Southside News 30-09-2020

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It’s the boom time rats

A massive spike in complaints about rodents has been recorded in Dublin during the lockdown, with the HSE’s Pest Control Service taking 4,292 calls from January to August this year — resulting in almost 70 visits per day in Dublin properties.

However, unlike in previous years when a majority of reports were on the northside, there is now an almost 50-50 split in calls, with 2,155 from the northside and 2,137 from the southside.

The rodent complaints largely

Rodent numbers multiply during Covid lockdown relate to domestic rear gardens and public parks and roadways, according to South Dublin County Council.

With a total of 17,200 visits so far, the latest figures suggest 2020 is on target to exceed the 22,607 visits recorded by pest control officials in Dublin last year — since pest control

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officers carry out an average of four visits to each location where rodents are reported.

Dublin City Council admitted in June there was in increase in rats as pest control was curtailed by the pandemic, with reports during the summer of how rats spotted in the Oliver Bond Flats were big enough “to put a saddle on”.

Abigail McDonnell at Call the launch of the Annual Green Ribbon Campaign in association with See Change, Ireland’s organisation dedicated to ending mental health stigma.

Pic: Andres Poveda

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Rodents invade city in lockdown

Continued from front page Residents said the complex was overrun, with rats visible “all day, every day”.

The council blamed the growth in the city’s rat population on warm weather, fewer pedestrians and increased illegal dumping.

Its Pest Control Task Group reported a 15% increase in domestic waste during lockdown, which was allied to an increase in illegal dumping beside bins on pavements.

Meanwhile, pest control experts have warned business owners that thanks to the ongoing restrictions, premises left vacant face a major threat of pest infestation.

Rentokil said premises going back into lockdown in Dublin will offer rats a perfect breeding ground, particularly with the drop in temperatures.

Richard Faulkner, Advanced Technical Field Consultant for Rentokil said: “Rodents will have made homes in buildings that lay vacant during the lockdown period, and as a result, some businesses may be facing an infestation upon reopening.”

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Shelbourne statues to check back in

THE Shelbourne Hotel is to reinstall four statues it removed from outside its premises earlier this year.

The hotel’s owners took the bronze sculptures away in July, following pressure from the Black Lives Matter movement.

It was believed the statues depicted slaves but the removal itself was controversial, given the front of the hotel is listed as a protected structure.

Historian Kyle Leyden had argued at the time that looking at the trade catalogues the statues were ordered from, the statues were not intended to represent slaves at all, as was believed.

The lecturer in the history of art and architecture at the University of London said that manacles on the ankles of the statues were probably meant to be bangles, and that all four statues are wearing them.

He said: “The main attractions of Egypt to these people were really references to luxury

and wealth. Obviously it was extremely useful when you’re building a new hotel to refer to the luxury and wealth of the patrons and what you might expect when you actually visit the hotel.”

Mr Leyden said that while accepting their problematic nature, they form part of the only 19th Century hotel on this scale in the country, and their removal would have been disproportionate.

Instead, he suggested placing a plaque explaining the context of the statues or handing out leaflets.

“The statues could become commercial incentives to visits rather than an embarrassment and, should any problems arise, the leaflet will easily explain why they are

5 parks flying high in green awards South Dublin County Council has been awarded five green flags for public spaces in the area.

Waterstown Park, Sean Walsh Park, Tymon Park, Corkagh Park and Rathfarnham Castle Park, were all recipients. This included one new flag being awarded to Rathfarnham Castle Park. It was the third year in a row that the other parks received awards.

The Green Flag Award is a highly regarded international benchmark that recognises and rewards the provision of high-quality parks and green spaces. Established in more than 50 countries, the award scheme is managed in Ireland

by An Taisce.

It rates the management of parks by local authorities across criteria including safety, cleanliness, conservation, sustainability and community involvement.

The five parks are included in the list of 84 public parks from across the country to achieve a Green Flag award in 2020.

there,” he said.

