2024 Review: March

Westmeath County Council were left in shock after discovering they had been scammed out of €515,000. The story on the front page of the Westmeath Examiner’s first March edition revealed that the fraud had actually been discovered in mid-February and public representatives had been informed on February 21.

The council had received a fake – but convincing – notification informing them that a supplier had changed bank and requesting that the firm’s payment details be updated.

As a result, when a legitimate invoice from that firm was submitted, the payment went to the fake account. The scam came to light when the supplier contacted the council some weeks later to query why the bill had not been paid.

“Disappointed, shocked and surprised are the words I would use to describe my reaction,” council cathaoirleach, Cllr Liam McDaniel, told the Westmeath Examiner when the news broke.

Another source of shock to councillors was the fact that staff had to fish a portable toilet out of Lough Ennell at Ladestown three times in as many weeks.

“You really have to question the behaviour of people. This obviously took a lot of effort as the toilet was dragged across the car park,” said Cllr Aoife Davitt.

There was great pride across the county after it emerged that a team from Moate Community School were crowned Junk Kouture world champions.

The Moate creation ‘TagMe’ by Eva Donlon from Tubber, Méabh O’Shea from Ballymore and Evie Nugent from Mount Temple, supported by teacher Pamela Keogh was chosen as the overall World Designer of the Year winner at the Junk Kouture global final at the Salle des Princes in the Grimaldi Forum in Monaco.

Rugby-obsessed 10-year-old Diarmuid Staunton from Coralstown had the honour of accompanying the Irish captain Peter O’Mahony as he led the Ireland team out on the pitch before their successful Six Nations match against Wales. No doubt the thrill was increased when he saw his picture on the front of the Westmeath Examiner in the following week’s paper! Diarmuid was chosen to be the team’s mascot after winning a drawing competition.

An update was provided on the public consultation undertaken on the regional sports centre in the pipeline for Mullingar. The county council revealed that some 633 participants had completed an online survey in order to give their views on what should be included in the plans.

The level of engagement was unusually high – by contrast, the council had received just 14 submissions a year earlier on a draft Climate Action Plan, while the 2021 public consultation on the provision of a new town bus service for Mullingar encouraged 93 people to complete an online survey.

Rising Mullingar star Amy Michelle spoke out to share her delight at having been asked by Niall Horan to be the support act on the Dublin leg of his world tour. She performed in front of some 13,000 people over the three nights and the 24-year-old singer-songwriter said she could not thank the former One Direction star enough for the opportunity.

“Niall is exactly how he comes across, he’s so down to earth and has time for everyone,” she said. “We went to a pub together after, with lots of the Irish rugby team, who were there too on Saturday night. My brother was super star-struck by them, it was great craic.”

Two referendums took place in March. The first was a proposal to expand the constitutional definition of the family and the second to replace the reference to a woman’s life within the home with a gender-neutral article on supporting care within the family.

Both proposals were roundly rejected (78.56% and 74.63%) by voters in this constituency, and across the country.

Also in March, council members had to hold a special meeting after initially failing to ratify the draft climate action plan drawn up for the county and discussed in February. Councillors’ reservations over the plan centred on concerns that it would unduly affect farmers who were, they claimed, already struggling to survive and being wrongly blamed for a lot of Ireland’s carbon emissions. Before the meeting, about 30 farmers protested outside the council buildings and a delegation from the IFA met some of the members to outline the problems facing farmers.

Meanwhile, Mullingar man Tom Farrell shared details of his preparations for the gruelling 250-kilometre Marathon des Sables due to take place in April in the Sahara Desert.

Another man in the news was Matt O’Connor, managing director of the Mullingar Park Hotel, who was elected vice-president of the Irish Hotels Federation, the national organisation of the hotel and guest house sector.

In Tyrrellspass, David Smyth, the new owner of John Ryan’s hardware store, reopened the business, which he had acquired some weeks earlier.

In a nice touch, Mr Ryan was asked to cut the ribbon for the official reopening.

There was some disappointment in March when it emerged that plans to develop a multi-million euro film studio in Mullingar had been put on ice. Tom Dowling of the Mullingar Studios board said that the project had stalled due to a number of external factors including the actors’ and writers’ strikes in the United States, the war in Ukraine, high interest rates and construction costs.

An Bord Pleanála overturned Westmeath County Council’s decision to grant planning permission for a 245-home development in the Marlinstown area on the grounds that the development would contravene the council’s own area plan. There had been objections to the development by local residents who were concerned about a range of issues including traffic and road safety, the lack of amenities, density, biodiversity and privacy.

The boys and girls of first class at St Cremin’s NS, Multyfarnham, had become poultry experts in recent weeks following the arrival of some new feathered members to the school community. In February, the class had welcomed the delivery of 20 eggs in an incubator supplied by entrepreneurial student Matthew Glennon from St Finian’s College and at the start of March the eggs hatched, to the great delight of the children.

The Morgan family of Meedin, Tyrrellspass couldn’t believe it when a ewe on their farm gave birth to five healthy lambs. Particularly excited by the arrival was young Patrick, whose parents Andy and Laura farm the property.

Mullingar native Sophie Marren was a stunning bride on the day of her wedding to a well-known Irish sporting figure, rugby international Robbie Henshaw. The couple were married in Cashel and the attendance included a number of Henshaw’s Ireland and Leinster teammates such as Josh Van Der Flier, James Lowe, Conor Murray and James Ryan. At a meeting in Athlone, Simon Harris became the new leader of Fine Gael, a move welcomed by West life, Deputy Robert Troy said in March. He was one of just three members of the joint committee on assisted dying who opposed recommending legislation allowing euthanasia. He called instead for the government to increase palliative care funding.

Minister for Education Norma Foley came to town to turn the sod for a new building at St Finian’s College and also for the new St Mary’s special school, which is to be located on the St Finian’s campus.

The Mullingar student players were in rehearsals for their forthcoming production of Les Misérables, which was set for a five-show run at Mullingar Arts Centre.

At The Downs there was great excitement among local children when a new playground was opened and there was a host of photographs carried in the paper from the various St Patrick’s Day parades that had taken place across the county.