O’Mahony Denounces Minister’s Lack of Commitment to Midfield School Improvements

“The school authority originally applied for the extension and refurbishment to provide for improved ancillary accommodation.  The project proposed initially did not include additional mainstream classrooms and having regard to competing demands on the building programme the application was at the time afforded a lower priority rating. The school submitted an application under the Small Schools Scheme, 2007 for additional accommodation including mainstream classrooms.  On the 5th March 2007 I announced details of the schools to receive funding under this scheme. Due to the volume received in the Department it was not possible to allocate funding to all proposed projects and the school referred to was not successful in this instance. The Department recently received an appeal from the school in relation to the initial decision which will be considered further” In a reaction John O’ Mahony said “I have visited the school and the situation could not be more urgent.  Not alone are certain facilities at the school sub-standard but the fact there is increased enrolments of pupils has created a situation where the extension is an urgent priority.  I share the views of the staff, the Board of Management and the parents that the government’s attitude to this project is totally unacceptable and I have given a commitment that if elected on May 24th I will be making the Midfield School project one of my top priorities” ENDS/

Fine Gael will commit to children with autism – O’Mahony

”It’s very, very sad and there is nothing worse for any parent than to see their child being disadvantaged because of an inadequate education system. This has to be addressed and I want to make it clear that the Fine Gael proposal is not an empty pre-election promise. “Fine Gael is committed to meeting the needs of children with an intellectual or physical disability. Our recently published General Election Manifesto put forward a number of key actions that Fine Gael will prioritise in Government after the election. With regard to autism, our manifesto explicitly states that where a period of intensive education – like Applied Behaviour Analysis (ABA) – is professionally recommended for children with autism we will support this approach. “For too long children with autism have been shamefully overlooked by Fianna Fail and the Progressive Democrats. Special autism units are working for some children with autism, but for others a more intensive approach is needed. However, this Government refuses to fully acknowledge the benefits of ABA education, leaving many children with autism without the education that fits for them. “Fine Gael believes that, in education, one size does not fit all. In Government we will recognise more ABA schools for funding, giving children with autism who need this type of education the assistance they are currently waiting for,” he said.

Crossmolina school children are disadvantaged – O’Mahony

The school is part of the Giving Children an Even Break but the parents of children attending the school believe that a prolonged absence from the DEIS programme will have long term negative effects.
”It is the view of the parents of children in the school that ongoing exclusion from the DEIS programme will create a long-term imbalance between services enjoyed by other schoolchildren in the catchment area and the children of Crossmolina NS. An obvious example of this is the recent funding which was made available specifically to DEIS schools under the Dormant Funds scheme. As the DEIS programme is rolled out, further inequalities will arise with regard to literacy and numeracy as well as access to educational psychologists,” he said.
Mr O’Mahony said parents had brought to his attention the changes in the socio-economic circumstances of the town over the past twelve months. ”I don’t think the review group who heard the appeal took the changing circumstances into account. Major employers in the town such as the ESB, Bank of Ireland and Bord na Mona as well as several small businesses have shut down. Unemployment, alcoholism, drug dependency, marital breakdown and depression are just some of the problems being experienced among families with children in the school. Parents realise that education is the only hope for their children and they are anxious to obtain whatever facilities are available through the DEIS programme,” he said.

East Mayo towns could be connected to gas line – O’Mahony

’The towns not getting connected like Foxford, Swinford, Kiltimagh have been examined by An Bord Gais. Using the BG criteria those towns do not qualify on a stand-alone basis. Even grouped together they still do not qualify. The connecting line for those towns was from Rockfield, near Turlough and it would go through Bohola.

Basically, the criteria is new housing units, industry etc. The latter is a double-edged sword. If you have no industry you will not get gas, if you have not gas you will not get industry.

‘’However, there is a solution. Ballina is going to be connected and so will Crossmolina. Why Crossmolina and not Foxford, Swinford or Kiltimagh? The answer is simple; Crossmolina lies on the way to Ballina. Similarly, there is the question of the gas pipe going onto Sligo and maybe Donegal. If it goes via Ballina, there is no town between Ballina and Sligo.

‘’What I am proposing is that the Sligo connection go via Foxford, Swinford and Charlestown with spurs to Knock Airport as well as to Kiltimagh. Then Sligo would be connected that way, also maybe Tubbercurry, Ballymote. This is not far fetched and I do understand that such a suggestion has been already discussed. Imagine the benefits to all these towns if they were connected to the gas line,’’ he said.

