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THE HIGH COURT has found that consultant engineers and Limerick County Council were responsible for the wrongful demolition of a family home during the construction of a new dual carriageway between Limerick and Nenagh.
Brian and Mary O’Shaughnessy described the destruction of their single-storey two-bedroom old Irish farmhouse ‘The Hollows’ at Annaholty, Birdhill, Co Tipperary on 6 September 2006 as “a nightmare”. The site was never used for the new road.
Giving judgement, Mr Justice Donald Binchy, who said it was “abundantly clear” what happened “was not down to any single act”, found the consultant engineers, a joint venture called RPS Scetauroute, was 70% responsible while the local authority was 30% responsible.
A third party which carried out the actual demolition was found not to be negligent in the matter.
The O’Shaughnessys sought damages for alleged negligence from several parties including Limerick County Council and The National Roads Authority (NRA), who it was claimed were both responsible for the operation, design and acquisition of land, and oversaw construction of the N7 dual carriageway scheme.
They also sued RPS Consulting Engineers Ltd and EGIS Route Scetauroute SA (a joint venture in the name of RPS Scetauroute JV), which was contracted by Limerick County Council (LCC) to carry out certain works on the carriageway, and Midland Fencing Ltd, a subcontractor that carried out the demolition works.
The defendants all denied negligence. LCC, NRA, RPS, and Midland all served each other with notices of contribution and indemnity, claiming the other defendants were responsible for what happened.
Last January the O’Shaughnessy’s settled their action on undisclosed terms. The hearing proceeded to determine which of the defendants was liable.
A series of errors
In his judgement, the Judge said the demolition was “as a consequence of a series of acts and omissions in which both LCC and RPS play a part.”
The events leading to the demolition included an engineer for RPS, following consultations with LCC, wrongly designating a plot of land, 156a – which was acquired, as being derelict. There was no structure on the plot, but there may have been in the past.
LCC’s staff, when looking for a plot of land that matched that description then mistakenly photographed and labelled the O’Shaughnessy’s home as being plot 156a.
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In early 2006, LCC included plot 156a on a list of properties to be demolished. LCC then provided RPS with the list, including a photograph of the O’Shaughnessy’s home describing it as plot 156a.
The judge said there was also a failure by engineers to query why works were being carried out on the house, and a lack of familiarity with the boundaries of the site the subject of a CPO.
Birdhill, Co Tipperary Google Maps
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He said he was satisfied RPS and LCC owed a duty of care to the O’Shaughnessys, and it went without saying that their home should not have been demolished.
In his view, RPS failed in its duty under the terms of its contract to provide services to LCC. RPS failed to supervise the site properly or ensure the resident engineers were sufficiently familiar with the site, or check that the premises shown in the photograph it was given was at plot 156a.
However, the judge added that there could be no doubt that LCC was also negligent in instructing RPS to include plot 156a in the demolition contract, incorrectly identifying plot 156a as being the O’Shaughnessy’s property, or ensuring its staff were familiar with site boundaries and project documentation.
Shared responsibility
In the circumstances, he said RPS were 70% negligent, and LCC 30% negligent.
The O’Shaughnessys, bought the house for IR£34,500 in 1998. They lived there for a period and also rented it out. It was always their intention to reside there permanently.
Between 2001 to 2003, there was uncertainty about the house because it was close to the route of the new carriageway. The O’Shaughnessy’s were informed by the NRA in 2003 their home was not required in order to complete the project. Other houses in Annaholty were acquired and demolished as part of the construction works.
In the months before the demolition Brian O’Shaughnessy was carrying out preparatory works as part of plans to renovate the house. Planning permission was also sought from the local authority.
By late August 2006, slates on the roof and furniture in the house were removed. On 6 September 2006 Mary O’Shaughnessy decided to collect post at the house. When she arrived at Annaholty the house was gone, and the site cleared.
They had no prior indication or notice that the house was to be demolished.
She initially believed matters would be sorted out by Christmas of that year, and never thought she would have to come to court. What had happened to her and her husband as a “nightmare”, she said.
What does the HSE and Irish Water have in common?
