Thurles Information

Liberty Music Festival Confirms Thurles, Co. Tipperary, Weekend Will Go Ahead.

Organisers of the 2026 Thurles Liberty Music Festival have moved to reassure ticket holders, music fans, local businesses and the wider Thurles community that this year’s festival will go ahead as planned on Saturday, July 4th and Sunday, July 5th, 2026.

**Three festival-goers smile for the camera at Thurles Liberty Music Festival 2022, capturing the friendly, colourful atmosphere of this annual event.**
**The festival is held in Thurles, Co. Tipperary, and is known as an outdoor tribute-band festival with a lively mix of music, crowds, and summer energy.**

*Picture: G. Willoughby*.

The clarification follows understandable concern after the news that Tickets.ie, the ticketing platform previously linked with the event, has ceased trading and is now entering liquidation.

Festival organisers have confirmed that the situation has been dealt with and that alternative arrangements are now in place. Most importantly, they have stated clearly that the Liberty Music Festival is “100% going ahead” and that the event is fully secured.

Above video courtesy G. Willoughby.

All key commitments remain in place, including the venue, artists, production, operations and event arrangements. The festival team has also confirmed that customers will receive updated communication by email, with new tickets to be issued through the festival’s new ticketing partner, Gr8 Events.

This means ticket holders should watch their inboxes carefully over the coming days and follow official festival updates only. Anyone who purchased tickets should wait for the updated email and new ticket details rather than relying on old ticket links or third-party information.

The message from organisers is clear: despite the difficulties caused by the collapse of Tickets.ie, the Thurles festival weekend remains on course.

Liberty Music Festival is set to bring a major weekend of live music, entertainment and visitors to Thurles, and organisers say they are looking forward to welcoming everyone on July 4th and 5th.

Irish Government Moves Forward With Jennie’s Law.

Irish Government Moves Forward with Jennie’s Law to Strengthen Protection Against Domestic Violence

Government approval has been granted for the publication of new legislation designed to improve public access to information about serious domestic violence convictions.

The Domestic Violence (Judgments) Register Bill 2026, known as Jennie’s Law, will establish a public Register of Judgements for certain serious domestic violence offences committed against a partner or former partner.
The proposed register is intended to help people who are in, or are considering entering, a relationship to find out whether a person has a history of serious domestic violence convictions. It is named in memory of Jennifer Poole, who was murdered by her former partner in 2021.

Under the legislation, relevant convictions may be published as part of the court process. The register will be made available through the Courts Service website and will include judgements relating to serious domestic violence offences where publication is considered appropriate.
Publication will not be automatic in every case. The trial judge will have discretion to decide whether a judgement should be published. Victim consent will also be required before a convicted person can be named on the register.

The published judgement may include details of the conviction, the sentence imposed, and any other information the judge considers relevant to the offence. These judgements will appear online under a dedicated heading titled “Domestic Violence Register Judgements”.

The measure is designed to complement existing public access to criminal court outcomes, including media reporting of court proceedings. It is not intended to operate as an additional punishment, but as a means of improving transparency and supporting public safety.
The Bill will insert a new Part 3A into the Domestic Violence Act 2018 and will apply to convictions on indictment for serious domestic violence offences.
The register will also be presented in a way that links users to appropriate domestic violence supports and services. This will help ensure that anyone accessing the information, whether for themselves or out of concern for someone else, can be directed towards practical help.
A person named on the register will be able to apply to the court for removal no earlier than three years after conviction. Any decision to remove a judgement from the register will remain a matter for the court.

Jennie’s Law forms part of a wider approach to preventing domestic violence, protecting victims, and reducing the risk of reoffending. This includes ongoing protective measures led by An Garda Síochána, including initiatives aimed at supporting people who may be at risk from individuals with a history of serious domestic violence.

The Bill is expected to be published shortly and introduced in the Houses of the Oireachtas soon afterwards.

Government Publishes Report On Allegations of Child Sexual Abuse.

Irish Government Publishes Final Report Of Commission of Investigation in Response to Complaints of Allegations of Child Sexual Abuse made against Mr Bill Kenneally and Related Matters.

The Government has published the final report of the Commission of Investigation into the handling of complaints and allegations of child sexual abuse made against Mr Bill Kenneally.

The report concerns matters of profound public concern, including the response of An Garda Síochána, the HSE’s predecessor bodies, Basketball Ireland and others to allegations made over many years.
In publishing the report, the government has acknowledged the bravery, perseverance and strength of Kenneally’s victims in seeking truth and accountability, and recognised the serious impact of his crimes and the institutional failures surrounding them.

The Commission, led by a retired Judge of the High Court, Mr Michael White, having finalised its work and submitted its final report to the government, is now dissolved in accordance with section 43 of the Commissions of Investigation Act 2004 further to its submission of this Final Report.

The Final Report of the Commission on Investigation can be found HERE.

The terms of reference are available HERE.

Regulatory Compliance On Farms Essential To Protect And Improve Water Quality.

