 Who changed it for you? I didn't have to change cars, it's embarrassing You wouldn't even change the wheel Why did you ask me that? Oh my god Anyway, I'm gonna stop my program, goodbye Goodbye Greg And now, it's time for the talk of the North West The 9th & Noon Show with Greg Hughes on Highland Radio Alright, it is 21 minutes past 9 You're very welcome along to the 9th & Noon Show here on Highland Radio And thanks for Rory for covering me there for an extra 20 minutes Car troubles this morning And the joys of no phone signal to be able to tell anyone But anyway, it's great to be here And it's the start of another week And it's an exciting week Because we have a fantastic competition running for you all this week We'll tell you more about that in a moment And we've got loads of great guests to introduce to you Over the course of today And of course, as you know, throughout the week The number is to get in contact with us right now You can give us a call 07491 25,000 That's 07491 25,000 What's ups and text to 08660 25,000 Right, let's start off with a look at the front of the newspapers This morning, starting with the Derry Journal Survey launched to identify areas at risk from flooding And actually, I believe there was a bit of spot flooding In the south of the county overnight If you saw that or have any pictures of that Get in contact with us with the usual Like through the usual numbers But homeowners and businesses affected by the recent flooding Have launched a survey aimed at identifying areas at risk And building flood resilience at a local level It follows a meeting of over 100 residents And local business owners in Eglinton Those in attendance were primarily people Who had been previously flooded And first responders who helped others On to the Irish Independent And 480,000 euro Sorry, not 1,000 euro 1,000 people are in line for double energy benefit bonus The government is considering a once-off double payment Of the 35 euro a month household benefits package As part of a range of cost of living measures Aimed at tackling rising inflation The household benefits package is paid to 484,000 people And includes a free television license Along with 35 euro a month towards a recipients gas Or electricity bill It's paid to everyone in the country aged over 70 But can only be claimed by one person per household The payments also available to anyone aged between 66 and 70 Who is in receipt of the state pension Or the widow's or survivor's civil partner's pension Anyone aged under 66 who is in receipt of the carers allowance Or a disability allowance can also claim the payment So they would see that as being targeted On to the Irish Times now And staff crisis threatens ambulance times I mean already there's been some controversy With delays times with ambulance arrivals And we've covered that extensively on this program But this could exacerbate issues Urgent and emergency services are threatened by a staffing crisis In the ambulance service Endangering targets for respondents to the most serious calls Over the next four years a HSE report says An unpublished HSE presentation Seen by the Irish Times Warns recruitment is being surpassed by demand For the organisation's services Which poses a serious risk to the ability of the National Ambulance Service To deliver urgent and emergency care services On to the Irish Daily Mail this morning The Cabinet is divided over what the tax regime should be post-budget Finnegal Ministers have issued a fierce defensively over Radcor's plan For a new 30% tax rate in the wake of some in Finnefal Dismissing it as a stunt The plan has led to a substantial cabinet rift As Finnegal claim it will save the squeezed middle a thousand euro a year While Finnefal described it as a slogan I wonder if for you If you're in the squeezed middle Would a thousand euro a year do you feel be enough? Well that's what the 30% would deliver for many they say What a tax strategy group study found One million taxpayers could be around one thousand a year better off Under the proposed changes The Tarnester is determined to ensure that tax cuts Are a central feature of Budget 2023 And I think in fairness all of the parties are agreed in that regard The Irish Daily Mirror Two men have been charged with violent disorder An assault following the death of a man on a stag night Paul Connolly was knocked unconscious in a throne Canty West Meath in the early hours of Saturday A court sitting late last night Heard the alleged attack was captured on CCTV And the 48-year-old suffered and will go inside the paper Punches and kicks Guardie arrested and charged two local men with assault Causing harm to Mr. Connolly and violent disorder at Church Street Athlon And it was only just last Monday when we were here last Tuesday Sorry during the community guard slot that we were talking About how these attacks can turn fatal very quickly That's the same story on the front of the Irish Daily Star As well two charged after a stag do death And the Irish Sun Their front page Gowls filmed stag do killing Footage of stag party guest Babs Connolly last moments Should not be shared online Police have warned Or Guardie have warned Two men appeared in court last night In connection with his death After the roof for 47 Died on a stag night In Athlon County Meath Okay that was a run through the newspapers We'll be back with our first guests on the program shortly Just to remind you how you get in contact You WhatsApp or text 086 60 25000 Or give us a call in 07 491 25000 And just a reminder that if you wish to watch the program You can do so on our Facebook pages and on YouTube It's Highland Radio Ireland on YouTube And across the Facebook pages of the radio station The 90 noon show is brought to you by letter Kenny Credit Union digital loans now available Apply online or via our app today And get your loan transferred directly to your current SMEs all over Ireland You're just fab That's not it You're the bee's knees I've got it You're the business Because many of you are now using digital to take your business To the next level Whether you'd like to get online Grow online or go global Check out Wait for it You're the business The new digital training program for Irish SMEs Visit g.co forward slash You're the business Brought to you by Google In partnership with Enterprise Ireland And your local enterprise office Nailed it The award-winning Genesis Aesthetics and Skin Care Clinic Adore now offers a wide range of skin boosters The injectable moisturizer for under eyes That improves dark circles, fine lines and wrinkles Also treating the face, neck, chest and hands This amazing treatment works from the inside out Resulting in brighter, smoother, plumper skin For help choosing the right aesthetic treatment for you Contact Mary Ferry, your aesthetic practitioner You can download the Genesis app or call 0749532575 For big name menswear at great prices Visit Watson menswear in Letter Kenny Top casual brands including Mishmash, Sixth Sense, Tommy Bowe and Penguin If you're going to a wedding or a big event Formal wear names include Rimasumo, Andre and White Label Also a great selection of children's casual and formal wear in stock Watson menswear Open seven days a week on Main Street Letter Kenny And online at Watsonmenswear.com The Irish Legends presented by McGinley Foundation Returns to Rossapena Hotel and Golf Resort From the 16th to the 20th of August Highland Radio will be broadcasting from the event all week Our coverage comes to you in association with Voices Centra, Karrigart and Downing Stay local, support local, shop local Now as I mentioned at the start of the programme will be to Belated One We have a fantastic competition running for you all this week Now at SpexSaver's hearing They're aware of all the fun people missed out on over the last couple of years So this week SpexSaver's hearing is helping to bring back some of the sounds you missed Like concerts If the 60s and 70s songs evoke memories of your heyday Then we've got some more to take you down memory lane this week As thanks to SpexSaver's hearing I'm offering you the chance to win tickets to Christie Moore Live in Donegal Right Christie Moore, an absolute legend of course He's live in Donegal in September So you would get tickets to that Plus a 400 euro voucher for the Great Northern Hotel So that is some packages And tickets to Christie Moore in September And 400 euro voucher for the Great Northern Hotel in Bondor And now SpexSaver's hearing Have expert audiologists available in your local SpexSaver's source So if you're concerned about your hearing You can book a free hearing test using the PRSI entitlements And SpexSaver's hearing will arrange a hearing aid uniquely tailored to you There are turrets and teases and they're available on our website Okay, so what we are going to do This is how you win We are going to play you a series of events from a year Okay, this is going back a bit Okay, it's a news event A piece of music and a film Okay, now it's only short So we'll play it a couple of times for you over the course of the show So if you can guess the year Text the year, plus your name and where you're from To 086... We're using the 0866025000 number Of course we are Right, so have a listen to this What year did all of this take place? Okay, we're going to have to come back to that piece of audio actually Yeah, we'll come back to that in a moment Because there's a slight issue with the computer But you know to expect it It's going to be coming up for you before 10 And I'll play it again after 10 So we're going to play a bit of a song A bit of music and a bit of a film And you'll tell us what year it is And if you are the lucky winner this week You win tickets to Christy Moore Live in Donegal This September plus a 400 euro voucher For the great Northern Hotel But we'll do that for you just in a moment So bear with us Hi Greg, I see Antonos Liov Radka Couldn't resist once again Yet another opportunity to have a dig at Sinn Fein This was commemorating Arthur Griffith's life And true to Finnegale Finaful Standards Couldn't help himself It seems to be more of a TV personality Than the leader-designate of our country That comes in from Eamon The only thing about it is Eamon Is it is the cotton thrust of politics I'm not sure in what context He had a go at Sinn Fein But if you're the leader And you're going to be the T-shock very very soon And you're heading a couple of years out to election I suppose you're going to do everything you can Aren't you to try and sort of chip away at The lead in the polls that your main opposition has So we're going to see an awful lot of that In all different directions Over the course of the next while I'm sure Greg, can you please say a big thank you to Dorothy Don't know her second name Who travelled on the Express Bus On Wednesday the 10th, 1.30pm From the airport to Electric County She helped a girl travelling from Spain to us For holiday And was so kind to her Sorting her ticket for the bus to ensure a seat on it Big thanks, lovely No harm to do that First thing on a Monday morning Well done to you Dorothy, you've had a positive impact On those people's lives No doubt Now even reading this out Could cause a little bit of upset But a listener wants to raise the issue So I'm going to go ahead with it There's an ad on TV Says this caller It's for a razor For shaving pubic hair for women It's on early in the morning Which I think is very inappropriate Children are at home And tend to watch more TV Now surely this ad Should be on later in the evening As it shows the image of the shaving happening Now I'm sure it's I haven't seen it myself But I'm sure it's not too detailed This is taught in school At an age-appropriate time So why is age not a consideration For this ad being shown on TV So what do you think about that? It's an advert I'm sure you may have seen it And there are other adverts Directed towards men But it is an advert For shaving product For shaving Around the private parts As well as the way I could Describe it And it's on early in the morning This caller believes Children should not be exposed to it What do you think? 086025000 086025000 Right, okay Let's see I think now we can say Good morning to our first guest Of the program Is John Kerry Project Manager Of Corn Crake Life He joins us now Good morning to you How are you keeping John? Very well Good morning And good morning to all your listeners It's great to have you with us Right Give us a little bit I think everyone knows What the Corn Crake is But you know what? No harm in having a quick run For early on So we all know What we're talking about Well, I suppose The people who know The Corn Crake Probably fall into two categories The first category People have been of a certain vintage This bird was so widespread Back in the late 1960s That everyone would have known it In the Irish countryside Because it has a very, very distinctive call But we've lost a considerable Proportion of our Corn Crake population in Ireland About 95% of the population Of Corn Crakes Has been lost since the 70s And they're now very much confined To North and West Donegal The Mullip Peninsula And County Mayo And parts of Connemara Particularly the islands So your Donegal listeners Who live in West Donegal See areas around Fannett Head And Mallon Head Would certainly be familiar With the Corn Crake And it's a ground-nesting bird Very, very small About the size of a Blackbird And it arrives back to Ireland From Africa every summer To rear its young And then it returns to Africa Usually around early September each year Yeah, so I mean There's lots of creatures, right? And unfortunately Many of them fall in the population Some even go extinct Why is the Corn Crake Talked about so much? Why is it so important? I think the reason People attach themselves To the Corn Crake is It's very much a bird That's indicative of an Ireland Of the past The Corn Crake is a bird It's a farmland bird essentially And it's a bird that had a kind of A very sympathetic and convincing Relationship with people When farming was I suppose carried out at a slower pace In years gone by So when we were When Ireland was really kind of Before it joined the EU Before we had farming subsidies Farming was much lower intensity In Ireland So we had a lot of traditional hay Met us So when people sailed fodder For their animals For the winter It was generally traditional hay Met us So the hay was cut later in the year And this gave a lot of birds The nest on the ground Including the Corn Crake A chance to actually reproduce Have its young and to fledges Let's young into adulthood And then as farming shifted And it shifted quite rapidly In the in the 1970s Towards more intensive agriculture And particularly silage production That meant that Grass was being cut much much earlier In the summer So birds like the Corn Crake We didn't have a chance to breed So we lost them So I think people's growth For the Corn Crake kind of goes back to You know summers of the past in particular And maybe a countryside That seemed to have a slower pace Of life as well Right now So this makes then does it The discovery of a nest Of Corn Crake Corn Crake eggs All the more remarkable Not easy to spot either No So as part of our We're an EU funded project A life project And as part of our project One of our actions Is we have a measure in place In the event that we ever Recovered a nest with eggs Or chicks or an adult Corn Crake that actually need rescue And rehabilitation And we'd always hoped We might never ever have to actually implement This safety net protocol But mid June We got a call from a farmer In Farnett Head In Donegal to say That they were actually going to be mowing The meadow very close to where Calling milk Corn Crake It established a territory And two of our field workers Went around to monitor the mowing Of that meadow And the mowing of those meadows Actually occurs from the middle Out rather than from the outside In and this gives the birds A chance to escape And during that monitoring operation Our two field workers On the very last pass Of the mower Discovered a nest In at the side of the ditch And I mean talk about a hair's breath The mower passed so close to the nest But two of the eggs were actually knocked out So it was a remarkable find And it met what we call our threshold For intervention So the nest was effectively abandoned By the female bird And also the nest was probably At serious risk of predation Okay before we talk about Then what happens next I just want to establish for myself Why this is so rare Is it because Corn Crake Rarely lay eggs In this part of the world now Or is it the farming practices Such that they very rarely Are discovered before Maybe they're destroyed Well first of all like Where this bird was found In Fan-At-Head This year we only had one calling Male Corn Crake in the entire area So the population isn't there Right okay I get you The population just isn't there So the numbers of Corn Crakes In certain areas is declining And we're working very hard With landowners to try and boost them again But Corn Crake nests Are exceptionally difficult to find anyhow Because this is a bird That does not like to be seen This is a very very secretive bird It likes long vegetation It doesn't readily take to the wing Like say a pheasant If a Corn Crake gets flushed It runs away Very very quietly and very quickly So actually discovering the nest itself Is quite remarkable And so in this instance The planets aligned for us We had the systems in place The farmer were very thankful for The fact that he Mowed his meadow from the middle out And actually contacted our local