Although a date for their reinstallation of the statues has not been confirmed, their restoration will now include a plaque outlining their backgrounds.

Colin’s special appeal for Olympians With the support of Hollywood hero, Colin Farrell (pictured left), Special Olympics athlete, Anna Kilmartin (8, pictured right) from Dublin, was on hand to launch the Special Olympics Ireland ‘Can’t Stop Now’ fundraising appeal.

The campaign focuses on digital and text donations and people can now make a donation through the Revolut

App. Special Olympics Ireland is asking the public to help raise €500,000 for its athletes.

As Special Olympics Ireland ambassador, Colin said: “COVID-19 has resulted in Special Olympics Ireland missing out on a significant part of its vital fundraising efforts, like so many other charities across the globe.

It’s so important that we get the public on board to raise

much needed funds for these inspirational children and adults, for whom, sports clubs are a social and health lifeline.”

Special Olympics Ireland supports almost 8,000 children and adults with an intellectual disability across Ireland. Throughout the pandemic, the charity has been working tirelessly to find creative ways to reach out to

athletes to ensure they remain physically, mentally and emotionally fit.

Special Olympics athletes have come so far, many have overcome the things they were told they couldn’t do, like swim, ride a bike, go to university, get a job — or get a gold medal for Ireland. Text Athlete to 50300 to donate €4 or go to specialolympics.ie for other ways to donate.

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Oliver Bond rave boss did not live in complex THE organiser of the illicit rave that took place in Dublin’s Oliver Bond flats last weekend was not a resident of the complex, gardai have said.

The suspect has been identified by gardai and the company that supplied the equipment, as well as the tenant who facilitated a power supply, will be questioned about their role in the event, according to Dublin City Council.

A Dublin senator has called on the organisers of the rave to be prosecuted.

Fine Gael sentator Mary Seery Kearney says a warning must go out to others planning or organising mass gatherings at a time when Dublin is at a critical stage in the battle to beat Covid.

“The scenes recorded at Oliver Bond flats were extremely disturbing,” Senator Seery Kearney said.

“Residents there deserve to be afforded the same protection that all communities are and those responsible for organising the outdoor rave must be held accountable and prosecuted by An Garda Síochána.

“This is not about demonising

Revellers at the Oliver Bond flat complex just hours after restrictions were announced in Dublin

the young people, who are naturally frustrated at such a long period of restrictions, but Dublin is on a knife-edge, now is the time for everyone to play their part for people’s health and our social and economic survival as a city,” she added.

Dublin councillor Mannix Flynn likened the rave to a home invasion.

Mr Flynn said that the residents of the flats, which include many children and families, as well as pensioners and those with disabilities, feel

scared after the rave.

He said: “The event had absolutely nothing whatsoever to do with the vast amount of residents in the block. It was like a home invasion, to all intents and purposes.

“And while I understand all

the nuances of youth culture, this is not acceptable. This is akin to a drug orgy and an illegal activity. It terrorised children, it terrorised elderly people and families in the flats.”

Meanwhile, the Co Meath farmer who discovered the rave on his land last week said the partygoers were well-prepared for a full night of partying, with speakers, decks, tables and campfires.

More than 100 ravers — all from Brazil — were discovered by farmer and broadcaster Darragh McCullough on his Elmgrove Farm on the Monday morning, who was equally surprised at how the ravers greeted him.

“It could have got ugly but I was amazed that everybody said, ‘Okay, sorry about that’ and they did an about turn and headed for the gate. There was an odd beer car around but, to be honest, a number of the party-goers came prepared with black bin liners and picked up all their rubbish.”

Darragh added: “Not one of them was Irish — they were all Brazilian.”

€2,500 grant open to sports clubs There is good news for sports clubs in Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown as applications are now being accepted for up to €2,500 in grants to develop or expand targeted participation initiatives or provide training for volunteers/coaches.

Funding is provided through Sport Ireland and is intended to support those clubs not already in receipt of significant core and/or additional funding.

