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‘My dad saved every penny for Dublin trip’

Son of assaulted American tourist victim speaks out

The son of an American tourist, who is in intensive care after being attacked in Dublin, said his father “saved every penny” to get to Ireland.

Stephen Termini who is 57 and from Buffalo, New York, is believed to have been kicked and beaten by a group of youths on Dublin’s Store Street on July 19.

he had just left his accommodation on nearby Talbot Street before the attack.

A teenage boy was charged in connection with the assault and appeared before a special sitting of the Children’s Court. he was remanded on bail to appear before the Children’s Court again.

earlier, Mike Rizzuto told RTÉ that his father “would give you the shirt off his back”. he said he was desperate to get over to Ireland to be with his father and is trying to raise money to make the trip.

“We kind of just feel helpless at the moment,” he said.

“It costs a lot of money for plane tickets and nobody really has a plan except for the GoFundMe and maybe be there when he wakes up and I think that would be a very big deal.”

“My dad’s mother’s ashes were spread in Ireland in 2002 and he was unable to make it there at the time,” Mr Rizzuto said.

“his grandfather used to paint murals in Ireland. I’ve been

Glenda’s home run

raised with Irish heritage which is very important to my dad.

“Last time I spoke to him he was saving up every penny, doing odd jobs to get over to Ireland. he was talking about playing music in Ireland. That’s where he wanted to be so it really sucks what happened.”

Mr Termini remains in intensive care in Dublin’s Beaumont hospital.

Continued on page 3

Glenda Gilson at the launch of the 40th Dublin Simon Home Run in the Phoenix Park, which takes place on October 7. Pic: Andres Poveda

Dublin city centre assaults

Continued from previous page

Meanwhile, a man is in a serious condition in hospital following another violent assault in the capital overnight.

A man was assaulted and robbed on Jervis Street, late on July 24.

Gardaí arrived at the scene at approximately 11:45pm after they were alerted to a man injured on Jervis Street.

“He was removed from the scene by ambulance to The Mater Misericordiae University Hospital where his injuries are serious but non-life threatening,” a garda spokesperson said.

Investigations into the crime are ongoing, garda confirmed.

There were a number of other assaults reported in Dublin on on July 24.

A man in his 40s was arrested for being intoxicated following a “disturbance” on ormond Quay yesterday evening.

A woman in her 30s was also assaulted in Temple Bar.

48 new Garda recruits promised for city centre

ASSISTAnT Garda

Commissioner Angela Willis has pledged 48 new recruits for Dublin as Tánaiste Micheál Martin said “certain areas” of the city “are not safe to traverse at night”.

Speaking at a media event at the Curragh Barracks, the Fianna Fáil leader said “basically speaking Dublin is safe”. However, he admitted “there are concerns” about some areas.

Mr Martin condemned the “vicious attacks” that have happened in Dublin city in recent weeks, including the attack on a US citizen on Talbot Street last week.

Stephen Termini was attacked on Dublin’s Store Street and remains in intensive care at Beaumont Hospital.

Yesterday, a 14-year-old boy was charged with assault causing harm.

Mr Martin also rejected suggestions that gardaí are “invisible” and said officers are visible on the streets.

Asst Commissioner Willis, who has responsibility for the Dublin Metropolitan region, said the new recruits will soon be deployed in the capital to increase the visibility of gardaí. She made the comments at a meeting of the Dublin City Joint Policing Committee this afternoon, which focused on issues of anti-social behaviour in the city centre.

The regular bimonthly meeting took place in the wake of the assault on Mr Termini.

Asst Commissioner Willis, who said she could not comment on the case because it was before the courts, said 48 new gardaí will be allocated to the Dublin region in the next two weeks.

11 of the graduates from Templemore will be posted to the Dublin north Central Division and 10 to the Dublin South Central Division with the rest being deployed across the capital.

