EVERY MORNING,TheJournal.ie brings you the nine stories you need to know as you kick off your day.
1. #CROKE PARK: As talks between the government and public sector unions resume today, one union has vowed to oppose any cuts brought to the table. The government is looking to save €300 million this year and €1 billion over three years by striking a deal on significant changes to pay and working conditions.
2. #COUNCILS: Twelve Cork mayors are seeking a meeting with Environment Minister Phill Hogan over his plans to abolish town councils, RTÉ reports. This comes after a meeting of 54 councillors from ten of the local town councils last night and if the plan goes ahead, it is possible Cork town council will mount a legal challenge.
3. #STONEYBATTER: The post-mortem examinations on the bodies of two people found dead at an apartment in north Dublin yesterday are due to be carried out today. Bord Gáis ruled out the possibility of a gas leak having caused the death of the man and woman but it is possible the couple may have died as a result of carbon monoxide poisoning.
4. #HMV: An administrator is expected to be appointed to music retailer HMV later this morning with around 300 jobs at its 16 Irish stores at risk. It is expected that administrators from Deloitte will keep stores open as they assess the retailer’s future prospects and identify potential buyers but trading in HMV shares has been suspended.
5. #BELFAST: In another night of violence in Belfast last night, police came under attack from crowds wielding petrol bombs and stones. One police officer was injured and three men were arrested. The Irish News also reports that loyalist protesters threw petrol bombs and bricks at a church where a group of special needs children were attending a meeting at the parochial hall in a nationalist area of Belfast.
6. #MURDER: A man has died and a woman has been injured following a knife attack at a house in Ballymena in the early hours of this morning. A man has been arrested on suspicion of murder and attempted murder. In a separate incident in Coleraine, police are investigating a shooting in which one man was injured.
7. #CREDIT CARDS: Annual Irish spending on Visa cards, including debit, credit and prepaid, has reached €15.5 billion for the first time , Visa Europe said today. There were approximately 4.9 million Visa cards in the country in 2012 – a 43 per cent increase on 2011, with 201 million transactions taking place during the twelve month period.
8. #MALI: French President Francois Hollande has said that 750 troops have joined the Mali offensive and their numbers will be boosted. He also said new strikes overnight “achieved their goal”. French forces have been supporting an offensive by Malian government troops against Islamist rebels since Friday.
9. #JAPAN: Heavy snow that blanketed eastern Japan over the holiday weekend left one man dead and injured 900 others, as Tokyo commuters took to the slippery streets today. A 71-year-old man died after falling into an open drain as he cleared snow around his house.
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