field workers To help monitor this Right so the plan was kicked in This met the criteria So what happens next? So once the eggs were collected And they were put into a special Mobile incubation unit And by our field officer Joné And then they started to make their way south Towards Foto Wildlife Park Now the reason they went to Foto Wildlife Park Is Foto Wildlife Park our project park Partners with ourselves In the Corn Crake Life Project And they also have a lot of expertise In Corn Crake host country They actually have a small captive population Of Corn Crakes So they know how to incubate the eggs And raise the chicks So then they went on this remarkable journey From Fana Head to Foto Wildlife Park And it was a very much a joint effort Between project staff And Foto Foto actually drove half-wheel From the park to meet us To take the eggs from us And then what happened? So once the eggs got back to Foto Wildlife Park And one of the keepers there, Jon McLaughlin And indeed the park director Sean McKeown They immediately candled the eggs So they checked the eggs to see What are they viable? Did they have a viable embryo? And in fact all 11 eggs did And unfortunately two of the eggs Were slightly damaged as I mentioned Where they were cracked But they were still somewhat viable So out of those 11 eggs They got nine very healthy chicks And those chicks They stayed in Foto Wildlife Park For about three weeks And where they were They were very carefully looked after They were monitored And once they got to three weeks old We moved them back to Donegal So we moved them back up to Fana Head Very close to where we actually found the nest And given the low population base That drastically improves the population Potentially, yeah So I mean we only had one calling male In Fana Head this year But there was a female obviously as well Because it was a nest discovered But these nine adult corn crakes Now that we released on the bank holiday weekend They potentially have There's a potential here for them To significantly bolster the Donegal population Of corn crakes, not just Fana Head So what is the corn crakes migration pattern then? When and where? Well they're really interesting bird In that they actually have two clutches of eggs each year So these eggs were discovered in June So they're the first brood as we call it So those birds have actually left already They've actually gone back to Africa already But right now the corn crake is on a second brood So there's actually a lot of young corn crakes Chicks still on the ground out there And what we really need is for people to engage With us to try and protect that second In what numbers do they migrate back from Africa though? Do they fly individually? Do they flock or what's the story? It's a great question and we simply don't know There's so little known about corn crake migration We assume that corn crakes go to West Africa Particularly to the Congo Because colleagues over in Scotland in the RSPB Actually radio tagged a number of male corn crakes About 10 years ago And one of the birds they recovered Actually went down to West Africa Where corn crakes all over Europe They actually go down into Southeast Africa And they go down to Mozambique in South Africa Whereas our birds seem to go to the Congo Which makes them unique as well And what would the Congolese population of corn crake be? Roughly I would Who knows? Is it plentiful in other words? Not that this would be the right thing to do But could you not catch a lot of corn crakes In the Congo and take them up And repatriate them in Donegal Until such time as they decide to flow back You know what I mean? To try and There's two things there First of all They're not Congolese corn crakes They're Irish corn crakes Where are the factory? This is where they're born So both of their nests There are two annual nests are in The Northwest are, right? Right, okay Now what I mean obviously The biggest threat to their population In our part of the world is Is probably our farming practices And that's not a criticism of farmers They're out there trying to do their job as well And these They're designed to be hard to find But in Africa Are they still seen as a delicacy? Are they still eaten the way they once were? I don't know if corn crakes are considered a delicacy In the Congo to be quite honest with you I mean There's an argument there to say that I've heard people say We're helping corn crakes here So that they're going to their doom in Africa But that's actually not the case at all You know, these birds undertake a mammoth migration So they're actually flying across Europe The Mediterranean, the Sahara So they're naturally predated on the way they are too But if we turn the tap off here in Ireland Just say, well, that will be it These are Irish birds And just because they overwinter in the Congo Doesn't mean that it's a Congolese problem No It's actually it's very much a problem My question was not to suggest that The Congolese it's a problem down there It was just to try and find out What could be threatening their threatening Their the amount of them Okay, so you couldn't have these These nine that were released in Donegal They weren't tagged or nothing Will we be able to track them or Well, what we did was we were We were able to put what's called a BTO ring on them So each bird has a ring on their leg For if they're ever recovered Tagging corn crakes We would definitely like to tag corn crakes in the future This was this was very much Lastminute.com Because of the nature of the recovery So what we're planning next year is to have A very specialized tags in place That if this opportunity arises again We might be able to put tags on the birds That actually geolocate them entirely Allow their migratory route And we can track them there and back again Yeah, because there's great efforts being done To protect them It'd be interesting to know more about them And presume the more knowledge that is there The more can be done to try and preserve And see those numbers grow Very very interesting And it's a good story And we appreciate you sharing with us Sharing it with us today Thank you so much for your time Thanks a million All right, thank you And one other thing too, sorry Just as it relates to what we can do here It's really about when and if farming practices change Isn't it really that's Because they're not going to switch habitat Or is it a case of sort of maybe having safe places for them Or, you know, what can actually change at this end? Well, you know, farmers are key to this And we work with a lot of farmers on market conservation And they've done remarkable efforts in the 18 months That we've been working with them And it's only small tweaks actually To farming practices that we need Things like mowing a field from the center out It's a simple enough change for a lot of people Leaving a bit of habitat for the birds And encouraging them into areas where you don't mind Delaying your mowing into August or even in September In some cases So, cornfrix very much responds to good habitat management practices And a lot of the farmers working with us Are really willing to tweak their farming practices To encourage the birds back to try and protect them And of course, there's compensatory payments in place We're doing that Okay, great stuff Listen, John, thanks for your time this morning I'll take care of yourself That's John Kerry, Project Manager of Corn Creek Life 08 660 25000 is the WhatsApp or text number Right, back with more after these messages Okay, the whole computer is not working for me too well To this morning So we'll go to that ad in a moment And we'll crack on with the programming until then We're going to be joined by Councillor James Monaghal Very, very shortly Just to sum off your comments Greg, notice there's a lot of ads about Periods but worst is women sitting on the toilet Thinking about pads as early as well It doesn't offend me I don't know where the offense comes from that I mean, it's half the population And people are designing or trying to sell products for them I mean, there's other ads directed at fellas as well But anyway, talk to me a bit more about those adverts Do they offend you and if so, why? Right, Councillor James Monaghal is chair of the HSE Regional Health Forum Good morning to you, Gerry Good morning, Greg Thanks for taking the time to talk to us today Now, the HSE should delegate authority to someone with overall accountability For managing hospital waiting lists around the country That's the view of the Irish Patients Association Which says the situation is getting worse and not better I think and because our hospital is local to us I think all of us know the problems that people are experiencing there And you I'm sure get plenty of representations on this issue As does someone like me in my job and it does You do get a sense that things are getting worse rather than getting better Yeah, it looks like it, Greg And despite the introduction of slant check here in the last six months And extra monies for the national treatment purchase fund Unfortunately, waiting lists are still continuing to increase and get longer And in particular, particularly for patients in Donegal Yeah, the figures for Latter-Kinney University Hospital It is the worst rating in the country where the average waiting time to see a consultant is We'll bar the shout and it's a year, 11.7 months Yeah, and that's to see the consultant in Latter-Kinney University Hospital And then if you're sent then to see the consultant in Galway Where your procedure will probably or most likely take place Then you're put on a further waiting list there and you start from day one again And this is increasing the wait for patients in Donegal and has been for a number of years So how do we prevent this? It's not with a sticking plaster, it's with a long-term plan We're dealing with a legacy of underinvestment in health services over decades And we have seen the outcome of that there with the pressures on work Over 400 doctors left the island of Ireland last year alone They seek work elsewhere, our difficulties and it's been well versed on your show In relation to recruitment and how do we recruit, but not even recruit But maintain then that level of care and professionalism So it's not going to be through a few pound added every now and then It has to be sit back, it has to be a long-term plan It has to be about reinforcing and showing up all of the vacant consultant posts that we have Put in place a proper IT system and train up our existing staff their level Where they can move into vacancies as they arise The problem is, or the way I see it is that it doesn't appear to be an emergency It's not a local emergency, it doesn't seem to be a national emergency You can speak to the highest of the higher ups in the HSE and they will say Well investment is available, we have vacancies, we're trying to recruit But it's not seen as the emergency that it is It doesn't reflect what people are going through What many people listening to this program are going through Or people they love and care about that they can't understand Why something that is greatly reducing someone's quality of life That's leaving them very low in how they feel and has to be affecting their long-term physical well-being Why is this not an emergency? Why are we not screaming from the rafters about this issue? Why is it sort of like, well this is what we're trying to do but it is what it is That's what I can't understand Yeah and look, and you've said it yourself a number of times on the show That if there was a protest called tomorrow around health services Very few people attending it Not the numbers that you would expect with the amount of complaints and difficulties That people have been having for years to access proper health care services in this region But look, what it seems to look like is that if Dublin, which is according to the Times Seven or eight months of a waiting list, Cork City again seven or eight months of a waiting list And your major cities, if it's not an issue, it doesn't seem to become a national issue It's okay for us out here in the sticks, having to wait the years that we have to wait But that's not good enough and we've been saying for years that it's not good enough And what we've been trying to put forward is solutions To develop the health service in a party across the island And that's where we in Donegal can access health care services at the same speed As people in Dublin and Cork and in Galway for that matter In a population of a hundred and what is it now? We're a hundred and sixty three thousand people in Donegal And this is not something I feel by the way But I just wonder if it comes down to the thinking with a population of our size Which would be a you know, it's even if you took it as a city, it wouldn't be a huge city Do you think they think that we can't expect everything that Dublin has because of its population? In other words, even though this huge waiting list, even though the hospital is wedged In terms of the level of cases that's required to hire a certain type of staff Do you think our expectations to have a Dublin style hospital in the middle of a rural county Of a hundred and sixty odd thousand people Is it a realistic expectation under any government for that matter like? No, look, I don't think so, but it's how we look at health care services Look, we have a here in the Northwest City region, a region that we're developing in every other aspect of life Whether it be business, whether it be the councilor be around housing planning and all of that Why come in that look at Donegal and in that context of the Northwest City region Where you will have a three hundred and fifty thousand of a catchment area of people living in that area And you can then house that type of hospital within that area that will meet all the needs of the people in that Northwest City region Because the people of Derry and Straban and Castle Derry are facing the same difficulties Of having to travel outside the rural county to get services I was talking to a brother of mine yesterday who lives in Derry and is getting treatment in the operation in Naven So, it's how we look at our health services, how we look about delivering services Not just health, but every other kind of services And the Northwest City region is just an area that could be put together Already we have the local councils all working together, the health service, the extent our education facilities are working together And a glove of one another Why can we not look at this region in that context? Do we know what the appetite for an arrangement like that is in the North? I mean as much as we can with the executive not being up and running But would there be any resistance to that? I mean it seems that it would seem a no-brainer Well, we have the cancer services already and there is already an arrangement already But I mean even almost like it being seen as a campus, a Northwest campus Whereby it is a really organised orchestrated, complete interaction with one another to mutual benefit Do you know like, if that's the solution we just need to accelerate it then if the will is there Yeah and look, there is discussions ongoing and you know, we have the medical school in McGee And the whole thing behind that is the provide doctors and consultants That would stay in this area and would facilitate that health care service that's needed So there is still stuff already happening but at the higher level you're right, the high governments need to invest in it Make it a policy and say, look, we need to establish this Okay, listen, thanks for your time this morning, I really appreciate it Okay, that's Councillor Jerry McMunnigal who is chair of the HSC West Regional Health Forum Right, a reminder for you of our competition running for you this week Thanks to our friends at SpexSaver's hearing SpexSaver's hearing, they're very aware of all the fun people missed out over the last couple of years And this week SpexSaver's hearing is helping to bring back some of the sounds you missed most like concerts So if the 60s and 70s songs evoke memories of your heyday then we've got something to take you down memory lane this week Thanks to SpexSaver's, we're offering you the chance to win Take us to Christie Moore live in Donegal this September plus a 400 euro voucher for the Great Northern Hotel SpexSaver's hearing have expert audiologists available in your local SpexSaver store If you're concerned about your hearing you can book a free hearing test using your PSRI entitlements And SpexSaver's hearing will arrange your hearing aid uniquely tailored to you RT's and C's for this competition are on our website It's the kind of thing going to see your audiologist that some of us put off And it can change your life drastically if you go get your hearing looked at And if you need some assistance you get some Right so we're going to ask you to identify a year I'm going to play now a bit of a song, a bit of a film and a bit of a news story from a particular year It's short but that's to make it fun and I'll play it a number of times throughout the course of the day So you get an opportunity to hear it So what you have to do is identify the year, text the year plus your name and where you're from to 08 660 25000 So what year are we talking about here? Alright there's a bit of a film quote there There's a bit of a news story and there's a bit of a song What is the year? And I'll play it again later by the way So text the year, your name, where you're from to 08 660 25000 You could win those tickets to see Christy Moore and a 400 euro voucher for the Great Northern