EVERY MORNING, TheJournal.ie brings you nine things you should know with your morning coffee…
1.#NORTH AND SOUTH: Taoiseach Enda Kenny will chair a meeting of the North South Ministerial Council at Farmleigh House today during which banking reform, the ongoing eurozone crisis, and other economic issues will be discussed. The Northern delegation is being led by First Minister Peter Robinson and Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness.
2. #CHILD ABUSE: Speaking yesterday at the International Eucharistic Congress, Primate of All-Ireland Cardinal Seán Brady expressed “deep shame” in an apology to victims of clerical child abuse on behalf of the Catholic Church in Ireland.
However, Brady stopped short of offering a specific apology for his own controversial role in the investigation of abuse by Fr Brendan Smyth.
3. #JOBSWATCH: The parent firm of electricity supplier Airtricity is to invest almost half a billion euro in purchasing several power stations in Ireland. The Taoiseach Enda Kenny is due to make what a statement described as a “major” jobs announcement in connection with the news this afternoon.
4.#SYMPHYSIOTOMY: The Institute of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists has offered “unreserved sympathy” to women who have suffered after undergoing the controversial procedure symphysiotomy, reports the Irish Times. Survivors of symphysiotomy – a surgical procedure used to widen the pelvis for childbirth – gave powerful first-hand testimony at an Oireachtas committee meeting yesterday, explaining the life-long chronic pain and other medical problems they suffered as a result of the operation.
5. #WEATHER: It may be June – and technically summer – but it’s still a very good idea to bring an umbrella along today, as we’re in for more wind, rain, and possible flooding. This satellite image from Met Éireann shows why we won’t be seeing the sun for a while.
6. #GREECE: The final day of campaigning ahead of Sunday’s crucial parliamentary elections is taking place in Greece today. This weekend’s vote, the second in one month, is being closely observed internationally amid fears the results could spark a deepening of the eurozone crisis – or even the country’s exit from the euro.
7. #JAPAN: The final fugitive suspect linked to a deadly sarin gas attack in the Tokyo underground has been arrested by police in Japan, AFP reports. Katsuya Takahashi is suspected of being involved in a doomsday cult that killed 13 people and injured 6,000 others in 1995.
8. #EGYPT: Demonstrators have gathered in Egypt’s Tahrir Square today after the country’s Supreme Constitutional Court ruled that last year’s parliamentary elections were not valid. The Muslim Brotherhood has warned of “dangerous” days ahead, reports the BBC.
9. #GAME OF THRONES: Both HBO and the creators of the hit TV show Game of Thrones have apologised for using a prosthetic head in the likeness of George W Bush as a prop in a beheading scene during filming, the Washington Post reports.
“George Bush’s head appears in a couple of beheading scenes. It’s not a choice, it’s not a political statement. We just had to use whatever heads we had lying around…” said creators David Benioff and D.B. Weiss.
Oops.
Just click Like.
Comments (13 Comments)