Politics « Thurles Information

Thurles Showcases Civic “Aftercare”.

A “Pedestrian Walkway” Returns to the Wild.
Tarmac, Trolleys, Plastic Bags and Trampled Trees.
Double Ditch Obliterated, Then Abandoned.

Please first see the video immediately hereunder before preparing yourself to weep.

Now may I suggest you quickly grab a box of tissues.

Once upon a time, there was a place in rural Thurles, Co. Tipperary that had the cheek to be historic. They called it “The Double Ditch”; a raised path built through wet ground, faced with limestone, and rooted in the grim practicality of the once Great Famine, (1846-1849), to keep people working, to keep families alive, to keep feet dry enough to move. Yes, same was a civic scar, but an honest one, and a rare thing to be found in modern Ireland; a piece of lived history, a public walkway you could still walk on.

**A recent abandoned attempt at cleaning the area**.

Naturally, this could not be tolerated. So it became “connected”, “improved”, “enhanced”, “brought forward”, (whatever soothing verb local councillors, the local Municipal District Administrator and her officials would prefer), until all of it were “totally and wantonly obliterated”, its ancient hedgerows removed and the route flattened under heavy machinery, without so much as the courtesy of admitting what was being lost to the residents of our struggling town.
Then, after much denial of its existence, with a straight face that would even shame a Victorian undertaker, it reappeared in planning language as being a “paved, pedestrian, walking route along a historical walking path”, despite being described by local councillors and politicians as not paved at all, before being levelled and left with only a temporary skin of tarmacadam.

And now we arrive at the masterpiece of their planning – “The Aftercare”.

Because nothing says “community amenity” like building a walkway and then abandoning it to rot, as if maintenance were an optional lifestyle choice, like decaf or seatbelts. The grand vision, a safe walking route on Mill Road, Thurles, tied into wider footpath plans, presented as “overdue” and “necessary”.
The execution, however, appears to have followed the classic local-government model; do the ceremony; pour the tarmac; maximise the photo credit, then disappear vanishing into the mist.

So the area has now again begun its return to nature, that sacred Irish policy position otherwise known as “leaving it in a hape”.
First came the willow saplings, same thrusting up through the tarmac like a botanical middle finger to uninterested municipal district officials, while rooting themselves into every crack that sheer neglect has kindly widened for them.
Then arrived the briars and brambles, years of Autumn’s leaves, nettles and rank grass, all working in quiet co-operation like they’ve been awarded the contract. Soon enough, the walkway becomes less of a public route and more of a living demonstration of what happens when you build infrastructure with no real future plan to mind it, other than personal glorification.

And the litter, ah, the litter; not the dainty odd sweet-wrapper sort. No, this is the full rural-civic anthology, large plastic bags flapping like distressed flags; tyres slumped in the verge; broken wire fencing sagging like exhausted excuses. The occasional supermarket trolleys, thoughtfully dumped to ensure nobody confuses the place for cared-for land. If you’re lucky, a washing machine or two, because why wouldn’t you add white goods to a heritage corridor?

But the true flourish, the one that should make even the most hardened press-release writer blush, is how the site has been used as a stage for virtue, and then as a bin for its consequences.

In spring 2025, the area beside ‘Dun Muileann‘ on Mill Road, Thurles, became part of the One Hundred Million Trees planting push, funded locally by Allied Irish Banks’ Thurles branch, with students and the odd idle volunteer turning up to plant a dense mini-forest, using the Miyawaki Method; the whole point being fast-growing biodiversity and a carbon sink. The public reporting around it speaks of over two thousand native saplings planted at the site, a serious effort, and no small gesture of community buy-in.

And then, in the sort of anticlimax Ireland has successfully perfected; those young trees are left in a space now allowed to slide into total disorder, where over the past number of months horses are permitted to trample through the plantings that were meant to be protected long enough to establish themselves. A “green space”, promised and photographed, now reduced to a patch of scruff and horse manure, where the only thing thriving is the evidence of nobody being responsible.

That’s the moral of it, really, the fetish for the new, paired with the total inability to mind what’s then built.

Because it takes a special kind of civic arrogance to first flatten a famine-era landmark that once, literally, put bread into mouths, and then to shrug at the basic upkeep required to stop the replacement from becoming an overgrown dumping lane.

We are told, endlessly, about “heritage”, “biodiversity”, “active travel”, “community”. The words are always there; the maintenance however rarely is.

And so the Double Ditch, the real one, survives mostly as an idea: something that mattered, that was walkable, that carried memory in its stones. What’s left on the ground is the modern tribute: tarmac, blocked drains, weeds, rubbish, bent fencing, and the quiet certainty that nobody, supposedly in authority, will be held to account for any of it.