The assistant commissioner said the new gardaí will “all be put out on high visibility patrols” and she said “I do recognise that visibility does create that feeling of safety for people”.

the launch of Summer in Dublin on Suffolk Street. Picture: Leon Farrell

Over 1 in 10 have secret savings

More than 1 in 10 adults (13%) in relationships have a bank or savings account that their spouse or partner is unaware of, with 14% of men and 13% of women admitting to having one.

The main reasons for having a secret savings account are to give them a greater sense of security amongst 40% of respondents; because they like the idea of having something that is completely their own (29%); and because their partner is not good with money (28%).

These are amongst the key findings of new consumer research conducted by ireach Insights on behalf of Aviva Life & Pensions Ireland DAC (Aviva) that polled 1,000 people nationwide, with a 50/50 split of men and women aged between 25-65.

Those aged between 55-65 were the least likely to have a secret savings account at only 9%, while 24% of 25–34-yearolds have one, followed by 12% of 35–54-year-olds.

other reasons given for having these secret accounts include the fact that they have always had it and never thought to mention it (28%).

Inga Jakucionyte, Rian Gibney, Daniel Gibney and Valesca Pereira at

Coldplay announce four Croker dates

Coldplay have announced a fourth Croke park gig in dublin as part of their Music of the Spheres world tour in 2024. The gigs will take place on august 29 and 30, and September 1 and 2 September.

In a post on social media, promoter MCd said: “due to incredible demand, 3rd & 4th Coldplay Music of The Spheres World Tour dates have been added on [sic] 1st & 2nd September 2024 at Croke park in dublin!”

Many fans who struggled to secure tickets to the band’s Irish swing of the tour have taken to social media to vent.

presale tickets for their first two gigs in Croke park next august were released on July 25, with thousands of hands hoping to secure tickets. “due to huge demand in the presale, a third dublin show has been added for September 1, 2024,” the band said shortly after 12pm.

General sale for all four dates will take place July 28 at 10am.

The Grammy-winning band will play two nights in Croke park next august 29 and 30, September 1 and 2, as part of their Music of the Spheres World tour. Thousands participated in

Hotels price ‘gouging’ for Taylor

HoTElS in dublin are engaged in “rampant price gouging” on the dates of US pop star Taylor Swift’s concerts, a Td has claimed.

the fan ticket presale at 10am, though many took to Twitter to say they struggled to access the site. others reported receiving error messages and were sent to the back of the queue once they had reached the front and attempted to buy tickets.

More than 200,000 people were in the queues for the in-demand tickets this morning.

Some fans were met with ‘error’ messages or were briefly informed by the platform that the site was not reachable.

Ticketmaster encouraged concert goers who were encountering issues to “clear your cache/cookies, refresh and try again.”

a Ticketmaster spokesperson said: “Everything is in working order, and tickets are selling as normal. “as per our advice on social media, fans should clear their cache/cookies and ensure they aren’t using any VpN software on their device/WiFi.

“alternatively, they can use a different browser/device or use mobile data instead of WiFi,” they added.

Some Irish fans said this was the second time in two weeks that they have been unable to buy tickets for their favourite artist.

There is not a hotel room available in dublin for less than €350 on the dates of the Eras tour shows next year, Independent Td Thomas pringle told the dáil. The donegal representative said he was highlighting the Swift concerts as the star has many young fans who will travel with their parents, as he raised the matter with Taoiseach leo Varadkar during leaders Questions on Wednesday.

There was huge excitement last week when Swift announced her world tour, which will visit the aviva Stadium in dublin on June 28, 29 and 30, 2024.

Mr pringle said while many young people are preoccupied with securing tickets for the shows, their parents are anxious about being able to afford accommodation.

He blasted a “disgraceful display of greed”.

“From looking at booking. com this morning, there isn’t a single hotel room available in dublin for under 350 euro for either of the nights of the Taylor Swift concerts, and they are on next year,” he said. “as if that isn’t expensive enough, we have in recent days seen rampant price gouging from dublin hotels, some raising the price of a room from €359 to an incredible €999.”

