Technically, it’s a win for Callan

in the Dáil that there will denitely be an increase in the old-age pension this autumn, but the exact amount is yet to be determined.

Fianna Fáil, meanwhile, was caught by surprise with the call for more tax relief made in an opinion piece from three Fine Gael junior ministers in the Irish Independent.

Writing for the Irish Independent, three Fine Gael junior ministers – Jennifer Carroll MacNeill, Martin Heydon and Peter Burke – argue that tax relief in the next Budget has been “well-earned” and should go further than in Budgets 2022 and 2023.

“A thriving economy means more resources for the Ex- chequer at every budget, which will also allow us to put more money back in people’s pockets to help with the costof-living crisis and give the squeezed middle a break,” the three Fine Gael ministers write. “While we need to consider in ation and wages, tax relief in the next Budget has been well-earned. A full-time worker on an average wage of €52,000 should get a tax break of more than €1,000 in October’s Budget. at is an extra €1,000 in your pocket after taxes.”

Finance Minister Michael McGrath described the move as “unusual”.

Fianna Fáil gures are furious with Fine Gael’s tactics.

Hundreds more health places for colleges

Many places on healthcare degree courses are opening up for college applicants this autumn, including opportunities in medicine and nursing in Northern Ireland exclusively for CAO applicants as well as direct entry to nursing degree courses outside the CAO system.

Nursing will see the biggest increase in places amid e orts to improve workforce planning for the health sector and to make entry to this career path more accessible.

Many aspiring Irish nurses end up training in the UK because of the sti competition for a place on courses at home.

Students Coláiste Abhainn Rí in Callan, Co Kilkenny were announced as the winners of the AWS GetIT Competition.

AWS GetIT is a fully funded education programme and competition designed to inspire 12-14-year-old students, especially girls, to consider a future in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics). e programme gives them access to curriculum designed to help build foundational skills, learn about cloud tech, and design app ideas to solve real-life problems. Schools are paired with a dedicated AWS GetIT Am- bassador who supports the school and educator and acts as a role model for students. After completing the programme curriculum, schools can submit a student app idea for consideration in a countrywide AWS GetIT competition. is year, three schools were brought to the AWS GetIT nal which took place at the AWS o ces in Dublin. e teams in the nal presented their ideas to a judging panel of people working in the tech industry. e nalists were invited to present their app ideas on the day and answer questions surrounding their design thinking cycle, teamwork, the issue they are tackling and the technology they will use. e nalists were Group Eco by Coláiste Abhainn Rí, Callan whose students said: “Our app Renew Bottle’s will connect to a reusable water bottle, enabling the user of the app to track hydration and how many plastic water bottles they’ve saved.”

Focus by Bishopstown Community School, Bishopstown, Co. Cork. e students said: “Our app Focus is aimed at making driving safer. It is a known fact that drivers continue to use their mobile phones while driving despite warnings of the dangers such as penalty points. We are aiming to make driving safer by o ering an app that will be in the hands of the driver so that they do not need to lose focus and concentration while driving’.”

And, nally, Plant IT by Our Lady’s School, Terenure, Co. Dublin. “Our app Plant IT was designed to help solve the ongoing problem of biodiversity loss in Ireland. In our growing society, there seems to be less and less room for biodiversity, and so we are creating space... in our gardens!”

Mike Beary, AWS Country Manager Ireland said: “AWS GetIT is a worthy initiative that allows students to get face-time with Ambassadors, who are successful women and non-binary people working in AWS.

“In the last number of years, students in Ireland have been empowered to develop new skills through this competition. I hope that these skills inspire new interests and encourage young people of Ireland, particularly girls, to consider STEM for their future careers.”