EVERY MORNING, TheJournal.ie brings you the nine things you need to know as you start your day.
1. #ABUSE: Fresh claims have been made against the top Catholic Church official in Ireland Cardinal Seán Brady over his alleged failure to protect children from notorious paedophile priest Fr Brendan Smith. After an investigation, BBC’s This World said that Brady had been given the names and addresses of boys being abused but did not ensure their safety even after the 1975 secret inquiry.
2. #AFGHANISTAN: During a surprise visit to Kabul on the anniversary of the death of Osama Bin Laden, Barack Obama said that America would “finish the job” in Afghanistan and “end this war responsibly”. A new deal has been agreed with Afghan president Hamid Karzai which outlines what future role the US will take in the country.
3. #TREATY: The first live television debate about the Fiscal Compact referendum took place at TV3 studios last night where Fine Gael’s Simon Coveney and leader of Fianna Fáil Micheál Martin teamed up for the Yes campaign against Sinn Féin’s Mary Lou McDonald and Socialist Party veteran Joe Higgins of the No side. In case you missed it, our editor Susan Daly liveblogged every mention of austerity and stability, as well as the shushing, the rolling of eyes and the waving of big sticks and guns.
4. #REFERENDUM: Following the debate last night, Coveney ruled out the possibility of holding a second referendum if a Yes vote is not achieved on 31 May. He told TheJournal.ie that Europe would move forward with the treaty even if Ireland fails to ratify it.
5. #HOUSEHOLD CHARGE: An analysis of data supplied by the Department of the Environment has revealed that counties whose residents have a lower income show lower compliance rates with payment of the household charge. Donegal, Monaghan and Offaly had the lowest income totals and also the highest boycott rates of the new €100 fee.
6. #QUINN: The Irish Times reports from the High Court that Seán Quinn was in tears when describing how his employees were “treated like dogs” during Anglo Irish Bank’s “very underhand” takeover of his business last year. He was giving evidence in a contempt case taken by the Irish Bank Resolution Corporation (formerly Anglo Irish Bank) over the alleged transfer of assets.
7. #BREASTFEEDING: According to RTÉ, a new report has suggested that children who are exclusively breastfed for their first six months are 38 per cent less likely to be obese when they reach nine-years-of-age.
8. #IRISH TONY: Once, the Broadway musical based on the Irish film of the same name, leads the pack by some way after the Tony Awards nominations were revealed yesterday. The show featuring Glen Hansard’s songs is up for 11 gongs, including best musical, director, actor, actress and choreographer.
9. #PARADISE ISLAND: Fancy having your own island hangout? Well, if you have a spare £600,000 Inisliroo Island on Lough Erne in Fermanagh is up for sale.
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