The Club Participation Grants scheme aims to increase participation in sport among girls/women and people with disabilities, especially within an area of disadvantage, and falls under three categories: Women in Sport Participation Initiative; Disability Inclusion Participation Initiatives & Programmes; and Volunteer Training & Development.

For details go to: dlrppn. ie/club-participation-grantscheme-2020/. The final date for applications is 23rd October 2020.

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Des Kelly still rolling out the carpets 50 years on ‘The Carpet Man’ Des Kelly is proudly celebrating half a century since he opened his first store at Cross Guns Bridge, in Glasnevin.

The golden anniversary will be marked by a staff celebration later in the year and a series of consumer promotions reflecting the brand’s impact on homeowners since its launch in 1970.

Founder Des Kelly passed away four years ago and the company is now led by his sons Greg, Gerardo and daughter Youlanda.

Many members of the extended Kelly family, children and grandchildren, work across the network of 10 showrooms throughout Leinster, as well as in the firm’s online retail business. The company has employed hundreds of staff over the last 50 years — on a number of occasions, three generations of the one family have worked in the business.

Des first began selling secondhand furniture from his back yard in the inner city, a business

Celebrating 50 years of ‘The Carpet Man’, Des Kelly interiors, were his daughter Youlanda and sons Greg and Gerardo. Photo: Julien Behal Photography

that was later extended to include carpets and vinyl.

When the first shop opened at Cross Guns Bridge in 1970, people travelled from all over the east coast at a time when carpet was seen as an ‘unaffordable luxury’, according to Greg.

“Des changed all that and made carpets easily affordable,” Grey says. “He revolutionised the carpet industry in Ireland — and some might even say that he invented it.”

Greg attributes the business’s success and longevity to incredible staff loyalty, with a number of employees with the business from the start.

And you could say that Des was blessed with good fortune throughout the 50 years in business.

He supplied and fitted ‘the Pope’s carpet’ in 1979 for the visit of Pope John Paul II to the Phoenix Park, covering the walkways and altar in a grey carpet.

Almost 40 years later, the company also provided

Teen loses his finger to firework A Dublin teen who was rushed to hospital with serious hand injuries after a firework explosion, has shared a photo of his horrific injureis while warning others of the dangers of using fireworks.

The 18-year-old had the top of his finger blown off in the incident in Palmerstown last Monday night.

He was released from Connolly Hospital after receiving medical treatment and posted a picture of his wounds, inset, saying: “Boys I’m begging you all to not play with fireworks.”

The horrific accident took place the night before Justice Minister Helen McEntee launched a fireworks awareness campaign, called ‘Don’t add to the problem’, in which she appealed to people to remember frontline workers and ensure emergency rooms were not filled with preventable injuries caused by fireworks.

“This year, more than ever

before, we need to remember our frontline workers who have gone above and beyond the call of duty since the start of the pandemic,” she said.

“We owe it to them this Halloween to ensure that emergency rooms are not filled with preventable but serious injuries caused by the use of illegal fireworks. This would add unnecessary pressure.”

She said gardaí were seeking to identify why there has been a huge surge in the use of fireworks recently.

“Having spoken to the Garda Commissioner I know there is a huge amount of work underway to try and identify where they are coming from.

They’re working with the PSNI in the North as well, where there could be a potential issue between the North and South.”

There have been 52 seizures of illegal fireworks so far this year.

carpeting for the Mass celebrated by Pope Francis in 2018, as well as supplying new carpets for the bedroom and offices that accommodated the Pope at the Holy See Apostolic Nunciature, on the Navan Road in Dublin.

The businessman had eight children with his wife, Youlanda, who predeceased him.

The wholly Irish-owned and family-run business has grown significantly since the early days of selling carpets, and has added affordable, quality beds, floorings and home furnishings to its stable.

Recently a large new central warehouse, soon to be the company’s head office, was established at North West Business Park in Dublin.

Des was involved in volunteering for homeless charities in Dublin and donated generously to local charities.

