Danny Burke, M.C.C.
Barrack St.
Castlerea
Co. Roscommon
Tel.: (094) 9622869
info@dannyburke.net
Danny says he has delivered for Castlerea - 1st May 2004
Castlerea Independent candidate Councillor Danny Burke launched his election campaign at a well attended meeting held in Tully’s Hotel recently.At the start of the meeting two minutes silence was observed for two members of the 1999 campaign team the late Mick Ward and the late John Swift.
Cllr Burke welcomed all present, many matters were discussed, these included, broadband, laying of ESB and telephone wires underground, waste disposal, recycling, the pedestrian crossing at the Market square, extension of public lighting at Ballymoe Road, Ballindrimley Road, Williamstown Road and Arm Cashel, staggering the junction at Lissliddy Crossroads, larger parking spaces for cars on the Main Street, yellow box or roundabout at Hell’s Kitchen and Cleary’s junction leading to Church Road.
Councillor Danny Burke then addressed the meeting and said that he would bring all matters raised to the attention of the area engineer. He said that thirteen years ago when he was first elected to Roscommon County Council, Council, Castlerea town was neglected and deprived of its fair share of funds. County and country roads, town and village streets, footpaths, public lighting, water and sewerage were all run down or neglected and the annual spending on these services were at almost zero. As a result of his work as a local independent community councillor over the last thirteen years investment by the Council in these services had increased enormously. Castlerea town, Ballintubber, Ballinlough and Cloonfad had all modern and state of the art street lighting installed. Deficient and broken footpaths had been replaced, street services had been relayed with the most up to date asphalt surface. The county and rural road network in the Castlerea area had improved out of all recognition.
“I have also successfully lobbied for new sewerage schemes in Cloonfad, Castleplunkett, Ballinlough, Ballintubber and Castlerea. This year witnessed the opening of the new state of the art Accident and Emergency unit at the County Hospital, Roscommon and I have also campaigned on a continuing basis to increase facilitates at Áras Mathair Pol, Castlerea from a 40 bed to a 60 bedded unit and to have the existing kitchen upgraded,” said the councillor.
“The level of services for mental health has greatly improved since I was first elected in 1991. It has been an honour and a privilege to represent the people of the Castlerea Electoral Area over the last thirteen years and I am now appealing to you again for your continuing support in the forthcoming council election on June 11th. An independent voice in the council representing the Castlerea Electoral area has proved productive over the past thirteen years and in the interest of progress, it is now more important than ever. In the life-time of the outgoing council I have delivered and I will continue the good work if reelected on June 11th”, concluded the councillor.
The following campaign team was elected: Chairman, Pat O’ Connor; Secretary, Maura Donnellan; Assistant Secretary, John Nally; Treasurers, Mary Finnegan and Pat O’ Connor; PRO, John Nally; committee Danny Burke, Eugene McNiff, Tom Padian, Michael Healy, Noel Mannion, Martin Carroll, Martin Neary, Danny and Grace O’ Shaughnessy; John Sharkey, Pat Sharkey, Tommie Dolan, Tom O’ Dowd, Padraic Beirne, Val Gunning, Christy Glynn, Tom Flannery, Paschal Fitzmaurice, Seamus and Padraic Coyne.
Useful Links
www.roscommoncoco.ie
www.whb.ie
www.roscommonvec.ie
www.castlereagaa.com
www.gaaroscommon.ie
Burke’s appeal to Health Minister - 1st May 2004
Councillor Danny Burke has called on the Minister for Health, Mr. Micheal Martin, to ensure that the new Accident and Emergency unit at Roscommon County Hospital is fully staffed.He also calls for better general Health Services in the county, this to include the provision of extra beds and a new kitchen at Áras Mathair Pol, Castlerea, better service provision for the elderly in their own homes, where they are more content.While he welcomes the new slightly increase guidelines for those applying for medical cards, he says it does not go far enough, stating that it would be a much fairer system if applicants were assessed on their take home pay, rather than their gross earnings. He wishes to point out, that as a founder member of the Hospital Action Committee, being its Chairperson in the Castlerea area and being one of the prime movers to have the late Tom Foxe, elected to Dail Eireann and since he was elected to Roscommon Council in 1991, the health services in County Roscommon was always top of his agenda and if re-elected on June 11th, he would continue to fight for better health services in the county.
