Touring Welsh choir Cor Godre’r Garth will be joined by Manx choristers Glenfaba Chorale on Easter Sunday (April 20).

Billed as ‘Celtic Voices in Concert’, the joint event has been arranged by The Rotary Club of Ramsey in aid of Ramsey charities.

Rotary Club organiser Alan Gelling – who also sings with Glenfaba Chorale – said: ‘We are delighted to host our friends from Wales. This will be a great opportunity to hear two first-rate choirs singing in a worthy cause this Easter”.

The concert will take place at 8pm on Easter Sunday April 20 at Ramsey Methodist Church on Waterloo Road. Admission is £5.

A leading scientist who was famously sacked for his views on illegal drugs will speak at the Manx Museum later this month.

Professor David Nutt will host a free talk entitled ‘The truth about drugs: a basis for a fair and rational policy?’ on Monday, April 28 from 7.30pm.

In 2009 he was dismissed from his role as chair of the UK government’s Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs after comparing the harms of ecstasy with those of horse riding, and for publicly criticising the government for ignoring scientific advice when they reclassified cannabis from class C to a class B drug.

A question and answer session will follow the talk which is likely to include topics such as how harmful alcohol and tobacco are compared to illegal drugs, what should parents tell their children about drugs and at what age, and whether a criminal record can cause more harm to young people than smoking cannabis.

Nutt is Professor of Neuropsychopharmacolgy at Imperial College, President of the British Neuroscience Association and founded the Independent Scientific Committee on Drugs charity.

His book Drugs Without the Hot Air received widespread acclaim.

He will also be appearing on Manx Radio from midday on Sunday, April 27 on the Sunday Opinion and Mannin Line programmes.

A major survey of the island’s 11 to 18-year-olds reports 77 per cent of them are happy most of the time but 25 per cent worry about doing well at school, being bullied, having friends and finding a job.

The questionnaire, involving 1,477 young people was advertised in youth centres libraries and the Isle of Man College, and all secondary school pupils were directly invited to participate in the survey.

Organised jointly by the departments of Health and Social Care, Education and Children, Economic Development, the police and various voluntary organisations, the information will be used by those bodies to identify young people’s concerns and plan future services.

The 53-question survey sought views on matters ranging from schooling, social influences and life outside school, to the aspirations of the young people taking part.

According to the information collected, 28 per cent of people admitted to being bullied in the past year and 28 per cent of those said it was done via social media. However, four fifths of those who were bullied said it was effectively dealt with by their school – an improvement on the previous survey.

Questions also reveal 13 per cent of the island’s children now speak a language other than English at home, almost 16 per cent suffer from some form of disablility and five per cent care for a relative.

Questions on health and diet elicited information that just over half (51 per cent) of respondents said they ate five portions of fruit or vegetables per day, but 46 per cent also ate sweets or crisps most days.

Subjects such as smoking, drinking and sexual health were covered, with 87 per cent of people saying they had never smoked – a drop of six per cent on 2011.

Only 3.5 per cent admitted to being smokers. Half the respondents said they had not drunk alcohol in the three months preceding the survey but five per cent claimed to have drunk on five or more occasions in the same period – down one per cent on 2011.

Three quarters of under 16s planned to do sixth form studies or a college course and 60 per cent expected to go to university; 97 per cent felt safe in the community.

A government department has secured £2m of extra funding over three years to help drive economic growth.

The extra money for the Department of Economic Development will be focused on five key areas including strategies to attract more wealthy entrepreneurs to the island and to build links with the largely untapped market of the north of England, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

There’s also a marketing strategy to promote the island’s economy internationally and a country strategy to win further new business from China and the Middle East. And there will be a drive to boost visitor numbers and spending.

Six extra staff will be recruited, likely as contract workers, for this business development activity.

Economic Development Minister John Shimmin insisted less than half of the extra £2m would go on wages.

He said the priorities had been identified through the Vision2020 strategy. He said: ‘I am confident that for every additional £1 we spend, we will generate at least £3 for the taxpayer, representing good value for money.’