Hotel Alright we'll be back with more on the Ninetal Noon Show after the news and obituary notices The Ninetal Noon Show with Letter Kenny Credit Union Student loans now available and free banking for students from your local and friendly credit union Call 9102126 or email loans at letterkennycu.ie The Legends are coming The Legends of Golf are coming The countdown is on, yes there are only a number of days to the start of the Irish Legends Presented by the McGinley Foundation, the event takes place at Rosapena Hotel and Golf Resort Tuesday the 16th their fairways will be filled with celebrities from the world of sport and entertainment And Thursday the 18th is the start of the professional competition Witness some of the greats of the game including Ryder Cup captains major winners Check into the links of Rosapena over three days, will it be up to the challenge? Tickets now on sale at LegendsTour.com, Irish Legends presented by the McGinley Foundation In 2018, Toyota cut through the confusion, completely ceasing production of diesel passenger cars Lowering harmful emissions and providing certainty for Irish drivers everywhere And Kelly's Toyota, proud to be part of that hybrid electric journey Visit Kelly's Toyota, letter Kenny or Mount Charles today to see what makes Toyota Ireland's best-selling car brand in 2021 and 2022 You'll never take a wrong turn with Toyota, built for a better world Best-selling claim based on most recent monthly figures Does your little one have a jam-packed schedule? Kit them out at Dunstores with a uniform that can keep up Get joggers that will survive pee on the muddy pitches from just five euro And sweatshirts that will breeze through messy art projects from just three euro seventy-five Pick up a comfy cotton-rich jumper from just eight euro And packs of play-proof polos from just three euro Back to school at Dunstores for little ones with big schedules Shop in-store or online now at Dunstores.com Terms and conditions apply Flemming doors, not flamin' doors, you know, garage doors, Agri doors, insulated doors, milking parlor doors Flemming, providing engineering solutions since 1860 Flemming, 9148234 Live on air, online and on the Highland Radio app This is Highland Radio News Good morning, it's 10 o'clock, Donald Kavanaugh at the Highland Radio News Task The HSC should delegate authority to someone with overall accountability to manage hospital waiting lists around the country That's the view of the Irish Patients Association which has just published the details of its July figure study that her Kenny University Hospital had the worst rating in the country in terms of waiting times for last month Stephen McMahan of the IPA says it is a very serious situation Letter Kenny being the worst performer for the month of July where patients in the Letter Kenny area would be waiting 11.7 months to see a consultant are nine and a half months to have their operation which gives you a total of 21 months This is a huge length of time when you compare it to some other hospitals Sipto says it's willing to be flexible in upcoming public sector pay talks with the government it comes as the public expenditure Minister Michael McGraw says he's prepared to make an improved offer to unions ahead of the next budget previous talks had broken down without agreement with unions looking for pay rises to combat inflation with Sipto's Deputy General Secretary John King says it's great that the minister is talking to the media but he says the minister must communicate any offers to them That is not being said to us directly so it's a welcome piece of commentary it has yet to play itself out in talks with the Public Services Committee and we're anxious that those talks if they're to reconvene would do so at an early date A report has found the Western Investment Fund which was established in 2002 which generated a return of almost two and a half times its original value an independent analysis of the socio-economic impact of the fund which is administered by the Western Development Commission provided Ireland's economy with a 3.3 billion euro boost having started with almost 32 million the fund is now valued at 73 million euro and it's been self-financing since 2010 Investment Manager Gillian Buckley says 20 Donegal projects have been supported by the fund and it's made a very real difference We support very early stage start-ups and also community sectors and in Donegal we have companies like Count and Lamb and Donegal Town Shleeve, Lee, Quiskey, Decillary and Serebra and a fintech company and our DRA the issue was just recently we've just recently invested in Letter Kenny we also support community projects across the region everything from connected hubs to childcare and social care and community centres Penalties for dogfouling are not being strictly enforced in some parts of the country Galway City Council and two Dublin local authorities failed to issue any fines to pet owners in 2021 Donegal County Council was one of nine which the NCBI says did not provide them with any figures 1,200 new beds are being made available for students returning to full-time education the first round of CAO offers kept coming out in September with thousands not knowing where they live Higher Education Minister Simon Harris says while the new beds are welcome he concedes it's not enough and he has long-term plans to alleviate the problem As the new college year begins we have about 1,200 more student beds this year than last year so we are significantly seeing year on year more beds being put in to student accommodation and that's a good thing but we've also got to be honest and blunt with people that that in and of itself isn't enough and just before the summer recess I got approval from the Cabinet Committee on Housing to put in place a new policy and this policy will basically see assisting with the cost of building a college-owned affordable accommodation The Hardware Association of Ireland is calling for vacant homes to be included in the government's help-to-buy scheme that was an issue raised at a recent conference on dereliction in letter Kenny they believe 34,000 of the country's 167,070 homes could be renovated at a reasonable price they're looking for budgetary measures including a 6% vacant property tax and zero interest loans of 60,000 euro for renovations CEO Martin Markey also says landlords should be given tax incentives for bringing properties back into use We're looking at the other stakeholders those who actually own the vacant properties at the moment so they can avail of the current repair and lease scheme which is a zero interest loan but also looking at a tax incentive for them if they rent out the property for five years so they pay very little they pay less tax than the property over five years of the rent By the forecast, Anne met here in Telus it will be fresh and mainly dry today some isolated showers a number of those showers will be heavy and thundery we'll also see some intermittent sunny spells top temperatures today closer to normal ranging 15 to 17 degrees celsius light to moderate northerly winds increasing fresh to strong along coasts and that's Highland Radio News we're back with news headlines again at 11 o'clock The Abage notices for this Monday morning the 15th of August The death has taken place of Neil Havelin Castle Cary, Red Castle His remains are opposing at his home funeral from there tomorrow afternoon at 20 past 12 for 1 o'clock Requiem Mass in St Columbus Church Drung followed by burial in the adjoining graveyard Neil's funeral mass can be viewed live on StColumbusChurchDrung.com The death has taken place of Sean Liddy, Oxfield Road Drum Cliff County Sligo late of Turin, Spansell Hill County Clare reposing at his home in Drum Cliff from 4 o'clock to 7 o'clock this evening House Private Police at all other times Mass of the resurrection at half past 11 tomorrow morning in St Column Kills Church Rathcormac County Sligo with burial afterwards in Rathcormac Cemetery funeral mass will be live streamed on churchservices.tv Family Fires Only Please Donations in Louis of Desire to the Coronary Care Unit Sligo University Hospital care of Sean Feeley's funeral home Sligo The death has taken place at her home of Annie McNulty name Murray Al Taskin St Johnson Her remains are opposing at her late residence funeral from there tomorrow morning at 4 past 10 for funeral mass at 11 o'clock in St Baton's Church St Johnson with burial afterwards in the Adjoining Cemetery Family Fires Only Please Donations of Desire to the Donegal Hospice Care of Terence Patlentuck funeral director or Annie Family Member Family Time Only Please on the morning of the funeral The death has taken place of Tanya McCafferty, Ne Gill Church Hill Letter Kenny funeral mass in St Column Kills Church Dandone at 11 o'clock this morning followed by private cremation funeral mass can be viewed on ChurchServices.tv Family Fires Only Please Donations to the Irish Cancer Society Care of Annie Family Member The death has taken place of Mary Tully, Ne Logan Drum Sligo, Wood Top Cardona funeral from her home this morning at 4 past 10 to the Church of the Sacred Heart Cardona for 11 o'clock Requiem Mass with interment afterwards in the Adjoining Cemetery Family Fires Only Please Donations in Louis of Desire to the Hematology Ward Letter Kenny University Hospital Care of Annie Family Member Family Time Only Please Donations to the Irish Cancer Society Care of Terence Patlentuck funeral mass can be viewed on ChurchServices.tv Family Fires Only Please Donations in Louis of Desire to the Hematology Ward Letter Kenny University Hospital Care of Annie Family Member Family Time Please this morning For more details including Annie Family Health guidelines for wakes and funerals, please go to HighlandRadio.com If that sounds good, so will this. Save up to 300 Euro off your car insurance cover when you buy online at libertyinsurance.ie That's based on a 25% discount for new policies. Up to 300 Euro off your car insurance, that's money for living. That's liberty, future proof. Subjects to a minimum premium and applied before optional covers. Acceptance criteria, terms and conditions apply. Liberty Sigouris Company de Sigouris area, Sigouris SA Trading as Liberty Insurance is authorised by the General Directorate of Insurance and Pensions Funds in Spain and is regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland for conduct of business rules. And you welcome back to the programme now. Would you like to win 2,500 Euro from John Breslin coming Friday? Because the Highland Radio summer mega cash draw continues this week. We were delighted on Friday to give one lucky listener from Ruffo 2,500 Euro. He was thinking of taking his better half to Sligo for a bit of a break. He was also thinking about getting a new car and this was just enough money maybe to sway his decision in that regard and it was wonderful to be able to give that amount of money away. So you have until Friday around about 11 o'clock to join Brian as a winner and if you want to get your tickets for the draw it's simple as I say it's 2,500 Euro cash this coming Friday so you can get your tickets now. If you do you'll also be in a draw on the 26th and the 22nd for another 2,500 on both days and then also you'll be in the draw for the 10,000 cash giveaway. Brian's back in the draw drum for that as well. So if you have a tenner to spare and it's well within your means then get in contact with us via our website, HighlandRadio.com and you can book your ticket there it's for a tenner. You can get if you spend 50 you get 6 tickets if you spend 80 you get 10 tickets and a lot of people were buying them and giving them as early gifts for different reasons and different occasions or just to give them out through the family. So get in touch with us right now too. If you can't use the internet you can call us 07491 25,000 buy your ticket for 10 euro and then you can sit back and relax in the knowledge that you're in the draw this week for two and a half grand the following week two and a half grand and on that same day 10,000 euro sorry and two and a half grand so there's 12,500 be given away on the 2nd of September. So get in touch with us now HighlandRadio.com you'll see the link there by your ticket or contact us if you wish if you don't use the internet 07491 25,000 and we will sort you out and John Breslin on Friday will be given one of you two and a half thousand euro and while we're talking about competition it's just another reminder for you that each day we're going to play you a snippet from a hit from the 60s or 70s along with a piece of movie and news we're inviting you to let us know the year in which three came from all you need to do is tell us the answer along with your contact details we'll pick a daily winner from all the correct answers we'll receive then we'll put five names in the hat on Friday and out will come a winner who will win tickets to see Christy Moore live in Donegal this September plus a 400 euro voucher for the Great Northern Hotel in Bondoren okay and it's all thanks to our friends at Specs Savers hearing okay here's the we clip tell us what the year these these events came from that's one small step get it again on my nerves who are those guys alright and it's just a regular text message to 08 660 25000 and you can give us the answer your name and where you're from one of you will be drawn out later you'll go into the hat for that bumper prize on Friday good luck if you're playing the bingo today it's time for NCBI bingo on Highland Radio it's Monday the 15th of August you're playing on the green sheet the reference number is s1 it's game number 33 the numbers are 33 67 86 14 37 7 57 30 25 and finally 54 phone your claim to 9104833 before 8 tonight leaving your name contact number and the name of the shop where you purchased your book and we'll call you back the next working day get all your NCBI bingo information at HighlandRadio.com for all occasions visit letterkennycu.ie bingo every Monday night at Halfway House bingo burn foot doors open 730 with eyes down at 830 2500 euro must go the snowball is now 6100 euro on 45 numbers or less if you're not in you can't win that's Halfway House bingo tonight at 830 Irish Sun doesn't really count right look we all deserve a bit of Sun skin cancer is the most common cancer in Ireland so whether you're at home or abroad protect your skin by following these sun smart steps slip into long loose clothes slap on the sunscreen slap on a sun hat seek shade yeah even on the cloudy days oh and slide on the sunglasses I do have very funky sunglasses and I do love this hat be Sun smart from the HSE and Healthy Ireland this Tuesday night at Loogs of Cranford there's the final big band night of the summer with dancing to Jimmy Buckley and his band that's big band dancing this Tuesday night at Loogs of Cranford with Jimmy Buckley and his band for all your training needs Northwest Forestry Services training department Bali buffet offer a wide range of courses from training bodies such as NPTC City and Gills QQI, Landra and ABA international courses include all land based services such as Chainsaw, Tree Climbing and Rescue Pesticides, Working in Heights and ATV training. Other courses offered include First Aid Responder, Manual Handling and Building Safety to name but a few. For a full list of training courses and availability contact Northwest Forestry Services Bali Buffet on 0749132033 The Kildar Affair makes a welcome return this weekend at McCarrie's bar Don Fanehe. Enjoy Bingo Local on Thursday night. All folked up on Friday the Whistling Doggies on Saturday with Gary Oak and the High Flying Patties on Sunday. All happening this weekend at the Kildar Affair. This ad is sponsored by Collision Assist the Northwest's leading accident management and crash repair company. OK, I'm hoping I'm joined on the programme by Lorna Fitzpatrick, Advocy and Engagement Manager with the NCBI. Can you hear me Lorna? No, unfortunately we're just having some slight audio issues there. We'll get to Lorna in a moment. In the meantime what I'll do is I'll read some of your messages which are coming into us. Morning, Greg. I hope you and your listeners will know the answer to this question. We're heading to Spain on Friday and flying out of Belfast to Malaga D's. Is that it? Do your listeners sorry, it's Malaga. Malaga and Doz is joined together. Sorry. We're flying out of Belfast to Malaga. I will read anything if it's put in front of me. Does your listeners know if you require a 48 hour COVID test done or is a vaccination or recovery enough as entry into Spain? Well, here's the answer to you. If you're travelling to Spain from the UK, which for the purpose of this conversation, it applies your vaccination status must meet the Spanish authorities validity period requirements. So if you're fully vaccinated, you can also get in with a negative COVID test, either a PCR taken within 72 hours prior to departure or an antigen test taking 24 hours prior to departure. You have recovered from COVID-19 in the last six months and you can use a medical cert or recovery record to prove your COVID-19 status on entry to Spain. These requirements do not apply to children under 12 years of age. Okay, so those are the rules. If you're fully vaccinated and travelling from the UK to you can enter Spain your vaccination status must meet the Spanish authorities validity period requirements. If you have received a booster you're considered fully vaccinated for entry to Spain. As soon as you receive your booster, you're considered fully vaccinated with immediate effect. There's no current expiry date for booster