Irish Leaving Certs in Zante: 'When I first came it was a bit mad'
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Agriland
11 hours ago
- Agriland
FSAI goes to High Court to enforce closure order on food business
The Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) went to the High Court last month to enforce a closure order on a business after it continued to trade despite the order. The closure order was one of 10 closure orders and two prohibition orders issued in July. These orders, collectively referred to as enforcement orders, were issued for breaches of food safety legislation under to the FSAI Act, 1998 and the European Union (Official Controls in Relation to Food Legislation) Regulations, 2020. Closures orders can refer to the immediate closure of all or part of the food premises, or all or some of its activities, while prohibition orders are designed to prohibit the sale of a product, either temporarily or permanently. The enforcement orders were issued by environmental health officers in the Health Service Executive (HSE). Four closure orders were served under the FSAI Act, 1998 on: Lidl Sallynoggin Road, Glenageary, Co. Dublin (order lifted on August 1); Creed's Foodstore, Burncourt, Cahir, Co. Tipperary (order lifted on August 6); Brandon Hotel (closed areas include all kitchen areas, including dry goods store, wash up areas, staff canteen, restaurant and stills area), Prince's Street, Tralee, Co. Kerry (order lifted on July 25); Emerald Park (closed area includes the storage unit located to the rear of 'coffee dock' in Emerald Park), Kilbrew, Ashbourne, Co. Meath (order lifted on July 15). A further six closure orders were issued under the European Union (Official Controls in Relation to Food Legislation) Regulations, 2020 on: Londis Athboy (closed areas include the deli/food preparation area and ice cream service area), Connaught Street, Athboy, Co. Meath (order lifted on July 28); KRS Catering Stall (closed activity includes the service of all foods prepared off-site and transported to the venue; closure does not apply to the sale or service of beverages and foods prepared on-site), Powerstown Park Racecourse, Clonmel, Co. Tipperary (order lifted on July 17); Tim Nessa, 2A John's Street, Co. Limerick; Hidden Dojo Asian Street food, 47A Phibsborough Road, Phibsborough, Dublin 7; Wakami Sushi & Asian, 47A Phibsborough Road, Phibsborough, Dublin 7; Costa Coffee, 1 Dawson Street, Dublin 2 (order lifted on July 4). In relation to one of the businesses listed above, Tim Nessa, 2A John's Street, Limerick, the FSAI said: "The FSAI is aware that this food to trade despite the service by the HSE on July 8, 2025 of a closure order. "As a result, and in accordance with the applicable legislation, the FSAI applied to the High Court for various orders including that the continuance of the food business operator be prohibited and that the food business premises should immediately close until the food business is notified in writing that contraventions in the closure order have been remedied, or further order of the High Court," the authority added. The FSAI said the court granted an order to this effect on July 29, and that the parties concerned are at liberty to apply to the High Court in the meantime. The authority said that the food business concerned will be monitored to ensure it complies with the High Court's order, the HSE's closure order, and the relevant food legislation. Elsewhere, one prohibition order was served under the FSAI Act, 1998 on Ballymaguire Foods Unlimited Company, Rathmooney, Lusk, Co. Dublin for pre-packaged turkey and ham dinners. Finally, one prohibition order was served under the European Union (Official Controls in Relation to Food Legislation) Regulations, 2020 on Timothy Onwuegbusi, 2A John's Street, Limerick and Emeka Ikebudu, 2A John's Street, Limerick, for various products. Without referring to any particular business, the FSAI said that some of the reasons for enforcement orders in July include: rat droppings in a dishwasher room and food store; inadequate means to wash hands; owners and staff not wearing clean protective clothing; dead beetles observed in the bottom of a container of packaged food; various foods being kept at unsafe temperatures; rat droppings found in a storage unit; numerous rodent droppings on shelving; dead cockroaches in a main kitchen; and extensive food debris. Commenting on July's enforcement orders, FSAI chief executive Greg Dempsey said: "Recent foodborne incidents serve as a stark reminder of the need for food businesses to maintain the highest food safety standards. Consumers are entitled to expect that the food they purchase is safe, and food businesses have a clear legal and moral responsibility to ensure that it is. "The FSAI can provide support and advice to food businesses to help them meet their obligations. However, as demonstrated by the enforcement actions this month, where food businesses do not comply with their obligations, we will take action," Dempsey added.
