Attacks on emergency service crews continue to soar with police clearing more than 2,000 cases within just 12 months, it has emerged.

Tens of thousands of nurses may cripple the health service through mass resignations unless they are given a pay rise, it emerged today.

An 83-year-old woman deemed medically fit for discharge back in July of this year has been stuck in a leading Dublin hospital ever since because the Health Service Executive won’t pay for a nursing home for her.

Traumatised lay staff working at the Galway special school which was the subject of a damning inquiry into more than 30 years of sexual and physical abuse have been offered counselling.

The activities of charities in Northern Ireland are to come under the scrutiny of a commissioner. Legislation aimed at creating the post of charity commissioner will be introduced to the assembly on Monday.

One of Ireland’s richest men has paid tribute to the thousands of carers and people who give up their time for others.

The Carers’ Association, the national representative organisation for Ireland’s 161,000 family carers, has expressed disappointment at the Government’s failure to deliver meaningful assistance to Ireland’s family carers in the Budget.

More than 60,000 ex-members of the UDR and Royal Irish Regiment are to benefit from a £2m a year service to help them deal with the legacy of the Troubles.

The share of government cash allocated to address severe under-funding in Northern Ireland’s mental health and learning disability provision is a ” derisory” offer that will have little impact on urgently-needed plans to completely overhaul services.

Ireland’s prison chaplains say there is an urgent need to find new ways of dealing with offenders as the current criminal justice system is failing.