Mr O’Mahony also wants Ballinrobe to be connected to the gas line. ‘’It makes sense to do so. The line goes near Hollymount and Headford is being connected. I also believe that Belmullet, which is near Bellanaboy, should be connected immediately and I am sure that Shell will make a contribution to make that possible.’’

O’Mahony claims Calleary u-turn on polling day

”It’s difficult to understand where Dara is coming from here. In 2002, as part of an Ogra Fianna Fail proposal, he called on the government to hold general elections, by-elections and referenda on Saturday but now he has no problem supporting the election being held on a Thursday, a day that is blatantly unsuitable for so many people. I think it’s only fair that young Mayo people in particular are told why a Fianna Fail election candidate believes that Thursday is a better day to hold the election on than a Friday or Saturday, particularly as the candidate has already publicly stated his preference for a weekend polling day.
”How can people who are working or studying away from home and who may be in the middle of exams be expected to get home to Mayo on a Thursday evening to vote and be back in Dublin again the next morning for work or to continue their exams. It’s just ridiculous and I can’t understand why this election is not being held on a Friday or a Saturday,” said Mr O’Mahony.

Changes will affect Medical Cards and supplementary welfare in Mayo – O’Mahony

Medical card holders and welfare recipients will lose out because the Health Service Executive and the Department of Social & Family have transferred responsibility for community welfare services from the Health Service Executive to the Department of Social & Family Affairs. That’s according to Fine Gael Mayo Candidate John O’Mahony who denounced the move as illogical and unacceptable.

“This move could have severe repercussions for medical card holders, supplementary welfare recipients and others. There is a marked difference in the kind of culture that operates with community welfare officers and social welfare officers. Social welfare officers operate within very rigid guidelines when deciding on an applicant’s entitlement for the various social welfare entitlements. There is also a long waiting period when somebody applies for an old age pension, unemployment assistance, widow’s pension, single parent’s allowance, farm assistance and so on.

“Community welfare officers on the other hand have a certain level of flexibility when it comes to assessing entitlements. For example, when it comes to medical cards the Community Welfare officer has flexibility and discretion if compelling family circumstances are present. Again if larger ongoing medical costs are evident, the community welfare officer can sanction the medical card.

“Supplementary Welfare is a temporary weekly cash payment which community welfare officers make available to applicants who are waiting for social welfare entitlements to come through. If there are certain extenuating family circumstances the community welfare officers have the discretion to make exceptional payments.

“Furthermore, in Mayo there are 22 community welfare officers who are readily accessible at a range of venues throughout the county, whereas there are only half that number of social welfare officers.

“The major fear is that if these payments and services are transferred to the Department of Social and Family affairs the all important flexibility and discretion will disappear. What is clear is that this is a cost-cutting measure which will have services social consequences and it must not be allowed to go ahead.”

Nurses Are the Backbone of the Health Service’

For our nurses to resort to industrial action is proof that the current benchmarking process is not effective. Fine Gael has long advocated reform of this process. Fine Gael believe that the Government should engage with the INO and PNA and other social partners with a view to reforming benchmarking so that the nursing organisations can participate in the process.

“The nurses are willing to reform their work and expand their roles, and Fine Gael believe benchmarking should be there to award such efforts. These awards should be public awards linked to delivery of improvements and achievements.

We believe that rebuilding the health service will involve partnership with all the key stakeholders in the health service. We have spoken to the INO and the Psychiatric Nurses Organisation and want to be flexible in our approach. We recognise and acknowledge their sense of grievance particularly with regard to their hours of work and their relative pay position within the health service.

Sewerage Scheme welcomed – O’Mahony

It is extraordinary, said Mr O’Mahony that contract documents that have lain in the Department of the Environment since March of 2006, a period of fifteen months, can now be signed off just 3 weeks before the general election. I am delighted by my highlighting of the serious and deplorable sewage problems since being nominated to contest this forthcoming Election, and also the continuous highlighting locally by Cllr Eugene Lavin, that we now have a decision to allow this scheme to go to tender.  This is a scheme that was promised to Kiltimagh prior to the 1997 General Election and one that is long overdue to a vibrant community who have been to the forefront in local development over this past 15 years.  While the news is very welcome and it is a step in the right direction, I still believe it will be at least 18 to 24 months before the new scheme will be operational in Kiltimagh. The fact that this project has been promised to Kiltimagh by the current government so many times in the past, will lead to a guarded welcome by many, with many others not believing the news until they actually see the machinery at work on the streets. Nevertheless, assuming that there are no further hitches or broken promises, this is excellent news for Kiltimagh, which will enable the town and hinterland to continue with the development programme in place for over fifteen years which is an example to other towns, not only in the region but all over Ireland.