On behalf of myself, I offer my sincere apologies to Thurles Branch of AIB; (Sponsors), to Mr Richard Mulcahy (Co-founder of the 100MT Project initiative) and to all those students who enthusiastically and eagerly took part in last April’s planting.
Hopefully some of the trampled saplings will continue to survive, after all horse dung is a nutrient-rich organic fertilizer and soil conditioner.

The Waste Continues.

HSE In Talks With Bon Secours Limerick To Ease Peak-Time Pressure At UHL.

The HSE has confirmed ongoing discussions with Bon Secours Hospital Limerick on a proposal that would allow appropriate medical patients to be transferred from University Hospital Limerick (UHL) during periods of peak demand, in a bid to relieve chronic overcrowding.

Under the proposed arrangement, patients would be treated and cared for in Bon Secours Limerick as the private hospital continues the phased opening and expansion of services at its new facility, which is reported as a €213 million development.

UHL remains the region’s only 24-hour Emergency Department, serving a catchment of more than 400,000 people across North Tipperary, Limerick, Clare and parts of Cork and Kerry.

Current position
In a statement, Bon Secours said: “As the new Bon Secours Hospital Limerick opens an additional ward, discussions are being finalised to support the public system in providing care for several medical patients from University Hospital Limerick.”

The HSE Mid West said it has been in discussions with Bon Secours “about transfer of appropriate patients… to alleviate pressure on UHL during periods of peak demand”, adding that it hopes an agreement will be finalised “in the coming weeks”.

Overcrowding context
Latest figures, reported this week, show UHL continuing to account for the highest numbers of patients awaiting admission. On Friday, the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation reported 107 patients on trolleys and in other inappropriate spaces at UHL, while the HSE’s TrolleyGAR, reporting, indicated 55 admitted patients waiting on trolleys at the hospital.

Overcrowding has persisted despite recent expansion works, including the official opening of a €105 million 96-bed block at the UHL campus in October 2025.

Background and longer-term planning
The current pressure on UHL is widely linked to the mid-west reconfiguration in 2009, which saw 24-hour emergency departments closed and services centralised, including in Ennis, Co. Clare and Nenagh, Co. Tipperary, as well as St John’s Hospital Limerick.

The Government has also recently indicated it will progress a “blend” of options advised by HIQA to address urgent and emergency care capacity in the region, following its review, as outlined by Minister Ms Jennifer Carroll MacNeill.

167 New Gardaí Attest At Garda College, Templemore, Tipperary.

167 probationer Gardaí assigned to Garda Divisions nationwide.
Three further attestations scheduled to take place in 2026.
Over 200 new trainees due to enter the Garda College on Monday next, February 9th 2026.

The Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration, Mr Jim O’Callaghan today welcomed the attestation of 167 new Gardaí at a ceremony in the Garda College, Templemore, Co. Tipperary.

A total of 100 men and 67 women were attested and will now be assigned to Garda divisions across the country by the Garda Commissioner.

Of this cohort, 104 probationer Gardaí will be deployed across the Dublin Metropolitan Region, with 21 assigned to the Southern Region, 31 to the Eastern Region and 11 to the North-Western Region.
Only two one will be allocated to the Co. Clare/Co. Tipperary Garda division, with one being allocated to Ennis in Co. Clare and one to Clonmel in Co. Tipperary.

Speaking at the Garda College, the Minister said: “I am very pleased to see another 167 new Gardaí attest from Templemore today. This is the first of four attestations due to take place this year and I look forward to larger classes attesting as the year progresses.
This cohort of newly attested Gardaí will take up positions in communities across the country as they begin a career of service to their communities, and to the people of Ireland. They join a tradition that stretches back over a century, one built on trust, integrity, and a steadfast commitment to the public they serve.
Recruitment into An Garda Síochána is now gathering real momentum. I am looking forward to seeing this momentum continue in 2026. The next intake of up to 215 Garda trainees will enter the Garda College next Monday, 9 February.”

Two recruitment campaigns were held in 2025, with over 11,100 applications received to join An Garda Síochána. Engagement is continuing with publicjobs in relation to scheduling and conducting a further recruitment competition in 2026, supporting an ongoing pipeline of recruits into Templemore.

The Minister added that Budget 2026 provides €2.74 billion to support recruitment and staffing in An Garda Síochána. The Minister also said work will continue with the Garda Commissioner to optimise recruitment, including measures to expand training capacity.

The Minister also noted that the Garda Training Review Group has been established to identify how training and continuous professional development capacity can be increased, including consideration of the case for a second Garda training college, in line with a Programme for Government commitment.

Dáil Dining “Cost Crisis” Strikes Tipperary TD’s.

Dáil Dining – Soup Up 50c, – Calamari Up €1.50, – Wine Heroically Holds the Line.

