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It was with sadness we report the death of the former Minister for Education and EU Commissioner, Mr Richard (Dick) Burke, who passed away peacefully at his home yesterday morning, at the age of 83 years .
An Education Minister in the Fine Gael government led by Mr Liam Cosgrave from 1973 until 1976, Mr Burke was born in New York in the United States in 1932. He was raised in Upperchurch, Co. Tipperary and was educated here in Thurles at the Christian Brothers School (CBS). He later attended University College Dublin (UCD) and King’s Inns.
While occupied as a teacher he embarking on a political career, with his first political involvement being with the Christian Democrat Party founded by Mr Seán Loftus. Mr Burke later became a member of Fine Gael, becoming a member of Dublin County Council in 1967. Within two years he was elected to Dáil Éireann for the first time, becoming a TD for South County Dublin. In 1969 he was appointed Chief Whip by the then Fine Gael party leader Mr Liam Cosgrave.
It was during his time in office as Minister for Education, he relaxed the then strict requirement for students to pass Irish language exams in order to gain a Leaving Certificate qualification. It was he who first introduced the reforms of ‘Transition Year’ and ‘School Management Boards’ into the secondary school system.
Mr Burke was twice appointed as an EU Commissioner under two different governments, once succeeding Mr Patrick Hillery, latter who returned to become President of Ireland. He was also partially responsible for Fine Gael joining the European Christian Democratic movement, now the European Peoples Party.
Mr Burke is survived by his wife Mary and their five children; Mary, David, Audrey, Richard and Avila. He was predeceased by a sixth child, his son Joseph.
Go ndéana Dia trócaire ar a anam dílis.
The recent February CSO Live Register Figures for February 2016; published for Co. Tipperary last week, like the previous month, continue to remain dismal reading, despite the outgoing Fine Gael / Labour pre-election job announcements over the last 10 months, to date.
We are aware that the ‘Live Register’ is not designed to measure unemployment solely, but figures provided here are most certainly a strong indication of Urban and Rural employment trends. See the figures shown hereunder or check for yourselves, by clicking on the highlighted following link:- http://www.cso.ie/px/pxeirestat/statire/SelectVarVal/Define.asp?Maintable=LRM07&PLanguage=0 taking care to use the search criteria; All Ages; Both Sexes; Welfare Office.
In all some 1432 jobs were publicly announced by the outgoing Fine Gael / Labour Coalition for the County of Tipperary, prior to the recent General Election held on February 27th, 2016 last.
These announcements came in the wake of a litany of job losses, 200 at Intellicom, 400 at Lisheen Mine, 50 at Grants and more at C & C, Gleeson’s, Abbott and Boston Scientific etc. Over the past five years Co. Tipperary has been completely unobserved by our current ‘caretaker government’, with 90% of all job creation announcements going to the east coast and the larger cities like Cork, Limerick and Galway.
This now unwanted coalition Government’s more recent regional jobs strategy further added insult to injury; in prioritising investment in named towns, e.g. Sligo, Tralee, Castlebar, Galway, Dundalk, Limerick, Athlone, Carlow and Waterford. Tipperary once again finding itself totally neglected with not one single Tipperary Town listed, for the building of any even one advance manufacturing base or office facility.
Strangely one, if not the only few advance office spaces that was available to attract job creation; to be found in the Tipperary Technology Park on Racecourse Road Thurles; same was quietly and surreptitiously hived off, before being announced as a replacement for the already existing Department of Social Protection’s new Intreo Centre.
Were the various 1432 jobs announced and loudly hailed by the outgoing Fine Gael / Labour Coalition in Tipperary over the past 10 months, purely a pre-election vote catching stunt? Tipperary people have very long memories, as two Fine Gael TD’s will most surely attest, following their complete annihilation in last February’s General Election.
 Fianna Fáil Fianna Fáil’s Mr Sean Ryan will replace outgoing Co. Councillor Mr Jackie Cahill on Tipperary County Council, in the vacancy created following Mr Cahill’s recent election to Dáil Éireann.
