Tag Archives: Minister Pat Breen

A SITE has been secured for the construction of a new €25 million St Joseph’s Hospital in Ennis. The construction of the 100-bed, community nursing unit on five acres of Diocesan lands located near the Turnpike in Ennis will ensure that elderly care services remain at the heart of the county town, according to Minister of State for Trade, Employment, Business, EU Digital Single Market and Data Protection, Pat Breen. Deputy Breen said, “I am delighted that a site has been secured at this central location in Ennis for the construction of the new €25 million St Joseph’s Hospital. The sale of the 5.09 acres of land remains subject to planning permission for the development of the 100 bed Community Nursing Unit, but I believe the site provides the best option following the appraisal of a number of sites in the Ennis environs by the HSE. “The new state-of-the-art St Joseph’s Hospital building has been prioritised in the HSE Capital …

AN €8.6 million flood relief scheme that will protect more than 120 homes, along with businesses and St Flannan’s College, in Ennis is being delayed as a result of a “contractural issue”. Clare County Council has confirmed that the preferred contractor for the Ennis South Flood Relief Scheme has formally withdrawn their tender and works are now not expected to begin until next year at the earliest. It had been anticipated that the project would get underway this summer. The scheme now has to be re-tendered “at the earliest juncture” and “works on the ground will most likely not commence until the spring of 2019,” the local authority stated. Councillor Johnny Flynn expressed disappointment at the delay in “this crucial piece of infrastructure”. The scheme represents the final phase of flood defence works in the town and includes the townlands of Clonroadmore, Ballybeg and Clareabbey, which suffered badly during the floods of 2009. Minister of State Pat Breen assured that …

Minister of State for Trade, Employment, Business, EU Digital Single Market and Data Protection, Pat Breen completes an Enterprise Ireland trade visit to Germany today. Central to the itinerary are two world-renowned trade fairs; Medica, the leading global event for manufacturers of medical technologies, and Agritechnica the world’s largest exhibition for agricultural innovations. The initiative is part of Enterprise Ireland’s Irish Advantage export promotion campaign, which aims to promote the advantages of sourcing suppliers from Ireland directly to buyers in key export markets. As part of the trade mission to Germany, Minister Breen also officiated at the opening of Irish medtech company Aerogen’s new German commercial headquarters. A world leader in aerosol drug delivery, the opening of Aerogen’s office in Germany, underpins Aerogen’s strengthening position in the German market, as it expands its international presence. The Galway headquartered company now has offices in the UK, France, Germany, China, the United States, and The Middle East. Germany is a key export …

A new innovation hub has been launched in Shannon by the Minister for Trade, Employment, Business, EU Digital Single Market and Data Protection, Pat Breen. It is hoped that the Gateway Hub at Shannon Airport House will become a major start-up centre for business in the Mid-West region. The launch event was the first official opening of a facility at the newly branded Gateway West section of the Shannon Free Zone, which is undergoing a €25 million phase one redevelopment. The Shannon Free Zone is currently home to over 150 companies, employing over 7,500 people. The Gateway Hub will transform the ground floor of Airport House – recently renovated at a cost of €1 million – into an incubation space for start-up businesses from different sectors, aiming to drive the development of Irish and international start-up companies in the aviation sector. Speaking at the launch, Minister Breen said: “The work that Shannon Group and its property company Shannon Commercial Properties …

CLARE County Council is “putting safety first” by repairing public lighting at an Ennis housing estate. Minister of State for Trade, Employment, Business, EU Digital Single Market and Data Protection Pat Breen has supported the local authority’s decision to repair the public lighting in the Mayard Estate on the Lahinch Road. “The lighting has been an ongoing issue for the residents in the estate, complicated somewhat by the ongoing process to have the estate taken in charge by Clare County Council,” said Deputy Breen. “Having worked with the residents of Mayard, which is part of the Shanballa Housing Development, I am only too aware of their concerns regarding the lack of public lighting, particularly with the onset of darker evenings as winter approaches. “I am delighted to receive notification that the local authority is putting safety first in this matter and have repaired the lights. It is now writing to the bondholders to advise that in the interest of public …

A total of 742 students from 13 local secondary schools in Clare are learning about the world of business by setting up their own enterprises through the Student Enterprise Programme with Local Enterprise Office Clare. The Minister of State for Trade, Employment, Business, EU Digital Single Market and Data Protection, Pat Breen T.D. has officially launched the 2017/2018 Student Enterprise Programme, which is the biggest enterprise education initiative of its kind in the country. Minister Breen said: “Since the Student Enterprise Programme began in 2003, more than 150,000 students have benefitted and we want to keep nurturing Ireland’s future entrepreneurs and business leaders in the years to come. Entrepreneurship is the backbone of the Irish economy and initiatives such as the Student Enterprise Programme are key to fostering a more enterprising culture. I would encourage principals and teachers to get in touch with their Local Enterprise Office, to find out how they can get involved in the next Student Enterprise …

Minister for Employment and Small Business, Pat Breen TD travelled to Hungary this week  for a series of bilateral meetings with his EU counterparts. These meetings form part of an ongoing programme of engagement by Irish government Ministers with EU Member States in an effort to build awareness of the unique impacts of Brexit on Ireland and to hear fellow Member State views regarding Brexit. To date there has been over 400 engagements undertaken by the Irish Government with remaining EU member states and the EU institutions regarding Brexit. During the course of the Minister’s two- day visit to Hungary, he met with the Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, Mr Lázsló Szabó, State Secretary for EU Affairs, Szabolcs Takács, and State Secretary at the Ministry of National Economy, Mr István Lepsényi. Minister Breen used these meetings to set out the significance of the impact on Ireland of the UK’s departure from the EU, and conveyed the unique nature …

Some €39,000 has been allocated by the Minister of State for Regional Economic Development Michael Ring to Coillte for the development of new recreational facilities and the maintenance and promotion of existing recreational infrastructures in Clare. The money is to be spent on the maintenance of current walks and trails and is Clare’s allocation from a national fund of €1.3million. The works will facilitate the repair to signage and the barrier at Cahermurphy; the upgrade of the trails, maintenance of seats, new signage and vegetation control in Cratloe and general vegetation control in Doon. Funding will also go towards the general control of vegetation at the access of the East Clare Way at Knocknageeha, general vegetation control around the picnic area and the replacement of the barrier at Gragans Wood; the upgrade of the trails and vegetation control in Kilrush; and the upkeep of trails, new signage and general vegetation control at Moylussa, Ballycuggaran plus the general maintenance of trails …