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3rd December 2013 • Volume 20, Issue 46 • Leader House, North Street, Swords, Co. Dublin. • Tel: 8•400•200 • info@northcountyleader.ie
Swords Kids Get Into Christmas Spirit A warm-hearted gesture by Swords children has been welcomed by the local St Vincent de Paul Society. Thirteen year old Nadine Lawlor-Redmond and her brother Leon (12) and sister Amber (7) from Broadmeadows, Swords teamed up with their friends Adam Cowan (11) and his sister,Marie (13) in an effort to raise funds for St Vincent de Paul. They decided to take to the streets of their estate, singing carols for families in need at Christmas. Nadine explained to the County Leader about how the idea came about. She said, “We knew that there are people who don’t have much to eat at Christmas and we just decided to help them by carol singing in our estate. We’re not long living here, but our neighbours were really generous. Leon said that they did the same last year and decided to do it again this year. A delighted Denis Barry,
President of St Finian’s Conference of St Vincent de Paul was overjoyed by the generous gesture of these children, who really demonstrated the real spirit of Christmas. He said, “It’s just wonderful to see young children like these, taking an interest in people less fortunate than themselves and realising that there are families out there, who don’t have enough to get by on. Mother, Sinead Lawlor was rightly very proud of her children and also of Adam and Marie. “I told them that the St Vincent de Paul is under great pressure at Christmas and it’s a really tough time for some people. As their mother, I’m delighted that they will take this with them throughout their lives. The children met with Denis Barry and his wife Phyllis to present them with €138, which they managed to collect, on behalf of St Vincent de Paul.
It Just Makes Sense To Shop Local This Christmas Preserving Local Jobs The busy Christmas season is well and truly underway here in the North County. As we approach a crucial time of year for our businesses and retailers, the local Chambers of Commerce are actively encouraging all Christmas shoppers to support their local community and buy their gifts close to home. There is expected to be a By Jennifer McShane home town at this imporreal boost for the local @TheCountyLeader tant time of year. CEO of Fingal Dublin retail trade over the festive season, and consumers natu- Chamber, Tony Lambert, was eager to rally spend that bit more, so it’s vital stress the hugely important aspect of they say, to “give something back to shopping locally this Christmas, and is encouraging everyone to “think local traders.” There is no better way to start your and shop local.” “The chamber is Christmas shopping than in your home calling on everyone to think and shop local this Christmas,” he said. “It’s town. The North important that as many local jobs as County can possible are retained, and this can boast two of the only be done if people shop around finest shopping their locality. We would ask that centres in the people shop in local stores and entire county, supermarkets whenever possible to namely the help support the creation of these Pavilions in Tony Lambert , Fingal jobs.” Swords and Dublin Chamber “The North County is a wonderful Millfield in Balbriggan which provide free car place to live, and this is echoed in the parking and a wonderful range of the excellent service we receive from our finest products at great prices. Why local traders,” he continued. would anyone want to undergo the Anthony Murphy, President of treacherous trek into the city centre in Balbriggan Chamber of Commerce search of limited parking space and was also eager to emphasise the importance of shopping in your local higher prices? All of our towns are proud to display town during the busy period: “The their wonderful produce, where you local business is for the local people, are most likely to be served by a neigh- so I would ask everyone to really bour and also where you can negotiate think local this Christmas,” he said. “It’s so impora bargain in a friendly, personalised tant to consider shopping atmosphere. Should you local retail jobs, need to exchange a purchase, you will and everyone be received by a friendly shopkeeper, has a responsiwho is only too willing to make sure bility when it that your every need is met, something comes to this. which you’re unlikely to experience in Even a few local the city centre. All this combined with Tony Murphy, purchases can those beautifully decorated shop Balbriggan Chamber have a tremenfronts, and special deals and discounts on offer, mean you won’t have to go dous impact on a local area, so even any further to get all you need this with just one purchase, you are making a difference.” Christmas. The County Leader contacted the local “I also want to say thank you to the Chambers of Commerce and they all County Council for offering the free were united in their views on the parking each Saturday in December importance of shopping around your across all towns in the North County,
which encourages local shopping,” he concluded. President of the Malahide Chamber of Commerce, Patricia Murtagh echoed this sentiment and said thriving local businesses were essential in order to support and sustain the local community. “The personal shopping experience you receive in local shops here in Malahide and throughout the North County is second to none,” she said. Patricia Murtagh, “The retailers in Malahide Chamber our local shops have a vast amount of knowledge and expertise in their trades, and this is one of the most wonderful aspects about shopping locally. What we encourage people to do is to keep their money within their community.” President of the Skerries Chamber of Commerce, Martin Scully said that this is the time to really show our appreciation to all the local businesses who work so hard during the year. He told the County Leader: “This is the time Martin Scully, of year to give Skerries Chamber something back to the businesses that have been so obliging during the previous months,” he said. “I can’t stress the importance of shopping locally enough, and thankfully locals are usually very good about shopping in Skerries, so we want to encourage more of that this year.” “Throughout the year, the chamber and local traders have been working hard to ensure that the shops, and indeed the town, looks its very best, so we would ask people to come out and support this. If our town is to continue to thrive, the local businesses have to stay put.”