He was also a loyal fan of his local Bohemians Football Club and the company remains proud sponsors to this day.

Sensors installed at street crossings New ‘no-touch’ pedestrian crossing buttons have been installed on a number of Dublin streets in a bid to cut down on the numbers of pedestrians touching the same surface.

Dublin City Council had announced in July that it was trying out the sensor-activated system on Nassau Street as part of its Covid-19 mobility measures. The technology has now been rolled out on O’Connell Street and Dame Street.

The council says it has worked out a way of integrating the sensors into the existing infrastructure, so that it will eventually feature in the majority of buttons at street crossings in the coming weeks and months.

Waiting times for pedestrians have also been reduced to limit the number of people gathering at crossings.

Cities such as LA and Sydney had successfully trialled automatic timers at crossings, so pedestrians could avoid physically touching the buttons.

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30.09.20

Bus plan to give routes 23% boost Plans for the overhaul of Dublin bus network have been revealed and huge changes are anticipated, with promises to boost services overall by 23%.

The National Transport Authority (NTA) is planning to introduce the changes on a phased basis from next year and it’s intended that the new system will make journeys shorter, increase frequency and lead to higher capacity across the whole network.

The design is based on eight new ‘super frequency spines’ and 12 ‘orbital routes’.

The spines will operate through the city centre, the orbital routes go around the city centre and the other routes will fill in the areas in between.

This means bus routes will see a change based on whether they are spines (A-H), orbital (O,S,N,W), other city bound routes (1-99), local routes (L), peak-only routes

(P) and express routes (X).

The numbers will be used to indicate different branches of a spine. For example, all A buses will pass through Terenure, but the A1 will continue to Knocklyon while the A2 will go on to Tallaght.

One of the reasons behind this plan is that having more than one bus available to reach a destination would improve accessibility.

The network redesign is part of the NTA’s BusConnects programme, which aims to create 230km of dedicated bus lanes in tandem with 200km of cycle tracks. This will require 16 new bus corridors to accommodate the new network and will potentially require widening roads with the loss of parking spaces, trees and parts of front gardens.

The NTA said the new network would see increased evening and weekend services,

with most frequent routes operating every 15 minutes or better on weekdays and Saturdays, most on Sundays also. There will be a number of routes that will operate 24 hours a day.

Overall, the hopes are that bus services in the Dublin network will increase by 23%.

The plan will be implemented on a phased basis over a number of years, beginning in 2021.

Minister for Transport Eamon Ryan backed the plan, saying it would improve public transport and address climate change.

“Bus services across Dublin needed to be redesigned to be more coherent and efficient to meet the demands for a growing city, and I am delighted we are now able to implement this new plan after extensive public consultation,” he said.

A map of the new network is available at busconnects.ie.

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******* There has been an

Sam the man behind the mask!

Brian Quigley You could be forgiven for not knowing what Sam Bennett looks like.

You have probably heard the name by now but might not be able to put a face to it – usually it’s the other way around, but then there is nothing usual about these times we are living through.

In case you need to be brought up to speed, Sam Bennett won the green jersey in this year’s Tour de France, as well as two stages of this iconic race.

Helmeted during the race coverage and masked during interviews and podium appearances, it is entirely understandable that people may not know what he looks like.

Bennett hails from Carrickon-Suir, home of another great of Irish cycling, Sean Kelly.

Indeed, Bennett is the first Irishman to lead one of the

Tour’s classifications since Kelly in 1989.

I’m glad to see that the Belgians aren’t trying to claim ‘Sammy B’.

Sam’s father Michael – the former Waterford United player and manager – played soccer for Belgian club Eendracht Wervik in the late ‘80’s /early 90’s, and Sam was born there (by the time he was four he was back in Ireland).

In road bicycle racing parlance, Sam is a ‘sprinter’.

Sprinters aim for high finishes in a stage and compete in intermediate sprints, and the points from these tallies towards the contest for the green jersey.

