Support from readers like you keeps The Journal open.
You are visiting us because we have something you value. Independent, unbiased news that tells the truth. Advertising revenue goes some way to support our mission, but this year it has not been enough.
If you've seen value in our reporting, please contribute what you can, so we can continue to produce accurate and meaningful journalism. For everyone who needs it.
A MULTI-AGENCY meeting took place today to discuss what has been described as “deplorable” footage of large crowds gathered in Galway city last night.
Photos and videos shared on social media showed a large number of people near the Spanish Arch, with groups also shown on Shop Street.
Representatives from the council, An Garda Síochána, the HSE, third level institutions and student unions joined the virtual meeting today to discuss the scenes.
In a statement this afternoon, the council said the “upset, anger and concern of people across the city at the events that unfolded was shared and acknowledged by all”.
The presidents of the third-level institutions set out the disciplinary measures available to them in relation to on- and off-campus behaviour and agreed to continue to work with the gardaí closely on such enforcement measures. Student union presidents also said they would continue to use their communication channels to urge students to follow public health guidelines.
The council said gardaí are actively confiscating alcohol which is being consumed in public spaces and will continue issuing public notices which result in fines and possible court appearances.
The council also said it wanted to emphasise that “individually and collectively” people must continue to do all they can to protect each other.
In these unprecedented times of Covid-19 pandemic and with the current deep concerns about a possible move to Level 3 of the Living with Covid-19 plan, the meeting appealed to people across the city to ‘Keep it small, keep your distance and keep safe’.
Advertisement
‘Dealing with breaches’
In a statement this morning, NUI Galway said: “The scenes involving students and other young people in some parts of Galway city on Monday night were deplorable”
NUI Galway has repeatedly appealed to the better judgement of our students and reminded them of their responsibilities under the student Code of Conduct.
“The university has also worked to ensure this year’s experience of university life is safe, supportive and enjoyable, despite the limitations that the pandemic places on us.”
The university said today it “won’t hesitate in dealing with any breaches of public health guidelines”.
‘Simply unacceptable’
Local representatives expressed concern about the large crowds seen last night.
Fianna Fáil Senator Ollie Crowe said he had sympathy for students entering college for first time during the pandemic but these scenes “are simply unacceptable, particularly with recent growth in Galway cases”.
“I have contacted Mill Street gardaí and written to NUIG President though I fear damage may be done,” he added.
Social Democrats councillor Owen Hanley said every person who failed to adhere to the restrictions in the crowds in Galway last night “should be ashamed”.
“Not only are you putting the whole city at risk but you are sacrificing the experience of the next entire college year for your class mates and yourselves,” he said, adding they they should display more “common sense and cop on”
Related Reads
Students isolating in Queen's University Belfast accommodation after Covid-19 outbreak
HSE chief: We can expect and should plan for further waves of Covid-19
Fine Gael councillor Eddie Hoare also said this kind of activity will lead to an increase in Covid-19 cases in the city.
On Monday RTÉ’s Brian O’Connell also shared a number of videos of crowds on the streets of Cork city after the pubs had closed for the night. He said social distancing inside the pubs had been good but “the streets were a different story”.
Yesterday evening Acting CMO Dr Ronan Glynn said around 70 cases of Covid-19 over the past 14 days have been linked to pubs and restaurants in Cork.
“That’s in the context of 350 cases in Cork over the past fortnight,” said Dr Glynn. He said a “significant cluster” had also been linked to a house party in Galway.
Officials yesterday confirmed a further 390 cases of Covid-19 in Ireland.
Of yesterday’s figures, some 209 cases were confirmed in Dublin which is currently under Level 3 restrictions.
Some 27 cases were in Cork, 22 in Donegal, 21 in Galway, 14 in Kildare, 14 in Monaghan, seven in Roscommon, seven in Tipperary, seven in Waterford, seven in Wexford, six in Limerick, six in Longford, five in Laois, five in Meath, five in Offaly, and five in Sligo.
The remaining 23 cases were spread across eight counties.
- With reporting by Orla Dwyer
Readers like you are keeping these stories free for everyone...
A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article.
Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation.
TheJournal.ie's Coronavirus Newsletter
TheJournal.ie's coronavirus newsletter cuts through the misinformation and noise with the clear facts you need to make informed choices. Sign up here
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
Close
226 Comments
This is YOUR comments community. Stay civil, stay constructive, stay on topic.
Please familiarise yourself with our comments policy
here
before taking part.