TDs and Senators have been hit with fresh price increases in the Dáil bar and Members’ restaurant, with higher charges for food introduced in November 2025, while the price of wine, in a brave display of stability, remained unchanged.

According to records released under FOI, the cost of a glass of the Oireachtas Merlot or Sauvignon Blanc is still €6.60, and the €25 bottle price (€60 in the Cashel Palace) also remains in place, proving that in uncertain times, some pillars of national life must not be disturbed.

Meanwhile, the food menu has not been so fortunate:
Members’ Restaurant: Tough Choices, like whether to get Dessert and Soup.
At lunchtime, soup is now €5.50, up from €5.
On the afternoon menu: Deep fried Calamari (with Lemon and Garlic Aioli Rose – a Dip that is great with Chips), from €8 to €9.50. A prime beef burger has increased from €12 to €13.80. [Surprising increase move, what with all this cheap South American beef coming into Éire].
Desserts were repriced to €5.80, up from €5.00, offering options including, Mixed Berry Crumble, Strawberry Cheesecake,assorted Ice Cream, or Fresh Fruit Salad “for the health conscious you understand”.

A Soup, Main Course and Dessert now comes in at just over €25, roughly €3 above last year’s prices, but still comfortably below what most people might expect to pay for an equivalent three-course meal in nearby rural Tipperary or indeed in Dublin 2.

In the evening: A Chargrilled Sirloin or Rib-Eye Steak with Fries remains €20.50; this follows a €2.50 increase late last year. Grilled Lamb Cutlets (côtelettes d’agneau grillées) come in at €16 having been replaced by pan-roasted lamb rump (often called chump) at €18.50, (latter a tender, flavorful, and relatively inexpensive cut, that combines the succulence of roasting with the crispy, caramelized crust of pan-searing).

Members’ Bar: Modest Increases, with a few “Steep” surprises.

More informal dining also saw price rises:
Lunch soup: €2.70 → €3
Smoked salmon: €10 → €11.50
Typical mains: €12 → €13.80
“Sweet treats”: €4.50 → €5.20

Evening menu increases included:
Gourmet Beef Burger: €12 → €15 [again surprising increase, what with friends in Bord Bia, the Irish Food Board and Dawn Meats]
House Chicken Caesar Salad: Possibly imported from the Netherlands, the UK, Brazil, or Thailand, €9 → €11.50. (Tough enough when one can buy a whole Chicken cooked and still hot in Dunnes Stores for €6.75).

Nevertheless, the ambience of the dining area remains reassuringly consistent: muted tones, soft seating, and that steady confidence of a place that rarely needs to check the prices on the street outside.
It’s the kind of place where the calamari is deep-fried, the questions are lightly grilled, and accountability is strictly off-menu, while the décor continues to project polished wood, clean lines, and an overall feeling that someone else is picking up the Tab, emotionally, if not financially.
In fact the room does what it says on the tin, while remaining dignified, understated and quietly insulated from the chaos of lunch with everyone beyond the M50 and the non-subsidised majority.

Thurles Flooding: Neglect the River, Then Sell Us Flood Barriers.

While the Suir silts up and sewage claims persist, Tipperary’s “solutions” look like optics-first spending, paid for by the public, twice over.

The Flooding “Solutions” Scam: Councils Let Rivers Choke, Then Sell Us Flood Barriers.

We’re being asked to accept flooding as inevitable. Each time the water rises, we’re told it’s “unprecedented”, that there’s nothing to be done, and that the only answer is another costly flood barrier, another engineered scheme, another grand capital project.

Although flood barriers are in place here and pumps are operating on Emmet Street, Thurles, flooding continues as water is rising through wastewater drains on the street surface, before being pumped again into the swollen river.
**In these circumstances, surface barriers offer little or no protection.**
*Pic: G. Willoughby.*

But for many towns, the more uncomfortable truth is this: a significant part of the problem is neglect, plain, predictable, year-after-year neglect, and it sits squarely with local authorities and the agencies they work alongside.

When river channels and outfalls are allowed to silt up, narrow, and clog, the river loses capacity. Water backs up sooner. “Manageable” rain becomes road flooding, business disruption, and damaged homes. That is not an act of God, it’s an act of governance.

Maintenance isn’t glamorous, so it gets skipped.
Routine river maintenance is boring. It doesn’t lend itself to ribbon-cutting. It requires surveys, schedules, repeat work, and public reporting. And that’s exactly why it’s so often pushed down the list.
Instead, we get the shiny alternative; manufactured flood barriers, the visible, photogenic, capital-heavy answer. They may have a place in specific settings, but far too often they’re treated as a substitute for basic poor river stewardship.
Even professional bodies that caution against dredging as a universal fix still accept the basics: increasing channel conveyance can help reduce levels in smaller, more frequent floods. The key is that it must be targeted and properly managed, because indiscriminate dredging can speed flows and shift risk downstream.
So nobody credible is demanding a reckless “dig everything” policy. What people are demanding is far more reasonable:

Why are we spending vast sums on barriers when the river’s basic capacity is being allowed to deteriorate in the first place?

