- NEWS
10% tax on junk food to tackle obesityA 10% tax on fizzy drinks, sweets, biscuits, crisps, and chocolate is to be recommended to the health minister as a way of tackling the country's soaring obesity problem.
Prayer vigil for fine weather as farmers queue for fodderA 24-hour prayer vigil for fine weather has been held on the Kerry-Cork border.
- WORLD
It’s technology, Jim, but not as we know it WHEN Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry first dreamed up the concept of a television show based in the unexplored universe of Outer Space in 1964, the world was a very different place.
Berlusconi’s party girls dressed as nuns, Obama Silvio Berlusconi's private disco featured women dressed not just as sexy nuns and nurses, but also as President Barack Obama and a prominent Milan prosecutor that the former Italian premier has accused of persecuting him.
- BUSINESS
IBRC delays loan valuations, saleThe valuation and sale of IBRC loans has been pushed out by six months to November and December of this year.
The smart money is always on SeánFounded four decades ago, its annual turnover is now €2bn.
- SPORT
The Terry Reilly Interview: The Godfather of GalwayOver the course of almost half a century, Liam Sammon has been in service to Galway football. Now he hopes a new generation can restore county pride.
Super Blues keep double in sightsJoe Schmidt's side won their third European trophy in successive years and gave Connacht reason to celebrate also as the Westerners gained entry to next season's Heineken Cup courtesy of their neighbours to the east.
- LIFESTYLE
Let in the seasonal lightYOUR wardrobe isn't the only thing that needs updating once the barometer starts to rise.
It’s a guy thingDid you cry with your buddy while watching Fergie say farewell at Old Trafford?
10-13C
Live Blogs
- We have no upcoming events at the moment. Please check 'Recent Events' tab for past events
Breaking stories
ICMSA begins search to replace outgoing general secretary Dolan
By Joe Dermody
The Irish Creamery and Milk Suppliers Association (ICMSA) has formally begun its search for a replacement for outgoing general secretary Ciaran Dolan.
Advertisements placed in the national media this week will invite applications from “individuals with the capacity, capability, passion, leadership qualities” for one of the highest profile jobs in Irish agriculture.A fully qualified barrister, Mr Dolan officially resigned from his general secretary role at the start of May. He was retained by the ICMSA as a consultant and continues to work within the farming and food sector as a consultant in agri-business and agricultural policy as well as pursuing his career as a barrister.
Renowned for his analytical and statistical strengths, Mr Dolan drove several high-profile campaigns last year, including putting pressure on UCD and the Government to finally replace Prof Seamus Sheehy, who retired as the college’s professor of agricultural economics in 2002, but whose position still remains vacant more than a decade later.
Mr Dolan said this vacancy undermines the nation’s drive towards agri-food sector expansion post-2015. He also highlighted the fact that UCD is reliant upon Teagasc for expert lecturers in soil science.
Shortly before last Christmas, an election at the ICMSA’s annual general meeting saw Castlebar farmer and then deputy president John Comer take up the president’s position vacated by Jackie Cahill, who is now chairman of the National Dairy Council.
In the same election, Pat McCormack left his role as dairy chairman to take up Mr Comer’s role as deputy president. Dairy sources suggest that the present front runner to replace Ciaran Dolan is also likely to be an internal candidate, the ICMSA’s current senior policy executive, John Enright.
Mr Enright is a long-serving officer with the dairy organisation and a highly respected member of the farming community in his local Co Limerick, where the ICMSA is headquartered.
Nonetheless, the organisation also hopes to receive applications from experienced candidates from right across the agri-food sector for an open contest.
One ICMSA source said: “John Enright is an ideal candidate. He would fully understand the organisation. The successful candidate would have to understand the dynamics of what is essentially a voluntary organisation, but also a national organisation representing one of the fastest-growing sectors in the economy.
“We expect a lot of interest in this role. The general secretary is effectively the chief executive of a significant farmers’ movement.
“There will definitely be huge interest in the role, especially among people with a strong background in farming, agri-food, and food processing management.”
The role will also demand significant leadership and listening skills, with the dairy sector on the cusp of a huge expansion opportunity with the end of the EU’s restrictive milk quota era due in 2015, but with a debate ongoing about who should fund expansion.