Pat Deering tD
Working for Carlow, Working for you...
Local Clinic Times Leighlinbridge
Dorans Shop Friday 26th August 4pm Dorans Shop Friday 30th September 4pm
Bagenalstown
Estoria Friday 26th August 5pm Manor House Friday 30th September 5pm
Borris
The Step House Friday 26th August 6pm The Step House Friday 30th September 6pm
Glynn
John A’s Friday 26th August 7pm John A’s Friday 30th September 7pm
Graiguecullen
Sacred Heart Hall Thursday 25th August 8pm Sacred Heart Hall Thursday 29th September 8pm
Hacketstown
Cullen’s of The Hill Friday 2nd September 4pm Cullen’s of The Hill Friday 7th October 4pm
Tullow
Tara Arms Friday 2nd September 5pm Tara Arms Friday 7th October 5pm
Ballon
Training Centre Friday 2nd September 6pm Training Centre Friday 7th October 6pm
Thank you for your support in the General Election 2011
Kildavin
Conways Friday 2nd September 7pm Conways Friday 7th October 7pm
Constituency Office: 16 Old Dublin Road, Carlow. 059-9173446 or Mobile 087-9470736 Email: pat.deering@oireachtas.ie Alternatively you can visit me at my office every Saturday morning. 11.30am to 1.00pm. Please make a prior appointment by phoning 059-9173446.
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Pat Deering tD Carlow District Hospital We have received confirmation from the Minister for Health and the HSE that the Carlow District Hospital “will continue to play an important role in meeting the health needs for patients from Carlow Town and County into the future”. “Following on from recent speculation that Carlow District Hospital will close, I asked the Minister for Health about future plans for the hospital – specifically when the empty beds would be put to use to reduce pressure on St. Lukes in Kilkenny and also when he plans to fully staff the hospital. “In addition to confirming that the hospital would continue to meet the health needs for patients into the future, the Minister also said that the 28 beds available in Carlow District Hospital would continue to provide interim care – typically for one to three weeks - for convalescing patients until long term residential care becomes available. “I am delighted to receive these reassurances from the Minister for Health that Carlow District Hospital will continue to provide vital care to the people of Carlow Town and County.” Since this reassurance from the Minister and the HSE, we have had our own Minister Phil Hogan visiting the county at the end of June, Minister Hogan visited both the District and Sacred Heart Hospitals and gave further assurances that neither are on any list for closure.
Carlow Roads The Government announced that an additional €768,000 will be spent on road repairs in Co. Carlow. This money was allocated from the Jobs Initiative and is been spent on roads that were damaged by the severe weather of the last two winters. The work is on-going at present and should be completed by the end of the summer. R726, Pollerton Road, €50,000. L-20044-0, Rathnagrew Upper, €80,000 R430, Kennedy Street, €50,000. L-6005-32, Portrusheen Upper, €70,000 R725, Staplestown Road, €45,570 L-2026-0, Corrabut to Clashahillagh Bridge, €140,000 L-2011-0, Croneskagh Lower, €70,000 R448, Accomodation Road Rathnapish, L-6024-0, Clonmore, €70,000 €150,000. L-20075-0, Killalongford, €42,530
Workin
Maiden Speech! Since this is my first opportunity to speak in this Chamber, I thank the people of Carlow-Kilkenny, particularly the people of Carlow, for entrusting their confidence in me to represent them in the 31st Dáil. I thank my family, my party and my party workers for their help and support during the recent election campaign. Like every other speaker, I am delighted to get the opportunity to make a few brief points on this important debate. Suicide affects every town and village in this country. Ironically, since this debate started three to four weeks ago, in my county alone four young people under the age of 25 years have taken their own life. Like previous speakers, I have found attending these funerals very difficult. Suicide is an area that we need to tackle immediately. A number of years ago, road safety was a big issue. I do not mean to downgrade this important issue, but it was a national emergency over the past five to ten years and we tackled it strongly. We need to go down the same road now to tackle suicide. There are three main suicidal categories of which we all know. There are young males, males in the 30 to 45 age bracket and then there are females, who are more affected than anybody else. Two main areas should be looked at and bearing in mind the old adage that prevention is better than cure, education is the first step we should take. Young males in the 15 to 20 age bracket are vulnerable. Once somebody in that particular age bracket takes his or her own life, friends in the same age group might think they may be better off doing the same. We need to tackle this and ensure people are more aware of the services that are available and that better options exist than taking one’s life. We need to have a structure in place at secondary school level, perhaps during transition year, to ensure they are more knowledgeable and not as vulnerable. Media campaigns are very important and have been very effective in road safety. We spent a great deal of money on media campaigns in recent years and it was money well spent. We need to take the same action with regard to suicide prevention to ensure we are successful. While suicide will never become a thing of the past, the current figures are frightening. We need to bring on board people who are looked up to by young people, such as sporting heroes and TV personalities, to make young people aware of the options that exist and the fact that taking one’s life is not the way to go. Funding is also very important and we need to ring-fence a certain amount of money every year to try to reduce the figures. In the past, we set targets for road safety and we should endeavour to do the same for suicide. I thank my colleague, Deputy Neville, for his work over the years, for ensuring we have had this debate, and for ensuring this issue has come to the forefront rather than being kept in the dark as it was in the past. As we know, suicide was something about which people did not want to speak but because of Deputy Neville’s work, we are having a national debate on it. It is an issue which we should speak more openly about. I wish the Minister of State, Deputy Kathleen Lynch, well in her new role. I know she takes it very seriously and I wish her every success.
