HSE: 3,000 retirement applications

THE HSE received more than 3,000 applications for its early retirement and voluntary redundancy schemes by 5pm last evening.

The number is significantly less than the 5,000 which had been anticipated when the scheme was announced, though management expected that more would be received before the midnight deadline last night.

The 5,000 target had been expected to be reached easily given 9,500 health sector staff expressed an interest in the incentivised scheme.