jabs. So you do require a booster according to the official website there. So hopefully I haven't confused anything further and you get that works for you there and that information works for you. The issue within the HSE is accountability says this caller. Until we get this nothing will change. Until someone's job is on the line we will see no change. Look it out in the Galvan hospital next door to us. It's run a lot more efficiently. Another look at the private hospitals. If they don't perform the management are gone simply because it's run like a business and there's no waste hospitals in Ireland are run like an endless pit of money and I can understand where you're coming from there. Right. Yo, I've got the nod from Lorna which is all good. Lorna fits Patrick advocacy and engagement manager at the NCBI. A very good morning to you Lorna. Good morning. Thanks for having me. It's great to have you with us. Okay, right. We're going to be speaking about a new initiative I suppose a new campaign called clear our paths. Now before we get to that we're a bit light on data for it on the goal aren't we. There was a website established where members of the public could sort of have their say as to whether they've come across issues in Donegal. There was no figures provided for Donegal but I can assure you and I'm sure you know already Lorna there are significant problems on our highways and byways in Donegal as there is in every other county. So I suppose what kind of reports were you getting across the country from people who took part in the survey? Yeah, so I suppose the first thing I suppose to say is that we get reports from people who are blind or vision impaired continuously across the board in a variety of different counties I don't think anywhere and wouldn't have some form of issue or concern in relation to dogfiling in particular but the figures that we actually are reporting as part of the campaign are figures that were provided by the local authorities or in some instances such as Donegal where they didn't actually provide us with any data and so we contacted them quite a bit over the last number of weeks and months to try and get this data and unfortunately some were not in a position to share that with us. So I've jumped the gun a little bit here this web portal is only being open now is it? So the website that we've created is actually there to support people to start to have some conversations around these temporary obstacles so the Clear Our Path campaign is aimed at kind of educating and raising awareness about the impact that temporary obstacles can have on people who are blind or vision impaired and those temporary obstacles kind of range with everything from cars parked on footpaths to dogfiling to overhanging branches or wheelie bins and street furniture. Maybe that isn't placed in the most accessible way particularly as a result of COVID we obviously see an awful lot more of outdoor dining. So today we've launched a web page with I suppose some hints and tips for people on how to have some of these conversations with friends and family and within their own community about the impact of these temporary obstacles because in reality an awful lot of them can actually be removed or prevented based on our own behaviour and so we're trying to educate people and encourage people to be more proactive I suppose in their day to day lives whether it's picking up after their own dogs or whether it's you know I think there's very few towns across the country where somebody hasn't pulled up on a footpath to run into a shop for just a minute to just grab one thing but the impact of that for somebody who's blind or vision impaired means they're actually pushed out onto the road which is a significant risk and danger I suppose. Let's start with the dog furling because you know people who aren't visually impaired they will give out about that so just imagine you're walking down the path you in your eye line you see dog poo you step to one side right and you go about your business and you go that's absolutely disgraceful that is. Now what we have to do is put ourselves in a position of someone with sight loss they step into it right so you know imagine what that you're not you're maybe you're away from your car you're away from your home whatever or if you're using a stick that it goes on to the stick right so just imagine that imagine the smell as you break the skin of it I'm not I don't want to be crude here but I just want us all to imagine exactly what we're talking about so you're out and you're exercising your independence which is fantastic and then you have to deal with stuff on your shoe or stuff on your cane or whatever it might be and how that would impact a simple walk compared to someone who isn't visually impaired that can just take a step or whatever and I think it's important that sometimes we put ourselves in that position those of us this doesn't affect and understand what that would mean and how that might pee you off and how completely avoidable it is because all we have to do is clean up after our pets. Yes that's it and like for somebody who has a cane as you say they're walking along a full path whatever it is the cane goes into the dog fairly and they may not even be aware and so it's only when they fold the cane up and then all of a sudden it's on people's hands and you know at best it's on hygienic but at worst it's dangerous you know there's health implications that can come from it and apologies to some listeners who might but we have to be descriptive about this because this is people's lived experience and you know we can't sugarcoat it as if it's a big deal. Another problem we seem to have here and I don't know if it's if it's a council issue or if it's private residence or lack of enforcement is hedges and overhangs on our footpaths some of the footpaths their size is reduced to down like a slither do you know what I mean where you have to almost step off the path now again if you have your vision you will see that you'll tilt your head you'll be a bit annoyed by it you potentially could get this in your face if you're working with your assistance dog or again with a cane or however you might get around so that's something I think I don't know if it's land private landowners or the council or enforcement but it's a big problem at the moment because I'm getting photos sent to me all the time yeah it is and I suppose it's an issue that spans across all of those people I think really you know some of the properties will be council properties whether it's public fair affairs or whatever it may be others are private owners with maybe a hedge or a tree or whatever it is in front garden and again a lot of this is down to maybe just not being aware it's not that people are proactively taking or putting obstacles in people's way that you know that doesn't tend to be the case it really is just down to lack of awareness or lack of knowledge around it so we're hoping by having this campaign and raising awareness that people will think oh well actually I should go out and cut that hedge or I can take down that low hanging branch and so that it wouldn't cause that obstacle for people because again at best it can be it can be embarrassing but at worst it can cause an injury whether it put somebody's face or eye or whatever exactly imagine a sharp end of a branch going straight into your eye and you completely, not completely but you're not aware it's about to happen what impact that could have in terms of infection or a bit of stick in there or whatever it might be I know this is not necessarily all covered by the campaign but I just want to get it out there whilst we have you because what emerged out through a listener recently too you see we asked the public to do there a bit we asked business owners to do a bit but many of the traffic lights in in in letter Kenny and other towns don't have any audio assistance right so we were sort of hoping maybe to reach out to businesses here or or the public and yet the local authority or the council or the TII or whomever is responsible we have sets of traffic lights with no audio assistance in the biggest town in Donegal and other towns as well I mean it doesn't make any sense to me it's a it's a massive issue right across the country and we have local advocacy networks in NCBI and based right across the country we're dealing with those kind of issues that are local issues that impact on local people and we're actually coming to to Donegal excuse me to letter Kenny to the public library on the 8th of September and encourage anybody who's blind or vision impaired or people who wish to support people who are blind or vision impaired to come along and you can find out more details about that on our on our website as I said the 8th of September in the public library in letter Kenny and and it'll be running from 11 till 3 but you can register on the NCBI website but the lack of audio signals is a massive issue that affects people because again it takes from somebody's independence to be able to cross the road and by themselves without requiring any additional assistance it is regarded as best practice to have those audio signals in place but unfortunately that isn't the case across the board and sometimes the the reasons we get back around and you know outdated systems or you know it's in the plan or whatever that may be and you get involved in other authorities to be proactive. They're fobbing you off it's probably a standard reply to kick the can down the road until they get another contact about the issue it's a disgrace in my view. It does require an awful lot of people reaching out and trying to make similar requests time and time again and that does seem to be how we achieve change and but it does take some time and it is frustrating absolutely. You know and whoever's responsible if they contact us and say this is what we're doing and this is when we hope to have it done we'll shout that from the rooftops here as well it's not about exposing problems but we'll also celebrate success as well and say right okay we you know we've all worked together here and there's something we can achieve right I'm throwing everything at your Clear Our Paths campaign right so I'm going to shut up for a wee while I can't promise how long and just you get the key points of this campaign out and who it's who you're trying to reach and what maybe we can do. Well I suppose we're trying to reach everybody and one of the key messages that we're trying to get through from the website from the new webpage that we've developed is that we can all be active by standards that you know we can all be proactive in ensuring that we have safe streets for people who are blind or vision impaired but also people with other access issues you know it can be wheelchair users or even parents with prams you know it can be an issue there too and what we're saying is that we can have these conversations now we don't have to wait for an action to take place for somebody not to pick up after their dog or for somebody after they've parked on a full path to have these conversations we could have those conversations today and be more proactive around it so log on to the NCBI website www.ncbi.ie and the tips and hints around how to have these conversations are there and do that this evening over a cup of tea or do it this morning over a cup of tea over the wall with your neighbour or when you're out for a walk and you're chatting to a friend down the street have those conversations now which means that we can be proactive in preventing some of these temporary obstacles rather than having to react to them. Yeah I just wonder have we gone backwards a little bit in terms of street furniture and you know sandwich boards you know it was all gloves off during COVID and we understand that because business had to be given every assistance to survive and to market and what not but you know a lot of stuff that was temporary has kind of become permanent so maybe business owners just go out and you know walk 50 yards in someone else's shoes and see if you can rearrange things to make it you know safer. And NCBI is always happy to engage with any business owner any community group to offer assistance and guidance and how to ensure that their business or premises is accessible be it the streetscape or be it the actual business in and of itself and always happy to do that and you're right that after COVID we have seen an increase in street furniture so there is a responsibility on business owners to ensure that that streetscape is accessible but also on customers and one thing that comes through to us all the time is where somebody sits down puts their bags to the side of the chair and then they fall over and that's automatically a trip hazard so instead of leaving them to the side of the chair put them under the chair or under the table so they're out of the way of the streetscape as well and so there's a responsibility on all of us to be as proactive as possible. Okay, Lorna it's been lovely speaking to you do you want to give us that website I'm sure you've mentioned it just to make sure people know where to go. Absolutely www.ncbi.ie and it's on the homepage there so you'll find it very quickly. Okay, thanks for your time today. Thank you. Take care of yourself, bye bye. That's Lorna Fitzpatrick, advocacy and engagement manager at NCBI. Okay what is the year? Listen to this, what year did all this happen in? That's one small step for men one giant leap for mankind. I'm beginning to get on my nerves who are those guys? Okay, I suppose you could say we're reeling in your ears with our friends at Specs Savers Hearing. If you recognize that year, whatsapp or text 08 660 25,000 with your with the answer of course you name and where you're from you will be one of you will be drawn out of the hat today we'll throw a highland radio goody bag in your direction but you'll go into the main draw on Friday for your chance to go and see Christy Moore live in Donegal this September plus a 400 Euro voucher for the great Northern hotels. One of you is going to win that great prize, I wish it were I but anyway Is your current car ready for change? If so now is a good time to visit DMG Motors Donegal Town Choose from their school to range including the Fabia, Scala, Superb, Carock, Kodiak, Kamek, Octavia and the all new electric Enyaq. Now available for delivery. All fitted with the latest technology, Skoda Connect with a whole new range of simply clever features DMG Motors have made buying a new car affordable with finance available on all new vehicles Test drive the new Skoda today Call 9721396 Skoda made for Donegal Back to school at Brian McCormick Sports & Leisure Triple black footwear available in junior, women's and men's sizes from Vans and Adidas Match it up with a backpack and tracksuit bottoms ideal for back to school from Nike, Adidas, Vans and Under Armour Look the part, play the part in store, online, mobile Click and collect on bmcsports.ie The foundation returns to Rossapena Hotel and Golf Resort from the 16th to the 20th of August Pylon Radio will be broadcasting from the event all week. Our coverage comes to you in association with Voices Centra Carry Garten Downings. Stay local support local, shop local Forward Emphasis International based in Mall and Head are recruiting for their customer service teams with both in-office and hybrid opportunities available Experience in contact centres or insurance services is desirable as full training will be provided Insurance qualifications available with bursary and study support also provided please visit their website www.forwardemphasis.ie and apply via their careers page Very exciting of course a fantastic event taking place at the Rossapena Hotel & Golf Golf Resort this week We have some of the biggest names in sport and show business in Tuesday's Celebrity Series event at the famous old Tom Morris link. Daniel O'Donnell will be joined by Boys Life members to represent the music world at the event and we are joined on the program now I believe by Brian McFadden, formerly of West Life or of West Life, sorry Brian, good morning to you. Good morning, how are you? I'm doing fantastic. That gets confusing for us now as well when we do interviews myself and Keith Brian, formerly of West Life, Keith formerly of Boys Life, still kind of been Boys on in Boys Life I think we got confused at this stage People think golf is complicated Come here How many of these type events do you get involved in? I'd say it's brilliant fun to be part of it That's incredible. Keith and I have been involved from the very beginning of the Legends series and the Celebrity Series as part of that It's great crack We've done the European tour once for years but the Legends event is a different level altogether because it's all the older players The players that we were growing up in the 90s, these were the superstars and any ones that still have to crack You go to these European tour events now and they're great to watch but these players are so serious now and they're walking around with their trackman and their fruit juices and you never see one of them in the bar whereas you go to the bar and choose the night after the program for the Legends event and you see that the parks, the beginnings the Sam Tarns of the world sitting around telling stories still having fun and enjoying it There's a lot of fun in these events, we've loved it Keith, are you with us? You can hear us okay, can you? I can hear you loud and clear 100% It's good to have you with us We were hearing from Brian there how much he enjoys these type of events It's going to be great