We all have to remember it’s Ireland we are living in not Spain things are uncertain just like the weather so be better get used to it cause it not going to change
So much for the new revenge porn legislation. Suspended sentence! This country is a joke. No empathy or consideration of the trauma this caused to the injured party. Reporting sexual crime is a waste of time here
@DCQ: The trauma to the injured party was just the same. She didn’t know he wouldn’t do it if he had the video/photos. Justice failed her. An example should have been set to deter others Theres obviously no deterrent if you are bluffing.
It’s going to be a tough few days I’m the heat, take precautions everyone. Plenty of water and factor 50, with plenty of naps during the hottest parts of the day.
Proposal to remove UN approval from 'Triple Lock' to be brought to Cabinet this week
Updated
4 hrs ago
16.6k
153
Quiz
Quiz: Can you pass this Driver Theory Test?
10 mins ago
743
Tralee
Woman (40s) dies after being struck by SUV in Tralee this morning
8 hrs ago
29.1k
Your Cookies. Your Choice.
Cookies help provide our news service while also enabling the advertising needed to fund this work.
We categorise cookies as Necessary, Performance (used to analyse the site performance) and Targeting (used to target advertising which helps us keep this service free).
We and our 153 partners store and access personal data, like browsing data or unique identifiers, on your device. Selecting Accept All enables tracking technologies to support the purposes shown under we and our partners process data to provide. If trackers are disabled, some content and ads you see may not be as relevant to you. You can resurface this menu to change your choices or withdraw consent at any time by clicking the Cookie Preferences link on the bottom of the webpage .Your choices will have effect within our Website. For more details, refer to our Privacy Policy.
We and our vendors process data for the following purposes:
Use precise geolocation data. Actively scan device characteristics for identification. Store and/or access information on a device. Personalised advertising and content, advertising and content measurement, audience research and services development.
Cookies Preference Centre
We process your data to deliver content or advertisements and measure the delivery of such content or advertisements to extract insights about our website. We share this information with our partners on the basis of consent. You may exercise your right to consent, based on a specific purpose below or at a partner level in the link under each purpose. Some vendors may process your data based on their legitimate interests, which does not require your consent. You cannot object to tracking technologies placed to ensure security, prevent fraud, fix errors, or deliver and present advertising and content, and precise geolocation data and active scanning of device characteristics for identification may be used to support this purpose. This exception does not apply to targeted advertising. These choices will be signaled to our vendors participating in the Transparency and Consent Framework.
Manage Consent Preferences
Necessary Cookies
Always Active
These cookies are necessary for the website to function and cannot be switched off in our systems. They are usually only set in response to actions made by you which amount to a request for services, such as setting your privacy preferences, logging in or filling in forms. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not then work.
Targeting Cookies
These cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.
Functional Cookies
These cookies enable the website to provide enhanced functionality and personalisation. They may be set by us or by third party providers whose services we have added to our pages. If you do not allow these cookies then these services may not function properly.
Performance Cookies
These cookies allow us to count visits and traffic sources so we can measure and improve the performance of our site. They help us to know which pages are the most and least popular and see how visitors move around the site. All information these cookies collect is aggregated and therefore anonymous. If you do not allow these cookies we will not be able to monitor our performance.
Store and/or access information on a device 105 partners can use this purpose
Cookies, device or similar online identifiers (e.g. login-based identifiers, randomly assigned identifiers, network based identifiers) together with other information (e.g. browser type and information, language, screen size, supported technologies etc.) can be stored or read on your device to recognise it each time it connects to an app or to a website, for one or several of the purposes presented here.
Personalised advertising and content, advertising and content measurement, audience research and services development 137 partners can use this purpose
Use limited data to select advertising 106 partners can use this purpose
Advertising presented to you on this service can be based on limited data, such as the website or app you are using, your non-precise location, your device type or which content you are (or have been) interacting with (for example, to limit the number of times an ad is presented to you).
Create profiles for personalised advertising 79 partners can use this purpose
Information about your activity on this service (such as forms you submit, content you look at) can be stored and combined with other information about you (for example, information from your previous activity on this service and other websites or apps) or similar users. This is then used to build or improve a profile about you (that might include possible interests and personal aspects). Your profile can be used (also later) to present advertising that appears more relevant based on your possible interests by this and other entities.
Use profiles to select personalised advertising 78 partners can use this purpose
Advertising presented to you on this service can be based on your advertising profiles, which can reflect your activity on this service or other websites or apps (like the forms you submit, content you look at), possible interests and personal aspects.
