Clare Fm - Podcasts

The Irish Blood Transfusion Service is calling for donors in the east of the county to attend a clinic held in Scariff GAA hall this evening to replenish stocks that are seven days below desired levels. The clinic will run from 4:50pm to 8:10pm with supplies of A Negative, B Positive and AB Negative all sitting at three days, one week shy of the safe mark of 10 days. Meanwhile clinics will be held in the West County Hotel in Ennis on Tuesday from 4:50pm until 8:10pm and in the Shannon Oakwood Hotel on Wednesday and Thursday from 4pm - 7:20pm. Broadford based IBTS Recruitment Executive, Alex O’Connor, says supplies have taken a huge hit over Christmas and New Years.

Clare County Council is being urged to begin record the number of people who died in homelessness in the county. At present, Dublin City Council is the only local authority that keeps a record of deaths of homeless people. The latest Government figures show 98 adults were residing in emergency accommodation in Clare in the last week of November. West Clare Aontú representative June Dillon says knowing the level of mortality of the county's homeless population would help the local authority to determine which services are needed.

Clare Manager Brian Lohan After Munster SHL Win Over Limerick by Clare FM

It's claimed a newly introduced housing grant will revitalise Clare's rural towns. The Department of Housing has announced the extension of the Vacant Property Refurbishment Grant to 2030, while introducing a new scheme for above the shop units. The initiative can provide up to €140,000, to bring vacant spaces above existing commercial premises into residential use. Lisdoonvarna Fine Gael Councillor Joe Garrihy believes entire communities will benefit.

A Clare tidy towns group is among 40 organisations nationwide to receive funding through a scheme which supports projects promoting circular living. Quin Village Tidy Towns Group has been given the top award of €5,000 under Circular.ie's Circular Communications Grant. It's the only tidy towns group in the country to benefit from the initiative. Group spokesperson Alison Deane says they intend to use the funds to drive greater enagement.

Fr Brendan Quinlivan leads our first Sunday Prayer for 2026, on today 4th January 2026.

It's hoped new planning laws will streamline operations on Clare farms. It follows the introduction of updated Exempted Development Regulations, which will for the first time provide a planning exemption for stand-alone slurry storage and significantly increase thresholds for exempted animal housing. Animal Housing facilities can now range from 300 to 450 square metres, while slurry tanks can now hold up to 1,000 cubic metres of waste. Meelick farmer and Fianna Fáil TD Cathal Crowe believes it will be hugely beneficial

Clare Haven is an a position to enhance its services following a modest funding boost. The Domestic and Gender Based Violence charity has been allocated €15,000 by CUAN in the latest round of government supports. In the first half of this year alone, 418 incidents of assaults, assaults causing harm, sexual assault, rape and harassment were reported to Clare Gardaí. Clare Haven Director of Services Dr Siobhán O'Connor is confident it will go a long way.

To mark the New Year Stephen Fletcher looks back over 2025 and picks extracts from three interviews he had last year. There is also the first Coffee and Chat of the New Year with Fr Gerry and Reflections for this New Year from Bishop Michael and Bishop Fintan.

It's claimed the uptick seen in the number of imported cars being purchased in Clare has been caused by a greater diversity of options in the import market. Data from the Society of the Irish Motor Industry show Clare recorded an increase in the number of cars sold in the county in November, bucking the trend seen across the rest of the country. Nationwide there was a 25% decrease in the number of new car registrations, while by contrast, Clare's car says total almost trebled. General Manager of Sheils Motor Group in Ennis, Eddie Rynne, says cars imported from Japan made prices more affordable after Brexit tax hikes drove buyers out of the market.

