Groups on defensive over Byrne rebuke

ENVIRONMENTAL groups in Galway have defended their role in monitoring planning developments in the city after film star Gabriel Byrne said it was being “destroyed” by such works.

The chairperson of the Galway city branch of An Taisce, Derek Hambleton, said yesterday that campaigners had a history of raising concerns about such issues as the controversial refurbishment of Eyre Square by Galway City Council.

The works on the city’s centrepiece have been the subject of criticism over delays, costs and their impact on tourism.