Create profiles to personalise content 38 partners can use this purpose
Information about your activity on this service (for instance, forms you submit, non-advertising content you look at) can be stored and combined with other information about you (such as your previous activity on this service or other websites or apps) or similar users. This is then used to build or improve a profile about you (which might for example include possible interests and personal aspects). Your profile can be used (also later) to present content that appears more relevant based on your possible interests, such as by adapting the order in which content is shown to you, so that it is even easier for you to find content that matches your interests.
Use profiles to select personalised content 34 partners can use this purpose
Content presented to you on this service can be based on your content personalisation profiles, which can reflect your activity on this or other services (for instance, the forms you submit, content you look at), possible interests and personal aspects. This can for example be used to adapt the order in which content is shown to you, so that it is even easier for you to find (non-advertising) content that matches your interests.
Measure advertising performance 127 partners can use this purpose
Information regarding which advertising is presented to you and how you interact with it can be used to determine how well an advert has worked for you or other users and whether the goals of the advertising were reached. For instance, whether you saw an ad, whether you clicked on it, whether it led you to buy a product or visit a website, etc. This is very helpful to understand the relevance of advertising campaigns.
Measure content performance 60 partners can use this purpose
Information regarding which content is presented to you and how you interact with it can be used to determine whether the (non-advertising) content e.g. reached its intended audience and matched your interests. For instance, whether you read an article, watch a video, listen to a podcast or look at a product description, how long you spent on this service and the web pages you visit etc. This is very helpful to understand the relevance of (non-advertising) content that is shown to you.
Understand audiences through statistics or combinations of data from different sources 75 partners can use this purpose
Reports can be generated based on the combination of data sets (like user profiles, statistics, market research, analytics data) regarding your interactions and those of other users with advertising or (non-advertising) content to identify common characteristics (for instance, to determine which target audiences are more receptive to an ad campaign or to certain contents).
Develop and improve services 82 partners can use this purpose
Information about your activity on this service, such as your interaction with ads or content, can be very helpful to improve products and services and to build new products and services based on user interactions, the type of audience, etc. This specific purpose does not include the development or improvement of user profiles and identifiers.
Use limited data to select content 39 partners can use this purpose
Content presented to you on this service can be based on limited data, such as the website or app you are using, your non-precise location, your device type, or which content you are (or have been) interacting with (for example, to limit the number of times a video or an article is presented to you).
Use precise geolocation data 43 partners can use this special feature
With your acceptance, your precise location (within a radius of less than 500 metres) may be used in support of the purposes explained in this notice.
Actively scan device characteristics for identification 25 partners can use this special feature
With your acceptance, certain characteristics specific to your device might be requested and used to distinguish it from other devices (such as the installed fonts or plugins, the resolution of your screen) in support of the purposes explained in this notice.
Ensure security, prevent and detect fraud, and fix errors 87 partners can use this special purpose
Always Active
Your data can be used to monitor for and prevent unusual and possibly fraudulent activity (for example, regarding advertising, ad clicks by bots), and ensure systems and processes work properly and securely. It can also be used to correct any problems you, the publisher or the advertiser may encounter in the delivery of content and ads and in your interaction with them.
Deliver and present advertising and content 97 partners can use this special purpose
Always Active
Certain information (like an IP address or device capabilities) is used to ensure the technical compatibility of the content or advertising, and to facilitate the transmission of the content or ad to your device.
Match and combine data from other data sources 69 partners can use this feature
Always Active
Information about your activity on this service may be matched and combined with other information relating to you and originating from various sources (for instance your activity on a separate online service, your use of a loyalty card in-store, or your answers to a survey), in support of the purposes explained in this notice.
Link different devices 51 partners can use this feature
Always Active
In support of the purposes explained in this notice, your device might be considered as likely linked to other devices that belong to you or your household (for instance because you are logged in to the same service on both your phone and your computer, or because you may use the same Internet connection on both devices).
Identify devices based on information transmitted automatically 85 partners can use this feature
Always Active
Your device might be distinguished from other devices based on information it automatically sends when accessing the Internet (for instance, the IP address of your Internet connection or the type of browser you are using) in support of the purposes exposed in this notice.
Save and communicate privacy choices 65 partners can use this special purpose
Always Active
The choices you make regarding the purposes and entities listed in this notice are saved and made available to those entities in the form of digital signals (such as a string of characters). This is necessary in order to enable both this service and those entities to respect such choices.
have your say