Latest news with #Fitzgerald
RTÉ News
7 hours ago
- Politics
- RTÉ News
Farmers call for changes to protect livestock from dog attacks
Farming organisations have called for measures including DNA testing, disqualification from dog ownership, and a ban on non-working dogs on hills and farmland to help protect livestock from dog attacks. Addressing the Oireachtas Agriculture Committee, Vice President of the Irish Natura and Hill Farmers' Association (INHFA) John Joe Fitzgerald said the level of dog attacks on livestock has reached "crisis point". Mr Fitzgerald said INHFA members have reported "increasing levels of concern and complaints from farmers with regard to recreational walkers bringing their dogs onto farmlands [including our hills] and when asked to remove them, they become highly abusive and threatening, which in some instances has led to physical violence". He said a Government-funded national database should be established to collate "all information on dogs, including dog licence, microchipping and DNA samples from each dog". 'Roaming patrols' The INHFA also wants to see "roaming patrols" to monitor any loose dogs on hills or near farmland. Also addressing the committee, Sheep Chair of the Irish Farmers' Association Adrian Gallagher said dog owners who fail to keep their pets under control should be disqualified from dog ownership. He said the option exists for the courts to disbar ownership of protected animals if there is a failure to comply with welfare obligations in the Animal Health and Welfare Act 2013. "Given the devastation caused by an increasing number of dog attacks on sheep in particular, zero tolerance has to be the policy. The Animal Health and Welfare Act sanctions should be extended to irresponsible dog owners who allow their pets cause this devastation on farms." Mr Gallagher said the decision to have the Department of Agriculture as the single enforcement authority "is a move in the right direction, but we should have seen this happen long before now". According to the IFA, in 2023 reporting of livestock-worrying incidents rose to 276, a 3% increase on 2022, adding that "many more go unreported". Enforcement 'severely limited' The organisation said enforcement remains "severely limited", with only 80 wardens on the ground throughout the country. Meanwhile, Sheep Chair of the Irish Cattle and Sheep Farmers Association (ICSA) Willie Shaw told the Agriculture Committee "we've plenty of sheep farmers leaving the industry. We don't need to give them another reason to leave". Mr Shaw also pointed out that just "ten percent of dog attacks on livestock are kills" with sheep worrying a huge issue. He said "DNA testing wouldn't help with this". An example of such a case was mentioned by the INHFA, which said a couple of years ago "a hundred ewes and lambs in Kerry were driven off the edge of a cliff by a dog". Attacks 'detrimental' to livestock welfare Chairperson of the Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers Association's (ICMSA) Livestock Committee Michael O'Connell said the effect dog attacks and sheep worrying have on flocks and herds "is very detrimental to the health and welfare of these livestock". "We have seen firsthand from members of the immediate damages in terms of dead and injured sheep, but the long-term effects are equally devastating. "These include physical injuries such as severe bites and lacerations, which may result in death or future physical trauma as well as disabilities to mobility." The ICSMA recommended a 'Dog Control Awareness' programme be launched similar to that originally launched in 2024. Mr O'Connell said dogs "have the potential to cause death, serious injury, serious stress and anxiety to livestock, which the dog may deem to be playing. "Dogs are not responsible for their actions; it is their owners' responsibility to keep them under control. "If the awareness is aimed towards the owners, with emphasis on the damage dogs can do to sheep flocks or cattle herds, it may not be long before there is an improvement to what is a growing problem."
USA Today
10 hours ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Devin Fitzgerald, a ‘26 WR, will pick Notre Dame, Clemson, UCLA or Stanford on July 5th
July 5th👀 Notre Dame football could be adding yet another former NFL players son on July 5th when 2026 Arizona wide receiver Devin Fitzgerald makes his commitment. The 6-foot, 2-inch and 205-pound star had already set his commitment date a few weeks ago, and will chose from four schools that he announced on Tuesday: Clemson, UCLA, Stanford and the Irish. Fitzgerald was considering North Carolina as well, but opted to cancel his official visit, as they are no longer in contention for his commitment. The nation's No. 488 overall prospect in the 247Sports Composite Rankings is extremely familiar with Notre Dame's program, as is his father Larry. The elder Fitzgerald spoke with the team a few years ago, and that had to be around when the relationship started. For more recruits, the connection between them and the coaching staff is extremely important, and it very much looks like Notre Dame has accomplished that. Hopefully that aspect helps the Irish win out in Fitzgerald's recruitment.
RTÉ News
3 days ago
- Business
- RTÉ News
Former tánaiste Frances Fitzgerald joins consultancy firm Teneo
Former tánaiste Frances Fitzgerald has joined consultancy firm, Teneo as a senior advisory. The former Fine Gael TD and MEP will also join the Teneo Ireland advisory board, which is chaired by Gary McGann and also includes former Ireland rugby captain, Brian O'Driscoll. Teneo said the appointment "deepens the firm's expertise in Government and public affairs". The firm said Ms Fitzgerald will help advise the firm's clients and support the growth of its business in Ireland and Europe. Michael O'Keeffe, CEO of Teneo Ireland, said: "Frances Fitzgerald brings unmatched experience and insight into Irish public life. Her leadership at the highest levels of government and her deep understanding of policymaking – both nationally and in Europe – make her an invaluable addition to our advisory team. We are delighted to welcome her to Teneo, under the stewardship of global CEO Paul Keary, and to the Teneo Ireland Advisory Board. Ms Fitzgerald said, "Having served in Cabinet during a period of major social and economic transformation, I hope to bring that experience to bear in helping leaders navigate the opportunities and challenges ahead."
