A three-month jail term was imposed on a young Kerry man for his part in conning a middle-aged householder in Cork to pay €50 to clean gutters but then securing a total of €4,250 by deception.

A taskforce set up three weeks ago to target begging and street crime in Cork City centre led to 15 people appearing in court yesterday.

A teenage girl who suffered a shoulder injury at birth yesterday settled her High Court action for €380,000.

COST-containment measures along with increased activity last year resulted in profits at the country’s largest private healthcare company, Bon Secours increasing by 86% to €5.3m.