Housing shortages, reopening the Cliffs of Moher walking trail, rural depopulation and school spaces have all been highlighted as the major issues to overcome in Clare this year. It comes as this county's Cathaoirligh have been outlining their priorities for 2026. Deputy Mayor of Ennis Pat Daly, Cathaoirleach of the Shannon Municipal District John Crowe, Killaloe MD Cathaoirleach Pat Burke and West Clare Cathaoirleach Bill Slattery joined Alan Morrissey in studio

Fresh calls have been made for a serious policy shift around planning and objections in 2026 in order to increase Clare's housing stock. According to the latest Daft.ie report, new property prices rose by approximately 5%, in line with the national average, however, the median house price in the county was 14% higher than at the end of 2024. Meanwhile, Munster as a whole recorded a 7.8% 'market heat' figure, which is an indication of how much more a new property sold for above its initial listing price. Economist at Trinity College Dublin and author of the Daft.ie report Ronan Lyons has been telling Clare FM's Darragh O'Grady, that the complicated nature of the planning system is leading to a sustained increase in house prices year on year.

The Ennis Eccentric Music Society host music events celebrating original and alternative music talent from Clare and beyond. To tell us more about the society and the upcoming events, Alan Morrissey was joined by members, Laetitia Andre, Nick Bromfield & Saoirse Walsh.

This week, Pat Clarke Browne of Munster Business, based in Shannon gave us all the insight into the technological trends shaping 2026. Pat spoke about the possible launch of the Steam Deck, a handheld xbox and PS 6 from Microsoft, bio Printing heading towards Human trials & more! Image (c) Technology and light bulb by kaan tanman from Getty Images Signature via Canva

It’s a New Year and this usually involves a New Year’s Resolution, where you swear to yourself that you will go to the gym every day and eat and drink all of the right things...only to give up on it after a very short period! Clare FM’s Daragh Leamy has been asking people in Clare about their New Year’s resolutions and to tell us about habits and why they don’t last, and why simple steps are the solution for change, Alan Morrissey spoke with qualified fitness coach and founder of Fitness4Fun in Clare, John Conroy. Image (c) New Year's resolutions by rimmabondarenko via Canva.

This Saturday, January 3rd, Newmarket-on-Fergus GAA presents ‘The Nofscars,’ a star-studded movie night fundraiser dedicated to supporting Phase 3 of their Athletic Development Centre. Taking place at Treacy's West County Hotel, the event promises to be a cinematic highlight for the local community. To find out more, Alan Morrissey was joined by Games Development Officer, Colin Ryan. Image (c) Newmarket On Fergus Gaa via Facebook.

The Minister for Health is being encouraged to establish timelines and costings for measures intended to ease the overcrowding crisis at the region's main hospital once the Dáil resumes. Minister Jennifer Carroll MacNeill announced in December that the Government has accepted all three of HIQA's recommendations regarding alleviating hospital overcrowding in the Midwest. These are the expansion of capacity at University Hospital Limerick, the extension of the UHL campus to a second nearby site and the development of a new hospital with an emerency department in the region. Lahinch-based Patient Advocate on HSE Midwest’s Programme Improvement Board John Wall says people need specifics as soon as possible.

An Ennis solicitor claims the exodus of landlords from the rental market will continue into the new year. The Residential Tenancies Amendment Act was passed in June of this year and under the amendment, the entire country became a rent pressure zone while yearly rent increases were cappped at 2%. Under the new legislation, also implemented Tenancies of Minimum Duration, which take effect from March 2026, has resulted in older landlords choosing to sell their property before the measures take effect. Sharon Cahir of Cahir & Co Solicitors in Ennis says the act has in no way encouraged landlords to stay in the rental market.

It's hoped more can be done in the new year to promote tourist footfall in East Clare's Hidden Heartlands. It comes as O'Callaghan's Mills Fine Gael Councillor, Conor Ryan, has been appointed to the board of the Clare Tourism Development DAC. In the past year, the Inis Cealtra Visitor Experience opened in the Old Rectory in Mountshannon. Councillor Ryan says althought Inis Cealtra may serve as the jewel in the crown, there are plenty more sites that can be used to diversify the county's tourism product.

Clare Gardaí are encouraging people to plan their night out and to be responsible on the roads this New Year's Eve. Drug and Alcohol checkpoints will be dotted around the county as part of a road safety campaign in place until January 5th. Superintendent with the Clare/Tipperary Garda Division Eddie Golden says motorists especially need to ensure there's no alcohol in their system when taking to the road on New Year's Day. He claims high levels of motorists are caught over the limit each year on January 1st.