EVERY MORNING, TheJournal.ie brings you the nine stories, a little before nine, you need to know with your morning coffee.
1. #REHAB Angela Kerins is said to be stepping down as Chief Executive of Rehab. RTÉ reports that she is due to resign, more than a month after she defended her €240k salary before the Public Accounts Committee.
2. #GARDAGATE A former senior garda says he was bullied after exposing the taping of phone calls at stations. The Irish Independent says that the man is suing the Garda Commissioner and Justice Minister and is looking for documents on phone tapping during the investigation of two criminals.
3. #APOLOGIES The Irish Prison Service will write to apologise to solicitors who had their phone calls with inmates recorded. Over 2,800 calls were recorded.
4. #QUAKE An 8.2 magnitude earthquake has hit northern Chile, with reports that five people have died. A small tsunami followed the quake, leading to evacuations around the coast.
5. #ALCOHOL An average of 8,000 people a year seek treatment for alcoholism in Ireland, a new study has found. It said that Waterford had the highest number of new cases per head of population.
6. #LIBEL Independent Newspapers is challenging the €1.87m libel award paid to Monica Leech in 2009. In a Supreme Court challenge, it said that the payment was “disproportionately high” and had a “chilling effect” on the freedom of the press.
7. #CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL The national children’s hospital has been delayed again, with proposals to submit planning permission in autumn being held off until next spring, the Irish Independent reports.
8. #SEPTIC TANKS More than half (53 per cent) of household septic tanks inspected by local authorities failed their first inspection. Many of the failures could have been avoided if the householders had taken ‘simple steps’ to maintain the tanks.
9. #GENDER In a landmark ruling, Australia’s High Court has recognised a third ‘non-specific’ gender that is neither male nor female. It has ruled that not everyone should be forced to identify as a man or woman when dealing with officials.
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