Latest news with #OffalyCountyCouncil
Sunday World
01-06-2025
- Sunday World
Puppy farmer locked up after dogs he was ordered to give up ‘disappeared'
She said the council had not seized the dogs and had no knowledge as to their current whereabouts. A puppy farmer has been jailed for three months after three dogs, a Belgian Malinois, a Collie and a Shih Tzu he was ordered to surrender 'disappeared.' Dog Breeder PJ Rigney appeared before Tullamore District Court on Wednesday a week after he had been remanded in custody by Judge Andrew Cody for failing to surrender the animals. At the sitting, Judge Cody expressed surprise that Rigney, was present in person before the court. The judge asked Rigney's solicitor how his client had managed to secure his freedom. PJ Rigney Rigney's solicitor responded that the High Court granted his release on foot of an application by Barry White SC. Judge Cody responded: 'It is quite unusual that a person would be remanded in custody pending sentence.' Judge Cody next inquired if Rigney had complied with a previous court order which required him to sign over ownership of three dogs that were found at his property to the local authority or a rescue organisation. The solicitor said Rigney had been unable to do so as the three dogs had 'disappeared.' Judge Cody then asked 'where the three dogs had disappeared to' and whether Rigney had filed a complaint with gardai. The solicitor responded that Rigney had not alerted the gardai but had called Offaly County Council in the belief the council had seized the dogs. Solicitor Emily Mahon, acting on behalf of Offaly County Council, confirmed they had received such a call from Rigney but said the council had no knowledge of the matter. She said the council had not seized the dogs and had no knowledge as to their current whereabouts. The solicitor then requested that Mr Rigney be ordered to pay a fine of €3,600 and be disqualified for life from owning dogs. Rigney's solicitor argued that this sentence would be unduly harsh. He further claimed that the three dogs were Mr Rigney's elderly mother's pets and she had been consistently asking 'where her dogs ' were in the wake of their disappearance. Opposing a ban on keeping dogs he said Rigney lived in a rural area and needed dogs for protection and farming. He claimed that Mr Rigney was a 'man of limited means' and as a result any fine would likely 'remain unpaid. Judge Cody responded that Rigney had a 'rental property from which he derived a rental income' so this could be drawn upon to settle any court order fine. This rental was used to pay Rigney's 'significant debts' defence replied. Judge Cody sentenced Mr Rigney to three months in jail, disqualified him from keeping dogs for life and ordered him to pay a fine of €3,600 to Offaly County Council. Rigney lodged an appeal to the sentence. PJ Rigney News in 90 Seconds - June 1st In October of 2021, Rigney was served with a closure notice alleged he had been illegally running a dog-breeding establishment, housing dogs in substandard accommodation, in a yard off Circular Road, in Daingean, Offaly. According to a closure order published by the Council on October 1st that year Mr Rigney was not registered to run such a facility. Outlining the grounds on which he considered Mr Rigney's operation "poses a serious and immediate threat to animal welfare", Offaly County Council Veterinary Inspector Aidan Grant wrote: "The premises in which the dogs are kept and management of same are far below required of a registered dog-breeding establishment.' Mr. Rigney was subsequently convicted and fined in the District Court. He subsequently appealed that order but the order was upheld.
Sunday World
24-05-2025
- Sunday World
Puppy farmer jailed for failure to surrender dogs two years after business shut down
Offaly dog breeder PJ Rigney will be kept in Cloverhill Prison until Wednesday of next week A puppy farmer has been remanded in prison for failing to surrender dogs found on properties linked to him more than two years after his dog breeding establishment was served with a closure order. Offaly dog breeder PJ Rigney will be kept in Cloverhill Prison until Wednesday of next week after Judge Andrew Cody heard he registered three dogs to his elderly mother – instead of handing them over to a registered animal charity or Offaly County Council for rehoming. Addressing the court by video-link from prison, Rigney who was initially remanded in custody on Monday last told Judge Cody the dogs were no longer on his property and had been reregistered to another party through the Fido dog register. Judge Cody responded Rigney was not going to be allowed 'to play ducks and drakes in his courtroom.' He told Rigney he could 'duck and dive' all he liked before saying he had been ordered to surrender the animals to the council or a registered animal charity for rehoming. 'I don't care whether they are on his property or on the planet Mars,' he continued. 'Those dogs are to be rehomed as set out in the court order a week ago!' He further cautioned Rigney that he is not going to finalise sentencing in the case until the court order has been complied with before adjourning the matter to Wednesday next. The background to the case relates to a closure order handed down to Rigney. In October of 2021, Rigney was served with a closure notice alleged he had been illegally running a dog-breeding establishment, housing dogs in substandard accommodation, in a yard off Circular Road, in Daingean, Offaly. PJ Rigney outside Tullamore Court News in 90 Seconds - May 24th 2025 According to a closure order published by the Council on October 1st that year Mr Rigney was not registered to run such a facility. Outlining the grounds on which he considered Mr Rigney's operation "poses a serious and immediate threat to animal welfare", Offaly County Council Veterinary Inspector Aidan Grant wrote: "The premises in which the dogs are kept and management of same are far below required of a registered dog-breeding establishment.' Mr. Rigney was subsequently convicted and fined in the District Court. He subsequently appealed that order but the order was upheld. On February 22nd 2024, a follow up inspection of Rigney's property at Circular Road, Daingean and lands at Little Island revealed the presence of 19 dogs. As a result, Rigney was issued with an Animal Welfare notice. Rigney was issued with a summons to appear in court for failure to comply with this notice on November 11th of last year. Addressing the court on behalf of Offaly County Council, barrister James Nurney BL acknowledged that a number of the dogs had been rehomed. He said it appears in essence that three dogs remain on the premises that have been transferred to the ownership of Brigid Rigney. The dogs include a Belgian Malinois, a Collie and a Shih Tzu. Ms. Brigid Rigney is the mother of PJ Rigney. The case will resume on Wednesday next.