Irish Examiner
3 days ago
- Irish Examiner
Former Garda assistant commissioner backs calls for inquiry into Evan Fitzgerald case
A former assistant Garda commissioner has backed calls for an independent inquiry into the garda handling of the Evan Fitzgerald case — the young man who took his own life in a Carlow shopping centre shooting. Pat Leahy said 'a public trust and confidence issue' has emerged about the case in which an undercover garda operation was used to sell decommissioned weapons to Mr Fitzgerald after a tip-off that he was attempting to source weapons on the dark web. The weapons were supplied in a controlled garda delivery operation to Mr Fitzgerald and two friends, with all three arrested just minutes later. Mr Fitzgerald, 22, was facing charges of possessing illegal firearms arising out of the operation when on June 1 he fired shots into the air at the Fairgreen Shopping Centre in Carlow before taking his own life with a shotgun he had stolen from a neighbour. Senator Michael McDowell's concerns Using Seanad privilege, former justice minister and attorney general, Independent senator Michael McDowell, outlined details of the case and accused undercover gardaí involved in the sting operation of 'entrapment'. He has also raised concerns that sworn evidence given to the district court judge who first heard details of the weapons charges may have been 'misleading' and left the judge 'in the dark'. Former assistant commissioner's comments Speaking on the This Week programme on RTÉ Radio One on Sunday, Mr Leahy said a young man has lost his life, a family is grieving, and people need answers. 'When you're in the public domain like this, and for such a sensitive matter on all fronts, I think, at some stage, there will have to be clear openness and transparency about what happened and how it happened, and what the facts of the case were,' he said. Public trust and confidence is the lifeblood of the whole criminal justice system, because policing is the ground floor in all of this. 'So almost everything comes through the policing hands first, and if public trust and confidence isn't strong there, everything else is up to be questioned. 'So it's really, really important that this is addressed. 'At some stage, when the time is right, some of the questions that are being asked in public now will have to be answered and they'll have to be answered independently, by someone who is trusted by the community, trusted by the politicians.' Former assistant Garda commissioner Pat Leahy said: '[Q]uestions that are being asked in public now will have to be answered and they'll have to be answered independently, by someone who is trusted by the community, trusted by the politicians.' Picture: Eamonn Farrell/Rolling News Garda commissioner Drew Harris said he has referred Mr McDowell's concerns to Fiosrú, the office of the police ombudsman. Mr McDowell called again on Sunday for an inquiry into the garda handling of the case. But the ombudsman said because the matters concerned 'are the same in substance' to issues it has already said do not require further action, there is nothing further to be considered by them. Mr McDowell said he was 'gobsmacked' by that decision. 'I don't know whether they've looked at the digital audio recording of what happened in the District Court, as to whether they have actually examined what was said on oath to the district judge,' he said. 'But if they have, that's one thing, and I'd like to hear that. But if they haven't, and I don't believe they have, I think that it is very premature of them to say that they don't propose taking any further action in relation to a serious issue of this kind.'
RTÉ News
3 days ago
- Politics
- RTÉ News
Fiosrú taking no further action in Carlow gunman case
The Police Ombudsman, Fiosrú, has said it has decided to take no further action in relation to the case of Evan Fitzgerald, who fired shots in the air in a Co Carlow shopping centre before taking his own life. Garda Commissioner Drew Harris said this week that he had referred "serious allegations" made about the garda handling of the case to the ombudsman. Questions were raised in the Oireachtas about the way in which gardaí conducted their investigation into Mr Fitzgerald, who, prior to his death, was awaiting trial for possession of illegal weapons. The weapons had been supplied to him by gardaí as part of an undercover operation after they became aware that the 22-year-old tried to buy guns on the dark web. The weapon he used at the Carlow shopping centre was not one supplied to him by gardaí. Independent Senator Michael McDowell and Labour TD Alan Kelly raised concerns about the techniques deployed by gardaí in the case. In the Seanad, Senator McDowell said the case was one of "entrapment" and also claimed that "untruths" were told to a District Court judge when he was deciding whether to grant Mr Fitzgerald bail. On RTÉ's This Week programme, Senator McDowell suggested it may have been "premature" of Fiosrú not to take any further action. He said he did not know if the police ombudsman's office listened to the digital audio recording from the District Court. He said if they have not, it was premature of them not to take further action in relation to what he described as "a serious issue". Mr McDowell said he asked the Department of Justice to arrange for the matter to be fully investigated. The senator said there were other options available to the gardaí, including confronting Mr Fitzgerald and his family about what he had done. Commissioner Harris told the Oireachtas Public Accounts Committee this week that he took note of the comments made in the Seanad by Mr McDowell and referred them to Fiosrú for consideration. Fiosrú told RTÉ's This Week programme that Mr Harris has no authority to ask the ombudsman to investigate any matter. It added that after considering the two notifications of concern from An Garda Síochána in relation to this case, it decided that no further action was required by the police ombudsman. At the Oireachtas Public Accounts Committee, Commissioner Harris described the garda investigation as "a very successful operation in which we made sure that a threat to the public did not arise from the circumstances we were dealing with". "Subsequent events, tragic as they were on 1 June, were obviously very tragic, but they did not arise from our operation that we conducted," he said.