Hundreds cheer on girls in green at World Cup

Hundreds gathered at the Irishtown stadium in dublin to cheer on the Irish team when they took on hosts Australia and Canada.

Attendees were hoping that Irishtown native Abbie Larkin will get some match time.

Her uncle Micheal Larkin, who organised balcony bingo during the Covid-19 pandemic, was instrumental in organising the events. speaking on rTÉ ahead of the Australia match, Mr Larkin said there was huge excitement in the area.

“Abbie is after putting in a hell of a lot of work. It’s amazing. It’s absolutely buzzing around ringsend and Irishtown,” he said.

For the Australia game, rain dampened the spectators in Irishtown at the end of the first half, but it did not dampen the mood.

While some scrambled for cover, plenty more grabbed blankets and umbrellas and remained camped in front of the big screens.

Clouds cleared as the second half began, but a cloud of a different kind descended briefly, when Australian Captain steph Catley made it 1-0 in the 52nd minute.

Fans were buoyed again when Abbie, the pride of Irishtown and the youngest player in Vera Pauw’s squad, was brought on in the 63rd minute.

Meanwhile, almost 500 Irish soccer fans gathered on Coogee Beach just outside sydney on to show their support for the girls in green ahead of their World Cup opener.

The Irish abroad created a human #COYGIG sign on the popular beach at sunrise and on hand to capture the special moment was Westmeath man, dermot Judge, who moved down under almost five years ago. “It’s all excitement here. There were close to 500 people out at 5:30am, lots of locals, but

also people who have come over especially to support the women’s team, and even some family members of the team themselves.

“It was nice to see such a mix,” dermot said.

The gathering was organised by a man named Keith donnelly, founder and director of Keith’s Closet, a not-for-

FX Buckley steaks are a cut above

A duBLIn restaurant has been named one of the top 10 steakhouses in the world.

profit charity that provides support to people accessing mental health services through a walk-in wardrobe facility.

Keith’s Closet provides clothing, toiletries, sanitary items, accessories, and homewares on admission or discharge from a mental health facility.

The service allows patients to embrace their reintegration and thrive in society.

“everyone was brought together by Keith, I knew he needed someone down there to take an aerial picture, so I volunteered with my drone.

“I went down at around 5:45am and myself, Keith, and a few of the girls who work alongside him, all outlined the #COYGIG in the sand.

“We then got everyone to stand on top. We had to coordinate them while I had the drone in the sky,” dermot explained.

In a post on Instagram, qualified mental health nurse, Keith, said it was a very special moment.

He said: “We called out to our Irish community this week to send support to our amazing Irish ladies in their World Cup campaign. And woooohhhh, did they come out.”

FX Buckley, on Lower Pembroke street, was voted number six worldwide for its steak, making it “the highest climber in europe” in the annual online review.

Parrilla don Julio, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, was named as this year’s overall winner of the World’s 101 Best steak restaurants.

It was followed by Hawksmoor, in London, and American Cut Tribeca, in new York. FX Buckley came in sixth place and was praised for the quality of its Irish beef. no other Irish steakhouse made the top 101 list this year.

The World’s 101 Best steak restaurants review read: “100pc Irish – 100pc quality. The Buckley family has achieved legendary status in dublin over the last six generations – originally as butchers and purveyors of the finest quality meats, and subsequently as operators of some of the nation’s favourite steakhouses, gastropubs and bars.

“At FX Buckley they source their own Angus and Hereford beef, which means they know exactly what’s being served on their restaurant tables.

“The steak cuts from heifers only are grazed for at least two years on the finest quality Irish grass.”

Heritage Week 2023 launched

THe Minister of state for Heritage and electoral reform, Malcolm noonan Td, recently launched national Heritage Week 2023, which takes place from August 12 to August 20. A colourful range of events and projects celebrating all aspects of our heritage will take place across the country as communities, families, holiday makers, and people

of all ages and backgrounds are encouraged to get out and explore their heritage.