having you up in Michael, what are you looking forward to Keith? I'm looking forward to Rossipena I've never played Rossipena and this old tour this old tour's final last year happened in Mauritius where I qualified over in Formby and I went down to Mauritius and I went down to win the whole Celebrity Series that's run in conjunction with the Legends Tour So all of us all of us kind of entertainers our people that are coming up to play in the program we have an opportunity if we win in Rossipena to go out to play in the finals in the Seychelles in November So there's a great incentive for everybody that's playing in this to play your best to play well Luckily for me, I don't have to qualify because I won in Mauritius last year I'm being brought back to defend my title So Brian will be on the lot more fresh tomorrow I wanted no pressure because I get to go with your caddy either way, so I don't mind Keith, it sounds like you're going to be I'm always excited about I'm excited to be allowed to play in Rossipena because my family is off in Creasley and obviously growing up the only place we got to play golf was with little part 3 in Creasley and we were never allowed near Rossipena golf club They've got a mat for you Brian Did you not hear that, no? We mat for you to put on the fact So I don't take up anything Keith, it sounds like you're just on the brink of a call up from Liv Golf Listen, if I get that call, I'm gone Forget about the implications I'll go Brian, what was going to say to you was it is Anytime you play golf, it doesn't matter and this is why it's a great sport, it's a great level or it doesn't matter if it's some fella that just happens to turn up on the first T-Box as you and you need someone guys and girls that go out on a Saturday this type of competition or even at the highest level it is just all about you know, having a bit of fun of course but it's ultra competitive too Do you approach it like that even though you might say it's a bit of fun at the end of the day, you know, bragging rights and all the rest but you'd love to get one over on Keith I'm sure Absolutely and it's the greatest sport in the world I think that as you said, it's got a great level with the handicap system because you can play against the best player in the world and you know, if you both go out and play your best you could actually beat that person with your handicap so, you know, I play football all my life and stuff like that but you'd always have to kind of at this stage now you've got to play with another couple of 40 year olds with a bad back and two bad legs whereas with golf, you know, I could play with my daughter or I could play with my dad or I could play with Keith it doesn't really matter, we're all different levels and different skills but we can still go out and have a good competitive match you know, me and Keith have been very lucky over the last, you know, six or seven years since we've been doing boys we've been invited to so many of these incredible events like the Legends event bringing us over to Mauritius for the Grand Final last year you know, Gary Player brings us over to the South Africa every year to play in his golf event we've got to travel all over the world and it's a great social thing and we've been so lucky that golf has got to take us to so many amazing places, meet so many amazing people and you know, I would say to any young people out there that are trying to figure out what sport they want to take up I would highly advise them to take up golf because you know, there's so many different things that come out of golf, not just from travelling the world but you know, the amount of deals and stuff that get done on golf courses and people get jobs and it's such it's such a brilliant game and you know, we're looking forward to travelling up today and playing tomorrow and I think it's very nice particularly to the a lot of the courses here in Donegal, it's accessible you know, for young people there are great deals for families and stuff it may have had a reputation in the past of being sort of an elitist sport and you see what's going on in France at the moment where it may be it's still held in that regard, I don't know but here it's not, everyone plays with everyone and the courses do their best to try to make it accessible Well it is now, it wasn't always like that No, that's what I'm saying, yeah I know from growing up as a kid in Dublin there was only a couple of public golf courses that we could really play unless you came from Muni and could join a golf club you were pretty much playing in the public golf courses but that's changed now a lot of these amazing golf courses around are now letting people come in and making it affordable and making it accessible and that's really only changed over the last 20 years so you know hopefully it gets even better and better and I'm just glad that we can finally play some of these amazing golf courses that as I said growing up as kids we could never get near Yeah and this is an amazing course you're playing tomorrow Keith, I hope you're actually I hope you're right with that one Brian because you know from my memory what actually happened there was a lot of the great golf courses that had huge joining fees and then crazy green fees a year they all collapsed during the recession between 2008 and 2012 and anywhere that anybody joined paying 20 grand or 100 grand to join these courses that all went away because the golf courses nearly went bust and what actually happened the course where I joined at the time they just bought in this annual fee that was a nominal fee between maybe 800 and 1200 quid a year as opposed to paying 10 or 15 thousand I mean you remember the K Club where they had the right of cup in 2006 a fantastic golf course which is in an incredible condition I mean at one stage the membership of the K Club was over 250 grand and that's all gone now that's all completely cost and that all that all changed and stopped because of the recession of 2008 and 2012 so I just hope now that the economy seems to be more kind of safe or structured I do hope that they don't start moving back to the way that they were and pushing those prices back up again making those joining you know does it a joining fee now of 10 grand and then it's 1500 quid a year you know that's what's going to stop the kids of today being able to access these fantastic golf courses if they keep it to the way that it went because of the recession it makes it affordable for young kids coming through to play these great golf courses but you know if these clubs get greedy and push the prices back up to 100, 200 grand I mean it's going to go back to the way it was before so we just have to hope that I think that's a really good show and a really good analysis of the situation as well and I think too maybe the more open an area is you see an awful lot of that but it's true that it will be in gouge just because there's a bit of money amongst some washing about Keith firstly one other question sorry what handicap do you play off and maybe you'll talk to us a little bit about the format tomorrow Well the world index now that's been going for the last few years I mean I still think it's going to take another few years for that to level itself out I still feel you know I play with different people all the time and people are not using it appropriately you know you're supposed to be taking your casual golf scores and putting them in every time you play golf put your GUI handicap in you know you put in your golf registration number and even casual golf now you're supposed to be recording your scores and I feel a lot of people are not doing that because they don't want to mess around with their handicap you know so personally I play off 9.6 and me and the group of guys we put in our scores for every single game that we play whether it's at our home club or whether we're going to visit each other's clubs and that does give you a very good average handicap for the way that your game is played it's your best eight games out of your past 20 games but I do feel and well I know for a fact a lot of people are not putting in their scores and that world index is never going to be accurate it's never going to work properly unless everybody is abiding by the guidelines and putting in their average score even if it's not competition even if it's just friendly golf with your mates put in every round of golf I think anyone who plays golf with other people all know someone that massages the handicap a little bit that's a bit protective of it I massaged mine the wrong way around I was playing off 5, 6 months ago and I'm up to 10.3 now maybe I shouldn't have been handy at least it's going to be more reflective that you know it's a fair fight I think so talk to me about the format tomorrow because there are people lots of people have bought tickets already of course and more will be buying them today because we do everything at the last minute in this country and this country so what's the format for tomorrow well there's two events kind of there's two events going on at the same time so it's a general program so you'll have one of the professional one of the legends celebrity and then two amateurs playing together as a team so that's one team event but within that then each celebrity in the group has to play their own ball and keep their own score and basically from all those celebrities the winner tomorrow qualifies to try and be Keith in the grand final in the Seychelles so there's a couple of events going on I have to say it's great crack though because a lot of the celebrities that are there and the sports stars and stuff like that they're all good fun you're playing around the likes of Paul McGeely and some of these great legends who they still chat to everyone they still get involved they're still very entertaining and it is a good day let's just hope the rain stays off and we'll have a dry good day as well your pressure's off you Keith with having already been qualified so you'll be more crack tomorrow maybe than normal will you yeah there's no pressure on me at all but look you know what we're still very competitive and we'll have our own little game on the day so it will be important that you know that I try to play the best I can I mean the format is great because although you're playing your own ball out to the end the drive you can use the professionals drive yeah you can use the pros drive but you have to play out your own ball no we can't not in our format we can't you're forgetting we have to play our own ball tomorrow oh god okay sorry we better go and practice we drive a lot of these problems though you can use the best drive and then you play out your other ball to keep the movement going quickly but yeah Brian is right because of the celebrity series now we have to play our own ball which is fine because I'm a great driver of the ball that's not good for me I'm going to have to bring plenty of spare balls but I would like to make a donation of some lake balls I can't even but you're so well used to it at this stage though but you know I think even for those who play golf even if you play with a good player a particularly good player that you don't normally play with there's an awful lot of pressure early on in these type of events you know especially that maybe that first drive or whatever Brian I mean there is a bit of pressure because there's all this it is a very individual sport you are playing the course with eyes on you and you don't want to be that person that scuffs it yeah do you know what I don't feel any pressure because I thought myself a long time ago when I first played in the downhill links you know and it was a big crowd watching and I kind of got into my into my head I need to think of it this way everybody's expecting you to be absolutely rubbish so if you hit a bad tee shot that's what they're expecting but if you hit a good one then they're you're going to get around applause and they're going to think you're great so it's a kind of a weird weird they're expecting to be rubbish so if it's good you get away with it it's grand that's in my head for every shot that's actually something you could adapt adapt to a lot of things in life I think Keith thanks very much for joining us good luck tomorrow and I'm sure you can have a lovely time and the weather's looking good and the course is in just absolute perfect condition and there's already kind of a you know a real buzz around the area so you're going to love it of course but it's going to be great to have you up here in Donegal we're so looking forward to it and Brian has been spoiled all his life because all his family there's more McFaddens in Donegal than there is in the rest of the world anytime we're up that part of the world the hospitality is amazing because every single person in me tells us that Brian's cousin and it's all good it's a beautiful part of the world so I'm looking forward to coming up there I'm actually picking up Jim Gavin on me way and I'm bringing Jim Jim won Rossipena last year I fought for them from Mauritius by winning Rossipena last year so I'm bringing the legend that is Jim Gavin up with me now this afternoon and we'll have a nice meal with Brian and I think my son Jay's coming with me too no doubt we'll have a couple of beers in the bar and have a nice early night so we're fresh in the morning Jim's going to have to do it in front of a crowd this year though we didn't do it in front of a crowd last year so we'll see if that affects his form it's a crowd this year yeah so that's it it's a great day out for everybody it's a great weekend for everybody but tomorrow's format is a great day out for everybody so we look forward to meeting everybody on the golf course tomorrow well done Keith Brian thanks so much for joining us it's been great having you on the program best of luck for the week yeah thanks a million see you later bye bye okay that's Brian McFadden formerly of Westlife Keith Duffy formerly of Boys Zone together they are Boys Life or West Zone Boys Life lovely couple of lads you can go along and watch that tomorrow by the way it's as part of this exciting festival of golf you have the chance to soak up the atmosphere of the Celebrity Series where famous names from the world of sport and entertainment will take part in their own pro-am tournament such as Steve Staunton another legend Brendan O'Carroll Keith Duffy Brian as we mentioned there Daniel O'Donnell is going to be there amateur golfers who've already been then they'll have their opportunity to play as a legend in the Allianz series under full tournament conditions while experiencing the lifestyle of professional golfer against the stunning backdrop of Donegal now spectator tickets are still available with adult season and daily ticket starting at 15 euro and 10 euro respectively you can bring the young ones along under the age of 16 for free their admittance is free to all three events tickets will be available the day and there's plenty of parking and you can just drive up to towards Karagat towards Dylings you'll see the signs there you can turn up on the day but if you want to you can also book in advance to guarantee admission tickets.legendstour.com it's a fantastic event for the entire county and you can see the crack that will be had alright we'll be back with more on the program after a piece of music okay I don't know what that is because what it's supposed to be it's listed wrong on the computer but anyway we'll crack on on the program I think we can say hello now to Martin Manoring chair of the Irish Electric Bicycle Association and co-founder of Geoco Electric Transport or GOKO I believe it is good morning Martin can you hear me okay hello Martin okay I'm not sure Martin can hear me but we're certainly joined by Connell Shovlin who owns an e-bike because that's what I'm going to be talking about now Connell good morning to you you are there good morning Greg yes here good to have you with us right you are not an early adapter maybe a midpoint adapter you've been riding an e-bike now for over three years haven't you yes it's very good as the saying goes I wonder what e-bikes wouldn't suffer before now because they're relatively simple you know and they do suit Dany Garland a lot like because of the health and they're so easy to pedal like they're not like the racing bikes you see in the road they're they're very suitable for any age group you know in relation to that how much of it is like do you still get an exercise on an e-bike how much of it is your power versus the battery power they're very they're very adaptable in that respect there's five levels of assist on it depends on what one you want to use you know but you know when you go into the steep house when you get to my age you want maybe a higher level of assist you know but even with that I mean I could go on a bike from here down low and back you know and that's pretty good like you never have to get off it you know and you can go at whatever rate you want you can go slow you can go fast and so it's as you say a surprise it wasn't sort of years ago you know I think it's the battery technology that really has changed though because you know other than the battery pack on the frame they look to all intents and purposes most of them look like a regular road bike yeah you're right there's a battery because you see power tools and everything the battery is no bigger than a standard sliced low flake on the bike and you know it'll take you that far it'll take a person you know that my wits they have 13 that'll move you from here to down low and back it's pretty good you know you could be in Burton port where