Thurles: Tarmac by the river, while sewage flowed in plain view. Nowhere is the contradiction more glaring than in Thurles, Co. Tipperary.

**Flooded new Thurles tarmac pathway, while a tangle of willow trees and low, leaning branches stretch across the water, effectively blocking and constricting its flow.**
*Pic: G. Willoughby*.

In April 2022, a public district meeting heard claims that “raw sewage” was flowing into the River Suir along the extended Riverwalk area. The report quoted a councillor saying he had pictures and describing it as disgusting.

Read that again carefully: The issue wasn’t hidden away in a remote field. The allegation was that sewage was entering the river along the very walkway being promoted as an amenity.
Then, in March 2024, a Thurles-based TD publicly questioned Uisce Éireann about discharges of raw sewage into the River Suir, in Thurles, and in September 2025, further local reporting again described sewage and pollution concerns in the town centre stretch.
So let’s stop pretending this is a mere “perception issue”. If a town is paving and polishing riverside paths while the public is seeing (and smelling) pollution in the water, that’s not regeneration. That’s cosmetic spending beside a neglected system.

You also raise an accusation many locals will recognise: that some works were pushed through to use up available funding, especially after another walkway plan failed to materialise. I can’t independently prove the motive — but the pattern is familiar: when capital money appears, councils can scramble to spend it quickly on visible works, while harder, messier problems (pollution sources, maintenance regimes, enforcement) are left to drag on.

**Stationary filth and litter in abundance as Thurles Municipal District provides river-side seating, without even one litter bin being placed in the vicinity**.
*Pic: G. Willoughby*.

Funding announcements don’t equal progress:
In November 2025, a funding allocation of €447,300 for an extension of the Thurles River Suir walkway was publicly announced under the ‘Outdoor Recreation Infrastructure Scheme‘, including a planned looped walk.

Here’s the question that should be asked at every launch and photo-call:
What is the point of extending a riverside amenity if the river itself is being allowed to degrade, and if flooding repeatedly makes sections unusable anyway? Local reporting at the time of that funding announcement explicitly linked renewed frustration to ongoing flooding and calls for proper maintenance of the river.

Who should be held responsible? Start with the council:
This is where the gloves come off.
Tipperary County Council cannot keep presenting flooding as a surprise while communities can see, year after year, the tell-tale signs of avoidable risk: silting, blocked channels, overgrowth, neglected outfalls, and the creeping sense that nobody is minding the basics.

And when the response defaults to barriers and big-ticket projects, rather than a published maintenance programme, people are right to feel played.
Yes, extreme weather is real. But neglect is real too. And neglect is optional.

What Thurles (and every town) should demand now:
If councils want to be taken seriously, the minimum standard should be:–

A published annual maintenance schedule for key watercourses: inspections, targeted desilting, vegetation management, debris clearance, and outfall/culvert checks, with dates and locations.
Before-and-after surveys at known pinch-points showing what capacity was restored and what risk was reduced.
A public pollution action list: identify suspect outfalls, state ownership/responsibility, publish remedial timelines (with named leads across council and Uisce Éireann).
A rule of priorities: no more “path-first, river-later” optics. If the water is compromised, fix the water first.
Independent oversight and reporting, including engagement with the Environmental Protection Agency and catchment structures like LAWPRO, which has recently hosted public discussions where concerns about the Suir around Thurles were raised.

And one final point: agencies such as the Office of Public Works can fund schemes and design defences, but if local maintenance and accountability are missing, we will keep paying twice: first in flood damage, then again in erecting flood barriers.

In the words of Forrest Gump, “Stupid is as stupid does”, meaning a person’s intelligence is defined by their actions and behaviour, rather than their appearance, reputation, or perceived abilities.

Again Three Questions: (1) Why have Rates in Tipperary increased by 5%? (2) Why are we forced, yes forced, to pay property tax on houses we worked hard to purchase, from already taxed incomes? (3) Why do we continue to elect and pay local councillors who make absolutely no contribution in dealing with the problems existing in our respective areas, while officials really make the decisions.

See link to PDF declaration HERE showing salaries and expences over a 3 month period (12 weeks), of between €10,300.00 and €15,500 each. [Note: €15,500 ÷ 12 = €1 291.66 in costings per week, while double jobbing, per Tipperary Co. Council].

If we’re serious about flooding, stop buying flood barriers as being the first answer. Start with the river itself. Start with proper maintenance. Start with the truth.