Two penguins dressed as Santa Claus at Tianjin Polar Ocean World in Tianjin, China

Image: ChinaFotoPress/Photocome/Press Association Images

EVERY EVENING, TheJournal.ie brings you a roundup of the day’s main news – plus any bits and pieces you may have missed.

• All cigarette packets sold in Ireland will soon feature graphic photographs of the health effects of tobacco, the Minister for Health has announced. It’s hoped the move will help cut the 5,200 annual deaths from smoking in Ireland.
• Is this the solution for ghost estates? Two thousand homes which were built during the boom but are now lying empty will now be used for social housing, after the Government struck a deal with Nama.
• As many as 1,500 women in Ireland could be affected in an international recall of faulty breast implants. The implants are made of a low-grade silicone which is more likely to split.
• Facebook has agreed to implement major changes to its privacy settings worldwide, after Ireland’s Data Protection Commissioner raised concerns. The changes will include an opt-out of the site’s controversial “auto-tagging” feature.
• Meanwhile, a new study has revealed why we add and remove friends on Facebook. Tip: Be careful with your status updates…
• President Michael D Higgins has addressed the nation in a Christmas video message. He sat by a cosy-looking fire, but warned we are in “troubling and testing times”.

Looking forward to Christmas dinner yet? Farmer Adam Walters harvested his Brussels sprouts today near Wolverhampton, UK (Rui Vieira/PA Wire/Press Association Images)

• The Oxegen music festival has been cancelled next year, organisers MCD have confirmed after considerable speculation. However, the chairman of the Punchestown venue insisted it would return in 2013.
• Do you think of yourself as a hoarder? Bet you’ve got nothing on this guy – his collection can be seen from space.
• England football captain John Terry will be prosecuted over alleged racist comments made to QPR’s Anton Ferdinand during a game in October.
• We’ve been looking at Ireland’s top 10 favourite books. Have you read them all? Or would you want to?
• Got a spare €50million knocking about? If you were wondering what to do with it, one option might be the rather nifty Lyons Demesne in Co Kildare – a giant Georgian mansion with private cinema, indoor swimming pool and its own pub. All yours for a knock-down price.
• Continuing our series of the 12 Burning Questions of Christmas: Are you a Roses house, or a Quality Street house?
• And finally: are you waiting for any Christmas gifts to arrive? Better hope you’re not on this guy’s delivery route:

(Video: goobie55)

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