The yellow jersey is the most famous jersey in the Tour de France – and rightly so as it gets worn by the overall leader and winner – but amongst ‘sprinters’ the green jersey is hotly contested, as is the polka-dot jersey amongst the

‘climbers’. Bennett rides for the UCI WorldTeam Deceunick – Quick-Step team and the two stages he delivered for them in this year’s Tour de France brings to seven Grand Tour stages (Tour de France, Giro de Italia and Vuelta a Espana) that he has won in his decade-long pro career.

Ireland badly needed a new sporting hero to give the nation a lift in these troubled times.

We have been denied most of our normal annual sporting diet and cycling badly needs a new hero here.

Like it or not the exploits of Sean Kelly and Stephen Roche

are tainted by the era they operated in, and what we now know about the practices in cycling at the time and long afterwards.

I’m not naïve enough to think that the sport is fully cleaned up even now, but I am fair enough to give Bennett the benefit of the doubt.

Back to the mask.

There was a touch of ‘Zorro’ in Bennett’s win and media appearances. A swashbuckling, heroic achievement. Let’s celebrate his win.

unprecedented level of focus on the science community in 2020, as solutions to the Covid-19 crisis are sought.

This is how it should be. It is the business of science to make new discoveries that will make our lives safer, healthier, longer, more productive and more enjoyable.

Too much talk in the media though about vaccines for Covid-19 is unhelpful; expectations are raised and the meter starts running on public patience.

Scientists will deliver safe and efficient vaccines but it won’t be today or tomorrow; it probably won’t be this year and possibly not even next.

A safe vaccine is one that has been through Phase 1, Phase 2 and Phase 3 clinical trials.

Progressing through this suite of trials establishes the safety of the drug or vaccine, followed by the correct dosages and ultimately proven efficacy for widespread use.

The process has up to now taken the guts of a decade, and you can add on a Phase 4 which is feedback after general use to fine-tune the list of side-effects.

We won’t be waiting a decade for a vaccine for Covid-19. The search for it has changed the game enormously, and the time for development will be driven

down drastically.

No more gaps between the phases as funding for the next phase is sought; they will now be overlapped and dovetailed.

Knowledge sharing around the industry has moved up several gears. Better technology is being employed for research and will be employed for manufacture.

Industry, governments and educational establishments are scrambling to collaborate.

While the above is all good news and progressive, it may still be the case that we reach herd immunity (where a large percentage of the population has become immune to an infection, thereby providing protection for those who are not immune) before we have a fully functioning vaccine.

While this will inevitably involve more fatalities, we are at least seeing some hopeful signs.

Trends across the globe at present see case numbers rising as societies reopen after lockdown, but fatalities dropping as a percentage of those infected.

More information about how blood thinners and common steroids can be effective in fighting the virus is emerging daily (where I work is producing one of these thinners).

It may yet add up to us learning how to live with Covid-19 before we can rid it from our lives through vaccination.

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14 Food

30.09.20

Time to celebrate the good old spud Bord Bia’s National Potato Day 2020 will take place on Friday 2nd October. The annual celebration honours one of Ireland’s favourite foods, the versatile and delicious potato.

As part of this year’s #NationalPotatoDay campaign, Bord Bia will share a series of engaging potato recipes and kitchen skill videos on its social media channels, along with simple and easy-to-prepare potato recipes.

Commenting on upcoming activity for National Potato Day, Bord Bia Fresh Produce and Potato Manager Lorcan Bourke said: “This year we want to show people that potatoes are easy, and healthier to prepare

with their skins left on, as well as quick to cook once chopped into smaller pieces.”

So why not try this simple recipe, which will suit all the family?

Gnocchi with spinach and roasted tomatoes Serves: Four Cooking time: 40 mins

Ingredients: • Three floury potatoes (e.g.

