EVERY WEEKDAY EVENING,TheJournal.ie brings you the five stories you need to know about before you head out the door…
1. #FISCAL COMPACT: The Oireachtas Sub-Committee on the Fiscal Compact Referendum has been hearing submissions from the United Left Alliance, Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin, Labour leader and Tánaiste Eamon Gilmore and independent TD Catherine Murphy today. Check out the details of the day’s proceedings on our Liveblog.
Meanwhile, it came to light today that the Troika will not be meeting opposition parties during their next visit to Ireland – despite doing so during previous reviews. A spokesperson for the ECB told TheJournal.ie that such meetings would be considered “inappropriate” in light of the forthcoming referendum.
2. #BREIVIK: On the second day of his trial, Anders Behring Breivik defended his massacre of 77 people in Norway last July – insisting he would do it again and calling the bomb-and-shooting rampage the most “spectacular” attack by a nationalist militant since World War II.
The key issue for the court to decide is whether Breivik is psychotic; he has denied criminal guilt saying he was acting in self-defence.
Queries have been raised about the Norwegian legal system over the past number of days – see TheJournal.ie‘s explainer on how the country’s courts operate for more details.
3. #EURO: Today the euro weakened – again – and German government bond prices fell from their record highs, as Spain prepared to sell some of its short-term debt.
The interest rate on Spanish government bonds rose sharply yesterday, a sign that investors are becoming more worried about the country’s ability to afford mounting debts. Spain is currently suffering the highest level of unemployment in the eurozone, at 23 per cent, and is expected to enter its second recession in three years this quarter
4. #WATER: Irish Water, which will be established to oversee the delivery of water services in Ireland will be an independent, State-owned subsidiary of Bord Gáis Eireann, it was revealed this afternoon.
Commenting on the weekend’s controversy over payment of the meters which will be installed in over 1.3 million homes within the next 48 months, Hogan confirmed there will be no up-front water charges for consumers.
5. #DISCOVERY: NASA’s oldest and most-travelled space shuttle is going on its final journey today – but, this time, it’s travelling by plane.
A jumbo jet is carrying the space shuttle Discovery from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida to Washington’s Smithsonian Institute, where it will be put on display. In honour of the third shuttle to join the NASA fleet, we’ve taken a look at Discovery’s missions from 1984 – 2011 in photos - from its first launch to its final flight.
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