Burke in appeal on ‘The Fairways Road’ - 1st May 2004
Cllr. Danny Burke has called on Roscommon County Council to immediately take all the necessary steps to finalise the taking in charge of The Fairways Road, Castlerea, and complete all unfinished work on this roadway. Speaking at the April monthly meeting of Roscommon County Council, Cllr. Burke asked that this work be carried out without delay, a motion that was supported by both Cllr. Michael McGreal and Cllr. John Murray. County Manager Mr. John Tiernan said when the payment of the final contribution was received, this work would be completed. However, he noted the “taking in charge” of an estate meant nothing if the money was not there to complete the works. He said he would be proposing a partnership approach in the future, whereby the Council would be responsible for just 50% of this work. Cllr. Burke also called on the Council to also take in charge the road servicing the fully developed housing estate in Knockroe, Castlerea. He was informed that a letter was received on March 26th last requesting that the estate be taken in charge. A spokesperson for the Council added: “ The file has now been referred to the area engineer for a report on the condition of the estate. The requirements for the taking in charge of such an estate will be forwarded to the developer.”
Burke wants A & E fully staffed - 7th May 2004
Councillor Danny Burke has called on the Minister for Health, Mr Michael Martin, to ensure that the new Accident and Emergency unit at Roscommon County Hospital is fully staffed. The Castlerea candidate has also called for better general health services in the county, to include the provision of extra beds and a new kitchen at Áras Mathair Pol, Castlerea, better service provision for the elderly at the Sacred Heart Home, Roscommon and the Plunkett Home, Boyle and to extend the home help services, in order to provide better care for the elderly in their own homes, where they are more content. While he welcomed the new slightly increase guidelines for those applying for medical card, he said it did not go far enough, stating that it would be a much fairer system if applicants were assessed on their take home pay, rather than their gross earnings.
Burke against road-side letter boxes in rural areas of county - 7th May 2004
Councillor Danny Burke has welcomed the news that the recent survey carried out by An Post, to have road-side letter boxes erected in rural areas, was turned down by most of those houses surveyed. “Four years ago they tried to force it in, but the Communications Regulator turned them down. They are now going to ask the Communications Regulator to change their decision,” said the Castlerea Councillor. Councillor Burke is appealing to all those living in rural areas not to accept road-side letter boxes “Why should the people of rural Ireland, who are entitled to five day delivery to their house, just the same as those who live in towns and cities, have to suffer because of bad management at An Post” he asked.
Burke Campaigns for Continued Roads Upgrading - 14th May 2004
Councillor Danny Burke will continue to lobby Roscommon County Council and the National Roads Authority in relation to the continuing upgrading of primary and secondary roads in the West Roscommon Electoral Area and for the removal of all dangerous bends. Danny has highlighted the many dangerous junctions in the area, such as Lisliddy crossroads, and will make every effort to have these redesigned so as to minimise the risk of serous accidents or fatalities. The Councillor states that while the road network in the Castlerea Electoral Area has improved immensely over the past decade, there are still many roads that need attention and he will continue to pursue the matter with Roscommon County Council. He also wishes to point out that signage in general throughout the county in not satisfactory at present, and stated that a stranger visiting the area would find it difficult to locate townlands or villages due to inadequate signage, this is not just a problem in County Roscommon but throughout the Country in general. The Councillor also acknowledged that more public lighting is needed in the outskirts of our towns and villages and that all overhead cabling in towns should be placed underground. Danny also calls for footpaths in our towns and villages to be extended to cater for the growing needs of our locality. Danny has also highlighted the need for proper filtering systems to be installed and control procedures to be implemented to provide a proper, quality water supply as the system is not satisfactory at present.
Castlerea Swimming Pool - 21st May 2004
Councillor Danny Burke stated that since first elected to Roscommon County Council in 1991 the upgrading of Castlerea Swimming Pool has always been high on his agenda. While there has not been as much development as he would like to have seen, he has campaigned successfully to have the pool tiled and the provision of a new filter/heater system installed. Now having secured €180,000 for the refurbishment of the dressing rooms and shower facilities he intends to continue his negotiations with Roscommon County Council and Oireachtas members to seek further funding to have Castlerea Swimming Pool upgraded to a level where services can by increased from the present 3 months to the full 12 months. He wishes to clarify that many public meetings were held over the years with a view to having the pool covered, but unfortunately there was never full agreement reached as to whether the pool should be completely covered or not and many of the people who are now very vocal in there quest to have the pool covered were not present at any of these meetings. However the Councillor welcomes their interest and if elected on 11th June he will do everything in his power, and with the cooperation of the other elected members of the Castlerea Electoral Area ,and local organisations such as Enterprise Castlerea, to have sufficient facilities put in place at the swimming pool.
Housing - 21st May 2004
In the past five years Roscommon County Council has provided in the region of 80 houses in the Castlerea Electoral Area and while this is welcome it is not sufficient to meet the demands of the long waiting lists. In the next 2 to 3 years Roscommon County Council plan to build 60 houses in Castlerea and Councillor Burke will be impressing on the Council to provide more 2-bedroomed houses to cater for the large number of elderly and lone parent families that are on the waiting lists. The Councillor is also requesting the Council to provide more affordable housing for first time buyers and emphasising the need for community involvement in the process.
