NEWS UPDATE - The email news service from RTÉ.ie
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08 November 2008 17:51
IRISH NEWS
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1. PDs vote to wind up political party
2. Man sentenced for girlfriend's murder
3. Gardaí investigate Ballybrack death
4. Waterford houses damaged by 'tornado'
5. Galway protest over education cuts
6. Man dies after being hit by van
7. GAA clubhouse destroyed by fire
8. President unveils national memorial
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IRELAND'S WEATHER
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INTERNATIONAL NEWS
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1. 75 dead in Haitian school collapse
2. New Zealand's PM concedes defeat
3. Paloma strengthens to Category 4 hurricane
4. Washington Aer Lingus flight delayed
5. Britain revokes Thaksin's visa
IRISH NEWS
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1.PDs vote to wind up political party
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A Progressive Democrat conference in Mullingar has voted to bring the party to an end. After a discussion lasting over four hours, delegates then voted by holding voter registration cards aloft. The final tally was 201 votes to 161 against a motion to continue with the party. The organisation will now be wound down. Speculation will turn to the future of its senior figures such as Mary Harney and Fiona O'Malley. Yesterday, Ms Harney said she would have to reflect on her position in the PDs if members voted to stay in existence. Ms Harney said that those who want to keep the party going are more likely to attend today's meeting. But she said that while she was not trying to bully the membership, she would have to reflect on her position in the party if members voted to keep it in existence. Earlier, the party's founder said the PDs could not expect to continue as a political party. In a letter to a meeting in Mullingar on the party's future, Des O'Malley sai
d that realism and common sense demand that party members had to face the facts. He added that the only realistic step is to commence the wind up of the party. The letter was read by former PD Senator John Dardis at the request of Mr O'Malley. At the meeting, some members have put forward a motion to keep the party going, although party leader Ciaran Cannon, Minister for Health Mary Harney and the other Oireachtas members believe it is time to bring the PDs to an end. Going into the day-long conference Mr Cannon said members should vote with their heads and not their hearts in bringing the party to a dignified end. Ms Harney received a standing ovation after she delivered a strong speech to the conference. Speaking ahead of the meeting, she said that people needed to be pragmatic in deciding the future of the organisation. She said the party was failing to attract voters and was no longer viable. Galway West TD Noel Grealish said that he hoped undecided de
legates would be convinced after today's debate that the way forward is to fold the PD tent. He said since the party was formed in 1985 the vote of the party has consistently gone down. It is just over seven weeks since the leadership of the PDs came to the conclusion that the party is no longer politically viable.
2.Man sentenced for girlfriend's murder
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A Dublin man has been sentenced to life in prison after being found guilty of murdering his girlfriend in October of last year. 33-year-old Stephen Carney, of Anna Livia Apartments in James' Street, Dublin 8, strangled 27-year-old Amanda Jenkins following a row. He left her body in their home for two days before contacting the emergency services. In a statement on behalf of Ms Jenkins' family, her uncle, Robert McClean, said they had been devastated by her death. Mr McClean described his niece as an only child who cared deeply about family. He said she had a very special and loving relationship with her mother, Ann. In a letter read by his barrister to the court Carney said Ms Jenkins was a beautiful, kind, generous and loving person, who did not deserve what had happened to her. He said he would give anything to take back what he had done, but he knew no words could heal the pain he had caused. All he could do, he said, was offer a heartfelt apology. The
court heard Carney, who has one child from a previous relationship, had already spent time in jail arising out of nine previous convictions, spread over a 15-year period, beginning in 1990. The longest sentence was for eight years for his role in an armed raid on a security van in Co Wicklow in 1998. It was foiled by the Garda Emergency Response Unit, and one of Carney's fellow raiders was shot dead by gardaí. He also received a 20-month sentence for assault causing actual bodily harm and violent disorder, arising out of an attack on two drug addicts in 1996. One of the addicts died from his injuries. During the four-day trial, the court heard that Carney had admitted to gardaí that he had strangled his girlfriend during a row on the evening of Friday, 5 October 2007. Following his arrest he told gardaí he had not intended killing Ms Jenkins, but had intended frightening her. The jury of eight men and four women took more than four hours to reach their verdict.
They had spent last night in a hotel. Mr Justice Paul Carney thanked them for their careful attention in the case.
3.Gardaí investigate Ballybrack death
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Gardaí are investigating the circumstances surrounding the death of a woman in Ballybrack, Co Dublin. A 60-year-old man is being detained at Dún Laoghaire Garda station for questioning. Gardaí were called to a house at Willow Vale just after 8pm last night where the 57-year-old woman was found. An ambulance was called, but the woman was pronounced dead at the scene. A technical examination of the scene will take place this morning. The woman's body is being taken to the City Morgue in Marino.
4.Waterford houses damaged by 'tornado'
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Around two dozen houses have been damaged in Waterford city following what residents are describing as a mini tornado. The adverse weather conditions hit the Larchville estate shortly before 3.30pm, causing damage to houses and trees There are no reports of injuries. There are also reports of localised flooding in many parts of the south-east.
5.Galway protest over education cuts
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Up to 8,000 parents and teachers staged a protest in Galway today against what they called the 'savage' education cuts in last month's Budget. Among those addressing the rally was INTO General Secretary John Carr and Sean Holian of the Irish Primary Principals' Network. It is the first of a series of countrywide protests calling for a reversal of the new measures. Further demonstrations are expected to take in Offaly, Cork and Donegal, finishing with a mass rally in Dublin on 6 December.
6.Man dies after being hit by van
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A pedestrian has died after being hit by a van, police in Northern Ireland said today. 51-year-old Ivor Millen from Macosquin, Coleraine, Co Derry, was killed as he was walking along the Strand Road, Coleraine. The accident took place at about 7pm last night. Attempts to revive Mr Millen failed and he was pronounced dead at the scene. His body was taken to the Causeway Hospital where a post-mortem examination is to take place. Officers have appealed for any witnesses to come forward.