Pictured are Nadine Lawlor-Redmond, Leon Lawlor-Redmond, Amber Lawlor-Redmond and Adam Cowan, from Broadmeadows, as they present the money collected from their carol singing to Phyllis and Denis Barry from the Society of St Vincent de Paul. Marie Cowan, who also participated in the fundraiser, is missing from the photo.
Ailing Fishing Industry Needs Urgent Attention The once thriving trawler fishing industry on the east coast of the country, is in grave danger of disappearing forever. This vital industry, which has provided essential employment and livelihoods for countless families in the North County, has been decimated, due to the restrictive quota system imposed by the EU. The decision to reduce quotas of whitefish caught in the Irish Sea, means that the only fishing available to the majority of trawler men, is for prawns. The County Leader spoke with , Bill Price a member of one of the leading fishing families in the region, who is the proprietor of Rockabill Shellfish Company in Balbriggan and whose family own 12 fishing vessels. He spoke about the changing dynamic in the fishing industry along the east coast. “We, as Skerries and Howth people used to depend on the Irish Sea for our livelihoods, but now we have all-weather boats, which are larger than before and capable of fishing for up to 10 days at a time. These modern boats can freeze prawns on board, and today’s skipper must have the similar qualifications as an airline pilot,” he said. However, not all fishermen are in the position to be able to compete at this level, and as the only fishing left to them on the east coast, is for prawns, any reduction in quotas has a devastating effect on jobs in the area. Fishing ports like Clogherhead, Skerries,
Balbriggan, Loughshinny and Howth used to have up to 30 boats in their harbours before the era of quotas, and the employment provided was a necessary lifeline to these maritime towns. Local trawler men are mystified by the tiny quotas on white fish in their areas, and many report on an abundance of cod, haddock and monkfish, but there are significant quota reductions on these, including 75 per cent reduction on haddock. The quota on prawn fishing has also been severly reduced, leading to boats being tied up in our harbours. According to Bill Price, “no fisherman can make a living with this kind of reduction in their total allowable catch.” Because of the nervousness and uncertainty surrounding the quotas imposed on prawn fishing, Bill Price has been forced to look elsewhere for this valuable commodity. He said, “We have been forced to source raw material (prawns) from the Northern Ireland fleet, in Ardglass and Portavogie, in order to maintain jobs at our operation in Balbriggan. The governing body needs to sit down and look at the situation. We need fishermen in decision making situations, not suits, who do not have the required knowledge of the industry. The fishing industry needs people, who understand the strategies and structures of the the industry, at the heart of decision making who have the interests of fishermen at heart,” he said. Many people living in our coastal towns and villages believe that it is high time that the Government realised that the fishing industry is composed of dedicated people, who deserve a hand-up, not a handout and that they should be provided with the same level of assistance given to the farming community. This would help to reinvigorate our coastal towns and villages, by providing much needed employment, just as it used to