A round-up of today's other stories in brief
Author and former government press secretary Eoin Neeson dies
Former Fianna Fáil government press secretary Eoin Neeson has died after a long illness.
A native of Cork, he held the post of head of the Government Information Bureau in the early 1970s. His tenure included the period of the so-called Arms Crisis, and he was the author of a number of books including The Civil War in Ireland, 1922-23.
His funeral Mass will be held at the Church of the Guardian Angels, Newtownpark Avenue, Blackrock, tomorrow at 10am, followed by cremation at Mount Jerome crematorium.
Five men arrested over arson attack
Gardaí investigating a recent arson attack in Galway city arrested five men in Co Offaly yesterday.
A number of people escaped the blaze at a house in Ballybane, Galway, on Sunday – including a woman forced to jump from a first floor window.
Gardaí from Galway, assisted by armed members of the Emergency Response Unit, made the arrests at an unofficial halting site off the Tullamore to Clara Road in Co Offaly yesterday morning.
Five men, all thought to be in their 20s, were taken to Galway for questioning.
Eight months' jail for drunk driver
A drunk, uninsured driver was jailed for eight months and disqualified from driving for 20 years at Galway District Court yesterday.
Hotel porter Darius Sarapaievas (22), Cuirt na hAbhainn, Claregalway, pleaded guilty to drunken and dangerous driving and not having insurance at Cregboy, Claregalway, on October 1st last year.
Insp Brendan Carroll told the court Sarapaievas is currently serving a six-month sentence for similar offences, and had several other convictions for drink-driving and dangerous driving over the last three years.
Water disconnect notices for schools
A number of schools in south Dublin have been issued with water disconnection notices, writes Fiona Gartland.
Councillors at Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council’s annual budget meeting last night were told the notices were sent out before Christmas.
Though details of which schools were involved did not emerge, Helena Cunningham, acting head of finance, said since the notices were issued, “quite a number” of the schools had paid their bills, but there were still some bills outstanding.
The council’s budget was cut by €5.6 million, partly due to a collapse in rates income. There were cuts across all departments. The Local Government Grant, paid to councils by central government, was cut by €3.1 million. Among the few increased provisions for 2011 was the budget for councillors’ expenses, up from €90,900 last year to €111,600. The provision for allowances to the council’s chair and vice-chair went up from €46,900 to €69,800.