False alarms are costing the fire service dearly.

The island’s fire service is highlighting the risks and cost associated with responding to unwanted false alarms and nuisance calls.

Attending an unnecessary call-out can divert crews away from genuine emergencies and results in additional expense at a time of constrained budgets.

In a press statement, it says that the fire service will respond to a 999 call and understands there may be occasions when an incident turns out to be less serious than initially thought.

However, householders, commercial property owners and tradespeople have been urged to take care, particularly when carrying out routine maintenance of fire alarm systems.

The advice comes after the Emergency Services Joint Control Room (ESJCR) was last week notified that a fire alarm had been activated at a domestic property on the outskirts of Douglas.

A fire engine was sent to the incident from Douglas fire station and a standby crew of off-duty personnel was called in as cover at an additional financial cost.

It turned out that electrical engineers working at the property had been testing the fire alarm system, but had failed to inform the monitoring station or the ESJCR.

John Murtagh, deputy chief fire officer, said: ‘Crews responded to this call as an emergency under blue lights and sirens to enable progress through traffic. This places officers and other road users at a greater than normal risk. We also incurred extra expenditure at a time when we are working hard to achieve greater efficiencies and drive down costs. Had the engineers put in place sufficient control measures, this incident would not have taken place.’

Members of the public are being encouraged to check their fire alarm systems are working properly and to ensure they know who to notify if they experience a fault, or having maintenance carried so that the emergency services are not called out unnecessarily.

Consultation on a Bill to modernise fire and rescue service legislation recently ended.

One of the proposals is to enable the department to charge, in future, for what the press statement describes as ‘the performance of any non-emergency function’. It is intended that where fire service personnel are called out to a false alarm caused by recklessness, or where a person or body has been negligent, they may subsequently be charged for the unwanted call out.

Chris Thomas MHK, Member of the Department of Home Affairs with responsibility for the fire service, said: ‘The service plays an essential role in the department’s efforts to safeguard local communities.

‘If there is a fire or the risk of one breaking out, people must of course dial 999 immediately. The fire service will always respond to an emergency.’

He added: ‘We are urging people to take care to guard against the dangers, cost and inconvenience of a needless call-out. The fire service wants to avoid situations where life may be endangered because crews are attending a false alarm while a genuine emergency is occurring elsewhere.’

Fire safety advice is available on the government website {http://www.gov.im/categories/home-and-neighbourhood/emergency-services/fire-and-rescue-service|here}

Fire crews from Port Erin and Douglas are responding to a report of a grass fire at Bradda Head.

Two fire engines from Port Erin, and an off-road vehicle and water carrier appliance from Douglas Station, have been called to the fire.

No further details have been released.

Manx Telecom’s new Greenhill Data Centre (GDC) is now open for business as the company announced completion of the £10million project’s first phase.

Department of Economic Development Minister Hon John Shimmin MHK was the guest of honour at an event to mark the opening.

GDC is at the Isle of Man Business Park, near to Manx Telecom’s headquarters, and is the company’s third data centre in addition to Douglas North and Douglas Central.

world class

GDC is constructed to the same world class specification, and has the same industry accreditations, as Douglas North which already provides hosting services for many leading private sector companies.

A Tier 3 data centre means it is built and operated to world class standards of resilience, security and reliability.

Stuart Paul, Manx Telecom data centres director, said: ‘The completion of phase one is a significant step for Manx Telecom as it means we now have the only twin Tier 3 data centre set-up with direct connectivity on the island, providing a uniquely resilient data hosting proposition.

‘When combined with our world class global connectivity, GDC will significantly increase our capacity to provide hosting and managed services solutions in the eGaming, big data and cloud sectors – all of which are important for the continued growth of the island’s economy.

‘These are the longer term benefits of GDC, but the project has already benefitted the local economy directly as wherever possible we have used on-island contractors and suppliers including NK Construction, MEA, Easthope & Cubbon Ltd, and Hoare Lea.

