EVERY MORNING, TheJournal.ie brings you the nine stories you need to know as you kick off your day.
1. #POLL The coalition has received a boost in the latest Ipsos MRBI/Irish Times poll. Support for FG is up four points, while for Labour it is up three points. Meanwhile, support is down by two points for Sinn Féin and there is no change for Fianna Fáil. Independents are down five points.
2. #HSE The Health Service Executive is to meet today with the heads of voluntary agencies and hospitals about the HSE funding they receive. The aim of the meeting is to ensure they are complying with their annual obligations.
3. #JOBS There are fears for 670 jobs after Liebherr, a crane manufacturer, said it is re-evaluating its ‘dependency’ on its plant in Killarney, Co Kerry. The move comes after an industrial dispute which led to the Labour Court awarding a backdated 2.5 per cent pay rise to employees.
4. #TOP-UPS Retailers are sending back the Central Remedial Clinic teddy bear mascot in the wake of the top-ups scandal, the Herald reports. It says that retailers don’t want to be linked with the scandal.
5. #GARDAÍ The new garda recruitment campaign begins today, with around 20,000 people expected to apply for an estimated 300 jobs. Hopefuls must be aged between 18 and 35, and must complete an online aptitude test.
6. #RENTS The average monthly rent in Dublin is now over €1,000, after growing by 6.4 per cent over the past year. In contrast, the latest research showed that the average rent in the rest of the country was €620, compared to €622 a year ago.
7. #STRATEGY Cabinet members are gathering for a special meeting this morning, where they will consider the government’s medium-term economic strategy that is due to be published next week. The strategy will detail the coalition’s economic priorities up to 2020.
8. #CHRISTMAS COST Half of a group of people surveyed will borrow to pay for costs this Christmas, with an average loan of €410. The Irish League of Credit Unions is warning people about the dangers of using high-interest money lenders.
9. #SIGN LANGUAGE The sign language interpreter at Nelson Mandela’s funeral has blamed a schizophrenic episode for his behaviour during the event. He had been branded a ‘fake’ by people who said his signs did not make sense.
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