A 31-BED ward at the Mercy University Hospital (MUH) in Cork is to close until the end of the year as the hospital struggles to claw back €4.6 million of a €7.2m accumulated deficit.

A CO SLIGO priest who stood aside pending an investigation into allegations of sexual assault is believed to have been the subject of a civil action in the United States.

The jailing of five Co Mayo men for blocking work on a Shell gas pipeline is regrettable, but the court’s decision must be respected, Taoiseach Bertie Ahern said today.