AS ENVIRONMENT Minister John Gormley takes steps to resolve the dispute over the name of Dingle/An Daingean in Co Kerry, he has stressed that the state still favours the use of Irish place names within Gaeltacht areas.

THERE was mixed news on the employment front yesterday as 108 people lost their jobs in three Gaeltacht areas, while Cork is to get 150 jobs with the creation of a hotel call centre.

More than 1.6 million people claim to be able to speak Irish but most of them never use it, new research revealed today.

PEOPLE in the picturesque village of Sneem, where Taoiseach Bertie Ahern holidays, are kicking up a stink over a foul smell believed to be coming from the local sewage system.

MEMORIES of heady days in the late 1960s when the cinematic epic Ryan’s Daughter was shot on the Dingle Peninsula will be recalled when one of the stars, Sarah Miles, returns next month.

A HUGE facelift is planned for the old boatyard site in An Daingean.

THERE are fears that An Daingean sewage treatment plant may not be able to cope with demands when the population grows hugely during the tourist season.

One of Ireland's most popular tourist routes looks set to remain closed for some time following a dramatic cliff collapse during the weekend.

PARTS of one of the country’s most popular tourist routes, the Slea Head Drive, were yesterday closed to traffic after a section of cliff supporting the road collapsed into the sea.

THE people of Corca Dhuibhne in west Kerry should support an agreement about the name of its principal town — An Daingean/Dingle/Daingean Ui Chúis.

More than 80% of tourists nearly missed the town of Dingle due to the omission of the name Dingle from signposts, according to an independent survey undertaken by small local businesses.

AN urgent call was made yesterday for safety measures on a dangerous stretch of roadway in Kerry.

THE Gaeltacht Minister was under fire again yesterday over the bitter Dingle name change row.

THE name Dingle has been erased from all road signs in Kerry, despite a local plebiscite that showed over 90% of voters wanted it retained.

CONTROVERSIES over planning and housing look set to continue in An Daingean in 2007.

THE right of citizens to access State services and documents through Irish is a Constitutional right, said Gaeltacht Minister Eamon Ó Cuiv yesterday.

GAELTACHT Minister Eamon Ó Cuív yesterday said he was prepared to consider another proposal to change the official name of An Daingean, provided it was legal.

Common sense seems to have prevailed in the wrangle over the naming of the Kerry town, and whether it should be called An Daingean or Dingle.

An overwhelming number of those polled in the Dingle - An Daingean place-name plebiscite have voted in favour of retaining the name Dingle.

A PLEBISCITE on a controversial proposal to change the name of Dingle is to go ahead in October, despite warnings that it will have no legal effect.

THE three spokespersons for Coiste Daingean Uí Chúis, Dingle say they want Irish-only signposts within the Gaeltacht and bilingual signposts outside it (Irish Examiner letters, May 24).

AUSSIE Joshua Marden (FRF Courier) claimed stage victory when the FBD Insurance RAS arrived in An Daingean yesterday after a tough 107 mile stage from Cobh.

The third stage of the FBD Insurance Rás takes place today, with the riders facing a 173km trek from Cobh to An Daingean.

IT’S now apparent that the people of Dingle/Daingean Uí Chúis do not want their town to be known as An Daingean.

ANDY ROCHE, winner of the title in 1997, has been forced to pull out of next week’s FBD Insurance RÁS following a disastrous crash 500m from the finish of Sunday’s Rutland GP.

THE Coiste Daingean Uí Chúis group profess themselves most depressed at my total lack of understanding in relation to the official name of the town of An Daingean (Irish Examiner letters, April 28).

MEMBERS of Kerry County Council are continuing to ignore their county manager and senior planners by voting for the rezoning of land in An Daingean, Castlegregory and Killorglin.

WHILE the focus has been on the introduction of a team time trial and a gruelling final stage to replace the traditional circuit finish, this year’s FBD Insurance Rás will also include some old, familiar obstacles as the eight-day showpiece returns to Kerry.

GAELTACHT Minister Éamon Ó Cuív will not be backing down on his decision to change Dingle to An Daingean - regardless of a local vote.

ONLY about a third of people living in Dingle will be able to vote in a plebiscite to change the official name of the town, now An Daingean.

CAN you Irish that for me?

The campaign to decide the name of Dingle in Co Kerry has stepped up a gear.

COUNCIL documents have revealed that the local authority in Kerry fully signed up to the controversial legislation which resulted in Dingle being officially renamed An Daingean.

THE controversy about renaming Dingle as An Daingean has thrown the local legal system into chaos.

SOON I will be taking a trip to Mumbai. Bombay or Mumbai? Dingle or An Daingean?

THE people of the Dingle area are to be asked to vote on a controversial decision to change the official name of the town to An Daingean.

FROM the foundation of the state, the issue of whether An Daingean was the capital of the West Kerry Gaeltacht or an Anglophone bastion on its edge remained unresolved.