused of burgling his estranged wife’s house.
Khadar Younis, aged 46, a Somali national from Belfry Hall, Citywest, had pleaded not guilty to burglary, contravening a protection order, and possession of a knife, at Fernwood Avenue, Springfield, Tallaght, on May 10.
He also pleaded not guilty to contravening a protection order at the same address on April 10 and April 17, 2013.
Sergeant Bernard Jones said the DPP had directed summary disposal in the burglary charge.
Younis’ ex-wife, Kara Ibrahim, told the court that, on May 10, she had been asleep when she heard a noise. She said she awoke to find Mr Younis threatening her with a knife. She said Mr Younis thought he could come into the house.
Mr Younis’ lawyer, John O’Leary, said his client had been divorced by a Muslim cleric under the Quran.
Judge Halpin told Mr O’Leary: “Muslims feel as if they can actually beat their wives.” Mr O’Leary also said there was no evidence of a physical assault.
M/s Ibrahim then said she wanted to drop the case.
Judge Halpin noted that a divorce had been solemnised under the Quran by a Muslim cleric. He said he would put the case back for six months to resume the hearing or to strike out the case and told Ms Ibrahim she was to call the gardaí if there were any further breaches.
Judge Halpin remanded Mr Younis on continuing bail to a date in September.
NUI Galway University replaces maths exam papers after online viewing
NUI GALWAY university IS REVIEWING ITS I.T. SECURITY SYSTEM
After the maths papers were first inadvertently viewed, word of their availability “spread like wildfire”, according to NUIG student sources.
NUI Galway (NUIG) has replaced a number of summer exam papers after students gained access to maths papers during an internet search.
The incident, which NUIG says occurred some weeks ago, has led to a review of the university’s information technology (IT) security system.
Up to 20 students are believed to have viewed the maths papers for semester two exams. NUIG is confident that the incident occurred during what sources describe as refined use of a well-known search engine, rather than due to hacking.
The papers had been uploaded on to the university’s internal server, which has protected storage that prevents it from being “googled”.
Word spread after the papers were first inadvertently viewed, word of their availability “spread like wildfire”, according to NUIG student sources. The more frequently access was then sought, the higher up the link appeared in search engine results.
It is understood that the university’s IT department became aware of the issue within several days, and the college authorities immediately withdrew the papers.
“NUIG replaced a number of exam papers as a precautionary measure,” the university said.
“The decision was prompted by inappropriate access to some exam papers which could … have compromised the integrity of the exam process.”
The university students’ union has advised any students who believed they had the maths papers that all exam papers have been replaced.
The Department of Education said that while universities across the State share the same infrastructure through the Higher Education Authority’s internet system, they would not use the same software packages “as far it was aware”.
Miracle mum had two babies after a heart, double lung and kidney transplants operations
Deirdre and Brian Doherty above left with children Abbie, (6 months) and Ruth, (3).
Deirdre Roche Doherty from Kilkenny is the only woman in the world to carry a successful pregnancy after her massive surgeries
“Every day I think about my donors when I look at my two children. I wouldn’t be here without them.”
These are the words of miracle mum Deirdre Roche Doherty, believed to be the only woman in the world to carry a successful pregnancy after undergoing a heart, double lung and kidney transplant.
Pictured with her husband Brian, children Ruth, three, and six-month-old Abbey, the brave mum counts her blessings for the generous people who saved her life.
Deirdre told her story yesterday at the launch of Organ Donor Awareness Week 2014, which runs from Saturday until April 5.
She said how the operations enabled her to give birth to the kids she feared she’d never have.
Deirdre said: “You never know with your health and everything else.
“It was always something I wanted but was never sure would I be able to or not. After the transplants with my consultants, we carefully planned it.
“I was very lucky. I had a great team of doctors in Coombe and the Mater looking after me. They made it possible.”
Deirdre’s health woes began when she was six months old after being diagnosed with cystic fibrosis.
When Deirdre was 19 in 1996, her illness deteriorated and was told she would need surgery.
She said: “I was on oxygen and I required a double lung transplant.
“At the time they didn’t do it in Ireland, so I had to travel to Great Ormond Street [in London’. where they did the heart and double lung transplant.
“My heart was fine but back then it was easier to do heart and lungs together.”
Despite the gruelling procedure, Deirdre was presented with the opportunity to give back what she had been given when she donated her own heart to a 12-year-old boy.
After spending so much time in hospital as a youngster, Deirdre had remained in care at Crumlin when she went for her transplant and was treated on the children’s ward at Great Ormond Street.
In an amazing coincidence, this led to her being in the same unit as the kid who received her heart.
Deirdre said: “I was able to donate my heart to a little boy who ended up being in the room with me, which is very, very unusual.