Both publicly funded bodies being mismanaged and run into the ground to the point of non functionality in a deliberate attempt to push a privatization policy on the Irish public.
Fine Gael’s ‘Vision’ for the future.
@Emmet Dillane: FGs vision was for Irish Water to be self funding which is far more sustainable, whether you like it or not. But the Lefties had their day and we all pay for a 3rd rate underfunded water system. Thanks Paul Murphy and Sinn Fein.
@P C: BS fgs vision for irish water and the health service was to privatise and divest any responsibility for providing any services. Whilst still taking higher taxes and making us pay (if you can afford it) again.
Let’s call a spade a spade for once.
@P C: You do get the reason its self funding is because it doubles the cost for the nation. Not only do we get taxed to pieces but then we also get screwed by a private company. We also lose control to profit seekers the nations most precious resource.
The people that would be forced to pay for their water are in fact the same people that pay tax. Using business terms like self funding and more sustainable do not make it any more of a rip off for the Irish people. Irish water is a scam pure and simple and one that the Irish nation has democratically rejected. Get over it and move on FG members do not get to rip the nation off -
@Dave Murray: FG never said they would privatise Irish Water. The ESB hasn’t been privatised why do you think Irish Water would be. At the end of the day you pay for what you get and in this case we are happy to pay little in exchange for a sh!t water system. Thanks Paul Murphy and Sinn Fein.
@Emmet Dillane:
Not a fan of FG or any other current so call possible government parties, But if the Health service was in private hands the level of service would be much better that is it Reason nobody would allow it ,under state ownership nobody is answerable union control you cant sack me even if I fail to do my job, But some day this system will have to end.
@P C: We pay Billions in tax every year and expect services in return for it – IF elected officials can not balance the books and provide the services in the way the nation wants then we will elect leaders that can acknowledge the mandate they were given and follow the decisions the nation has made.
Am pretty sure its FGs failure to see this that is seeing the massive upsurge in support for Murphy’s party – The more FG treats the wishes of the nation with contempt the more support Murphy and his team will get – At the rate FG are going by the time we hit the next election Murphy will own the left and take at least twenty seats
@P C: stop trying to push the IW rejection as a crazy SF/looney left idea. Not a good idea for FG to keep insulting the average voter. The far left support base in no way reflects the number of people who rejected the water plan. A huge portion across the spectrum disagreed with the Hogan model. The only hope FG has at this stage is to enshrine public ownership of the system before proceeding any further. Trying to say FG never proposed privatisation is an insult to the nations intelligence, FG are not interested in national ownership of any resources, or else they would have locked that down before launching IW. Pay per use is a fair and progressive system, back room dealing with our property and double taxation are not, IW just needs to be a version of the NRA, but for water provision.
@P C: It cost more to collect the cost of Irish water then it actually generated PC – Irish water was a scam and I appreciate you take longer then most people in the country to understand simple facts but its going to cost you less money (tax) as instead of having the cost of billing twice people all money will be raised centrally through revenue,.
Thankfully simpletons like yourself are in the minority in this country other wise scams like Irish water would be a lot more common and alll of the resources of the nation would be quickly sold off to the lowest bidder as is the FG way
@brian boru: all companies have initial set up costs. Irish water requires on going income. This now must come from the government and will very depend on state of the economy and who’s in government etc. The biggest problem is that Irish Water cannot borrow from banks for long term investment purposes as they don’t have a sustainable source of self financing.
Either way the decision is made and revisiting this will only cause more of the chaos we saw across communities up and down the nation. As far as I am concerned Irish water does not exist and my water services are managed by the county councils and those elected to represent me in the management of the nations resources.
Christ how many billions have been blown by Noonan and the debt cancellation company NAMA and idiots like you think the answer is to privitise that nations water supply furthering the gap between those with least and those with most.
If idiots like you were in the majority this country would be a very harsh cruel place – Get over it and move along PC
@brian boru: name calling is the last resort of the inarticulate. This is a bad way to run a company and you are right the decision has been made. But don’t expect a good service. You pay for what you get.
