A Cork County Councillor has asked for an investigation into the activities of An Bord Pleanála (ABP), claiming that the board is “very much against” development in rural Ireland.
The Bank of Ireland should transfer branches it is planning to close back to local communities, so they can be used as local hubs to operate as post offices; centres for renewing driving licences and tourist-information booths.
Cllr Bernard Moynihan made the call following last week s announcement by the bank s chief executive, Frances McDonagh, that several bank branches in Cork, including those in Kanturk, Millstreet and Mitchelstown, would be shut as part of a programme of nationwide closures. At the same time, the bank announced that an agreement had been reached with An Post to carry out some of the functions that are currently happening in bank branches.
A 17-fold (approx.) increase in Cork COVID infection numbers in the past week up to Tuesday night, when compared to figures just a fortnight earlier, is leading GP practices and other medical facilities to focus entirely on referrals for tests, The Corkman understands.
There were 3,539 positive tests reported in the city and county in the week since New Years Eve (NYE) compared to 210 cases in a similar seven-day period leading up to December 21 – when the third national wave of cases was beginning to gather pace.
GP practices throughout the county have been dealing with an increasing deluge of calls from people reporting COVID symptoms since Christmas. The Sullane Family Practice in Macroom has posted a notice on its website asking people who have COVID-19 symptoms to call in advance so their cases can be triaged.