LEADER and Teagasc offices should be used as incubation premises by farmers and rural entrepreneurs to develop new non-traditional businesses, according to a report by the National Rural Network (NRN) at the Tipperary Institute.

A JOBS fair taking place next week in Tipperary is aimed at providing information about the training and supports available to job-seekers.

LOCAL groups have been assured by Community, Equality and Gaeltacht Affairs Minister Pat Carey that he is determined every cent of the €425 million rural development funding allocated to Ireland would be spent by the time the programme ends in 2013.

FOOD lovers can look forward to a feast fit for a king after plans for the third annual Long Table Dinner banquet were launched in Tipperary yesterday.

AN industry-wide policy council charged with producing an agri-food and rural development strategy was proposed yesterday by economist and former Government minister Alan Dukes.

The Teachers' Union of Ireland (TUI) today expressed concern that recommendations of cuts to third-level education outlined in the McCarthy report would have huge negative effects for economic recovery.

MUNSTER Council chiefs predict their provincial hurling final will buck the trend of poor attendances and expect over 45,000 at Semple Stadium on Sunday.

THE line-up for next week’s Fitzgibbon Cup quarter-finals will be completed this afternoon when the group stages draw to a close.

A TRAINING support scheme for jobless people could help a Limerick man set up his own business.

TIPPERARY Institute has been formally awarded the contract to establish a National Rural Network to assist the efficient and effective implementation of the Rural Development Programme.

THE TO-DO list was pretty long in Semple Stadium, but over eighteen months they ticked all the boxes Floodlights.

Donal Hickey talks to hurley maker John Torpey.

PRODUCING energy crops will only have a viable future if they can provide a return on investment and labour for farmers, Irish Farmers Association President, Padraig Walshe, declared at the launch of a farm diversification manual in Dublin.

IT’s a long way back for today’s teenagers to remember the heyday of the Space Invaders computer game — but a gig in Tipperary next month will jog the memory.

A 56% drop in the number of students accepting third-level computing courses is posing a threat to the sustainability of one of Ireland’s most successful and secure sectors, the director of information communications Technology at Tipperary Institute has warned.

A 56% drop in the number of students accepting third level computing courses is posing a very real threat to the sustainability one of Ireland’s most successful and secure sectors, it was claimed today.

FAIRTRADE Fortnight kicked off yesterday with food producers from around the globe heralding benefits of the Fairtrade concept.

THIRTEEN years of frustration for parents and teachers, at a south Tipperary primary school, spilled over onto the streets yesterday.

DISHEARTENED children have inspired parents and teachers to have a street demonstration over delays in funding for a new school.

COACHING and training has opened the eyes of hundreds of farmers to possibilities beyond the farm gate.

PADDY McCORMACK still reflects on last year’s All-Ireland camogie final and thinks not so much about how Cork snatched victory from Tipperary but why they were able to manage it.

IRISH Rural Link (IRL), the national advocacy group for rural communities, has launched a rural think tank.

CHAMPIONS Limerick IT have been drawn against Galway IT in the first round of the Datapac Fitzgibbon Cup.

MORE colleges than ever before will be involved in the draws for the Datapac Third level championships in hurling and football, which will be held in Croke Park this morning.

The team for the 2006 Datapac Hurling and Football Championships have been confirmed with the draws to take place next Wednesday at Croke Park.

MORE THAN 1,000 jobs could be created following the acquisition of a 300-acre estate outside Clonmel by the IDA.

THE University of Limerick won a major innovation award last night for its ability to convert classroom concepts into a potentially money spinning enterprise.

Cork CFE 2-11, Sligo IT 2-8

UCC 0-19 Limerick IT 1-11

Tipperary Institute 5-13

Cork College of FE 3-7