7.GAA clubhouse destroyed by fire
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An investigation is under way today into a massive fire, which completely destroyed a GAA clubhouse. Six units of the fire service battled a blaze at Edendork GAA Club, near Dungannon, Co Tyrone. The fire was reported by a local resident shortly after 5am. It is not yet known how the fire started. Edendork GAA club chairman Peter O'Connor said the entire clubhouse was devastated. 'Everyone is just in shock at the moment,' he said. A fire service spokesman said firefighters were unable to enter the building as the structure was unsafe. It took four hours for the fire to be brought under control. A technical examination of the scene is under way. Debris from around the pitch area was cleared away in order to allow a game between the Edendork side and local club Pomeroy to go ahead.
8.President unveils national memorial
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President Mary McAleese has unveiled a new national memorial to members of the Defence Forces who have died in service. The memorial on Merrion Square in Dublin was designed by artist Brian king and features four sentries guarding an eternal flame. Defence Forces' veterans also took part. Merrion Square was sealed off for the ceremonial event which featured a military parade. The Government was represented by Taoiseach Brian Cowen and Defence Minister Willie O'Dea. Today is the 48th anniversary of the Niemba ambush in the Congo when nine soldiers on UN duty were killed. It was the largest single loss of life in any one incident in the history of Irish involvement in UN peacekeeping. 26 Irish soldiers lost their lives in the Congo operation.
IRELAND'S WEATHER
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NationWide - Tonight
Continuing very windy in the north and northwest with gusts of 80 to 100 km/h, but winds will moderate elsewhere.
Temperature lows ranging from 1 to 4 Celsius (34 to 39 Fahrenheit)
NationWide - Tomorrow
Cold and windy with further heavy rain or showers. Hail and thunderstorms in places. A few bright or sunny spells also. Strong and gusty southwest winds.
Temperature highs ranging from 6 to 10 Celsius (43 to 50 Fahrenheit)
INTERNATIONAL NEWS
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1.75 dead in Haitian school collapse
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The death toll after the collapse of a school in Haiti has risen to 75 after rescue workers uncovered a room with 17 dead, many of them children, officials said. Rescuers worked through the night under giant generator- powered lights in a shanty town on the outskirts of the Haitian capital, Port-au-Prince, to search for survivors in the rubble of the three-story La Promesse school, which caved in yesterday while class was in session. President Rene Preval, who was at the scene early today, said searchers dropped water and biscuits through holes in the rubble to a group of children and focused their efforts on reaching them. At least 124 people were injured. Rescue workers from the French Caribbean island of Martinique arrived at the scene to help cut through the rubble. A US rescue team was expected shortly. A new story had been under construction atop the school when it fell in, also destroying or damaging five homes next to it. In Paris, French Foreign Minister
Bernard Kouchner expressed his 'deep emotion' over the tragedy and promised to send 'as soon as possible a civil security team to help the Haitian authorities in rescuing the victims who are still buried.' As many as 700 students aged from three to 20 attend the church-run school in a suburb of the capital, but an accurate count of how many had been inside when it crumbled was not available.
2.New Zealand's PM concedes defeat
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New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark has conceded defeat to the centre-right National Party led by John Key. Ms Clark had telephoned Mr Key to concede that her Labour Party had lost the election, Television New Zealand said. With almost 99% of the vote counted, Mr Key's centre-right National Party had 45% of the vote, which would translate to 59 seats in the 122-seat parliament with support from its allied parties enough to give it a majority. The centre-left Labour Party, which had been seeking a fourth three-year term, had 34% of the vote, translating to 43 seats. Ms Clark said she would step down as Labour Party leader following today's election defeat. Since the complex mixed member proportional electoral system was introduced in 1996, no single party has won over 50% of the vote and been able to control the parliament without the help of minor parties. Under the MMP system, every party winning at least 5% of the total vote is allocated seats on a proportio
nal basis in the parliament of about 120 seats. Some parties are also represented by winning some of the 63 general electorates and seven seats set aside for the indigenous Maori population.
3.Paloma strengthens to Category 4 hurricane
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Hurricane Paloma strengthened into an 'extremely dangerous' Category 4 hurricane near the Cayman Islands in the Caribbean, US forecasters have said. The storm's maximum sustained winds increased to 215km per hour, the US National Hurricane Center said. 'Paloma is now an extremely dangerous category four hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson scale,' the Miami-based hurricane center said.
4.Washington Aer Lingus flight delayed
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An Aer Lingus flight with about 360 passengers has been delayed in Washington. It is understood the plane experienced problems with one of the hydraulic pumps in one of its engines just before take off. Passengers were kept on board for about five hours before being asked to disembark. Flight EI 118 was due to leave Dulles International Airport at about 7.30pm EST last night. Aer Lingus says on its website that passengers have been accommodated at various hotels in the area.
5.Britain revokes Thaksin's visa
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Britain has revoked visas for former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra and his wife who had fled to London in August to avoid corruption charges, a Thai official has said. The move raises the question of whether and where the former Prime Minister could find a new base outside Thailand. The reason for the visa withdrawal is not yet known. Mr Thaksin, who spent most of his time in exile in London after he was ousted in a 2006 coup, was travelling in China. The billionaire former telecoms tycoon was sentenced to two years in jail last month for breaking a conflict of interest law by getting involved in a government agency's sale of a piece of prime land in Bangkok to his wife. Thai prosecutors have been urging London to extradite the former Prime Minister, who won two landslide election victories, but was ousted in a 2006 coup on accusations of corruption and abuses of power.
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