is here to you well you need a second battery there like a spare wheel you know but it's you know there are people around here that are getting more popular and surprise more popular they are getting but I think the big thing is that you know where it's open now there's one in Mayo I was on it there was an ordinary bike but there's also another new one open in Olympic and one open water board that Denigro has the best probably the old navigation rail which has the best cycling lanes that could be adapted anywhere in Ireland because it's to such scenic area from from letter Kenny to Burton port well there's a bit of work being done on that it seems that certainly the Burton port to letter Kenny cycleway is going to happen stay with me Connell because Martin Manoring Irish Electric Bicycle Association joins us now Martin good morning to you I can't hear you just going to have to unmute yourself there Martin sorry the thing that's happened I think is an awful lot of emphasis from government and other organizations to talk about electric cars electric cars and yes there is an uptake now not as quick as people might like but it's there but what's been happening also is people themselves and through word of mouth I think have caught on to e-bikes and e-bike sales globally are absolutely huge at the moment I think Martin that's people are making their own choice and a lot of them where they can are switching to the e-bike well yeah I mean you know the e-bike thing isn't new I mean the first e-bikes were developed in 1942 so there's around a long long time that's also the argument for e-cars as well they've been around since the early 70s but the one thing that has happened I think you know public opinion is an awful you know there's a big following with public opinion when it comes around and it's an awful thing when it comes to industry because most people tend to do what most people tend to do you know it's a strange thing and I've been working away I mean it was 27 years ago when I was at the plowing championship selling electric bikes in Ireland I was listening to your call there it's very interesting because the sides of the e-bikes they look like normal bicycles now well they look like hunter 50s then and they had 55 kilo batteries like the lead battery in your car you know so there was always the sort of you know the the enthusiast or the person that needed an electric bike but what's really interesting now is I sit the Irish Electric Bike Association up 11 years ago and now of course you're getting the government that are starting to feed of this and the Greenway has asked that to happen but it's because the people want this and once people want something then the government all of a sudden it's a very topical thing for them to get involved with cost-wise it's an interesting one because even for an non-electric bike you can pay thousands of euro you know depending on the bike e-bikes I've seen them ranging from seven or eight hundred euro upwards right but what is an inch what price is at an entry level e-bike and I think it's worth noting too that the cycle work scheme e-bikes do qualify and there is a discount there so what is a sort of a medium price for a good e-bike Martin? Okay well this is a really interesting subject and at the Bicycle Engineering Academy we've just developed the first e-bike program in the world actually it's nice to hear that we are leading an industry from Ireland and it's in bicycle mechanics education and those courses exist now here and the main reason is what we see we see a huge soon army coming very soon of sub-standard e-bikes and this is happening unfortunately I mean there is really good ones around they've been around for a long time European based built bikes normally but to answer your question if you buy an e-bike for seven, eight, nine hundred euros then you will be in trouble fairly quickly I mean a good e-bike battery to be perfectly honest is seven or eight hundred euros on its own but it will have that that long ten year I certainly have customers or clients with ten, twelve year old bikes coming in for servicing with original batteries but I do see a really large onslaught of bikes coming in to me that are only eighteen years eighteen months old and they've already got problems so you do it is buy and beware and it is you get what you pay for if something sounds too good to be true certainly two thousand euros would be the entry level for a good European bike don't get duped by the price because you do want this to be a lifestyle investment yeah okay you would agree Connell yeah my bike was around that it is a giant e-bike it is very good it is light too it is very easy to handle it is all age groups can use them it is just surprising you know how I would say it is going to go off very much in cities where roads journeys are short and they are flat you know what that means though don't you that means the government is going to have to try and make some money out of these things yeah there are so many ways to rate and tax you know it just depends Martin what is your view I was going to comment on that now because the transport committee are finally starting to recognize us as a body and professionals in this field we were a bit of a joke before but now it is starting to become a very important thing there is a law there is an electric bicycle law and I do now unfortunately for others but fortunately for Ireland I now work as an expert witness too in legal cases when there is accidents involving e-bikes and there is a law it is called 19154 to EN directive we do tend to have to abide by the law if you want to be there so when the law exists it would be fairly reckless I think by the Irish government even though they might want to to step outside of that so an electric bike is a bicycle under law when it falls into the category of the specifications of course above those specifications it is called a motorcycle and then it will abide by the law Colonel Shofland thank you so much for your time happy cycling I will be a minute late to the news because people texting me because I mentioned the cycle to work scheme you are familiar with that of course Martin so can we use a 2,000 euro bike for example and if someone is at work and their company does the cycle to work scheme there is no actual outlay for the person at all themselves as far as I am aware the bike and any extra safety gear is included in the scheme it works very simply I will be quick because I know you want to get to the news the new rules are 1,250 euros tax free so you don't get taxed on that money to buy a bike anything above that you contribute it is 1,500 euros for electric so you have to foot the bill above and beyond 1,500 euros but up to that you can for once get yourself some tax free money out gross out of your income so the government can't touch that 1,500 euros before it goes into your pocket so what kind of a discount do you get the 2,000 euro bike for that scheme well if you are on the higher tax bracket you will actually save 54% of that 1,500 euros now I think it is deducted weekly or monthly from your salary thereafter so you can get on an e-bike dependent on your company if you use that scheme e-bikes are let's be clear there is no differentiation between e-bikes and bicycles or tricycles come to that thanks for your time today have a lovely day okay it is 2 minutes past 11 my apologies I just wanted to get those questions answered for our listeners it's time for news update and good morning Donald Kavanaugh thank you great good morning a report has found the western investment fund which was established in 2002 has generated a return of almost two and a half times its original value from the development commission having started with almost 32 million the fund is now worth 73 million it's been self-financing since 2010 investment manager Gillian Buckley says 20 dunigold projects have been supported by the fund and it's made a very real difference to local businesses and communities the Irish Patients Association says the HSC needs to delegate authority to someone with overall accountability for managing hospital waiting lists across the country the IPA has published figures which show that in the month of July after Kenny University Hospital had the worst waiting in the country where waiting times are concerned it took 11.7 months to see a consultant and over 21 months to see a consultant and have surgery Stephen McMahan of the IPA says it's a serious situation he says it's exacerbated by the fact that while we have access to figures we don't have access to the stories behind them a staffing crisis in the ambulance services poses a serious risk to its ability to deliver urgent and emergency care the HSC report which says there is a critical and immediate need to increase workforce capacity Sipdo says it is willing to be flexible in upcoming public sector pay talks with the government it comes as public expenditure minister Michael McGrath said he is prepared to make an improved offer to unions ahead of the next budget Sipdo's deputy general secretary welcomes that but he says they need to hear it directly from the government he says so far that's not been communicated to them a person is due in court after regard to their operation in Balabuffay there have been numerous reports of a car being driven dangerously in the area in a social media post after the incident Garthys said when the vehicle was located it was established the driver had neither a license nor insurance the driver was arrested on suspicion of drink driving and 500,000 euro in car funding has been announced for 10 community projects in Donegal sports clubs schools and community groups will receive grants of up to 50,000 euros to develop a wide and diverse range of community facilities outdoor cinemas, astral turf, sensory gardens hurling walls, basketball courts walkways, public toilets and community gyms and we're back with news headlines again at 12 noon OK Donegal, thank you very much indeed now we're reeling in your ears here now because each day we're going to play a snippet from a hit from the 60s or 70s along with a piece from a movie and the news we're inviting you to let us know the year in which all three came from it's in association with our friends at SpexSaver's hearing they're offering you the chance to win tickets to Christy Moore live in Donegal this September plus 400 euro voucher for the Great Northern Hotel Bundor and now SpexSaver's hearing have experts audiologists available in your local SpexSaver's store so if you've concerns about your hearing you can book a free hearing test using the PRSI entitlements and SpexSaver's hearing will arrange a hearing aid uniquely tailored to you it is one of those things some of us, maybe even particular on your gender that we put off and you want to be able to hear the world as you once had before if you have some hearing loss get along to SpexSaver's hearing and they will hook you up right okay this is a free competition for you to enter, we'll have a daily winner each receiving a Highland Radio Goody Bag all five go into the house on Friday one of you will win tickets to Christy Moore live in Donegal this September plus a 400 euro voucher for the Great Northern all you have to do is identify this year that's one small step for man one giant leap for mankind you need to get on my nerves who are those guys so we don't need the individual elements of it just the year it's free to enter on whatsapp or text 08 660 25000 give us the year, your name where you're from and thanks to SpexSaver's hearing you could win those tickets to Christy Moore and that voucher and Davani is going to be joining us in a bit looking forward to the DL Debate which is broadcast for you tonight and reflecting on the weekend sport The Ninetal News Show is brought to you by Letter Kenny Credit Union offering low-rate car loans with fast approval apply online at letterkennycu.ie or in office today Park Run has taken my run to the next level it's a good opportunity to catch up and meet friends and make new friends as well it's how I got introduced into the local running 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Body Lotion shame you can't smell it over the radio all this choice starts with Aldi every day amazing alright some of your comments have been really busy this Monday morning thanks so much for that maybe I should get a flat flat tire more often and that's always busy in fairness I heard a listener ring in last week asking about the back to school allowance I myself am waiting six weeks for it for one secondary school child is there a hold up with it time is ticking I mean I may not get what's needed for my child so anyone have an update on the back to school allowance a couple of listeners have hold ups is it individual to them is it or have any of you received it another caller says dog should not be allowed off a lead on public path areas this is the way owners avoid picking up dog poo preventing pretending they don't see it or that the dog is not with them at leaded dogs on public roads would go a long way to ensure all owners clean up the fear of being on a tube not picking up the poo and the fine lead the dogs on public roads that coming in from Eva there and I think it is important to clarify again and maybe it's one of those things that goes without saying we're talking about a minority of dog owners that would knowingly let their dog poo in a foot path and not pick it up you know it's not dog owners as a whole most dog owners certainly any dog owners I know would not be involved in that kind of activity a caller says I am a very liberal person but I've come across period videos are presumably sanitary product videos on tiktok that have shocked me knowledge is power and there's no shaming having your period but these videos are very graphic and I would even say scary if my nieces saw them they would be terrified okay well listen maybe it's something that requires further conversation keep your comments coming in on the adverts because the majority that I've texted in at the moment think that maybe some of them aren't age-appropriate or go out at the wrong times or are too graphic in their content Brendan Deveney's presenter of the DL debate he joins us right now Brendan good morning to you how are you? Good morning very best Greg Good to have you with us right you are prepping for another episode of the DL debate right all the action local all the action club level the focus this week yeah certainly we look across to our neighbours in Dairy as well mega mcmoleons coming on and we're going to look around Ulster about just see what's happening in the championship but as you said the main focus on our own championships here senior kicked off of the weekend there Greg and kicked off with not maybe the greatest of shows some per games and a couple of decent games Kelly Biggs Glenfun and St Michael's and Dave Conlon was the pick of them you know seen a couple of games and they were they weren't much outside a few mismatches weren't much outside of league fair you know so listen talking to mega mcmoleons we sent Dairy the average one in margin with 12 points right so a lot of mismatches going on there a couple of teams there's a collective of teams are just pulling away from other sides we've seen it here and Duddy Gull also so he sent the championship won't really kick off to a quarter final stage Is that just the way it's going to be Brendan that you know maybe down to population or management or organisation that you are just going to get back away club teams yeah I think from usually if you look at the top clubs now in a lot of say underage coaching or again we spoke a bit about Ireland the commitment you know if you have a team that can want a championship you know it means that everybody's going to buy in and play and be there buy in large you always get bits and pieces of maybe immigration or different things or people that'll just you know come to a certain stage in life where they're not going to but if that card's dangling it certainly would I suppose called Kiersen Unions in good words three massive ones at the weekend it was almost no contest what does that mean do you think like is that just the way it is has it always been like that because you know next thing is and I think particularly for young the young players and I don't want to upset anyone but you know if there's a lot of commitment at any level really to play for your club team what I'm trying to get up here is are we going to start seeing DNF's do you know what I mean younger players think they don't stand a chance or they're on a hiding to nothing or something is it going to be hard for even you know historically big clubs and inverted commas to have a full squad of players to field if you can't you know certainly and you know in those dark days of the league as opposed to you know or even sorry the club championship I think there's probably a change I think common with the next generation of footballers right I'm here in different stories now even talking to Phil this morning about a 17 year old so we're being put on the senior team and they up the training and few lads kind of walked away from it it's a bit scary to hear things like that I don't know is a lot of our young ones now there seems to be so much other things happening out there that years ago when you thought about you take your average team you know you trained on a couple of times during a weekend at the weekend that was your focus seems to be so much other focuses can be good on with particularly with their youth coming through now and I don't know as you say is that going to be a