President Michael D Higgins to spend the night in hospital but in ...
President Michael D Higgins is to remain in hospital overnight after falling ill.
However, he has been described as being in "excellent spirits" and has thanked hospital staff for their care.
In a statement, Áras an Uachtaráin has confirmed that, having felt unwell, President Michael D Higgins was this evening brought to hospital for precautionary tests.
"The President was initially assessed at Áras an Uachtaráin where no immediate concerns were identified but a decision was made to proceed to hospital in order to undergo tests, the initial results of which have been positive.
The statement added: "The President, who will remain in hospital overnight, is in excellent spirits and has thanked the medical staff for the care he has received."
It has been a busy few days for President Higgins.
Since attending the Ireland v Wales Six Nations rugby match on Saturday, he has attended the RTÉ Radio 1 Folk Awards and the Dublin International Film Festival, where he presented the Volta Lifetime Achievement Award to Oscar winning film director Steve McQueen.
He also had courtesy calls with the speaker of the National Council of the Slovak Republic and the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Vietnam.
In the coming days, he is due to attend the FAI Women's President's Cup tie between Athlone Town and Peamount United, which takes place in Athlone on Saturday afternoon.