‘We’re pleased with the interest in GDC to date and look forward to welcoming our first customers.’

To illustrate the incredible technology involved in data hosting, Mr Paul said that in any second of any day Manx Telecom’s data centres would be processing around 500,000 hands of poker for its eGaming clients.

transactions

And in the few minutes it took for him to give his speech the company’s data centres would process transactions worth US$7million.

He illustrated the speed of global data transfer by saying that individual ‘packets’ of data could be sent from the Isle of Man to Macau – a distance of just over 6,000 miles – in just 300milliseconds.

Mr Shimmin welcomed the investment by Manx Telecom and said GDC was the type of project which illustrated how the private sector was supporting Government’s efforts to grow the island’s economy in a dynamic and sustainable way.

He said: ‘A world class telecoms and IT infrastructure is vital in both supporting the Isle of Man’s position as a leading international business centre and in delivering Vision2020, the Government’s plan for developing our economic future.

‘It is often at the top of the list of priorities for inward investors.

‘Data centres such as this, when allied to global connectivity, open up a world of opportunities for the island. Our geographical location is no barrier to international commerce, and we benefit greatly from the continued investment from companies such as Manx Telecom which maintain the high standard of telecoms and IT infrastructure which international business demands.

‘Greenhill Data Centre is another welcome investment by Manx Telecom and a demonstration of its confidence in the future of the Isle of Man economy.’

GDC is being constructed in three phases.

The completion of the £3.5million first phase involved alterations to the existing structure of the building and the installation of mechanical and electrical infrastructure including security and fire prevention systems, air conditioning, and back-up power generators.

Phase two will see the installation of an additional 120 data hosting racks at a cost of £1.5million.

Phase three will see the construction of a new purpose-built data centre costing an additional £5 million to further increase space by 320 racks to meet the island’s growing demands for data hosting capacity.

For more information about Manx Telecom’s data hosting solutions go to www.manxtelecom.com/hosting

Douglas Mayor Carol Malarkey enjoys lunch at Manor Park School.

She’s pictured sitting at the captain’s table, a reward for pupils’ excellent lunchtime behaviour. MW140303 (31)

A new project matching pet owners with volunteers who could help to care for their pet has been launched by the Southern Communities Initiative(SCI), which is based at Thie Rosien, Port Erin.

Called Animates, the project, ‘highlights the benefits of pet ownership and encourages the local community to support neighbours who may be in need of short term emergency or planned temporary pet care,’ said SCI coordinator Janet Bridle.

‘Or maybe you are someone with time on your hands, like the idea of walking a dog but don’t actually want that full time responsibility.

‘The needs may vary from regularly walking a dog or whilst the owner is ill or the weather is inclement, feeding the cat, fish or budgie to maybe having the pet for a short period whilst the owner is in hospital.’

She added: ‘A pet can offer so much in the way of companionship, getting out, keeping fit and meeting people. But sometimes worries about everyday pet care and responsibility can be too off putting. This is where Animates steps in.’

Volunteers (who must be over 18) will be given appropriate training by relevant professionals with experience of animals.

Janet pointed out this is not a holiday replacement for kennels or catteries.

She presented the idea to a series of primary schools in the south last week and said it went down very well with pupils.

‘They were totally engaged and when I asked what sort of pets people have, one little boy said he and his brother had a pet worm, called Wormy.’

To contact Animates, phone 838180, 427710 or email admin@hubclubsci.im

The most-read stories on the island’s favourite news website last week are listed below.

Unusually, they include a story uploaded the previous week.

At number 6 is the first of our series of features from John Callister, who has been telling readers about his life on the dole.

It attracted a lot of comments and that could be why it gained so many views last week as readers followed the debate.

The third and final part of his series of features is in today’s Isle of Man Examiner.