The National Agricultural Inspection Programme (NAIP) Report details the findings of the farm inspections completed by local authorities in 2025, as required under the Good Agricultural Practice for Protection of Waters Regulations.
Local authorities inspected 4,315 farms in 2025 – 96% of the annual target of 4,500 set by the EPA and a 66% increase on 2024.
Of these, 43% of farms were found to be non-compliant with the relevant regulations.
Follow-up inspections by local authorities found 48% of these farms had remediated the issues and were compliant as a result.
2,935 enforcement actions were taken by local authorities.
1,555 additional local authority inspections were completed arising from complaints, incidents and planning applications.
Poor farm management practices are the main reasons for non-compliances and, in particular, poor control of soiled water, discharges with potential to impact water quality and inadequate management of farmyard manure.

**Scum of unknown content clearly visible in river Suir, in Thurles town centre**.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today released The National Agricultural Inspection Programme (NAIP) report which details farm inspections completed by local authorities in 2025. The NAIP aims to achieve higher levels of compliance and strengthen enforcement with the Good Agricultural Practice for Protection of Waters Regulations and in doing so reduce the impacts of agricultural activity on water quality.

The EPA has set inspection targets for each local authority under the NAIP, which prioritises areas where agricultural activity poses the greatest risk to water quality. In 2025, 4,315 farms were inspected by local authorities, which is 96% of the annual target of 4,500 set by the EPA.

**Problem not all caused by the farming community: Supermarket trolley in bed with River Suir water lilies.**

These inspections found a non-compliance rate of 43% due to poor farming practices or management. Some of the main reasons for non-compliance include:

Uncontrolled run-off from farmyard manure,
Inadequate management of silage pits,
Silage effluent discharging to groundwater,
Clean water not properly segregated and soiled water not properly managed,
Inadequate storage capacity,
Inadequate management and control of slurry.

Poor farming management practices can pollute rivers, streams and coastal waters through the release of nutrients, such as nitrogen and phosphorous. Harmful pathogens and nitrates may also pose a risk to human health through contamination of drinking water wells and/or abstraction sources.

Commenting on the report, Dr Tom Ryan, Director of the EPA’s Office of Environmental Enforcement said: “The significant increase in the number of farm inspections carried out by local authorities in 2025 is welcomed. Agriculture remains a significant pressure on our water quality and the non-compliance rate found during inspections remains too high. Farm compliance with the Good Agricultural Practice for Protection of Waters Regulations is essential to protecting and improving water quality. In addition, a more consistent and sustained enforcement effort is needed across all local authorities to ensure full compliance with these Regulations and to protect public health and the environment.”

Follow-up inspections by local authorities are critical to ensure that non-compliances are remediated. In addition, non-compliant farmers may be subject to enforcement actions which may result in a penalty to their Basic Income Support for Sustainability (BISS) Scheme payments, a prosecution or a combination of both. A total of 2,935 enforcement actions were taken by local authorities in 2025.

Mr Ray Cullinane, Acting Programme Manager, Office of Environmental Enforcement said: “Local authorities must sustain the increased level of farm-inspection activity achieved in 2025. To address the high non-compliance rate, local authorities should increase follow-up inspections to close out outstanding cases and ensure full compliance with the relevant Regulations. In parallel, local authorities, advisory services and industry stakeholders must also strengthen compliance-promotion and awareness-raising activities to support farmers in meeting their regulatory obligations”.

The National Agricultural Inspection Programme Summary Report 2025 is available on the EPA Website.

Death Of Albert Kelly, Thurles, Co. Tipperary.

It was with a great sadness that we learned of the death, yesterday Monday 8th June 2026, of Mr Albert Kelly, (An Garda Síochána retired), No.1 St Brigid’s Villas, Borrisoleigh, Thurles, Co. Tipperary; Garnavilla, Cahir, Co. Tipperary, and formerly of Leugh, Thurles, Co. Tipperary.

Pre-deceased by his parents Thomas and Mary, his brothers Vincent, Christopher, Tony and Sean, his nephew Tony, his sisters-in-law Nellie, Doreen, and Madge; Mr Kelly passed away peacefully at his place of ordinary residence, surrounded by his loving family.

His passing is most deeply regretted, sadly missed and lovingly remembered by his sorrowing family; loving wife Margaret, sons Tomás (Tom), Denis, daughters Sheila (Fogarty), and Mary (Rabbitte), grandchildren, daughters-in-law Mairead and Jenny, sons-in-law Ger and Philip, sister Rita, sister-in-law, brothers-in-law, nieces, nephews, cousins, extended relatives, neighbours and many friends.

Requiescat in Pace.

Funeral Arrangements.

The earthly remains of Mr Kelly will repose at Kennedy’s Funeral Home, Castlequarter, Borrisoleigh, Thurles, (Eircode E41 VX81) on tomorrow afternoon, Wednesday June 10th, from 5:00pm until 7:00pm same evening.
His remains will be received into the nearby Church of the Sacred Heart, Pallas Street, Borrisoleigh, Thurles, on Thursday morning to further repose for Requiem Mass at 12:00 noon, followed by interment, immediately afterwards, in St. Brigid’s Cemetery, Borrisoleigh, Thurles, Co. Tipperary.

For those persons who would wish to attend Requiem Mass for Mr Kelly, but for reasons cannot, same can be viewed streamed live online, HERE.

The extended Kelly family wish to express their appreciation for your understanding at this difficult time, and have made arrangements for those persons wishing to send messages of condolence, to use the link shown HERE.

Note Please: Family flowers only.

Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam dílis.