Over 1,000 free events and projects have already been registered with that figure expected to reach close to 2,000 before the festivities kick off.

have been passed from one generation to the next, and are still in use today.

The theme for national Heritage Week this year is ‘Living Heritage’ which is defined as the practices, knowledge and

that

As such, many events and projects will focus on the keeping alive of these crafts and skills, and this year’s launch took place at the workshop of Tom Mcdonnell and James Collins, two of the last remaining men practicing the dying trade of Traveller tinsmithing.

skills

The last two known living Traveller tinsmiths Tom McDonnell (2nd from left) and James Collins are joined by Minister Malcolm Noonan and Heritage Council CEO, Virginia Teehan to announce the launch of National Heritage Week 2023 at their workshop in Finglas. Pic: Mark Stedman

Bentley Joyce (7) supporting the Republic of Ireland Women’s National Team against Australia at a Sky event in Blanchardstown Centre. Pic: Maxwells

Children’s hospital needs the Tubridy treatment

MICHAEL WOLSEY

I WAS happy when plans for a new National Children’s Hospital were first announced. It would be modern and spacious, an obvious improvement on the three ageing hospitals that shared the medical care of our country’s kids.

I had young children then and, while I hoped they would never need to use the new facility, it was comforting to think it would be here for them.

My children are adults now with children of their own. Two of my grandchildren are already too old for a children’s hospital and a third will be too old by the time it opens (maybe) in 2025.

If that target is missed, as so many others have been, none of my four grandchildren will be eligible for the services of the new National Children’s Hospital. Perhaps it will be available for their children, although I am beginning to wonder whether this monstrously expensive development will ever open its doors.

Down the years there were many arguments about where

the facility should be built. The most appropriate choice might have been Tír na nÓg, a fantasy land of youth for a pipe-dream of a children’s hospital. Most histories of this debacle say it began in 1993 when a

report from the Royal College of Physicians called for a new hospital. Sadly, I am old enough to know better.

A decade before that there was talk of rebuilding and extending Crumlin Children’s

Hospital. When that proved impractical, a developer offered land, free of charge, for a purpose-built replacement somewhere off the Nass dual carriageway. He even offered to build the structure without

Carmel

at celebrations to mark the 50th anniversary of Our Lady Immaculate Parish Darndale-Belcamp. Pic:

charge so long as he was allowed to put up a private hospital on the same site. This offer was rejected as in some way unethical and at least three other offers of free sites were later rejected - one at Swords, one near Ballymun, and a third at the old Phoenix Park racecourse. Having rejected the opportunity for a free hospital - a free building, at least - politicians across several governments embarked on a process which will give us one of the most expensive hospitals in the world. It will now certainly cost more than €2bn. The price keeps rising as the opening date recedes. Just 27 of the hospital’s

3,000 rooms had been completed by the end of June.

An opening date in May next year is still the target but Spring 2025 now seems a more likely date, even a bit optimistic.

The National Paediatric Hospital Development Board says the developer, BAM, is “not providing sufficient resources to deliver the hospital”. BAM says the problem is that specifications for the hospital keep changing and almost almost 10,000 new drawings have been submitted since 2019. Either way it is a disgrace. In the words of Sinn Féin’s David Cullinane, it has moved from a fiasco to a farce.

Two Dáil committees have investigated the scandal but nobody is much wiser. This is a much more important issue than Ryan Tubridy’s financial arrangements with RTE and it deserves at least the same level of scrutiny: an investigation that looks at the entire, flawed process.

The saga has gone on so long that many of the relevant ministers and officials are no longer with us, but all those who are should be called to give evidence. Every Minister for Health, every Minister for Finance, every Taoiseach, every Tanaiste, every planner and representatives of the contractors at every stage. It is a sorry tale, but let us try to piece together the full sorry story.