Last week’s top ten were:

1. {http://www.iomtoday.co.im/news/isle-of-man-news/tuesday-is-news-day-council-tenant-tells-court-being-evicted-is-against-his-human-rights-1-6547379|Council tenant tells court being evicted is against his human rights}

2. {http://www.iomtoday.co.im/news/isle-of-man-news/this-ship-will-soon-be-a-familiar-sight-in-douglas-1-6546720|This ship will soon be a familiar sight in Douglas}

3. {http://www.iomtoday.co.im/news/isle-of-man-news/planners-arrogance-over-decision-not-to-pursue-developer-1-6548460|Planners’ ‘arrogance’ over decision not to pursue developer}

4. {http://www.iomtoday.co.im/news/isle-of-man-news/everyday-expenses-become-hardest-costs-to-bear-1-6552407|Everyday expenses become hardest to bear}

5. {http://www.iomtoday.co.im/news/isle-of-man-news/drop-in-number-of-visitors-to-isle-of-man-1-6542316|Drop in visitors to the Isle of Man}

6. {http://www.iomtoday.co.im/news/isle-of-man-news/being-out-of-work-anything-but-easy-1-6533974|Being out of work: anything but easy}

7. {http://www.iomtoday.co.im/news/isle-of-man-news/fans-must-pay-5-to-watch-2014-isle-of-man-tt-launch-1-6539018|Fans must pay £5 to watch TT launch}

8. {http://www.iomtoday.co.im/news/business/new-air-service-to-link-isle-of-man-with-chester-all-set-to-take-off-1-6552392|New air service to link with Chester all set to take off}

9. {http://www.iomtoday.co.im/news/isle-of-man-news/new-airline-service-to-start-1-6552320|New airline service to start}

10. {http://www.iomtoday.co.im/news/isle-of-man-news/telegraph-poles-fire-in-foxdale-1-6545504|Telegraph poles fire in Foxdale}

Manx charity Junior Achievement has teamed up with Shoprite to run a craft fair and mini Easter egg hunt at its store in Victoria Road, Douglas, from 10am to 4pm on Saturday, April 19, Sunday, April 20, and Monday, April 21.

All the action takes place on the mezzanine floor directly above the till area, with the craft fair featuring a range of handmade crafts from local artisans.

Junior Achievement chief executive Sue Cook said: ‘Shoprite have been great supporters of Junior Achievement so it was only natural that when we were looking for a venue they were the first people we approached.’

Shoprite’s Gillian Harvey said: ‘The Shoprite Group is a long-standing supporter of Manx charities. Our stores are very much at the heart of local communities across the Isle of Man so we are pleased to offer the facilities provided by our Victoria Road branch to Junior Achievement for what I am sure, knowing Sue and her brilliant team, will be a fun three-day event.’

Sue added: ‘The store’s mezzanine floor is ideal for what we have planned. We have room for 20 stalls so would like to encourage anyone interested in hiring one to contact us.”

There is disabled access to the mezzanine via a lift and customers enjoy free parking and free admission to the craft fair.

The mini Easter Egg Hunt is £2 to enter. Anyone who finds all the eggs will be put into a draw to win one of five prizes, including a Cadbury’s official bear and giant egg.

To book a stall contact Sue Cook at Junior Achievement on 666266 or e-mail suecook@jaiom.im

Children at St Thomas CE school in Douglas have been given sports kit sponsored by the Diocese of Sodor and Man.

The kit seen here is modelled by seven to nine-year-olds in the Year 3 and 4 hockey team.

They are pictured with the island’s Anglican bishop, Robert Paterson.

If a picture is worth a thousand words, the shop-front window of Genesis Gallery in Victoria Street, Douglas, tells the tale of a dream realised.

It also illustrates a somewhat audacious reversal of the norm - one which appears to have gone down a treat with art lovers in the island.

But first, the dream realised. Opening an art gallery was an ambition which Rachel Grace had long held.

While working at Fine Furnishings in Onchan she had been involved in its gallery arm, which fuelled her long-standing ambition and provided an insight into the running of a gallery.

When Fine Furnishings closed, Mrs Grace was free to take the brave step.

She had the ideal co-owner in Gemma Wild, who is equally passionate about art. And the pair have a track record of working amicably together prior to opening Genesis.

