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Bradley Manning Faces WikiLeaks Court Martial

Sun 5 Feb 2012 04:38 am filed by Keith Harris - International

The US Army has confirmed that Bradley Manning, the US soldier charged with passing thousands of secret documents to WikiLeaks, will face court martial and the risk of life imprisonment.

Full story (http://news.sky.com/home/world-news/article/16162898)

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Fine Gael items
Sunday, 22nd January 2012
Women must be encouraged to lookafter their health during Cervical Cancer Prevention Week - Burke
Fine Gael Seanad Spokesperson for Health,Senator Colm Burke has today (Sunday) highlighted European Cervical CancerPrevention Week which begins tomorrow and runs from the 22nd - 28th January,with awareness events taking place nationwide.

"I fully support the Irish Family PlanningAssociation and CervicalCheck's combined efforts to actively raise awarenessabout cervical cancer. All women aged between 25 and 60 should be stronglyencouraged to get a smear test done.

"Cervical cancer takes a long timeto develop and often has no symptoms until an advanced stage. It has beenproven that regular screening can save lives by detecting abnormalitiesat an early stage.

"Statistics show that every year around300 women are newly diagnosed with cervical cancer and sadly over 90 livesare lost. Cervical cancer ranks as the 8th most frequent cancer among womenin Ireland, and the second most frequent cancer among women aged between15 and 44. Since young teenagers are categorised in the high risk group,it is vital that they are educated and that information is provided toyoung girls in secondary schools.

"By responding to screening programmes,such as CervicalCheck, we can significantly reduce Ireland's mortalityrate of cervical cancer.

"If everyone encourages their femalefriends and relatives to book an appointment for a smear test during awarenessweek, this could save in excess of 90 lives in 2012."

Saturday, 21st January 2012
Remote voting should be a feature of a family-friendly Oireachtas - Healy Eames
Fine Gael Galway Senator, Fidelma Healy Eames, today (Saturday) said the possibility of TDs and Senators being able to vote remotely, via a password-secured device, should be explored as a feature of a more progressive and family-friendly Oireachtas.

"There are often instances when, for example, due to membership of an Oireachtas Committee that requires you to travel overseas or due to family commitments or emergencies that Deputies and Senators cannot be at Leinster House when required. The result is that votes on matters of concern are missed and the voting record of the absentee is called into question.

"As a member of the Oireachtas EU Affairs Committee, I missed a number of days from the Seanad last term. This term I will have my daughter's confirmation that will necessitate my absence on that particular day. Despite the fact that 'pairs' are in operation to facilitate absences, the possibility of voting remotely would more accurately reflect the breadth of activity that parliamentarians are engaged in. It would also enable TDs and Senators to continue to participate in the parliamentary process if and when they simply cannot be in attendance.

"Voting records often call politicians' commitment to their work into question when in actual fact votes may be missed due to Committee business being conducted outside of Dublin.

"Nowadays, fortunately, it is possible to follow the debates remotely, so it should be possible to vote remotely and securely. As a sign of a progressive parliament, I believe we should, at the very least, explore this option as a means of assisting TD and Senators in carrying out their work and remaining engaged with activity in Leinster House. There can easily be a cap on the number of days that remote voting can be used for, to ensure that the the option isn't abused.

"In the same vein as is currently in place for 'pairs', all days missed should be pre-booked, as far as is possible. There were days when I was forced to be absent from the Seanad arising from research I was undertaking in the interest of better education policy. For example, while I was compiling the Oireachtas Early School Leaving Report, which was very well received, I visited Mountjoy Prison to interview male and female prisoners, which I could only do during a Seanad sitting day.

"It gives me no satisfaction to miss votes when I could easily cast my vote remotely and have my say in the interest of the country and the constituents I represent. We should examine this model, which I understand is already in use in other jurisdictions, in the interest of adapting to the breadth of work and the genuine family commitments of modern day politicians."

Saturday, January 14th 2012
Heydon reassures customers that it's business as usual at Newbridge Credit Union
Fine Gael TD for Kildare South, Martin Heydon, has today (Saturday) reassured worried customers of the Newbridge Credit Union that it's business as usual today and that there is no need to worry about their savings, following the appointment by the Central Bank of a special manager to the branch.

"I've spoken to a number of worried customers today who have gone to the credit union to enquire about their savings. Naturally, they are very concerned about yesterday's announcement of the appointment of a special manager, but I have spoken to the Minister for Finance, Michael Noonan, who has advised that the appointment of a special manager is a necessary measure and was taken in the best interests of Newbridge Credit Union.

"Customers can still access their savings and repay the loans they have with the credit union as normal. The Newbridge Credit Union has a great track record of looking after its 35,000 customers and has an excellent team of staff who are on hand to handle any queries customers may have.”