Carlow Fine Gael TD Pat Deering is delighted with the announcement that Michael McDonagh of Adesco Nutricines Limited is to work as an InterTradeIreland Ambassador for County Carlow. Pictured are Pat Deering TD, Michael McDonagh & mary McDonagh.
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orking for Carlow, Working for you... Schools Summer works Scheme Work is on-going on a number of schools in the County this summer under the Summer Works Scheme. This year there is also additional funding for schools from the Jobs Initiative. The following schools are included in this year’s programme : - Ballinkillen National School, St. Mary’s NS Bagenalstown, - St Columbas Tullow, St. Josephs NS Hacketstown, - Tinryland NS, Ballymurphy NS, Scoil N. Moling Glynn, St. Brendans NS Drummond, - Borris Vocational School, St. Patricks NS Rathvilly, - Colaiste Eoin Hacketstown, Holy Family BNS + GNS - Tullow Community School, Carlow Voc. School, Scoil Phadraig Rathoe.
Shamrock Plaza - the new primary care centre for Carlow There has been widespread confusion and anger in the County regarding the HSE’s use of facilities in Shamrock Plaza, Shamrock Square, Carlow. On Thursday 30th June I asked the Minister for Health “his views regarding the Health Service Executive paying a substantial amount of rent for a premises in Carlow, intended to provide facilities that are already available in the nearby Sacred Heart, District, and St Dymphna’s Hospital, in view of the fact that the rented premises are not currently in use” The Minister agrees that there appears to be considerable confusion in relation to the use of the premises and the services to be provided. The facilities at the nearby existing hospitals are not suitable for the provision of primary care services. The new Primary Care Centre for Carlow Town is to be accommodated at Shamrock Plaza. The development of Primary Care Teams and Primary Care Centres is a priority under the Programme for Government. The first floor is already occupied by three GP practices. HSE staff will occupy the second floor. Both floors have lift access. Together these floors will accommodate the Carlow Town Primary Care Centre and when the HSE staff move in the Primary Care Team will be located here. There is underground car parking beneath the building and an estimated 1,000 car parking spaces in the vicinity including a multi-storey car-park. Up to 43 HSE staff will provide a range of health services including public health nursing, occupational therapy, physiotherapy services, speech & language therapy, psychology services, dietary / nutrition advice, home help services and general support staff facilities. There are additional rooms to accommodate outreach hospital consultant clinics and other visiting specialists. At maximum capacity, up to 40 clients can receive services at a single point in time. The fit-out has been completed and equipping is virtually completed. The accommodation will be ready for occupation by HSE staff shortly. The Minister said the rent paid for any HSE occupied primary care centre accommodation cannot exceed that approved by the HSE Board for that specific location. The annual rent for this centre is €320,000 a year for an area of just less than 20,000 square feet. This rent is less than the rent approved by the HSE Board for a premises of this size. I was very critical of this arrangement, and said it is seen as a “pay-off for developers who built it in the so called celtic tiger years”. The Minister replied “it is not the intention of this Government to preside over waste or excessive costs for accommodation, when there is already many rented sites which are now surplus to requirements” The Minister gave a committment that he will ask his officials for a full report on “ accessibility, appropriateness, alternative sites, and duration of contract”.
Update on the recently closed Teagasc offices in Tullow and Bagenalstown Following a recent Parliamentary Question tabled to the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Simon Coveney, in relation to the plans for the recently closed Teagasc offices in Tullow and Bagenalstown, the Minster has advised that Teagasc is currently implementing a change programme to achieve greater efficiencies in all aspects of its business and to address the greater need for significant resource rationalisation in the advisory office network. As such, Teagasc has decided to concentrate the delivery of its services at fewer offices, reducing them from 91 to 51 by 2012. This will result in the closure of the advisory offices at Tullow and Bagenalstown and dispose of the sites. However, Teagasc is confident that it can continue to offer its services through its network of advisory offices and that services will not be diminished.