Rooster) approximately 500g • 70g fresh spinach • Three tablespoons of ricotta • 170g parmesan cheese, grated • 200g flour • Two eggs • A little grated nutmeg

Druids Glen gives top job to TV chef

Broadcaster Anna Daly with her three boys Euan (7), Rhys (4) and James (9) at the launch of this year’s Temple Street Foundation’s ‘Trick or Treat for Temple Street’ campaign, supported by MiWadi. Pic: Andres Poveda

• 400g cherry tomatoes, roasted • Salt and freshly ground black pepper Method: Peel the potatoes and cut them into equal-sized pieces. Boil them in salted water for 15 to 20 minutes, drain and allow to dry for 10 minutes.

In the meantime, blanch the spinach briefly in boiling, salted water, place in a sieve and press all the moisture out with the back of a spoon. Finely chop

the spinach and reserve the boiling water for the gnocchi.

Drain the ricotta well. Grate the Parmesan cheese.

Mash the potatoes into a puree and mix in the ricotta, flour, egg and 60g of the Parmesan cheese. Season with nutmeg, salt and pepper.

Mix everything together and turn the dough out onto a worktop dusted with flour.

Knead it carefully until smooth.

Add some extra flour if the dough is too sticky. Then roll into small balls and place

them in a bowl covered with plastic film. Use a fork to flatten the balls slightly.

Put the bowl in the freezer until needed.

Just before serving, boil them in plenty of salted water.

The gnocchi are ready when they rise to the surface. Serve with roasted cherry tomatoes and the remaining parmesan cheese.

For more information and recipes, see: bordbia.ie

Druids Glen Hotel & Golf Resort in Newtownmountkennedy, Co Wicklow, has appointed Wicklow native Neal Kearns as Executive Head Chef.

Neal has been working in the hospitality sector for the last 20 years and has extensive experience in top hotels, including Dunbrody House, Kingsley Hotel, Louis Fitzgerald Group, Castleknock Hotel and most recently as Director of Culinary in Carton House.

He has overseen the catering and dietary requirements of a range of elite teams from football clubs like Napoli and Chelsea FC, Glasgow Celtic, rugby teams New Zealand All Blacks, to our very own Irish Rugby Team and also the Senior Men & Women’s Irish Soccer Team and the Irish Cricket Team.

Neal may also be recognised for his live cooking demonstrations on Saturday mornings on Virgin Media One’s Ireland AM.

Pillars of the community

The 21m high stump of Nelson's Pillar shortly after the explosion of March 8th 1966. This photo and many more of Dublin in decades gone by were recently donated to the Old Dublin Society by the family of the late Liam Breen. Details of the society can be found at olddublinsociety.ie. If you would like a free digital copy of the photograph just send an Email to olddublinsociety@gmail.com

Education

30.09.20

Females earn 14% less as graduates Female graduates expect to earn up to 14% less than their male counterparts annually and could be losing out on over €5,000 each year, compared with male counterparts with higher salary expectations.

The research by Irishjobs.ie in partnership with employer brand specialist Universum, was conducted among 11,769 students across the areas of business, IT, health, engineering and law.

And it reveals a significant difference in the annual salary expectations of male and female graduates, particularly in the fields of law (12% less), business (10.5%), and engineering (6%).

Graduates in IT have the highest starting salary expectations among those surveyed, with €37,579 considered an appropriate starting salary.

But male IT graduates expect 14% more than female

graduates, with a starting salary of €39,409 considered appropriate.

Graduates in law also have significantly different salary expectations.

Female graduates expect up to 12% (€5,037) less pay per year (€36,302) than their male counterparts, who expect €41,339 per year.

This marks a 4% increase on the gap evident between female and male law graduate salary expectations in 2019.

A significant gap is evident among business graduates too, with male graduates expecting up to 10.5% (€3,804) higher salaries than their female counterparts, or €36,017 and €32,213 respectively.

The research suggests the pay gap between males and females is widening rather than shrinking.

When compared with last year’s findings, the research

shows a 4% increase in the largest salary expectation gap between male and female graduates (14% vs 10% in 2019).