Mr Ryan, a Teacher residing in Littleton, Thurles, Co Tipperary, was elected on the 1st count securing some 205 of the 254 votes, at the Fianna Fáil party’s ‘Selection Convention’, held in ‘The Ragg’, Booladuff, outside Thurles this afternoon.
Mr Ryan previously narrowly missed out on a similar co-option to a seat in 2006 and later failed in his attempt to be elected to the County Council in 2009.
He will be officially co-opted unto Tipperary Co. Council at tomorrow’s Council meeting, to be held in Cloughjordan, North Co Tipperary.
We wish Mr Ryan every success in his new appointment.
Fianna Fáil Fianna Fáil (F/F) are expected to select a replacement Co. Councillor to the Templemore / Thurles Municipal district, following the recent election to Dáil Éireann of former F/F Councillor Mr Jackie Cahill.
Fianna Fáil members from the Templemore / Thurles Municipal District are expected to vote for their preferred nominee between 2:00pm and 4:00pm this afternoon, at a ‘Selection Convention’ which is being held in The Ragg, Booladuff, Thurles. Under the Local Government Act once 14 days have passed, the position must be filled by the next Co. Council meeting, which in this case takes place tomorrow in Cloughjordan, Co. Tipperary.
Three names have been put forward for consideration, one of which will now fill this vacant post at local authority level. Instead of the normal co-option procedure associated with such vacancies, it is understood that grass roots members have requested that a convention take place, since 3 candidates have shown an interest in occupying this vacant seat. The three candidates are understood to include; Mr Pat Hayes (Arch Bar, Thurles); Mr Gerard Fogarty (Trainee Solicitor, Parnell Street, Thurles); and Mr Sean Ryan (Teacher, Littleton Village, Thurles). A fourth nominee, named as Mr Mark McLoughlin (Teacher, Roscrea.) is understood to have withdrawn his name from the list of candidates going forward.
The successful candidate chosen will then be officially co-opted unto Tipperary Co. Council at tomorrow’s meeting in Cloughjordan.
Independent TD Michael Lowry, has requested that all Tipperary’s newly elected TD’s unite to ensure that necessary future funding for rural roads be made an immediate priority for the 32nd Dáil.
Deputy Lowry has stated, “The Rural Road Network throughout county Tipperary is crumbling. The principle factor is the lack of investment and continuous decrease in monies made available to local County Councils. The National Roads Fund decreased from €608 million in 2008 to a current figure of €294 million. In 2011 both North and South Tipperary got a total of €45 million for roads. In 2015 this had fallen to €28 million, with a further €3 million of reductions this year.
This decrease in funding has had a huge negative impact on rural communities, with many of our roads becoming extremely hazardous. Daily struggles are arising for rural school buses, and other essential service providers. In many cases these erosive conditions are creating obstacle courses which are bordering on the impassable. Drivers find themselves in dangerous situations where they are forced to drive erratically to avoid deepening potholes. Each day my office receives countless complaints from vehicle owners, where their vehicles are being damaged, tyres have been ripped off and issues are arising with steering and suspension, brought about by potholes which rapidly merge to form giant craters.
The people of Tipperary are extremely frustrated with this outgoing government and justifiably point out that as citizen’s they pay heavy car taxes, numerous charges and levies, yet the horrendous state of rural roads tolerated on a day-to-day basis in Tipperary would never be permitted to exist in our capital city. It is evident that this current administration continues to cultivate a two track society; one which offers fast urban centres, while rural Ireland is permitted to remain abandoned.
I have spoken to the CEO of Tipperary County Council, requesting that an inventory of all roads, which need repair and replacement works right across the county, be immediately established and should include reasonable estimates for all repairs and refurbishments.
I will work alongside my elected colleagues, in seeking the appropriate funding for this crisis, while exerting my influence on the introduction of a proper roads network program into the future. I have also requested that the management of the council ensure that they get satisfactory value and return for all money spent, while all future work practices remain up to a recognised standard, using quality material and ensuring proper road drainage is put in place.
The total neglect of our rural roads now requires urgent attention and the present scenario of drastically reduced infrastructural funding must be immediately reversed,” concluded Deputy Lowry.
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