Pat Deering TD with Minister Shane McEntee meeting a Teagasc delegation recently in Oakpark Research Centre.
Carlow Health Care Alliance There has been widespread concern over the past few months in the County over the continuation of our health care facilities. I am pleased to announce that a group called ‘Carlow Health Care Alliance’ has been formed. This group is made up of representatives from Carlow Town & County Councils, Carlow Hospice, Carlow Kilkenny Homecare, Sacred Heart Hospital, District Hospital, St. Dympnas and Local GP’s. We have had a number of positive meetings where all who have a common goal shared and exchanged views how best to retain and improve the existing services. These discussions culminated in a meeting with Dr. James Reilly Minister for Health on Tuesday 26th July. During this meeting the Minister assured the group that neither the District or the Sacred Heart are in any danger of closing. He also committed the HSE to ongoing negotiations with the Carlow Hospice Group with a view to progressing some form of palliative care unit in Carlow. He was critical of the ‘drip-feed’ communication from the HSE in the past and said this would improve.
-9173446 or Mobile 087-9470736. Email: pat.deering@oireachtas.ie Pat Deering Newsletter July2011.indd 3
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100 Days in Government The new Government reached its 100-day milestone on 16th June. There is no doubt that the economic situation inherited by the Government is severe, but we have already made real efforts to meet the various challenges facing the country head-on.
Unemployment
Banks
Pay
Tackling our chronic unemployment situation was our top priority from day one. We launched our Jobs Initiative 10 weeks into office, and I am confident its impact will become obvious in the near future. On July 1, the Jobs’ Tax on low paid staff was cut by half, and the rate of VAT on tourism related services by a third. These measures are, however, only the first stage of the Government’s fulfilment of its pledge to put job creation at the top of the political agenda. This issue remains at the very core of all Department agendas.
Within three weeks of coming into office, the new Government announced a comprehensive restructuring and recapitalisation plan for the domestic banks that will see the creation of two pillar banks, AIB and Bank of Ireland. Both depositors and the international markets have deemed this credible. We have also secured almost universal support for an interest rate reduction on the bailout loans, including from the IMF, the European Commission, the European Central Bank and most EU countries. Securing the reduction remains a work in progress, but all relevant Ministers are continuing to pursue the issue with their respective European colleagues.
There is no doubt that our current situation will demand that difficult decisions are taken in the future, but any decisions we take will be balanced and fair. This is why, we have reversed the cut in the minimum wage.The Government have given a commitment that there will be no income tax increases, and no cuts to social welfare payments, in the budget next Autumn. We have already made radical reforms to pay and fees at the top layers of the Irish public and private sectors, whether in the professions, the semi-states, the banking sector, or the public sector. The Taoiseach and Government Ministers have significantly reduced their own pay. This Government will remain every bit as proactive and enthusiastic for the next 1,000 days and beyond as we have been for the first 100, and bit-by-bit, I am very confident that Ireland will recover and begin to prosper once again.
Your Local Fine Gael Team in County Carlow Michael Abbey, 32 Green Road, Carlow. 059-9131721/086-8582179
Tommy Bambrick, Royal Oak Road, Bagenalstown, Co. Carlow. 087-2254180
Eileen Brophy, 39 Idrone Park, Tullow Road, Carlow. 059-9143851/087-2648929
Fergal Browne, Church View, Rutland, Bennekerry, Carlow. 059-9135356/087-9884113
Michael Doran, Main Street, Leighlinbridge, Co. Carlow. 0599721184/087-2152788
Wayne Fennell, 19 Beechwood Park, Pollerton, Co. Carlow. 059-9134770/087-9241331
Denis Foley, 1 Chestnut Court, Royal Oak Road, Bagenalstown, Co. Carlow. 059-9721802/086-2626483
Fred Hunter, Raheen, Tobinstown, Co. Carlow. 059-9161173/0872148172
Tommy Kinsella, Kilcumney, Goresbridge, Co. Carlow. 059-9775398/087-9377386
Joe Manning, Market Square, Bagenalstown, Co. Carlow. 059-9722030/087-2558033
John Murphy, Glisheen, Boggan, Kilbride, Co. Carlow. 059-9159238/087-2125275
Tom O’ Neill, 146 JKL Ave, Carlow. 059-9130152/086-3864486
Pat O’ Toole, 12 Shillelagh Grove, Tullow, Co. Carlow. 059-9151940/087-8115722
Pat Deering tD
Working for Carlow, Working for you...
Constituency Office: 16 Old Dublin Road, Carlow. 059-9173446 or Mobile 087-9470736 Email: pat.deering@oireachtas.ie Alternatively you can visit me at my office every Saturday morning. 11.30am to 1.00pm. Please make a prior appointment by phoning 059-9173446.
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