Guth & Tuairim, Iúil 1980

lml. 2 Uimh. 4 '"" 1980 Luach 20p. ''A 5 p PHONE CALL CAN COST £5" Since the oil-crises the western world h&s been gripped by galloping inflation. Jobs have beco~e scarce. prices have rocketed and the punt in our pockets becomes worth leas ~ Says and less. .. In this locality .hundreds have returned home from Scotland and England and for them and scores of ,iJchool leaver's every year there are fewer jobs to go around. When a new industry starts up then providing employment for young lads you would think that the powers that be would do their utmost to encourage ita success. This doesn't seem to be 'the case however as tar as one particular new industry - the Rossea Joinery in Loch an Iuir - is concerned. This little factory is producing windows. doors and furniture and it sella. moat of its products locally. But can you imagine · running a business like this without a telephone? It sounds impossible. but that is the situation that faces the owner of Siuneireacht na Rosann. He says he applied for a telephone two years ago and after ntimerous ~rips to Letterkenny, three to Sligo and two to Dublin to plead the urgency or his case with the department of Posts & Telegraphs he sees himself no further ahead today than he was then. He claims there are two lin~s lying vacant in Anagaire, meanwhile he i& losing business and has had to stall' expansion plans which would have provided more jobs. He goes on "a Sp phone call is . costing me at le&s.t £5 when you consider the time l wute going off to make a call elsewhere". Loch An luir 1 Man "Guth 7 Tuairim" rang Mr. David H&ll, Manager of the Contracts Section of the Dept. of Posts & Telegraphs in Sligo who are responsible for installing telephones in Co. Donegal and he had this to say. "The proprietor of Rosses Joine}'y applied for a telephone in 1978 and normally businesses such as this are given priority. However, Anagaire is one of a number of small exchanges in Donegal which are full. One vacant terminal which we do have is kept for high priority cases, e.g. a new doctor moving to the area. We saw this situation happening but due to industrial disputes in 1976/'79 we are left with a backlog of work, and we are also under great pressure from converting Donegal to automatic telephones, so we're working a crash-programme at the moment. THE IMPORTANT 'lHING IS HOWEVER THAT WE ARE ACTUALLY INSTALLING A NEW SWITCHBOARD IN ANAGAIRE NEXT MONTH AND ROSSES JOIN~Y ~ILL DEFINITELY BE CONNECTED UPl We have SO applications for An&gaire and they will all be dealt with in the near future". We'll wait and see\ And perhaps Loch an Iuir might even get a public telep~one nowT Teach Fhobail Bhun a'Leaca. IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIUIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIDHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII -