EVERY MORNING, TheJournal.ie brings you the nine things you need to know as you begin your day.
1. #CRIME: Two young men have been arrested in Dublin by Gardaí investigating a 28-year-old’s death last week. The men, 18 and 20, have been arrested by officers investigating the death of Gerard Burnett, who was stabbed in a row outside his house in Mulhuddart.
2. #TROIKA: A draft report from the European Commission has reportedly called for a clampdown on the issuing of medical cards, and demanded immediate action which could see dole payments cut to the long-term unemployed. The report, which appears in many of today’s papers, is said to have been leaked to some TDs yesterday.
3. #DUNDALK: Gardaí in Dundalk are investigating in the circumstances surrounding the death of a woman in her 30s. The woman’s body was found in a house at Hoey’s Lane in the town at about 3am. The services of the State Pathologist have been requested.
4. #TARGET EXPRESS: Employees of Target Express, the haulage company which ceased trading on Monday, are continuing a sit-in at the company’s premises in Cork this morning. They say they will remain there until they are given ‘clarity’ about the company’s affairs. The Revenue Commissioners has continued to defend its actions, which company owner Seamus McBrien blames for forcing him out of business.
5. #HOTEL SALE: One of Dublin’s best-known hotels has been put up for sale – at a mere quarter of the price that was paid for it five years ago. The Burlington Hotel, bought by developer Bernard McNamara for €288 million, is up for sale for €75 million. Receivers were appointed to McNamara’s empire in 2010.
6. #ISAAC: New Orleans is bracing itself for the arrival of Hurricane Issac, exactly seven years to the day after the destruction of Hurricane Katrina. The city has closed its new floodgates in efforts to protect itself from high waters and 80mph winds.
7. #US 2012: Well, it’s official now. Mitt Romney is the Republican candidate for President of the United States, with a final total of 2,061 delegates – well clear of the 1,144 he needed to take on Barack Obama. Speaking to delegates, Romney’s wife Ann said: “No one will work harder. No one will care more. No one will move heaven and Earth like Mitt Romney to make this country a better place to live.”
8. #PADDY POWER: Paddy Power has announced financial results for the first half of the year – with profits up 21 per cent, to €68.7 million before tax. The bookie says rising profits are the result of a “normalisation” of sports results – and also says more than half of its sports gamblers now do business through their mobiles.
9. #FERTILITY: Scientists in Pittsburgh say they have been able to grow early-stage sperm cells using samples of human skin. The research suggests adult cells can be transformed into a more primitive state and then ‘grown’ into sperm – news which could give millions of sterile men the chance to father children.
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