Politics « Thurles Information

GP Imbalance In Mid-West Must Be Addressed.

Clare Fine Gael TD Mr Joe Cooney is urging the HSE to redress the imbalance of General Practitioner (GP) cover in North Tipperary, Clare, and Limerick, compared with surrounding regions.

Figures released by HSE Mid-West to Deputy Cooney show that there are 258 GPs catering to a population of 385,712 in North Tipperary, Clare, and Limerick, which represents one GP per 1,493 people.

GP cover in the region is lower than in Galway/Roscommon/Mayo and Kerry/Cork, which have one GP per 1,387 people and 1,382 people, respectively.

Nationally, there are 3,160 GPs with a public contract, in addition to other GPs, including those who work privately, GPs in training, and International Medical Graduate (IMG) participants.

Deputy Cooney’s request for additional resources to be allocated to the Mid-West comes in light of the ongoing absence of a practicing GP in the village of Newmarket-on-Fergus, Clare’s fifth-largest population centre.

The HSE has been providing locals with a part-time GP service from the nearby Carrigoran House since 2020, following the retirement of the town’s long-serving GP.

Deputy Cooney said he has engaged with HSE Mid-West in recent days to secure a permanent GP service in Newmarket-on-Fergus.

HSE Mid-West confirmed it is actively working on plans to secure permanent GP accommodation in the locality. In the meantime, Dr. Colum Gavin of Saffron & Blue Medical is continuing to provide a GP service to patients on Monday mornings and all day on Thursdays from its current location at Carrigoran House. Outside of these times, patients from the Newmarket-on-Fergus area can be seen at Saffron & Blue Medical Centre at Clareabbey, Clarecastle.

Following representations from the local community in Kildysart, Deputy Cooney said he will also be raising the ongoing part-time locum doctor service being provided by Saffron & Blue Medical Centre in the village, with a view to having a full-time service restored.

“The figures provided by HSE Mid-West show a clear imbalance between the Mid-West and surrounding regions in terms of permanent GP accommodation,” explained Deputy Cooney. “Having received the data to back this up, I will now ask the Minister for Health to increase pressure on the HSE to expedite investment in GP cover across North Tipperary, Clare, and Limerick .”

“In my engagement with the HSE, I was informed that the HSE is working closely with the Irish College of General Practitioners on a range of measures to expand the GP workforce. While I acknowledge that GP training places nationally have increased from an intake of 259 in 2022 to 350 in 2024, it is clear that the Mid-West is not benefiting in the same way as other parts of the country from the corresponding rise in newly qualified GPs.
The situation in Newmarket-on-Fergus is a case in point, as the town has been without a permanent GP presence since the retirement of Dr. Colum Hackett in May 2019. Likewise, the local community in Kildysart have contacted me with a view to securing a full-term service,” he added.

“The Strategic Review of General Practice, which is currently being led by the Department of Health, must be expedited so the arrangements necessary to improve access to GP care in larger population centres can be identified and action taken to redress the imbalance”, he concluded

Proposal To Extend Garda Commissioner’s Term Of Office Approved.

Commissioner to remain in office until September 1st 2025, while new successor is identified and appointed.
Garda Board and Policing, Security and Community Safety Act (PCSA) to extend term of office.

The Irish Government, today, approved a proposal in principle to extend the term of office of Garda Commissioner Mr Drew Harris, until September 1st 2025.
The Commissioner was due to retire on June 1st 2025, however the selection competition for a successor will be ongoing at that point.

A proposal to extend his term has been approved in principle to provide certainty and stability pending the appointment of his successor. The process to extend the Garda Commissioner’s term is provided for in the recently commenced Policing, Security and Community Safety Act 2024.

The Government will now consult with the newly established Garda Board and Policing and Community Safety Authority, as provided for under the Act.

When this consultation is completed the Government will then make a formal decision to confirm the extension of the Commissioner’s term. Regulations providing for the new retirement date for the Commissioner will be brought to government for approval at the same time.

Ireland Attends Major European Border Security Summit.

Focuses on the fight against Organised Immigration Crime in Europe and globally.
Government commits to work with other countries, in an effort to tackle such forms of organised crime.

Minister for Justice Mr Jim O’Callaghan TD has yesterday (Monday) attended a major Border Security Summit, attended by over 40 countries and hosted by the Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer MP, and the Home Secretary of the United Kingdom, the Right Honourable Ms Yvette Cooper MP; meeting in London.

The focus of the event is on Organised Immigration Crime and it brings together Ministers from a number of EU Member States and other European countries, as well as US, African, Asian and Middle Eastern representatives.
Social media operators also attended. It aims to collectively determine the best ways to combat the criminal networks facilitating organised immigration crime and migrant smuggling, which represent a growing issue, threatening the collective Border Security in Europe and globally.

Organised Immigration Crime involves organised criminal groups exploiting vulnerable migrants by smuggling them across borders for profit. Smuggled migrants face extreme dangers that can lead to death by suffocation or drownings at sea.

‘Border Security Summit’:
Organised Immigration Crime will remain focused on three main areas, over the two day period:–

Supply Routes & Enablers – Discussion of equipment, infrastructure and fraudulent documents being used by organised crime groups.
Criminal Finances – Expanding the “follow the money” strategy globally to dismantle the financial incentives for organised crime.
Online Environment – Building global consensus on tackling organised crime groups’ recruitment and advertising online.

