Every morning, TheJournal.ie brings you nine things you really, really need to know as you start your day.
1. #GE11: Ahead of the final leaders’ debate this evening, Eamon Gilmore launches Labour’s manifesto for children this morning before canvassing in Dublin. Fine Gael launches its jobs budget plan, which outlines the measures FG would take in first 100 days of government to create jobs, while the Green Party hosts an online Q&A session from 11am to 8pm today.
2.#NEW ZEALAND: At least 65 people have died in a 6.3 magnitude earthquake which struck Christchurch earlier today. Up to 300 are feared to have died, as people remain trapped in rubble, and a state of emergency has been called, according to the New Zealand Herald. The city had been struck by an earthquake in early September, which caused structural damage but no fatalities.
3. #MARIE GREEN: Gardaí will continue searching an area of bogland outside Athlone this morning as part of their investigation into the disappearance of Marie Greene, 37, from the town over a week ago. A 63-year-old man arrested yesterday and questioned on suspicion of murder remains in custody.
4. #BANKS: Ulster Bank has raised its fixed rates by up to 0.8 per cent, becoming the latest bank to try to discourage people from taking fixed rate mortgages, according to the Independent. The bank’s variable rate will increase 0.5 per cent to 4.35 per cent at the start of March.
5. #LIBYA: Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi appeared briefly on state television today to say he remains in power in Tripoli and to show his defiance in the face of escalating unrest, Al Jazeera reports. The UN Security Council is due to meet today to discuss protests in Libya and the violent response of security forces, which reportedly killed dozens of demonstrators yesterday.
6. #CANCER: British scientists have developed a chemical that could prevent the spread of breast cancer to other organs, the BBC reports.
7. #MURDER TRIAL: Murder accused Hazel Stewart, 47, told police she would rather die than be arrested after the deaths of her husband and her former lover’s wife, a Coleraine court heard yesterday. She has admitted knowing about the murders and going along with the ensuing cover-up, according to the Irish News. The court also heard she feared her co-accused Colin Howell would kill her if she didn’t go along with his double-murder plan.
8. #MOST WANTED: An Irish man and the suspected killer of another Irish man have appeared on a list of the ten most wanted people in the Costa del Sol. The list is targeted at the ex-pat community in the area, the Examiner reports. One of the two men is a suspected paedophile, and the other is wanted in connection with the murder of Dublin man John O’Neill, who was on holiday with his partner and two children when he was shot outside a bar in the Costa del Sol.
9. #LIVING: Vancouver has been named the best city in the world to live in by the Economist Intelligence Unit, while Dublin ranked 40th out of the 140 cities reviewed.
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