big thing going forward the commitment levels is so large and is it going to put some people off I think it is I think already anecdotally with soccer in this county Donegal league level now Greg you hear loads of teams aren't training much what happens what I've seen happen there is you have a cohort of good players that can move between clubs in the soccer so you might have a local club that was very good at one time a couple of good players transfer to another team half a season of getting their backsides whipped and next thing the best players move on to another team that they move we're not going to see that necessarily in GA but it does happen and you effectively have the one good team playing under a different name from season see does that make sense yeah it does how I describe it sorry I think what separate the difference in Gileague is it's all in you know you don't have like I've heard of quite a few managers at local level soccer where boys are listening I'll play for you on Sunday I might be a training one night I might not you know that's you want it are you not kidding whereas Gileague the manager demand is certain but I'm just wondering as things go up and up now is it enough to turn an odd person off it's hard to say at this point Greg but certainly because we got to probably look how we look at championship different now I mean to me what I seen at the weekend there that's not championship a lot of it isn't championship not the way it used to be what does that mean then well it used to be like blood and guts and people get stuck in and there would be a real tension and atmosphere it meant everything yeah now I know that will come I just think maybe I look everybody else got it you got to think it hold on this is group stages of the championship it's not what you call real championship because you keep on it's what have you probably the as I said there was two good games in the weekend but that was out of all the senior matches you know so when does the championship start I guess that's what I was talking to him all about in the way up here you know he reckons and dairy no one's waiting for the any fireworks the quarterfinal I mean there might be an odd thing in there you have two sides to draw you see so the outside of Neve Connell you know a lot of other sides was in the bigger sides was a one-sided draw so depending on actually killie bags this week which there must be quite a few players against Glence well he's knowing if they should struggle there they're playing on the bigger sides potentially after that so you might get an odd interesting game in there as the group stages goes on but by and large we're probably looking at the quarterfinals now whether that's good enough for some of the teams on there I'm not sure because there's a few sides that are that are in a hiding the nothing particularly when they play the bigger teams I'm just to be is there too many teams in it because there's certainly a big gap between how do you select who's in it in a in a championship if there are too many teams in it you're not about like qualifying the way the championship used to be with the home and away and there was a potential third game and then you went quarter semis of final be honest I'd be happy enough for that again because if you have one game like that one home game and you just give it your all if you go down fighting and you know whatever happens in the way leg and if you're not able you're not able in and concentrate in a league and trying to build from there I don't think these group stages in the championship work because I've seen enough now the last couple of years going to say it doesn't happen the quarters anyway when the better teams are there so it may as well be you know let people have a go in the first round whatever but let it get in those stages pretty quick it will cut out a lot of time as well Greg I'd be happy enough with the one I played in and we had a brilliant time playing it and it was proper championship and we're definitely missing that now. Right and just finally before we move on then and talk more about what's on the program would a prospective county manager have a say on this if you know what I mean in terms of like can you spot a really really really good player in a bad team through this format? Yeah it's hard to know you would need to get out and see them but again the championship level I think the club championship level at the speed it's playing at versus the county is a very different thing but by and large a player will stand out I mean there does be in all I suppose trials where different groups from the county we used to have them years ago where they come and play each other but by and large people know people in the county I think the new manager should engage with all as many games as you can and the managers around there and if you even think someone you know is worth a lot could do a job it's something that I think there would be merit in particularly with the new man coming in to have a fresh look right across it but by and large I suppose any good player coming up has probably played on their age we'd only go out and it's somewhere and should be playing well for his club that it should be pretty noticeable you know. I didn't play on their age but there was probably a few reasons I say for that you know what probably it was a good enough I think certainly but it was a minor anyway but as a good we were older I was playing a bit of soccer and everything so it's not to say everybody will fall through that there path but certainly. What was the gap for you as a younger player was it fitness then or what? Attitude? Talent. I'll admit it now before you say it. Now listen. I don't know what to have. I was born of that type of year. I know but I also know what to have a bit of a joke with someone but I ain't going to joke with you on your sports history there's not a chance of that. I was born on the 9th of December a terrible time for a GA boy you know so I wouldn't mind I can't remember anybody ever asking for my birth certificate I probably should have just bluffed it from day one I was born on the 9th of January would have been better you know but listen that's just one of those things as I say I was on a squad the year before my age group then again but by the following year I was playing a bit by Harps and that it was different then when we were growing up you were playing both and that was it. That was still controversial enough though yeah you know it was you playing both was a topic of conversation I was it I wasn't there at the time but what was been said? Well I can't remember exactly but you know I do remember being a conversation. Yeah I took this tool at the time I kind of felt a bit understructible I've had a few injuries since you know but I would have played on a Saturday night for Harps you know there and then maybe during all the Sunday which was you know probably not the thing to be at for the longevity of things like your hips and that but listen that was then I call it says young people are leaving and clubs are fading away which is sad it is possible if we slip into a recession that you know young people are but we've been through that before and the game survived you know is something different this time or is it just part of a cycle? Yeah I think there is something happening I'm hearing bits and pieces of it the only thing is that when you're playing for your GA team for your parish there's a different thing that if we're talking against say the soccer world and you know you have a lot of people and family involved in it there is a different element of it that buys everybody in my fear is say for some of those teams that aren't at the competing level that are in our championship now I mean I'm just looking at a couple of sides there from the weekend you know going back to training now and Tuesday night I don't even want to name them because they're all doing their best but Greg it must be very tough when we go back now and say right who we playing next and if they're playing and I just I don't think I don't see what the point and maybe some of that is it's wee but like the argument that's going on for ages that are all Ireland series But it's not enough then to sort of play your 150% of your capability even if it's not enough for you know parish pride you know rather than success I mean are we too success focused then I mean are we saying that I mean obviously it's a results based game on the results then you're not going to keep the well if they want to keep such a high number of championship teams there nearly almost has to be a secondary competition a few might say there's intermediate there's junior whatever but I think some of these teams are above that it's just the other teams have pulled away now you often have competitions where there's a shield or there's maybe something then for that lower group teams to actually play off and maybe one something that's what I think Greg I haven't been involved in teams for so long it must be terrible to be at a team thinking right we might want to know a couple of games this day and seeing you're there and that's the BL in the end of all your season there has to be something more to aim for I think for these sides you know actually it's interesting it's not relating to any of this it must be really tough for a good player in their parish who may feel they have to move away either for work or maybe they want to just experience life whatever it might be pressure with the way the game is so intertwined with any you know what I mean that they could feel like they're letting down the team or their mom or dad down I would say there's some young lads and girls out there who there's a great deal of pressure to stick around and play football definitely if you're needed listen if people needed you're an integral player that's tough I mean she and Walsh proposed transfer there I mean some of the outboard there was grief from a small rural club there that they were like because after his brilliant All-Ireland performance completely put him in this pedestal and then a week later he's talking about leaving and moving to Dublin because he's working in Dublin whatever so yeah that's a tough one he said it was only going to be a short term thing but that's very difficult to balance that out particularly if you are someone like him that's so outstanding up to him and the next thing he's away in that it's a balance between him trying to live his life and facilitate the club and all that that's a tough one what do you think of underage league games at the minute especially ladies in terms of I don't know that's all they ask listen the ladies obviously is getting great coverage your heart goes out to miss you you're so close to having an All-Ireland final appearance and I think the exposure that ladies is getting and the attitude of our ladies there's such a great bunch of girls everything they get involved in there's a real promotion I was saying our contributors to be on there their attitude towards promoting the game always seems so there's such a good wall with them just a nice way they feel like they're almost the custodians of the game in the future of it Moe shout out to you but no even by their attitude and this my sister obviously playing captain don't go on that but they have such a great way of trying to help the next generation so I think the ladies game is on up and up and is great film because what you were talking about the very start there Greg but if I suppose as fitness is one thing but people as they mature and the teams and that you're always better off being on their grip of people there's no doubting and you make friends and it helps you I suppose grow up and there's challenges on there and fitness and I think that can only good you know. Alright so Brendan's joined by guest Frank Craig, John Harren, Michael McMullen did he say? To discuss all the weekend championships seniors and I'm sure the conversation will swill into what's happening across Ulster and maybe in where we fit into that context. Okay so that's the deal debate broadcast tonight after the seven o'clock news and it's also available for you to podcast and listen to whenever you want. Brendan thanks for your great deal. Alright have a great day. 9102 127 Did you see that? She just unfolded her Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4 I didn't know you could have hands-free video calls on a phone and paint a beautiful self portrait at the same time. And now she's taking selfies while doing her nails That's mad. If at the August your old phone for trading or quarries and C's apply. On the 9 to noon show in association with Sheridan security systems call today and get your zero wire alarm system from 299 euro Sheridan security 9126025 Declutter this summer with cherry more kitchens and bedrooms inflation beating built in wardrobe special offer. Get a two meter long wardrobe with two free mirrors built in for 1099 euro Check us out online or book an appointment viewing in our dunning all town showroom today on 07497 25822 Cherrymore more bedrooms your way since 1996 Exam results arriving. Your future starts at Northwest Regional College Visit our results days to confirm your place or apply for a course at our Derry, Sturban or Lumavari campuses. Call 04871276000 or visit nwrc.ac.uk slash results This is Northwest Regional College This is your future Check this. The deal debate continues this Monday with another patch we round up all the G action of the weekend as a dunning all senior football championship kicks off with feedback from the big games and they'll be joined on the show by dunning on News J corresponded Frank Craig and to Dunning's record championship winner John Hearn all this and maybe a bit more just have to say and be amused this Monday on Highland Media and podcasted on Highland Media.com The deal debate with Sister Sarah's Ladder Kenny serving food you'll love in Sarah's kitchen OK on Monday focus is Red Hugh O'Donnellan who better to join us and talk about it because he's doing a lot of work in this area is Brendan Rowan Good morning to you Brendan. Thank you so much for joining us Good morning. Thank you. It is great to have you in Thank you very much. Talk to us a little bit about Red Hugh O'Donnellan I suppose the happenstance really in Spain that has given you an awful lot of work Yeah I mean I knew a little bit about Red Hugh from history I didn't know that he was properly known as E Rua. It's only in the last years we're calling him Red Hugh but it was really when on Camino I did the Camino to Santiago de Compostela after I got out of hospital. I'm a cancer patient and I decided to do that to raise funds for Cancer Care West but on the Camino I found myself whistling the melody of Red Hugh O'Donnellan as you hear it on Irish Radio 5.30 in the morning and I didn't know why but suddenly it was as if I became possessed by the spirit of the band and I suggested to my new wife because one of the things I did as a priority was to make sure that I married my relationship partner so that she wouldn't have to suffer the 33% inheritance tax but I suggested that maybe we would go down to Validilid and try and find his tomb and she took this picture of me at the time we'll show our listeners who are watching our social media so yeah she said you're a real you look like you're ready for action she said you're a real Don Quixote but at that point I just look in the background it was a red windmill and I'm thinking of the story of Don Quixote so I pick up my walking staff and make a pose like with a lance that I'm Don Quixote but anyway she agreed and we went down to Validilid three days or rather I spent three days as she enjoyed the city searching for the tomb of Red Hugh Donald which really was a wild goose chase I didn't realize at the time that until I met the director of archive that several eminent people over the well 300 years I suppose had been down there searching including your own father Silk who went searching for him down there and wrote about searching for his grave and about about his last will and testament etc this is Father Silk now born in Cresla actually where I live in 1926 and who lived beside me at Port Nabla for many years he died in 2016 but em then I discovered this other poem about this fruitless search by a man called Thomas McCreevy he was a Kerry poet took part in the First World War died in 1967 but he wrote and I'm not going to try to pronounce the Spanish word that he used because I'll get it wrong but after that he said but he never said and it seemed odd he never had heard the aspirated name of the centuries dead bright-haired young man whose grave I sought all day I passed in greatly built loom from the dusty guilt tomb marvelously wrought to tomb rubbing at mouldy inscriptions with fingers wetted with spit and asking where I might find it and failing yet when unhurried not at home where heroes hanged or buried with non-commissioned officers bored melodictions quickly in the jail yard they brought his blackened body here to rest princes came walking behind it and all valid the lead knew and out to Samankas all knew where they buried Red Hugh so I noticed I found a plaque on a wall that had it's almost like a treasure map in a way I mean does that clearly state the burial or does it indicate the author had found it and it wasn't recorded or well you see what I have there is an extract from the annals of the four masters written not long after his death and if you wish I'll read it in English or Gaelic but you see it there at the top in Old Gaelic and there's not many scholars in the country can read that any more