Minister O’Callaghan restated the Irish Government’s commitment to fighting Organised Immigration Crime.

Mary Immaculate College, Thurles, Launches New Business & Accounting Department.

Former St Patrick’s College, now Mary Immaculate College, Thurles.

A new business and accounting department, at the Thurles Mary Immaculate College (MIC), (formerly St. Patrick’s College) was formally launched by the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment, Mr Peter Burke TD, on Tuesday last, March 25th.

The Minister, in his address to more than 100 guests at the event, commented that with 5,000 students and close to 2,000 graduates per year, MIC was making a significant contribution to the region in terms of higher education, industry and research partnerships; thus creating a boost to the economy and to the local community.

Dr Rebecca Purcell [BBS (UL), PGDip in Management and Leadership in Education (TCD), MA in Teaching and Learning in Higher Education (SETU), PhD in Business Management (UL)], emphasised that the new department “has a bold, ambitious vision, one that will shape the future of business and accounting education in Ireland. It is a statement of intent about what we value and what we strive for. And most importantly, it creates a dedicated space for students, faculty and industry partners and collaborators to drive innovation, research and teaching excellence.
It is about shaping future leaders, educators and innovators who will build and support our domestic economy in the face of increasing uncertainty and increasing protectionism in global economic policy, but who will equally contribute in a meaningful way to our society.“

“Something that sets us apart here at MIC is we are not just educating future business professionals. We are also educating the future business and accounting teachers of Ireland. This dual role is something we embrace with great pride,” Ms Purcell added.

Limerick native Professor Dermot Nestor (11th President of Mary Immaculate College) charted the history of the former St Patrick’s College, (today MIC St Patrick’s Campus, Thurles), which in its earliest guise aimed “to provide a course of liberal education and whatever is necessary…including the usual branches of a classical, mathematical and mercantile education” so “business then has been at the core of this institution since it first opened its door”.
Professor Nestor further statrd that success should be “measured in terms of meaning and value – and a determination that those qualities must always be for someone, or something.”

“This is a department that is about people and where people are considered the most valuable resource. the real wealth, the true capital, is the people who work here and those individuals, organisations, and industries across the community that they will collaborate with and support.
This is a future focus that ensures graduates are not simply responsive to changes in our society, but are the drivers of that change. I have every confidence that the ambition, the commitment, and the effort of this department will speak for itself.”

Ms Kim Mackenzie-Doyle, (CEO and founder of The B!G Idea), latter a pioneering non-profit organisation dedicated to empowering young people to tackle local and global challenges, was the keynote speaker at the event.

Some 500 students are studying to be post-primary business or accounting teachers on five of the concurrent BA in Education programmes at MIC Thurles.

This new department is the newest in MIC’s faculty of arts and business and was recently introduced as the 14th core subject, offered on the long-established Bachelor of Arts programme at MIC Limerick, where it has quickly become a popular choice among students.

Review Of Legislation Criminalising Purchase Of Sex Completed.

Cabinet approval secured to publish review of legislation that made it illegal to purchase sex but legal to sell sex.
Review highlights challenges facing An Garda Síochána and DPP in enforcing this legislation.

Cabinet approval has been secured to publish a review of the legislation that deals with the purchase of sexual services.

The Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Act 2017 decriminalised the sale of sex, criminalised the purchase of sex, and increased the penalty provided for brothel keeping. The legislation was designed to shift the legal burden towards those who buy sex rather than the sellers, aiming to protect those most at risk within the sex industry.

The Review of the Operation of Section 7A of the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Act 1993, identifies areas for improvement which would allow the legislation to work better and achieve its aim of deterring the demand for commercial sex, which is linked to both sexual exploitation and human trafficking.

Here in Ireland, it is legal to sell sex, but illegal to purchase sex. This means that individuals involved in the sale of sex are no longer criminalised.
Prostitution is inherently exploitative of vulnerable persons, mainly women and girls, and many people are forced into prostitution, through trafficking, drug addiction, homelessness and poverty.

This Review has been much anticipated by stakeholders in the domestic, sexual and gender-based violence (DSGBV) sector and others, and is published today.

Among its findings, this review highlights challenges to the effective enforcement of the legislation in its current form, with An Garda Síochána and the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions noting significant barriers. These include limited power of arrest for detention and questioning, the requirement of an admission of guilt and challenges in prosecution, due to the necessary ‘proofs’ required.

It also finds that the ability to successfully support and protect is hindered by a lack of culturally appropriate support services, including healthcare, social welfare, gender specific housing for women, and clear exit routes.

This review also notes that the prevalence of human trafficking among those involved in the sale of sex in Ireland is not fully known and the lack of reliable data is cited by both advocates for and opponents of section 7A.

The key focus on this issue is to seek to reduce demand, protect those involved in the sex trade, and support those who wish to exit.

The Review highlights that despite the criminalisation of the purchase of sexual services, demand has not decreased. The Review also points to recommendations to address this through awareness-raising; these are mirrored in the Programme for Government and the Zero Tolerance Strategy.

Certain recommendations will be considered in respect of law enforcement, and officials are consulting with An Garda Síochána, in this regard.

According to An Garda Síochána, the DPP had directed 161 prosecutions for the offence of ‘Payment etc. for Sexual Activity with a Prostitute’, from January 2017 up to August 2024.
Over that period, our police service recorded 15 convictions under this legislation.

This report is now available HERE