Irish Independent
27-07-2025
- Irish Independent
US authorities arrest 56 Irish citizens under Trump's immigration crackdown
Most were arrested in Boston, New Jersey or New York and are mostly young people who overstayed tourist visas At least 56 Irish people have been arrested by the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) office so far this year, as Donald Trump embarks on a major immigration crackdown. Of these, 43 Irish citizens have been deported or are due to be deported. Data obtained by the Sunday Independent shows there were 35 males and 21 females arrested, with the majority in Boston, New Jersey or New York. They are mostly young people in their 20s who overstayed their three-month tourist visas. ICE does not publish figures of its arrests, but the Deportation Data Project — which was founded by a group of lawyers and academics — used a freedom of information act lawsuit to obtain data that provides a detailed picture of immigration enforcement under the Trump regime. In general, the figures show ICE has tripled its number of daily arrests since Mr Trump's inauguration, that the majority of people being arrested have no criminal convictions and that detention centres are being stretched beyond capacity. As well as the 43 Irish citizens who were deported, the figures show many more are being detained. Despite Mr Trump's claims that his administration is seeking out the 'worst of the worst' and that his administration is trying to deport 'dangerous criminals', the majority of Irish people deported had no criminal record. Of the 43, 10 had a criminal conviction, while six were facing a criminal charge. Figures separately provided by the Department of Foreign Affairs showed 43 Irish people have sought consular assistance for deportation related issues in the US so far this year. This is a sharp rise from previous years. There were 15 such cases last year, 18 in 2023, 11 in 2022 and five in 2021. The figures were provided in response to a series of parliamentary questions to the Foreign Affairs Minister Simon Harris, who said his officials 'stand ready' to provide all possible consular assistance to Irish citizens in difficulty abroad. 'The number of citizens who have requested assistance in relation to deportation from the United States of America in the year to date is 43,' Mr Harris said. 'This number includes both those who have already been deported and those who are still going through the deportation process, which may include being held in detention by Immigration and Customs Enforcement. 'It is important to note that this figure only relates to cases where a citizen or their family has requested consular assistance and does not necessarily reflect all deportations to Ireland or where a citizen is currently being detained by ICE.' The total number of people held in ICE detention jumped from 40,000 before Trump's inauguration to about 55,000 last month. However, there are just 41,500 detainee beds available, meaning facilities are becoming overcrowded. There have been 127,000 deportations since Mr Trump took office. Mr Trump's spending bill, which was signed into law this month, allocated $45bn (€38bn) to expand the detention system, enough to double its capacity to detain people. ICE is also changing its policies to make it easier to detain more people, for longer periods of time.
Irish Times
16-07-2025
- Irish Times
Three arrested at Dublin rally over Government's attitude to immigration and homelessness
Three men were arrested at a rally outside the GPO in Dublin city centre on Wednesday afternoon. Organisers of the gathering were protesting what they described as the Government's attitude to immigration and homelessness . The three men, who were aged between their late teens and late 50s, were taken to a Garda station in Dublin. They were subsequently charged and will appear before the courts at a later date. An Garda Síochána said investigations into the incident, which took place at 1.30pm, are ongoing. The group of approximately 50 people moved from the GPO to Kildare Street, near Leinster House, where they set up camps behind barricades. READ MORE One of the protesters, John, a 63-year-old man who lives in Co Donegal, sadi he organised the rally as a 'non-political grassroots movement' to protest against the Government's attitude to homelessness and immigration. He said the group was formed because of the record levels of homelessness recorded in the State this year. [ Homelessness: Number of people in emergency accommodation rises to new high of 15,747 Opens in new window ] John said he is not opposed to immigrants per se; 'We're not saying they are the problem, we're saying the Government is the problem. There's immigrants coming in here and on a humanitarian level alone it's wrong because they're put into tents along the canals. They don't want that, we certainly don't want to see them suffering. But we don't want to see the Irish suffering. 'House the Irish. House the immigrants, but house the Irish first,' he said. Several participants who did not want to be identified said they were also homeless, or had experienced homelessness in the past. One young man said his time being homeless was 'not a nice experience, to know that my Government doesn't really give a toss about us'. The participants connected online on social media, YouTube and through word of mouth. 16/07/2025 - A Large Garda operation in place for an anti immigration protest which started at Dublins GPO before heading for the Merrion Square side of the Dail and Government Buildings. Photograph: Alan Betson / The Irish Times As rebel ballads played over a speaker amid a sea of Tricolour flags, a young man with a megaphone said: 'The youth have no future, the youth will never be able to live in this country and we will emigrate off.' The group is planning to continue the rally overnight and into Thursday morning to highlight the homelessness crisis for 'Irish people'. Several tents with cookout stoves were erected in the afternoon.