I appreciate that such an inquiry could take a long time, but not as long as it has taken to build the hospital and we might just learn a lesson that will stop future projects from sliding into this sort of shambles.

Bateson, Esther Delaney and Síle McGowan

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Equipment sharing ‘BoxUp’ comes to parks

Dublin City Council is delighted to announce that it will shortly begin installing new, free, equipment sharing lockers in parks.

‘boxup’ tackles inequality in sport by providing free access to sporting equipment for all.

8 of Sport ireland’s local Sports Partnerships (lSPs) are currently working with their respective local Authorities to bring ‘boxup’ to parks and communities across 5

cities in ireland: Dublin, Cork, limerick, Galway and Waterford.

The Active Cities project is focused on getting those who are least active in our society active. in taking a multi-sectoral approach, the project is seeking to reduce the barriers to participation in physical activity, increase access and enhance the choice and opportunities available for all to take part.

Criteria for IVF published by HSE

MiniStEr for Health Stephen Donnelly has announced full public funding for a cycle of iVF for eligible couples from September.

This will be the first time in the State that Assisted Human reproduction (AHr) treatment is publicly funded.

Speaking on rtÉ, Minister Donnelly said: “For too many couples in ireland it simply hasn’t been affordable and so what we’re doing is providing full funding for eligible couples for three cycles of iui (intrauterine insemination) and one cycle of iVF.”

The Cabinet was updated on the plan and it follows on from the €10m allocated in the budget for iVF funding.

An age limit will be in place for a woman up to 41 years of

age and men up to 60, he said.

He said the plans have come through an expert group, similar to the nHS in the uK and large parts of Europe.

“The rational around age from the expert group is that there is a very significant reduction in the chances of success as a woman moves from around her mid 30s up into her 40s,” he added. “So, really it’s about targeting the resources where there is the greatest chance of success for couples.”

to be eligible individuals must be ordinarily resident in the State and referred through their GP to a regional fertility hub.

Eligible couples must have no living children from the existing relationship and include at least one partner with no living child.

introducing ‘boxup’ to ireland is a collaborative initiative being developed across the cities as part of this project and aims to expand the opportunities for people of all ages and abilities to lead healthier lifestyles through increased access to free sport and leisure equipment. Over the past nine months, the 8 lSPs have been working with the Swiss-based company, ‘boxup’, to bring the first

lockers to ireland. There are currently over 60 lockers in operation across Switzerland and France, with many other European Countries expected to come online over the coming months.

The lockers, which are solar powered, contain a variety of equipment based on the facilities and amenities in that area, and all equipment can be easily accessed through the use of a free app.

City council to stop cutting grass verges

Mowing of grass verges to achieve “manicured margins” will not be undertaken by Dublin City Council, with residents’ groups also discouraged from presenting of grass clippings for collection.

The council has said it is no longer cutting grass verges beside footpaths, to encourage biodiversity, and it is urging residents not to collect grass, if they cut it themselves, and present bags for collection on “rare” occasions only.

The council’s parks and landscape division said it “will only be maintaining open spaces/greens and will not

be cutting grass margins in residential estates”. This it said was “in accordance with a more sustainable policy with regard to amenity grass maintenance to support the establishment of wildflower rich swards”.

residents who wish to “maintain a more manicured margin” on the public paths “can do so”, the council said. However, only city council compostable bags should be used to collect clippings and bags will only be collected with “prior engagement with waste management staff and the local public domain teams”, and only when “resources are available

at times agreed between the resident committee’s and waste management staff”.

it cautioned that collection and presentation of grass should “only be carried out on rare occasions” and residents must not use the service to cut “large green spaces”, many of which have deliberately been left as meadows by the council. residents who attempted to use this service for their own garden waste will be regarded as illegal dumpers, the council said, and could be subject to a €150 fine.

The council also said it was its preference, if residents did cut

grass verges, they not pick up the clippings at all, “to allow for return of valuable nutrients like nitrogen back into the soil”. Councillors from all parts of the city have raised concerns about the policy.

