Sign in. It’s quick, free and it’s up to you.
An account is an optional way to support the work we do. Find out more.
SENATOR FRANK FEIGHAN has called on the European Medicines Agency to partly relocate from Canary Wharf to Carrick-On-Shannon.
Earlier this month the Department of Health confirmed that they are preparing for a bid to bring the EMA to Dublin.
Five other EU countries are seeking to host the agency, whose future in Canary Wharf in London is in doubt following the UK’s decision to leave the European Union.
Senator Frank Feighan, who earlier this year championed Ireland’s rejoining of the Commonwealth, wants the Government to champion Carrick On Shannon as host for at least part of the agency’s functions.
“There’s a shortage of office space in Dublin, Carrick on Shannon is an hour and a quarter from the M50,” he told TheJournal.ie.
Sometimes we don’t think of Dublin as an international city like London, but it’s bursting at the seams.
“And we’ve got a great talent pool just down the road – a lot of the people who worked for [credit card company] MBNA are still living in the area.”
Spain, Sweden, Italy and Germany have all also expressed an interest in hosting the EMA, which is responsible for the protection of public and animal health.
The agency which employs 890 people and overseen drug approvals across the 31 nations of the European Economic Area since 1995 from its HQ in London’s docklands.
Office space
Feighan is a former chairman of the British-Irish Parliamentary Assembly, and says he has taken soundings from figures in multinationals on the issue of locating the EU regulatory body to Ireland.
“Four hundred or 500 jobs in the northwest would bring in all the surrounding areas.
Carrick-On-Shannon is the centre of a region now.
“This agency has many areas of expertise. It has seven committees that carry out its scientific assessments.
Some of this activity could be located in Carrick-on-Shannon because there is plenty of office space in the town and in other local towns in the region.
“The EMA employs about 900 people and locating part of this agency to this side of the country would be a huge boost for the regional economy along with its additional spin-offs.”
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
Should be sanctioned just like Russia.
Occupation breeds resistance
Ireland
Palestine
Ukraine
@Liam Ó hAodha: Ireland isn’t occupied anymore though
@Ciaran: spoken like a true southerner.
@Brian MacCarthaigh: a true partitionist more like. They are a minority in south but highly vocal.
@Liam Ó hAodha: it only in Ukraine that resistance fighters are hailed. In Ireland and Palestine they are “ terrorists”.
@M Bowe: bombing civilians is pretty much terrorism in anyones book ..
@Ciaran:
Wow! Does your ignorance knows any bounds
@M Bowe: Provo criminals and Hamas are terrorists, only a few days ago marked the 50th Anniversary of one of the darkest days of the Troubles, when in a barbaric spree of hate & sectarianism, the Provos detonated 22 bombs inside 75 minutes, murdering 9 innocent people and injuring 130 more. Pure terrorism.
@Ciaran: and I’d say you think the Old IRA who freed this country are heroes. I think they were by the way. But how were they any better than the Provos?
@Sumsoar Khan: military targets v civilian targets. The provos always say it was a war. Ok if it’s considered a war then bombing civilians is a war crime. Puts them at the same level as isis and Russia right now..
@M Bowe: you’re massively mistaken if you think we are in the minority. Their are a lot of us that would rather it stay the same, than have to deal with the mess that would be left if the brits release control of the 6 counties. You lads think it’s going to be a great party when the day comes. Thousands up north will fight till their last breath before their will be peace. And this time it won’t be a conflict that will limit itself to the 6 counties.
@Ciaran: Name a conflict/war in which civilian populations weren’t bombed intentionally or unintentionally?
War is savage and brutal but mostly started by a select few international land grabbers
@Liam Ó hAodha: of course , bombs at shopping centres and highly populated civilian centres where there are no military targets or “the enemy” completely justified then…f00l
@M Bowe: let’s call a spade a spade and call it for it is. If you deliberately target civilians as the IRA did then that is terrorism.
hamas and the IRA fit that description.
@Martin O Connell: the people of the north and the Republic of Ireland had a vote. It’s called the good Friday agreement where the majority of the north wanted to stay with the uk until such time they want to join the south.
@Stephen Kearon:
Hamas is the democratically elected government in Gaza.
It was only designated as “terrorist” by Apartheid Israel after it won the election.
The terrorists are thrisraeli government and its henchmen.
@Stephen Kearon: your opinions are as relevant as my last fart,and that dissipated hours ago.
@Martin O Connell: so you are gonna stay on your knees in face of unionist/ British threats of immediate and terrible war, the same terrorist threat which gave birth to that failed sectarian state 100 years ago.
@Alan Richard Scott Jr.: as British did in Ballymurphy and Derry in previous 10 months of Black Friday. No one side of any war can claim the moral high ground on actions.
@M Bowe: I’m not on my knees to anyone. Thanks to Michael Collins and all that negotiated the treaty, I never will be on my knees.
@M Bowe: your last fart probably came out your mouth.
In context could you imagine the SAS going into Dublin to arrest “suspected terrorist’s” and murdering 2 people. It’s wrong ,it’s illegal and they should be sanctioned by the rest of the world.
Typical.
have your say