Unions prepare for biggest public sector strike since 2009
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Public sector unions have scheduled a nationwide strike for Wednesday, an action they expect to be the largest of its kind in fifteen years. The health service is bracing for the fallout; officials estimate that up to 150,000 medical appointments will be cancelled as a result.
The industrial action arrives as the health system already struggles with its own arithmetic. Cork University Hospital has reported that its CT scanning capacity has been cut by half, not due to a lack of machinery, but a lack of people to operate it.
A witness to the 1998 Omagh bombing has provided a new account of the day, describing the grin of a man in the suspected bomb car. In a separate development, Northern Ireland Secretary Chris Bryant has blocked an Orange Order march from Garvaghy Road, a decision the First Minister called correct but overdue.