Grace on creatures great and small ...

Weldoming a crab in the palm the her hand Ireland South MEP Grace O’Sullivan also welcomed the recommendations of the Citizens Assembly on Biodiversity Loss, launched by Chair of the Assembly Dr Aoibhinn Ní Shuillibheáin. e report, crafted over several meetings of 99 participants from May 2022 to January 2023, contains over 150 recommendations that will improve the quality of biodiversity and allow nature to regenerate on the island.

Ms O’Sullivan noted the importance, abundance and variety of biodiversity that Ireland has to o er. A trained ecologist, she said she recognised the signi cance of this report in a country that had a poor track record of protecting wildlife and the unique biosphere of the island of Ireland. e report recommends that the State must take prompt, decisive and urgent action to address biodiversity loss and restoration and must provide leadership in protecting Ireland’s biodiversity for future generations.

e scheme o ers three funding streams to support a broad range of measures aimed at protecting and promoting archaeological monuments, including emergency conservation repair works at monuments, masonry repair, the development of Conservation Management Plans, access infrastructure and installation of interpretation signage, and communication projects aimed at disseminating knowledge of Ireland’s archaeological heritage.

is year’s awards include:

• €120,000 in funding for Grangefertagh Church & Graveyard

• €100,000 in funding for Butler Gallery

• €64,292 in funding for Duiske Abbey

• €60,679 in funding for omple Medieval Church

• €25,830 in funding for Tubbrid Medieval Church

• €25,830 in funding for Rathpatrick Medieval Church Minister of State for Heritage and Electoral Reform, Malcolm Noonan TD said: “ is fund has supported over 330 projects since its establishment in 2020, making a tangible, positive impact to the medieval forts and churches and the historic graveyards and castles into which the lives of our ancestors are woven, along with our own, connecting us to our ancient past.

“It is also, of course, an investment in our future: in the ongoing care, conservation and promotion of these remarkable sites, and in the communities and heritage professionals who expertly manage them,” Minister Noonan said.

Hospital’s role in Covid deaths

Up to 1,126 Covid-19-related deaths were linked to acute hospital outbreaks, new gures reveal.

ese include 1,121 con rmed Covid-19 cases and ve possible cases of the virus.

In all, 12,582 con rmed cases of Covid-19 have been linked to Covid outbreaks in acute hospitals since the beginning of the pandemic in Ireland. e gures emerged in a parliamentary response to Aontú leader Peadar Tóibín.

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Farmers fear over milk prices fall

Milk prices dropping below the cost of production are looming for Ireland’s dairy farmers. Such a “disastrous crossover”, where costs exceed price, comes as milk processors cut the base milk price for January and February supplies.

Farm organisations have called on processors to hold the milk price for the rest of 2023.

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Home the school of the future ...

On the face of it home schooling seems to have advantages which would have appeal. One on one teaching with time for discussion, rather than being silent in a big class, freedom to follow subjects that interested me, (parents aren’t required to follow the curriculum) and no dreaded sport.

Normally a low-key topic, home schooling has become more popular since the pandemic, showing a 25% increase.

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