News briefs

Cavan publicans drop prices There is good news for those of you wish to go out and socialise in the pubs in Cavan town over Christmas. From the moment the Minister for Finance cut the price of drink, the publicans in Cavan Town took the initiative to drop the price of drink right across the board by 20 cents. Some towns in neighbouring counties cut prices by ten to 15 cents but the members of the Vintners Federation in Cavan decided to opt for a 20 cent cut. The reductions refer to all drinks including pints, bottles, spirits and 10 cents have been slashed off soft drinks, which had not been reduced in the budget. The pint of Guinness in Cavan town should now be on sale at a price ranging from €3.70 to €3.80 and pints of larger should be in the €4.20 to €4.40 range. One of Cavan's leading publicans Declan Sheridan of The Meadowview told The Anglo-Celt that they are being pro-active in tackling the ravishes of the recession and are in the throes of organising an 'International Hen Festival', which will take place in Cavan Town next June. A wide range of other activities are also being formulated to coincide with the Hen Festival. All this combined with the All Ireland Fleadh should give the business in the town renewed impetus next year. Movement on Belturbet bypass There was some good news for Belturbet in the run-up to Christmas when the town manager revealed that by year's end, they would receive funding totalling €6.5 million for acquisition of land and further design work for the proposed Belturbet bypass. Kevin O'Reilly informed the monthly meeting of Belturbet Town Council that they had received two tranches of money €4.8m and €2.7m during the year. The Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Brendan Smith, has urged his colleague the Minister for Transport, Noel Dempsey to advance the bypass. Minister Dempsey has stated that the implementation of, and the allocation of funding to individual road improvement projects was a matter for the NRA in conjunction with the relevant local authority, in this case Cavan County Council. Minister Smith was further informed by his colleague that he had made enquiries of the NRA regarding the current position on the N3 Belturbet bypass and they stated that the preparation of contract documents and land purchase is ongoing and will continue in 2010. The NRA also confirmed that archaeological surveys have been completed and that it expects that on-site investigations will be completed by the end of this month. Minister Smith has outlined to Minister Dempsey and the NRA the urgent need to have this essential project proceed to construction stage at the earliest possible date. Broadband rollout continuing It has been confirmed that the much-needed broadband connectivity currently being rolled out in Cavan as a result of the National Broadband Scheme (NBS), has to date connected 27% of the targeted areas. Mobile broadband provider 3G, who are rolling out the NBS on behalf of the Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources, have now completed the initial phase of broadband rollout in the following district electoral divisions in Cavan: Ardue, Carn, Cootehill Rural, Bilberry, Doogary, Lissanover, Ballymachugh, Kilbride and Kill. The Minister for Agriculture, Brendan Smith, said: "The National Broadband Scheme is I am glad to confirm, making serious inroads into connecting rural parts of Cavan to a high quality service. Steady progress is being made and I am assured by the Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources, that by October 2010, full roll-out will be completed in the country." He confirmed that homes and businesses across County Cavan would benefit from the NBS, with an estimated €223 million investment by 3G, of which a maximum of €79.8 million will be contributed by the Government and the EU.