Author name: highlandnews

There were 61 patients awaiting beds at Letterkenny University this morning, 37 of them on Emergency Department trolleys. Meanwhile, the INMO says Letterkenny Hospital was the fourth most overcrowded in the country in December with 854 admitted patients awaiting beds over the course of the month. Sligo University Hospital was the fifth most overcrowded in

The Cathaoirleach of the Inishowen Municipal District says while the overarching priority for 2023 will be to finally secure real progress in the quest to secure redress for those whose homes are affected by defective blocks, there are a lot of positive things happening on the peninsula. Cllr Paul Canning says the recent launch of

The Cathaoirleach of the Donegal Municipal District says securing more improvements on the road from Killybegs to Donegal Town must be a priority for the coming year. Cllr Niamh Kennedy acknowledges that will not be secured in the short to medium term. but says towns like Bruckless and Dunkineely need to have traffic issues addressed,

The HSE says an agreement has been reached with GPs to provide more appointments as Covid and Influenza cases rise. It comes as healthcare services have been placed under a strain with the spread of several viruses this winter. Last night, there were 649 people with Covid 19 in Irish hospitals, 45 in Letterkenny University

People in Donegal are being urged to make a beach clean up their New Year’s resolution. The ‘New Year, New You’ campaign launched by Clean Coasts is urging people to choose a realistic and achievable two minute beach clean up this year. Sinead McCoy, Coastal Communities Manager with Clean Coasts says a small effort can

2023 looks set to be a major transformative year for Letterkenny. The Cathaoirleach of the Letterkenny Milford Municipal Distrcit believes many projects earmarked for the town including the 2040 Regeneration initiative and the revamping of the Market Square as well as a number of roads projects are going to be gamechangers. Councillor Donal Mandy Kelly

Incoming first-year students to third-level colleges could potentially face delays again next year. It comes as the releasing of the Leaving Cert results is expected to be delayed for a fourth year in a row. Exam results are traditionally issued in mid-August. Labour’s spokesperson on Education Aodhán Ó Ríordáin says a radical overall of the

A Donegal Councillor has hit out at Irish Water as homes and businesses in West Donegal are once again plagued by water outages. The Lettermacaward Treatment Plant is currently experiencing water disruption with thousands of properties impacted. It’s anticipated night time outages will continue over the coming days. The Treatment Plant was the subject of

The Leas Cathaoirleach of the Glenties Municipal District says while it has been an extremely difficult year for the area, he hopes 2023 will bring more prosperity. There was much shock and sadness following the Creeslough tragedy this year which claimed the lives of 10 people. Councillor Michael McClafferty says ensuring help and support is

A status yellow wind warning is in place for Donegal today. Strong-to-gale force winds of up to 60 kilometers per hour are expected in Donegal, Sligo and Leitrim, with gusts reaching up to 110 kilometers per hour. Alan O Reilly from Carlow Weather says the winds will ease from later this morning:

Inishowen needs more accommodation offerings to cope with the growing tourism demand. Cllr Rena Donaghey believes more hotels and BnB’s are required in the Inishowen area to ensure that tourists who visit the area have somewhere to stay. Fáilte Ireland recently launched a new 5-year plan that will help drive and sustain tourism on the

Booking is open for the second COVID boosters for the 18-49 age group today. But only if it is 6 months since their last vaccine or since they have had a COVID-19 infection Appointments can be made on the HSE website www.hse.ie Eileen Whelan, National Lead, for the COVID-19 Vaccination Programme is encouraging those eligible

Leo Varadkar says he wants to see more movement on the road to people paying less tax. The Taoiseach says the aim is to have only people earning above €50,000 a year paying the higher rate of income tax. He had previously mooted a 30% tax rate but says he’s not ‘hung up’ on that:

Housing, water and the Ten T project needs to remain priorities for 2023. That’s according to Cathaoirleach of the Lifford Stranorlar Municipal District Cllr Patrick McGowan who believes a lot of work needs to be done to increase housing supply in Donegal while there also needs to be upgrades carried out on Lough Mourne. He

A father of four says he is considering moving out of his home after his family have been left without water since Sunday. Irish Water have confirmed they are investigating an issue with the water supply at Carnamogagh Upper, Mountain Top Letterkenny. Residents in Gort Na Gréine, Gleann Tain Close and Gleann Tain Manor have

The Cathaoirleach of Donegal County Council says he hopes 2023 will be the year of major progress for defective block homeowners. Recently there has been progress on applications being processed by the Council and it is hoped the new defective block scheme will be in place early in the new year. Cathaoirleach of Donegal County

A local Councillor has called on Oireachtas members to ‘sing from the same hymn sheet’ and keep the pressure on government over the defective block crisis. Cllr Martin Farren says in some cases, the defective block scandal has been falling on deaf ears. It is hoped that the new enhanced redress scheme will be up

GPs are being asked to extend hours and open on Saturdays as the health system finds itself under unprecedented strain. The Irish Daily Mail report that the HSE and Irish Medical Organisation have made the request, but that some GPs say they are already “overworked and under-resourced.” Over 700 people are currently in hospital with

Parents are being urged to consider the welfare of any pets they may be purchasing this Christmas, as many are often discarded with in the weeks following the holiday season. That’s the message from the Irish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. It says pets can be a novelty when first purchased but

The Taoiseach says he could have worded his comments better when he told young people planning to emigrate that “the grass isn’t always greener”. His remarks were in response to an opinion poll last month that showed that two-thirds of Irish 18-24 year olds were considering moving abroad due to the cost of living in

An Inishowen Councillor is hopeful that access to a grave at Fr Hegarty’s Rock in Buncrana will be provided. Councillor Nicholas Crossan says currently gaining access to the area is difficult for some. He believes steps could have been put in place when other works were being carried out in the area:

A Glenties Councillor wants more assurances that the Foróige services in Dungloe will remain in the area. On Thursday, Tusla, who fund the service, said that all Foróige services will remain in place in Dungloe following widespread speculation that it was to be winded down, due to funding issues. Cllr Micheál Choilm Mac Giolla Easbuig

The Taoiseach insists the Government is prepared to deal with overcrowding in hospitals this Winter. Hospitals have been seeing high attendance levels in recent weeks. Letterkenny University Hospital has seen a 17% rise in the number of people waiting on a bed at the hospital this year. Figures published by the INMO earlier this week