‘But although I’d dreamed of owning a gallery for years, when it came to the crunch we did have a few sleepless nights ahead of actually taking the plunge,’ recalls Mrs Grace, as her business partner nods in agreement.

They need not have worried it seems. In the five months since the first customer stepped through the gallery’s doors, business has been great, according to the co-owners.

‘The feedback has just been so positive,’ says Mrs Wild. ‘Going into business is always a risk . . . but with each week that goes by our confidence grows because we have been so well received. We love coming to work.’

In deciding not to stock the work of local artists at all the pair have broken with the norm followed by most, if not all, other Isle of Man galleries.

Both women felt that by doing so they were filling a gap in the market.

‘There are beautiful art galleries in the island but they tend to stock Manx art - which is wonderful, but we decided to offer something a little bit alternative as we believed there was a gap in the market,’ said Mrs Wild.

Genesis buys its art from DeMontfort, a UK-based dealer with around 85 UK and international artists on its books.

The best-known artists on display in the Isle of Man gallery include Fabian Perez, Doug Hyde and Sherree Valentine Daines.

‘We’ve got a couple of Jack Vettrianos and Philip Grays [at the time of the interview],’ said Mrs Grace.

Anyone who walks down Victoria Street regularly will notice that the gallery changes the art in its window every few days.

‘We have a huge variety of works, everything from abstract to modern to traditional,’ said Mrs Wild. ‘Prices range from £170 right up to £100,000.’

The gallery’s highest priced sale to date is £7,000.

‘We have a buyer interested in a very lovely Perez original - his originals can go for up to £40,000.’

According to Mrs Grace, the gallery has ‘some up-and-coming artists worth watching’.

She said a Doug Hyde original which would have cost around £2,000 10 years ago - would go for ‘at least £15,000’ today.

‘Jennifer Hogwood is someone to watch - she’s up and coming,’ notes Mrs Grace, adding that the art investment market has fared ‘amazingly well’ during the recession.

However, she’s quick to stress that the gallery is not catering purely for the investment market but rather the full spectrum of buyers.

‘Many of the people who come through our doors are looking for something that they can put on their wall and enjoy.’

New TV deals have been confirmed with major international broadcasters for the TT.

The deals by North One TV promise to increase revenue and raise the profile for both the TT Races and the Isle of Man.

ITV has agreed a new five-year deal to screen 15 one-hour TT Races highlights programmes, which will be screened on ITV4, with many of the shows featuring same day highlights from the Isle of Man.

Internationally, a five-year agreement has been reached with Velocity Channel in the USA to show seven one-hour race shows, screened within 24 hours of each race, tailored specifically to the American market.

A new broadcaster, Fox Sports in Australia, has also agreed a three-year deal to show 15 one-hour programmes.

All contracts run from this year’s event.

Political member for motorsport David Cretney said: ‘Working with North One, we are establishing a strong market for the TT’s worldwide television coverage. Specific broadcasters are beginning to bid against each other to secure the exclusive TV rights which bodes well for the future.’

North One TV has appointed Duke Marketing to manage programme distribution outside the UK, American and Australian markets.

North One TV chief executive Neil Duncanson said: ‘These three new deals are the cornerstone of our distribution plans. ITV have been excellent partners here in the UK and the figures for the USA and Australia are growing fast.’

This week’s Isle of Man Examiner reveals that the Steam Railways’ diesel locomotive is facing more problems.

The £400,000 vehicle has always been controversial.

The exclusive story is on page 3.

The paper’s front page story is about a police crackdown on motorists using mobile phones.

The front page picture presentation features a rescue of a car from the sea.

Also this week:

>We exclusively reveal the contents of a letter from the Department of Economic Development to Callow’s Yard developer Roy Tilleard after it was passed to us.