“He shared the same birthday as me, which was very weird as well. It was nice to be able to give a little back.”
Deirdre’s health improved and she completed a degree in business before doing a teaching diploma.
She landed a job at CBS in Kilkenny city and still works at the school.
But Deirdre’s struggles were not over. Thirteen years after the double lung and heart operation, her kidneys began to fail.
The medicine she had been taking had began to take their toll and Deirdre was placed on dialysis, which she described as the “worst experience of my life”.
She said: “I’m very lucky. When I had all the tests done and I was on the list, I was only waiting about six weeks for the kidney transplant which I had in Beaumont.
“In the meantime, Brian proposed to me so I was due to get married in 2009. I was on the list as well for the kidney, so I was wondering, ‘What am I going to do? I’m not going to postpone this wedding.
“He said right we’ll get married in six months, so we rushed everything, got everything done. Luckily, the kidney came first.
“I got the kidney in July and I was married in October.
“It was fantastic to be able to get married, not worried about the dialysis and go on my honeymoon.”
With the help of doctors, Deirdre made plans to have her first child who arrived in 2011.
But she wanted a larger family, adding: “I decided then I’d like to have one more go at it even though people probably thought I was crazy.
“Abbey came along six months ago. I suppose I am very, very lucky to be able to have had two kids with my health problems and after undergoing transplant.
“The two girls, Ruth and Abbey, wouldn’t be here either. I am always eternally grateful to the two donor families.”
• Meanwhile a system where everyone will be presumed to be an organ donor unless they specify otherwise is to be introduced, the Health Minister revealed yesterday.
Speaking at the launch of Organ donor Awareness Week, James Reilly added that the “opt out system of consent” would come into effect later this year.
He said its introduction was vital to ensuring there are enough organ donors to meet demand, but added no family would be forced to adhere to the scheme.
Dr Reilly said: “I’ve always said it will be very soft consent.
“In other words, even someone who is presumed to have given consent and the family object, clearly no one is going to upset the family by going against their wishes.”
The minister added the proposals were “well advanced and the legislation is being prepared”.
Former GAA star Joe Brolly called for the system to be introduced in the North last February, after he donated a kidney to clubmate Shane Finnegan.
70% of indigenous Irish software firms increased their turnover last year
70% OF INDIGENOUS IRISH SOFTWARE FIRMS INCREASED TURNOVER IN 2013
Seven out of 10 indigenous Irish technology companies increased their turnover by an average of 30% last year and six out of 10 are now looking outside Ireland for their main market, according to a major survey of the sector by AIB.
The sectoral report, the first of several by the bank as it targets specific industry sectors, found that despite a strong multinational presence in Ireland, there is a scaling indigenous technology sector worth €2 billion in annual sales.
This sector alone employs 30,000 people accompanied by a buoyant emerging Technology start-up ecosystem that has evolved across the country.
The research, conducted in collaboration with Amárach, the Irish Internet Association and the Irish Software Association indicates surging confidence among Irish technology companies that they will continue to enjoy significant growth in 2014 and beyond.
Almost nine-in-10 (87%) believe their outlook for 2014 is better than 2013 and three quarters (74%) plan to grow their workforce this year. There are also challenges facing the Technology sector, he biggest of which appears to be the issue of scaling their operations to deal with the anticipated growth and expansion.
There are in excess of 700 indigenous Technology companies and 27 accelerator-Incubators (which provide pre-seed funding, training programmes and other start-up supports) now operating in the Irish economy. Three-quarters (77%) of the firms are privately held while just one in eight (13%) of them are funded by venture capital.
Of the 106 SMEs that were surveyed in this Outlook Report, three-quarters (78%) have employ less than 50 employees while 8% employed in excess of 250 people. Almost six in 10 (59%) of those surveyed had been in business for more than five years and an impressive, one in eight (13%) is in business more than 20 years. Indicating the sector’s drive to compete, a consistent proportion of six in 10 SMEs invested in R&D in 2012 (61%) and in 2013 (62%).
AIB’s head of Technology, Media & Telecoms Banking John O’Dwyer said there is accelerator movement incorporating players like Wayra, NovaUCD, the NDRC and others are playing a considerable role in attracting talent from overseas which is vital for business owners trying to grow a business in the ICT sector.
“There is a definite momentum, there is good mentorship on the ground and the funding environment is very healthy.
“Plus Ireland has a great state agency in Enterprise Ireland, making us the envy of a lot of countries.
“The start-up ecosystem is also quite strong. The firms in Ireland don’t necessarily need to go abroad to grow fast and quick, they can do it from here,” O’Dwyer.
FOCUSED BANKING?
Also speaking with Siliconrepublic.com ahead of the report’s publication this morning AIB’s head of business banking said he believed indigenous SMEs in the tech sector are poised for significant expansion.