Waste Disposal and Recycling - 28th May 2004
Councillor Danny Burke fully supports recycling and he has recently outlined the advantages of using this method over other methods of waste disposal, if elected he intends to continue his campaign to ensure that a civic amenity centre for the purpose of recycling is placed as a matter of urgency in the town of Castlerea in order to reduce waste household costs for refuse. The Councillor highlighted the fact that Roscommon town and Ballaghaderreen have their own centres catering for the recycling of cardboard, newspapers, magazines, glass, plastics and certain types of metals, if this facility was available in Castlerea it would greatly reduce waste disposal charges. Composting also provides an environmentally friendly way of using vegetable peelings, tea leaves and garden refuse as a valuable garden fertilizer. He stated that the quantity of household and commercial waste disposed of annually by local authorities is estimated at 1.1 million tonnes. The cost of disposing of this waste is a drain on the resources of local authorities in terms of landfill sites, transport and manpower, and there is the loss to the economy of the valuable materials which are dumped. Many materials that are disposed of in the dustbin can be recycled or reused in some way. Some waste is recycled at the present, but few people are aware of the full potential of this activity. He wishes to point out that recycling saves on, energy, raw materials and the need for landfill sites. He stated that the use of landfill sites has to be scaled down as the effects of using this method of waste disposal on the environment are catastrophic and he pointed that recycling offers a much cleaner alternative. The Councillor is also opposed to incineration as this provides no incentive for people to recycle and the companies running this incinerator plants will certainly not encourage people to produce less waste. The Councillor believes that waste charges at present are too high and people on the margins are not receiving equality from the state, at present tax payers are entitled to a tax credit of 20% on bin charges while people on social welfare and old age pensioners must pay the full amount and he now calls on the Minister of Finance to address this inequitable issue so that all people are entitled to equal benefits.
Industry - 4th June 2004
Councillor Danny Burke states that while the growth of industry in the Castlerea area has improved over the past five years bringing much needed employment to the area he will continue to pressure the various Government Departments for further businesses. He emphasised the fact that in order to attract further investment in industry, the road, rail and communications networks must be continually upgraded and access to the broadband network is essential. Local amenities and recreational facilities must also be provided either within the town or in close proximity. If reelected to the Council on 11th June he will continue to do everything in his power to deliver on these issues.
Public Transport - 4th June 2004
Councillor Danny Burke calls on the Minister of Transport, Seamus Brennan, to make public transport more available in rural areas throughout west Roscommon; this service is of particular benefit to older people living in rural areas who wish to travel to their local towns to collect their pensions and shopping etc.. He stated that the Rural Transport Initiative has helped somewhat and he calls on this service to be extended throughout the county and to be made available on all weekdays. He added that if a more comprehensive service was available it would result in a greater take up of the service and this would consequently result in the consumer saving expense, making the roads safer due to less traffic and help alleviate the parking and traffic congestion in towns.
National Lottery Funding - 4th June 2004
Councillor Danny Burke calls for a different method to be used for the allocation of sports and capital grants under the National Lottery Funding Scheme. He believes that the system at present is such that grants are not being distributed on a fair and equal basis and as a consequence worthy and needy organisations are being left out in the cold. While he acknowledges and welcomes all the organisations in Roscommon that have received grants this year, especially Castlerea Celtic F.C., he is very disappointed that Castlerea Brass and Reed Band’s application was turned down for the third year in a row. He highlighted the fact that great work was being accomplished by the band involving many young musicians from the area and in providing a great service and valuable resource to the parish, county and province, he strongly believes that the Band deserves better recognition than this.
Political Inequality - 4th June 2004
Councillor Danny Burke recently stated that while the country in general has experienced a huge economic upturn, the west of Ireland and County Roscommon has not received its fair share of the benefits, this is due to the fact that the main political parties are guilty of neglect, and a disregard for the people of rural Ireland. The Councillor believes that people are quite rightly disillusioned with the main political parties due to corruption and greed and he stresses that a vote for these parties further endorses their position. Danny Burke offers an honest hardworking and experienced alternative. Over the last thirteen years the Councillor has established very good working relationships with Council officials and this has proved very constructive for the Castlerea Electoral Area. For many years Danny Burke has been involved with many voluntary organisations such as Castlerea Parish Pastoral Council, Elphin Diocesan Lourdes Pilgrimage, Castlerea St. Kevin’s G.A.A. Club, Castlerea Brass and Reed Band, Castlerea International Rose Festival, and the Harristown House Committee and he has been able to use his position as Councillor to represent these committees at local and national level. In the interests of progress and evenhandedness an Independent voice representing the Castlerea Electoral Area is now more important than ever and Councillor Burke now appeals to his supporters and to the people who feel cheated by politics to come out and show their support for fairness and equality by voting number one Danny Burke on the 11th June. If you wish to discuss any issue with Danny he can be contacted on 094 9622889 or on the web at www.dannyburke.net.