>We talk to Kate Beecroft MHK about her reaction to last week’s {http://www.iomtoday.co.im/news/isle-of-man-news/damning-report-into-isle-of-man-s-health-services-1-6552746|report on the health service.}

>The paper includes a feature about the police awards

>One board of commissioners discusses alternatives to the rates

>We look back on the beer festival

>A man who was glad he was screen for bowel cancer tells us why

>The Examiner reveals what is planned for the old Douglas Hotel on the North Quay

>A plan for a harbourside seal sculpture is unveiled

>There’s part three of our series from John Callister about life on the dole in the Isle of Man

In addition our extended sports pages include a special on the sports awards

With two pages of letters, the Isle of Man’s social diary, Terry Cringle’s look back at Manx life in the past and the island’s top business news coverage, the Examiner is an essential read this week.

The island’s favourite newspaper is in the shops now.

Police are investigating after a van was seen hitting another vehicle and spinning on Douglas Promenade.

The incident happened between 6am and 7am on April 6 near Palace Terrace, Queen’s Promenade, Douglas.

A white Ford Transit-type van left Little Switzerland road and turned right towards Central Promenade.

It hit a silver van parked on the seaward side of Queen’s Promenade.

The white van spun more than 180 degrees during the collision and it is like that it was also damaged.

Police believe this incident would have been extremely obvious to anyone in the area and the damage to the white van would have been noticeable to anyone travelling behind it.

Witnesses are being asked to contact Constable Steffan Hoy or any police officer on 631212 or via Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

Although the incident happened nine days ago, police released details about it for the first time today (Tuesday).

Manx Telecom shareholders can expect an ‘attractive dividend’ later this year, it was revealed today.

The telecommunications company today released its eagerly awaited preliminary results for the year ended December 31, 2013.

Chief executive Mike Dee said he was pleased with the results which he described as positive and ‘steady as you go.’

They show revenues up five per cent to £76million, generating adjusted operating profit of £18.1 m, up 19.9 per cent.

Cash generated from operations was £28.1 million, representing an adjusted EDITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization) cash conversion of 103 per cent.

Manx Telecom joined the junior market of the Stock Exchange, called AIM in February.

Mike Dee, chief executive, in London today, said: ‘These are our first results since the company’s sucessful IPO (Initial Public Offering) and admission to trading on the London Stock Exchange and underline Manx Telecom’s strengths and solid prospects for the future.’

Kevin Walsh, non-executive chairman, said the results and the succesful IPO ‘will also allow us to reward our shareholders with an attractive dividend which we expect to initiate during the current financial year. The Board confirms that current trading is in line with expectations.’

Crossroads Nursery has officially opened its new premises at Masham Court in Victoria Road, Douglas.

It was opened by Deemster Jack Corrin CBE, and is registered to accommodate four under two-year-olds and 14 two- to five-year-olds.

Crossroads Care has spent over a year converting what used to be a garage at Masham Court after outgrowing their old premises in Derby Square in Douglas.

Children’s services officer Zoe Chestnut said: ‘It was a well attended successful event that offered an opportunity for professionals from a range of services to gain further insight into Crossroads Nursery.’

The nursery accommodates children with and without disabilities or learning difficulties.

The new nursery has an open-plan indoor environment and a large outdoor play area.

The charity’s Jackie Betteridge said that the concept is a normal nursery but with specially trained nursery nurses able to deal with people with disabilities.

‘We always put the children first,’ said Ms Betteridge.

For further information about Crossroads Nursery or Crossroads Care, contact Zoe Chestnut, on 673103.

People are being encouraged to visit the Archallagan plantation to try the permanent orienteering courses on Easter Monday (April 21).

A recreational event is being held to give them the chance to explore the new routes.

It will start from Archallagan Road car park and course maps can be collected between 9.30am and 10.30am.

A small charge of 50p will be asked to cover the cost of a printed map and record sheet.

Tracks are muddy in places so it is advisable to wear suitable clothing and footwear.

For further information visit the DEFA Facebook page at www.facebook.com/DefaHillsForestsGlens

A vandal who kicked a car is being hunted by police.

A silver Citroen C4, which was parked on Stanley Road, Peel, was attacked between Saturday and Monday.

The boot was kicked, causing a large dent.