He explained that AIB has embarked on a considerable education drive to ensure that branch managers are up to speed on the latest technologies so they can greater understand the growth issues of businesses in sectors like ICT and energy.
“We are taking a different approach to banking. It’s about how do you partner with customers and help them to make a difference. It’s about getting dealflow and building pipelines.
“We give staff in our branch network a general knowledge of industries like retail, ICT, exports and energy so they can understand the business challenges and have a working knowledge of how these companies function.
“And they have the back-up of a central specialist. For example, in the case of Enterprise Ireland HPSUs we can ensure they are assigned to experienced people who understand their challenges.
“We have a new leadership team and management team and we’re busy rebuilding the bank and putting the right structures in place so we can work with specific industry types in a purposeful, meaningful and supportive manner, sensitive to the complexities of their industry types,” Burke said.
Global warming summit in New York expects hope amid the gloom
Scepticism has replaced concern over climate change, so world leaders must speak up even louder about the dangers lurking ahead?
Here we go again. On Monday the world’s governments and top climate scientists will publish the most devastating assessment yet of what global warming threatens to do to the planet. And that, in turn, will intensify a new bid to forge an international agreement to tackle it.
World leaders will meet in New York in September to address climate change for the first time since the ill-fated 2009 Copenhagen summit. Then they assemble again in Paris in December next year to try once more to conclude a pact to reduce emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouses gases. But they are approaching it in a very different atmosphere from five years ago.
Not that the scientific warnings are any the less severe – quite the reverse. Monday’s report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), to be released in Yokohama, Japan, is still being completed. But its final draft predicts that, unless speedy action is taken, floods and droughts will greatly increase, “hundreds of millions” of coastal dwellers will have to flee their homes, and the yields of major crops will fall even as population grows.
It will follow another IPCC report, in September, stating with at least 95 per cent certainty that humanity is heating up the planet. A third, to be published next month, will conclude that not nearly enough is being done to head off disaster. And this week a World Meteorological Organisation report concluded that recent extreme weather – such as our floods, the icy American winter, and an unprecedentedly hot 2013 in Australia – are consistent with global warming, while the Met Office warned that heatwaves worse than the one that killed 2,000 Britons in 2003 will blight most summers by the 2040s.
Last time, such warnings were almost universally accepted, but they now fall on much more sceptical ears. That is partly because the predecessor to Monday’s report contained several inaccuracies, most notably vastly overestimating the rate at which Himalayan glaciers are melting.
Over the intervening years, fashionable scepticism has replaced fashionable concern over climate change. And government leaders, traumatised by their experience in Copenhagen, have tended to stay quiet.
So while expectations were sky-high for what was dubbed “Hopenhagen”, they are rock-bottom for Paris next year. Yet it is possible that the present pessimism is equally misplaced. For there have also been more positive changes.
Almost unnoticed in Britain, the two main obstacles to agreement in the Danish capital – the United States and China – are taking a lead in combating global warming, no small thing considering that they together account for two-fifths of world emissions. President Obama – who privately feels his record on climate change was the biggest failure of his first term – has made it a top priority for his second.
Unable to get climate laws through a Republican House of Representatives, he is instead resorting to executive orders to cut carbon dioxide emissions from vehicles and power stations. Together with the rapid expansion of shale gas – less polluting than coal – these are likely, unexpectedly, to enable the US to meet the target of a 17 per cent reduction by 2020 unveiled, to widespread scepticism, in Copenhagen.
Even more improbably, China, which burns about half the world’s coal, is beginning to move away from it, partly to clean up the smogs that kill an estimated quarter of a million of its citizens each year. Scores of planned new coal plants are being scrapped, while in December the national energy administration announced that, for the first time, more renewable energy than fossil-fuel power generation capacity joined the grid in the first 10 months of 2013. Some expect China’s emissions to peak in the next decade.
The two governments have agreed to cooperate, and the US is prioritising an international agreement in Paris. Meanwhile 61 of the 66 countries responsible for 88 per cent of the world’s emissions have passed legislation to control them: in all, nearly 500 laws have been adopted worldwide.
There is also a shift from seeing combating climate change as sacrificing growth to realising that it can increase it.
Renewable energy is taking off; it’s worldwide capacity is already over 10 times what was predicted at the turn of the millennium. And opposition to action is beginning to fade. One survey shows that even most US Republicans under the age of 35 regard sceptics as “ignorant”, “out of touch” or “crazy”.
It could, of course, all yet go horribly wrong, as in Copenhagen. Even at best, no agreement in Paris is likely to match up to what is needed to control global warming.
But, despite the prevailing gloom, a more solid basis for making a start on tackling the threat may be coming into place than in the heady atmosphere of 2009.
