Voting is getting underway this morning on the Mayo islands of Inisturk, Inisbiggle and Clare Island, two days ahead of the mainland.

AS I STAND at the Mulranny Park Hotel in Co Mayo on day one of a weekend trip, my eye races over the empty spaces, trying to comprehend the beauty of the interlocking mountains, the sweep of the sea, the sense of boundless landscape.

Voters on islands off the west coast are casting their ballots today in the referendum on the Lisbon Treaty.

A "flying doctor" helicopter service is needed for Ireland’s remote islands, the Dáil heard today.

Voters on the three Mayo islands of Inisbiggle, Inisturk and Clare Island are going to the polls today to vote on the three referenda.