Fianna Fáil councillor racheal batten said it was an “absolute shocking disgrace” residents who were giving their own time would have to deal with such bureaucratic hurdles to have bags collected.

“i think the attitude is absolutely atrocious. We have residents who are working to make the community better and we’re making it more difficult.”

Firms with solar panels enjoy three-year payback

Dublin businesses switching to solar power can expect their new energy system to pay for itself in three years – two years ahead of government predictions, an expert has said.

Funding packages of between €2,700 and €162,600 have been introduced to encourage more businesses to install a solar photovoltaics (PV) panel system, which generates electricity when exposed to light.

According to the Department of Environment, Climate and Communications, the grants, operated by the Sustainable Energy Authority of ireland, will “support 20-30% of the investment cost, reducing payback to as little as five years”.

but Adrian Casey, the cofounder of Swyft Energy, one of ireland’s leading solar PV firms, said some businesses could see payback in three years.

He said a medium-sized business consuming 42,000 units per year at a rate of 36 cent per kilowatt/hour (kWh) could reduce their energy bills by up to €8,000 per year by installing a 30 kilowatt (kWp) system.

Prices for a 30kWp system, he said, start from €32,000. but amendments to the grants unveiled by Environment

Minister Eamon Ryan on July 4, reduced the cost of install of such a system to €23,400 –meaning firms paying the 36c rate could expect payback in three years, Mr Casey said.

“On average, small-tomedium sized businesses are installing 30kWp Solar

PV systems, equivalent to 64 panels, covering 128 square metres,” Mr Casey explained.

“This type of system generates roughly 26,000 units of electricity per year, and –depending on the business’s electricity consumption pattern – 70 to 80% of this power

would be used on site, with the excess electricity sold back to the grid.” larger premises –such as warehouses consuming 200,000 units per year at a 23 cent electricity rate – could generate around 135,000 units with a 150kWp, 320-panel system, he added.

Jigsaw’s mental health warning

“This type of system costs €145,000 and would reduce annual energy bills by around €25,000,” Mr Casey said. Previously, businesses of this size could expect payback in six years. “With the new announcement, a 150kWp system will receive a grant of €32,600, reducing the cost to €112,400 and the payback to four-and-a-half years,” Mr Casey said.

Firms which decide to install a new solar PV system can also benefit from the Accelerated Capital Allowances (ACA) scheme, whereby the cost of the system can be offset against profits to reduce companies’ tax bills.

“Solar PV is one of the only purchases that a company can claim 100% of the ACA in the year of purchase,” Mr Casey said.

Switching to solar power also helps businesses improve their carbon footprint and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) profiles, he added.

“A 30kWp system will reduce CO2 output by roughly 10 tonnes per year or 300 tonnes over the 30+ year lifespan of the system,” Mr Casey said.

“That is equivalent to planting 2,800 trees.”

JiGSAW, the leading youth mental health charity, has warned that the doublewhammy of lack of funding and increasing demand is contributing to ireland’s mental health support services being more stretched than ever before.

At the launch of their latest annual report, Jigsaw have highlighted new data that reveals the growing demand for its support. in 2022, Jigsaw’s community-based services offered their highest ever number of appointments to young people (36,360)1. This is in response to a consistent rise in the number of referrals that has seen an almost 70% increase since 2017.2

Jigsaw has also continued to see significant growth in demand for its online services, with over half-a-million visits to jigsaw.ie in 2022, a 104% increase on the previous year, and increases in the numbers of live Chat and email-based support sessions.3

laura Curran, Service Manager at Jigsaw Dublin City, says: “What is clear from our data is that we are working to maximum capacity. in 2022, across our Dublin services we had 8,405 referrals and offered 12,455 appointments.”

Fans supporting the Republic of Ireland Women’s National Team against Australia at a Sky event in Dundrum Centre. Pic: Maxwells

We take a look back at extracts from old newspapers to see what was in the news this