Irish Independent
13-05-2025
- Science
- Irish Independent
Students from Co Offaly win top prize at Young Social Innovators' Awards with sustainable alternative to paper
Tullamore College pupils Ryan Plunkett and Killian Farrell won gold with their idea to create "Grass Sheets", a paper made from repurposed grass clippings. The pair collaborated with Offaly County Council and Tullamore Pitch and Putt Club to source discarded grass for their project, which aimed to reduce deforestation, carbon emissions and waste, and showed how diverse their invention is by creating paper bags, pouches for wildflowers and even a jacket from their grass paper. Tullamore College teacher Emma Bradley said their project is a clear sign that "the future is bright", with the school "delighted" for Ryan and Killian as they lifted the top prize at the Aviva Stadium today. Speaking to the Irish Independent, Ms Bradley said she was immediately stuck by how "creative" and "different" their idea was when they first brought it to her in the school corridor some months ago. They plan to explore new uses for the product and continue to collaborate with local businesses following their win. Ms Bradley and her colleague Ian Feighery worked with 84 transition year students this year as they dreamed up their project ideas, with three projects from Tullamore College making it to the final. "When you see the those groups, you would definitely say the future is bright," she said. "YSI has definitely opened an awful lot of doors for the kids. We do a brief afterwards and ask, 'How did you find (doing the YSI project)?' And they say, 'I would never have stood up on a stage if you had asked me in September.' They do a load of little projects that made them go out into the public, into the community, and do it." Students from St Brendan's College in Killarney, Co Kerry, took home the silver award for their project "Comparison is the Thief of Joy", which teaches people how to identify filtered or deep fake videos and highlights how unrealistic social media standards can be. The bronze award went to Rosses Community School in Dungloe, Co Donegal, for its "Tick Tack Go" project, which aims to raise awareness of Lyme Disease and saw student create tick removal kits to protect people living in high risk places. Schools from across the country also took home prizes for sustainability, health and other subjects with their innovative projects, with YSI CEO Roger Warnock congratulating the students on their work. "The cutting-edge social issues being addressed in the projects by our 2025 YSI Awards' winners and their commitment to finding solutions demonstrates how important social innovation education is for empowering our young people," he said. There were 42 finalists shortlisted out of around 300 teams who took part in the YSI programme in their secondary schools this year. Junior minister Jerry Buttimer said the work displayed by young people at the YSI Awards was "nothing short of inspiring".
Agriland
23-04-2025
- General
- Agriland
What threat do Asian hornets pose to Ireland?
Invasive species from all over the world provide a 'significant threat' to Irish biosecurity, according to a biodiversity officer with Offaly County Council. Ricky Whelan believes that one of these, the Asian hornet – a predator of honeybees, wasps and other pollinators – is 'certainly on it's way' to Ireland. There have been seven confirmed sightings of the Asian hornet in the UK in 2025. He told Agriland that while the insect will inevitably arrive in Ireland, he 'won't be losing any sleep' just yet about the issue. He said: 'You can be as alarmist or as calm as you like. 'There are probably 50 other species I'd be more worried about presently. I won't be losing any sleep until I see the article saying 'Asian hornets arrive in Ireland'.' But Whelan also explained how the Asian hornet would make an economic and ecological impact if it arrived in Ireland. 'They have reached the Channel Islands. If you had a clear day, they could probably get here on their own steam. Or, through the importation of plants, they may be stowaways as eggs or animals.' He also added: 'The list of invasive species to the island of Ireland is well in the hundreds. It happens all the time. 'We have great policies, and we have biosecurity measures in place in our ports. An Achilles heel is through the north, where the British rules may not be the same as the European rules. 'The approach to getting rid of them is very physical, it's finding their nests destroying them, or luring adults into traps and killing them directly. 'If you can get to them that quickly, and get rid of the population before it establishes itself, it's possible to wipe this slate clean.' Asian hornets According to Whelan, the situation in Europe is very different to that in Ireland. 'In continental Europe, the horse has galloped, they can't put the lid on it now. The only thing protecting us is the Irish Sea. 'That's the only reason we don't have the same variety of species as other places, because we're an island,' Whelan said. 'Asian hornets can disrupt habitats by their presence, it would be a new predator attacking insects. They can spread diseases our insects don't have, and they threaten biodiversity directly. Obviously, there is an economic cost to the honey,' he added. Whelan believes that stopping the spread of Asian hornets would require an interdepartmental response between the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) and the National Parks and Wildlife Services (NPWS). He said: 'In Ireland, if it's a threat to agriculture, DAFM lead the way on it, but if it's a threat to wildlife, it's the NPWS that lead the way. 'This would have to be a marriage of the two, the ports and revenue, and everybody gets involved when it's a biosecurity issue. It's the responsibility of an awful lot of people to manage these things. 'If the hornets manage to get into Northern Ireland via Britain, with a shipment carrying Asian hornets eggs, it could easily be transferred into Ireland. The insects obviously don't recognise borders,' he added.