@P C: Well then the elected officials who are responsible will pay at the polls – times have changed voters are smarter and better educated and better connected –
We are not looking for a company we have enough of them we are looking for a Government who represents the people and not the lobbyist and actually puts whats best for the country first and not what is best for their pocket first as was the traditional way for too long in Irish politics.
@brian boru: calling someone you don’t know an idiot is not name calling???????
Can you outline where the €11 billion required to invest in the water system to bring it up to a satisfactory standard will come from? The Left can, they tell us from higher tax. According to them everything should be free and paid for by tax. We pay too much tax as it is. Do you concur with them?
@P C: An idiot is a person of low intelligence – Your ignorance of the current situation and blind driving of an agenda that makes no sense for the nation on any level clearly points to the fact that you are of low intelligence hence stating facts as opposed to name calling
The 11 billion is a figure created by the company that is looking to start billing people and is desperately trying to hold on to the massive benefits that were given to them by the last Government so I dispute the 11 Billion figure completely and have complete lack of trust in the institute that is coming out with the figure.
As it stands I have not run for election so do not have to offer the solutions to the issue its time for those that are elected to stand up and offer solutions as opposed to bills and attacking our society through the privatization of our resources. We also need the referendum to enshrine the ownership of our water and the resources that carry it to house holds.
As a Government there are many thousands of ways to raise finance such as bonds, sale of assets ( start with RTE in my opinion) and of course tax etc. The only way the government cant raise it is through the privatization of the nations most precious resource so lots of wiggle room for young Leo and the rest of FG to prove themselves.
The mandate has been given to the politicians and they will be judged on their ability to carry it out. I would rather pay more tax where I can hold people accountable at the poll box then have to deal with the cess pool of corruption that is Irish Water. Irish water offers no value to the nation only an opportunity to make connected people wealthier. AS said thankfully idiots like you are in the minority.
@P C: it will probably come from the same place that almost billion Noonan committed us to for Anglo. We borrow a billion for that this year rising to 1.5 and then 2.
They might want to consider restoring pay parity to new Consultants and they could do better at recruiting them. Instead paying locums extortionate amounts because new Consultants rightly refuse to be paid 30% less than their colleagues.
Everything about the services stink. You have a baby you get serious postnatal depression, your hospitalized, your in a unit with heroin addicts and Alcoholics that are constantly sneaking out for a drink, Its used a storage area for everything and anything, belongings are being stolen, A nightmare, who even when sick would go there?
@Michael Geraghty: Perhaps – but having worked in 4 other EU countries, I have found healthcare to be better there. Including the UK and the NHS. Other things too – just one example. Law and order; you’d be very stupid to behave badly on the streets of Berlin – the Police take NO prisoners!¡
@Fank Pulman: I don’t doubt it for a minute, the hse is not perfect but it’s still not a bad country to get sick in. That was my only point. As for the police, I fully agree, our courts are letting our officers down daily.
The whole mental health system needs reforms, it needs people who care, not people in it for the money. I was connected to the Matter hospital Psychiatry. It was corrupt. Their answer was just medicating people.
Do we need all these highly paid certificate holders ,to stand around administering drugs ,and form filling ,lets have more semi skilled staff that actually have real empathy and who have personalities that reach out and listen to the patient .this is more a vocational job than most .we have too many in it for the big money and big pensions .
Without using complementary treatment of mental health problems I do not expect any major improvement in getting people well as we still have the same old drugs. Mental health problems are really physical problems and we can get many people well by getting the brain chemistry normalised. Psychiatrists in Ireland or UK rarely do any significant blood or urine tests for example except in psychotic illness. A London psychiatrist told me that doing biochemical tests are the way forwards. I learned all about this many years ago in Sydney. Are you a woman who perhaps suffers from panic attacks, insomnia, palpitations,severe anxiety or have had post-natal depression? If so you probably have excess copper in the blood causing you to make a high amount of adrenaline, the fight or flight chemical. Many women and some men with these symptoms will be smokers or drinkers to try to relieve the anxiety. Zinc and other nutrients can control the anxiety and by staying on the nutrients they will usually need no medication after a few months. Valium and Xanax do work for anxiety but they are addictive. Read more at http://www.walshinstitute.org.
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