Emer Higgins, TD

The Minister of State for Higher Education Mary Mitchell O’Connor T.D. today highlighted the importance of College Awareness Week, a nationwide campaign aimed at raising awareness relating to the benefits of going to college. The Minister also took the opportunity to emphasise to prospective students the many other pathways available to them through apprenticeships, traineeships and Post-Leaving Certificate (PLC) courses.

The first Budget of South Dublin County Council under the leadership of Fine Gael will deliver better services, reduced property tax and a focus on climate action. That’s according to Fine Gael candidate in the upcoming Dublin Mid-West bye election, Cllr Emer Higgins.

State commemorations must be held in Cork to mark the contribution of the Rebel city and county in the fight for Irish independence, a Fine Gael Senator has said.

Today’s decision by the European Commission to grant state aid approval to the National Broadband Plan means the landmark rollout of rural broadband is a step closer, a Fine Gael TD has said.

The Fine Gael Executive Council met this evening and following a recommendation from An Taoiseach and Fine Gael party leader Leo Varadkar, Deputy Maria Bailey has been removed from the Dún Laoghaire constituency ticket for the next General Election.

The Minister of State for Higher Education Mary Mitchell O’Connor T.D. today attended the launch of Bookshare.ie - an initiative of the NCBI to provide a place that will be a single, secure platform to host both home-grown and international book titles across all higher and further education study areas/fields. Bookshare.ie will allow all eligible students to search and instantly download books freely.

The Minister of State for Higher Education Mary Mitchell O’Connor T.D. today congratulated the first graduating cohort of apprentices from the BA (Hons) in Insurance Practice who traveled to the Department of Education to receive awards for their capstone projects submitted as part of their final year work. The 33 graduates at the ceremony graduated from IT Sligo on Friday 1 November.

THE proposal by Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin to reduce VAT on first-time homes has collapsed before it even got to the first hurdle as such a move would be illegal, a Fine Gael TD has said.

Design work is now underway on the FingLUAS project with a preferred route expected to be identified in 2020, a Fine Gael TD has said.