Recently, Derek performed with the Dáil choir on The Late Late Show in aid of Pieta House. Singing “Bridge Over Troubled Water”, the track is now not only available…

Suicide is a growing problem is our community and it’s something that, being a director of Pieta House in Lucan, means I deal with on a regular basis. Fine Gael supports families and individuals who are in crisis and thanks to the tremendous work by Pieta House over 3,000 people are alive today.

The debate surrounding third level reform has intensified in recent months. It has focused primarily on the funding aspect of the system and has not considered the wider potential for reform in the sector. Fine Gael has put forward this Green Paper on Higher Education in a wider context.

Our economy is shrinking at an historically unprecedented rate with the public finances in deep deficit and unemployment soaring. The causes of the recession are both global and domestic, but there can be no doubt that our government’s policies have contributed to the speed and depth of the downturn and that they did not prepare for a crisis which was foreseen by so many.