a beautiful language to look at and I had it translated by Kahalo Sharki one of our foremost Gaelic speakers into modern Gaelic and then you see it there translated into English I'll read it either if you wish for the general audience the majority would understand English I think so what it says in the annals of the four masters about his funeral death and funeral it was in the palace of the king of Spain himself in the town of Samankas he died his body was then taken to Valid el Id to the king's court in a four wheeled hearse with great numbers of state officers of the council and of the royal guard all around it with blazing torches and bright flambu of beautiful wax lights blazing all around on each side of it he was buried after that in the chapter of the monastery of St. Francis with great honour and respect in the most solemn manner any Gael ever before had been interred masses and many hymns, chants and sweet canticles were offered for the welfare of his soul and his requim was celebrated as was fitting his nobility so that really inspired what we're doing now but at the time I happened to meet a man who I didn't realise he could speak English and he saw my plight in trying to search for this and he said we know approximately where the monastery of St. Francis was we don't know where the chapel of marvels as they called it later but he sent me to the director of archives but one of the things I said to him before I left I said it may not be about maybe a million Irish people or less who might have a vague interest but what about 41 million Americans who want to trace their Irish roots and to me Red Hugh is a significant character in Irish history as Michael Collins was because they were both about achieving the same thing and anyway what I did say to him was after I said that he sent me to the director of archives as I said and then from there I went on to Samankas castle so I was able to stand in the king's chapel where he passed away now what you're looking at there is actually a depiction of the bedside scene of Christopher Columbus and they were buried beside each other in different times of course but in the same chapel and beside each other so I was standing then in the chapel in Samankas in can I just ask in that moment you talked of as you whistled something happened in terms of a connection or I don't know was that confirmed standing in that room did you did that sense you know improve or harden or did you go right I've been brought here I don't want to be too romantic about it but I'm curious no no I was very aware that I was standing in the place where it said that he signed his last will and where he passed away because with his passing was a watershed in Irish history for which we've been suffering ever since on this island you know and in fact that very night I had moved away to Burgos and I dreamt about him that night and I woke at five in the morning and sometimes when the first line or two of a poem are in my head if I can get to a bit of paper the whole poem falls in its entirety complete on the page and I wrote just such a poem wow okay give us it so it's called seeking never finding and it's it really sounds like the the melody from Spansell Hill you like so last night as I lay dreaming I dreamt of you Red Hugh we'd stepped aboard our sailing yacht and set off just like you landing at Corona we walked that 80k along that same Camino route they call St. James's way I thought of all the battles I had fought in word and deed like you I sought no quarter no council would I heed I'd learned the art of warfare I'm game for every test fee an oak look to the backbone I hardly stopped for rest it was on the 21st of June from early dawn of day I searched each lead each alleyway that I might not betray my Irish friends are waiting for news of where is hid the resting place of hero somewhere in Validilid you're not alone there Eamy boy another quest in mind I crossed the wild Atlantic once the new world there to find my namesake laid a path for us which Columbus followed through he's buried there not far from you and likewise he's lost too when asked a simple question how long do you have here and why you've come among us I replied sorry I realized if near the reaper is to taking me I'll set off with the will and hope to die in this fine town my destiny fulfilled so lay my bones in rich red earth like Christopher and Hugh no marker put above my grave cause we're not there that's true we're chasing other dragons we're sailing other seas you'll find us in your own sweet dreams so enjoy your own dis ease okay that's beautiful so in terms of the lost tomb does it remain lost is it there but covered was it there but gone well we know now that it was there because the excavation that was carrier in 2020 and I mean such credit is owed to the city and the people of Validlid for carrying out such a thing in the middle of the pandemic with no help from anyone in Ireland but they did find where they managed to pinpoint the chapel of wonders or the chapel of marvels and they did find 17 I think it was skeletons but they didn't find any that matched the DNA of the O'Donnells and I mean there are they really pursued this this wasn't just a light touch to keep you off their back and the problem to answer your question fully is that most of the chapel is underneath the Santander bank so they were faced with either taking it down or carrying out very extensive expensive excavations but an important thing has happened if not for now that has been logged so whatever might happen in the future and we know anything can happen in the future it might be in 100 years time 200 years time but someone the work that you have done will pick up your work and establish the tomb of Red Hugh O'Donnell so the work I think 90% of the work has been done the 10% remains for someone when something happens or whatever might happen are you satisfied with that I'm very happy that the resting place has been pinpointed and that they carried out the excavations as best they could in their time I think it's for another time or another generation to pursue it further and to find the actual resting place I'm sure it's just a maybe 10 or 12 meters further in I'm sure you have found it I just think maybe because of building and concrete that it's going to take a little longer but you believe you've found his resting place it was a properly conducted archaeological excavation so that's well recorded and the fact that bodies were found there on this presumably already was a really strong indication that's a bit of the groundwork done I'm going to have to take a quick break and then we're going to come back to you and talk about what is being planned stay with us best in choice, quality and value on all home furnishings treat your home with a visit to Coonies today and choose from our large range of suites, tables, beds not to mention our 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team in HSE we'll be live on 1800 700 700 or contact a participating GP or pharmacy from the HSE for us all this Tuesday night at Loogs of Cranford there's the final big band night of the summer with dancing to Jimmy Buckley and his band that's big band dancing this Tuesday night at Loogs of Cranford with Jimmy Buckley and his band OK we're still in the company of Brendan Rowan and we're talking now about a major fundraiser underway to generate support for a commemoration marking the 420th anniversary of the death of Red Hugh O'Donnell in Spain. Brendan sometimes do you wonder why someone like yourself has to you know go to this effort and to try and make this happen rather than it being a core of course that we already have the connections established between you know Spain and Ireland even as I've suggested when we talked about Red Hugh O'Donnell before not wishing to commercialise it but the huge tourism potential you know you've got two parts of the world so interconnected you really shouldn't have to be doing this really should you this should already be something that is a a Donnelly Gull or international event Yes I agree but perhaps I've been inspired or as I said already maybe possessed by his spirit and I have to get on with it so the process you're talking about I think would be lengthy and if the surgeons and the oncologists are correct I don't have that much time and I was given to the 7th of March the estimate was three and a half years so I'm five months beyond that now and I need to get on with this in June 2020 I proposed again to the director of cultural tourism that I had met at the time I was down there first and new suggestion which was to mark the anniversary of his death with a reenactment of the funeral as it was described in the annals of the four masters that we read because I think it must have been a huge iconic state funeral the way it's described there so what I suggested is that we would maybe do a reenactment of that but with pandemic the only illness nothing much happened until Carlos Burgos now Carlos is the chairman of the Hispano Irish Association and he contacted me and he said look maybe we could do something about this so we got together a committee or rather he did or a committee formed so we have at this stage eight people who are now organizing this because the initial suggestion of the reenactment of course was mine but these are very accomplished people historians, musicians etc and what they want to do is to create a festival so the festival that has been decided is a three day festival starting on the 10th of September which is the exact 400 anniversary of his death and that we would and actually we've now been told that Samankas town council the mayor is going to welcome us there and we would like to do to set up a scene like you saw there for the death bed scene of Christopher Columbus something similar and just with a photograph of that because it's not possible to get more than a dozen people into the king's private chapel where it's thought he died and then while maybe while we're in the town hall or someplace else that's to be decided someone will then read his last will which is quite long and really very very interesting and someone will read it in Spanish because obviously it had to be witnessed by a lawyer and they were lawyers present when he signed it or started to sign it when he died and then that we would then have exhibitions of Irish music dancing etc on the streets or maybe the plazas or within various venues in Samankas it's going to be an amazing event it's the red-huedonal commemoration scheduled for the 10th to the 12th of September you talked of the reenactment and also the reenactment of the clearly what was an iconic funeral procession as well and the unveiling of a special plaque at the side of the interment of red-huedonal and Christopher Columbus which I mean it sounds like it's going to be a wonderful three days so in terms of fundraising and people contributing to this the amount being sought is not huge it's certainly attainable it's 25,000 euro that covers the cost of publicity, insurance, hire professional reenactors and the other stuff that needs to be done so how are you how are we, I don't mean me how are we fundraising for this OK and why not you you're actually doing it right now I just didn't want to sound like I was jumping on any bandwagon with all the effort that you've put in I meant we as a county OK well so we discussed how we might raise this money and although one person offered to bankroll the whole lot we thought that wasn't really appropriate we thought it would be better to put it out to allow more people to participate in it so we already have a minimum of 100 people who are registered to come now when I say 100 people registered to come there's no telling how many people will actually be there I would think it would be considerably more these people are only registered because we had to organize accommodation and tell them about flights and everything but take for instance Validate City Council were going to do something about the plaque in May and the eminent historian and writer Dr. John McHavett went down but in the end they didn't they weren't ready to unveil the plaque and so there was no advertising of what he was doing and he was speaking in English in Validate in Spain 200 people turned up so you can imagine with a little bit of publicity that this might now get I think it will be considerably more because there's great interest I mean it's where the Gaelic people came from North West Spain if you go back to the Malesians and that's again as a watershed between our mythology and our history so we have this huge connection with Spain it's fascinating to do a program like this that we're having now in Spain broadcasting to the people of Arnaud for those who couldn't attend it sounds like it would be a wonderful thing so how do then if someone's listening and they want to be a part of this and I think it's kind of interesting the way you talked of not taking money from a single donor is it about ownership and having more people feel that they're a part of it and in a way that helps spread the word so if someone is listening and they say I want to be part of this there's three things four maybe first make your way down there if at all possible to participate if that's not possible for any reason we identified three streams through which people could contribute and be a part of it so one is through crowdfunding and that's already underway and I think it's about about two weeks I think now and there's about 1400 already and these are subscriptions of 20, 50, 200 euros which is great. That's what you wanted. I'm going to run out of time so where can we direct people to get more information? Is there a website or a Facebook page or something? Yes so there's a local Facebook page set up by Eddie Crawford and that's the Red Hugh O'Donnell Facebook page and that alone will direct you but if you Google crowdfunding Red Hugh O'Donnell 420 you'll find it there. People can donate but please let me make an important point before I finish. The two other streams are we have written to all 37 Donegal County councillors because we discovered that they have a small personal bursary for something like this so we've asked them to donate up to 200 euros That's a modest request out of that fund and then the other is that there are specific items that I feel that particular people who have an interest in horses are O'Donnells themselves. Let's say there was an O'Donnell person connected with let's say funerals and they wanted to sponsor the horse drawn funeral carriage and particularly if there are an O'Donnell that would be wonderful and then there's the Mounted Royal Guard that's 2720 but they're a very professional outfit they look spectacular on their horses etc so there are items like that that people could actually donate to and if they did in that specific case and if they want to obviously we'll record their sponsorship on our Souvenir program There's so much more we could discuss we have to go now you've referenced your health a couple of times. I haven't sort of brushed over that but I wanted to focus on this for now I would love to speak to you if you're open and we could maybe push this again about your health and your outlook I think a lot of people would be interested in that and actually inspired by that but that would be whether you choose to accept such an invite or not but it's been lovely having you in and it's a fascinating story on so many levels Brendan and I really appreciate your time this morning Thank you very much. Alright take care of yourself Brendan Rowland there and we'll link those websites, facebook pages on our social media as well okay back with more after this quick break I started off walking parkrun and it took me a year to build up to be able to run 5 kilometers when I got breast cancer I actually feel the fact that I was fit meant I was able to tolerate the treatment so much better and when I came in a hospital the first thing I actually did was go for a walk with one of my parkrun buddies it's not just about running it's exercise for life I started off walking parkrun and it took me a year to build up to be able to run 5 kilometers it's about running it's exercise for life my name is Geraldine and I'm a parkrunner VHI believes parkrun is more than running that's why we're their biggest supporter Join us every week at your local parkrun On Sunday September 11th as they present their autumn wedding venue showcase and view their complete wedding offering visit gallangrip.com to find out more Are you looking to upscale this September? Choose one of 18 fantastic springboard plus programs available at Atlantic Technological University, Donegal fully funded for the unemployed and 90% funded for those in employment Embrace the future and learn new skills with flexible, funded courses in business, computing, tourism, culinary arts and engineering Visit lyit.ie forward slash springboard The future is here Springboard Plus is co-funded by the Government of Ireland and the European Union OK we were looking for the year as part of our fantastic competition we have running with spec savers the winner today, Helena McBride from Carrick Helena you have won a Highland Radio goodie bag and you are in the draw for Friday's great prize of tickets to see Christy Moore in September and a 400 euro voucher for the Great Northern Hotel and it's all thanks to our friends at spec savers and audiology OK we'll be back with more on the program tomorrow from 9 o'clock I promise the show will start tomorrow at 9 but for me Greg Hughes and all the team enjoy the rest of your Monday in standby John Bresen is on the way