Author name: oisinkelly

  The recent surge in Covid deaths is directly due to restrictions being lifted before Christmas, according to Professor Gabriel Scally. A daily-record of 101 deaths were confirmed here yesterday, while one of those people was 19-years-old. However, the lowest number of cases since December 28th was also recorded, with 879 new infections. 15 of […]

  People on the Pandemic Unemployment Payment should be entitled to a Fuel Allowance, according to Sinn Féin. The party has put forward a motion on the issue which will be debated in the Dáil later. Earlier this week, People Before Profit called for the fuel allowance to be doubled with so many people staying

An expected four year delay to a plan to overhaul eating disorder treatment in Ireland has been described as “unforgivable”. Ireland’s eating disorder treatment plan could take almost nine years to roll out, when the original aim was five. Donegal Deputy Thomas Pringle says there is no excuse for such a long delay:

  There’s still no timeline or guarantee as to when all residents and staff at the St Columbcille Village in Clonmany will be vaccinated. The facility run by care assistants, provides care to almost 30 residents over the age of 70 and there’s on-going concern over the delay in the vaccine roll out. As part

  The Letterkenny Garda Division will be redoubling their efforts this week with extra checkpoints operating on a larger scale from tomorrow. Anybody who is undertaking an essential journey is being advised to expect delays and leave some extra time for your journey. People are also being reminded that if a driver is found to

  People can’t expect to visit beaches in the summer that aren’t in their own localities, according to the Chief Medical Officer. Dr Tony Holohan says it isn’t realistic to expect to be in a position to have a holiday abroad in the coming months. Yesterday, Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary says he expects the numbers

A Donegal INTO Representative says the public health advice was key in the planned phase return for special education. Special schools will reopen at 50 percent capacity in less than two weeks, followed by special-needs classes in mainstream schools later in the month. But advocacy groups say many children in mainstream primary school classes or

  A Donegal County Councillor is calling for a review into the Tenant Purchase Scheme to be published as a matter of urgency. The Scheme, which allows a pathway for people in social housing to buy out their home, had been previously deemed too rigid with a very low uptake over the years. A review

  The Health Minister is being urged to clarify the timeline as to when pharmacists and their frontline staff can expect to receive their vaccinations against Covid-19. It comes as almost 70 pharmacists in Donegal have sent a joint-letter offering to play their part in the rollout of the vaccination programme. Every year, including this

Nearly 40 percent of Leaving Cert students are getting higher grades from the deferred exam, than they were offered in predictive grades. More than 2,200 will be able to access their marks online from midday. Students who earn more points than in the calculated grades will have the option to start a new higher point

  A Donegal Councillor believes tourism in Donegal needs to be examined as a whole. It comes as Donegal County Council has started a process of looking at the industry and has brought in tourism consultants to do so in a bid to capitalise on the year ahead. Councillor Michael Cholm MacGiolla Easbuig raised questions

  There’s a flood warning in parts this morning as a status yellow rain warning is in operation. The alert for Donegal, Galway, Leitrim, Mayo and Sligo began overnight and runs until later tonight, with up to 40 millimetres of rain possible. Met Eireann says there is a risk of localised flooding in the areas.

There has been an additional 1,062 new Covid-19 cases and 10 deaths. 1,436 people are in hospital with the disease and 207 are in ICUs. The 14 day incidence rate is now 479 cases per 100,000 people. Chair of NPHET’s modelling group, Professor Philip Nolan, says infection levels over the past week are a worry:

A South Donegal Deputy is calling for the appointment of a Chief Vaccination Officer to be the voice and face of the Covid-19 vaccine rollout. Deputy Marian Harkin believes a national plan needs to be put in place to facilitate the macro picture and micro management of the vaccination programme. She believes the Health Minister

The leader of the SDLP is calling on unionist politicians to dial down their language as the row with the EU rumbles on. It comes after the bloc sought to trigger article 16 of the NI protocol to control the export of coronavirus vaccines. First Minister Arlene Foster branded the move as an act of

A Donegal priest says the Irish Government negotiated a Fisheries Deal with EU partners but came home with a tin of sardines. The fisheries deal struck during Brexit negotiations means 25% of fish stocks caught by European boats in British waters will be handed back to the UK. Fr John Joe Duffy whose described the

Tributes continue to be paid to the late Dr Tom McGinley who passed away in recent days. Dr McGinley was instrumental in establishing the Foyle Hospice in 1985 and supporter of the development of the Donegal Hospice. The Gweedore native was laid to rest yesterday. Dr Anne Callaghan, Vice Chair of the Donegal Hospice, on

A temporary delay in the supply of the Pfizer vaccine is said to be having an impact on the rollout of the vaccination programme at hospitals across the country. While the first vaccine was administered at Letterkenny University Hospital on January 6th, all staff have yet to be vaccinated with fears raised last week that

It’s emerged that more than 50 people offered housing by Donegal County Council in the Letterkenny/ Milford Municipal District last year turned it down. A total of 125 offers for social housing were issued in 2020 with 52 houses refused. Councillor Gerry McMonagle says the figures are surprising given that housing is one of the

Irish scientists and academics have set up a new campaign to advocate for Zero Covid in Ireland. ‘We Can Be Zero’ is being established by the Independent Scientific Advocacy Group. Members want an intensification of public health measures until there is zero community transmission of the virus. Associate Professor at the School of Geography at

Talks will continue today on the future of this summer’s traditional State Exams. The Government is hopeful a phased return to schools can take place over the next couple of weeks. It comes as 1,247 more Covid-19 infections have been detected, 31 in Donegal, while 15 more people have died, and last night there were

Students are being urged to get their CAO application in early, ahead of today’s deadline. The deadline for applying to undergraduate courses in colleges is a quarter past 5 this evening. CAO spokesperson Eileen Keleghan outlines what students need to do:

Over 26,000 people in the Western Trust which covers Derry and Tyrone have received the first dose of the Covid-19 vaccine. The Mayor of Derry City and Strabane District Council has been visiting the Foyle Arena in Derry where over 11,000 vaccines have been administered since it opened last month. Councillor Brian Tierney has been