The Gender Pay Gap Information Bill is set to be signed into law later this year.

Under the new legislation, companies who employ more than 250 people will be required to publish data on differences in gender pay and outline how they will tackle any disparity.

This will provide a new level of transparency and insight into the programmes in place to tackle any gender pay disparities.

It could even spark a shift in expectations among graduates, particularly among female graduates, who could be more likely to consider companies with a narrower gender pay gap or better programmes in place to address the issue.

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NCAD gets creative with online graduates showcase

Season Dailey from NCAD showcases her work which will feature in the college’s digital catalogue. Pic: Marc O’Sullivan

Graduates of the National College of Art and Design (NCAD) have the opportunity to showcase their work online this year, as the college published its digital catalogue documenting the talents of its students, including fine art and design.

The catalogue was officially launched by the Minister for Further and Higher Education Simon Harris. In early

September, NCAD welcomed graduating students back to the campus – with access to workshops and studios – so they could complete their graduate projects which were interrupted by lockdown in March.

NCAD Director Professor Sarah Glennie said: “2020 is a year for many things to be done differently, and this is reflected in how we showcase

the work of our graduating students. The digital catalogue is one element of our Graduate Programme 2020.

In addition, there will be a range of initiatives, including psychosocial and virtual presentations and events, where we will be shining a light on the work and talent of our graduating students.”

For more, go to: www.ncad. works/events

16 Education

30.09.20

A lesson from Minister Norma Michael wolsey

AS Fianna Fáil sinks to new depths in the polls its beleaguered ministers should take a lesson from the Minister for Education. Norma Foley is the best pupil in Micheál Martin’s class.

Admittedly, that is not a great distinction, for they are an unruly bunch of underachievers. They fight, talk behind the teacher’s back and tell tales out of school. And some of them never do their homework.

But Norma did her homework when it came to planning the re-opening of our schools.

She ignored the clamour for interviews and public statements from many in opposition parties and the media, and stuck to her difficult task.

She took advice from school principals and senior civil servants and learned from the experience of other countries.

She cleared her lines with the teacher unions and with representatives of all the interests involved.

Although Ms Foley is an inexperienced politician, she displayed a deft touch and was careful to leave no hostages to fortune. She marked out the limitations of her authority and

made it clear there would be times when she would defer to the public health professionals - if, for instance, they called for the closure of a class or an entire school.

An incredible amount of work went into re-opening the schools - from the teachers, of course, but also from the caretaking and catering staffs and the people who run and drive school buses. To equip an entire fleet with protective screens, hand sanitizers and reserved seats was a considerable achievement.

Naturally, there have been some problems.

There have not been enough bus seats for everyone, everywhere, or enough space for every class in every school.

Nevertheless, the operation has shown the hallmarks of sound planning, a trait rarely exhibited by this Government.

Ms Foley does not deserve all the credit. But ministers get a lot of blame when things go wrong so I think she has earned a pat on the back. Maith an cailín - you’re the best girl in the class! The minister also deserves praise for her handling of the Leaving Cert under the system of predictive grades. She took advice and changed her plans when she saw the problems caused by the use of computer

but they are the problems of a few individuals. They should not detract from what was, overall, a successful conclusion to an exam year fraught with difficulty .

Ms Foley’s calm and considered approach stands

in total contrast to so much else the Government has done, in particular the chaos surrounding the ill-judged plan to make pubs keep details of every meal they serve.

At least, that was the plan as first leaked to newspapers.

Then it turned out that the pubs would only be required to keep their till rolls, which they have to do anyway for VAT purposes.

And we barely had time to absorb this change before we learned that it didn’t really matter because most of the wet pubs would soon be allowed to re-open without any food requirement.

The Government, and its individual ministers, employ an army of advisors and spin doctors, yet nobody seems to have thought through this mad measure or briefed backbenchers on what was intended and how it might work.

Fianna Fáil ministers should not shoulder all the blame for the hesitancy and poor judgment that has damaged this Government. But, with the exception of Ms Foley, they do seem to be a particularly hapless bunch and the party’s constant infighting and sniping at its leader does nothing to help their case.

Mr Martin can only pray they all stay on board as the great new Covid plan plays out. For, as Benjamin Franklin warned the politicians of eighteenth century America: “We must all hang together, or, most assuredly, we shall all hang separately.”

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Junk Kouture finalist Cian Newman models his design made from old roller blinds. The sustainability and design contest is celebrating 10 years by launching in five international cities in 2021 and 13 cities spanning seven continents by 2023.

Pic Brian McEvoy

algorithms in the British exam system. And she has refused to be panicked by the few cases of wrongful downgrading or the anger of some students whose results from last year were devalued by grade inflation.

These are genuine problems

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30.09.20

Education

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18 House & Home

30.09.20

Light relief: €6k grant for energy upgrade As we enter the colder Autumn months, the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) is encouraging homeowners to avail of Government funded grants for home energy upgrades.

To date, 73,168 Dublin homes have already availed of these grants. These homeowners are living in more comfortable, healthier, energy efficient homes, while paying lower energy bills and reducing their climate impact.

SEAI has individual grants for insulation, renewable home heating, heating controls, and solar PV. The grants are fixed amounts ranging from €400 up to €6000 depending on the works to be undertaken and the size of house, and typically cover 30% of the upgrade cost. Some works, such as roof insulation or cavity wall insulation, can typically pay for themselves through lower energy bills in as little as one to two years.

Encouraging homeowners to invest in their homes, Tom Halpin, Head of Communications with SEAI

said: “The last six months has shown us that our homes really are our havens and something that we need to invest in and maintain. Homeowners who invest in home energy upgrades and avail of SEAI’s grants will

feel the benefits of living in a warmer home almost instantly.

The most common question SEAI is asked is – where do I start? We’d recommend starting with a BER assessment carried out by a SEAI registered BER

assessor. The BER certificate and accompanying advisory report will set out what works you can undertake to improve the energy performance of your home and in what order these works should be prioritised.”

The Building Energy Rating (BER), indicates the energy performance of a home. Homes are placed on a scale from A to G, with A-rated homes being the best in terms of energy efficiency and climate impact and G being the lowest. The Government’s Climate Action Plan sets an ambitious target for 500,000 Irish homes to achieve a B2 building energy rating by 2030. By investing in home energy upgrades homeowners can bring a lower rated home up to a B2 energy rating or higher.

Some energy suppliers and companies operating as energy partners with SEAI are now offering packages to manage the entire upgrade process, including grant application and works, on behalf of the homeowners. To help fund the cost of the upgrade investment, homeowners are advised to check what low interest green loans are available from their bank, local Credit Union and An Post.

For further information and to apply for SEAI’s home energy grants visit www.seai.ie

Growing calls for a four-day work week THERE is growing support for a four-day working week among politicians from all parties, with unions and businesses calling for the Government to take a new look at a new way of working.

‘Four Day Week Ireland’ believes that, with the new reality of working lives that Covid-19 has caused, now is time to explore reducing time in the office.

A survey for the campaign suggests that workers, employers and the public are all in favour of the Government at least looking into it. It found that three out of four members of the public are in favour of the four-day week.

Almost half of employers (46 per cent) said it would be ‘feasible’ to trial a fourday working week in their workplace.

“Close to half of employers see this as feasible in their own workplace, which is very encouraging, while a substantial majority believe the Government should explore this concept,” said Joe O’Connor of Fórsa trade union.

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Classifieds 21

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Dublin In The Rare Old Times 23

30.09.20

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

Freemans Journal 14/09/1865

Irish Press 17/09/1964

Freemans Journal 12/09/1870

Evening Herald 20/09/1938

Irish Press 30/09/1972

Irish Ind 28/09/1950

Irish Press 24/09/1964

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southSIDE NEWS 30.09.20