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GOOD EVENING

The 5 at 5 5 minutes, 5 stories, 5 o’clock…

EVERY WEEKDAY EVENING,TheJournal.ie brings you the five stories you need to know before you head out the door.

1. #CROKE PARK: The government and trade unions representing public sector workers have concluded the first steps on extending the terms of the Croke Park Agreement. A proposal for a deal to cut €1 billion from the public pay bill was finalised just after 11am this morning. The full menu of changes includes pay cuts for high earners, an increase in working hours and a reduction in overtime rates.

2. #ROADS: Over 100 people have been rescued from the Wicklow mountains in the last five days due to bad road conditions. The Glen of Imaal rescue team are calling for the council to erect warning signs and to find a way of alerting motorists when roads are impassable.

3. #CATHERINE GOWING: Clive Sharp has received a life sentence for the murder of Irish woman Catherine Gowing. Although a mountain of evidence was presented to the court, the woman’s body has never been fully recovered. Speaking today after the sentencing, Gowing’s sister Emma said the decision today means our world is a safer place.

4. #BLIND SAFETY: Police in Nothern Ireland are investigating the death of a three-year-old boy who died after becoming tangled in a blind cord over the weekend. There are no exact figures for Ireland, but it is believed around three children have died as a result of blind cord asphyxiation over the last four years.

5. #JOBSWATCH: Centra is to create 400 jobs this year with the opening of 20 new stores and the extension of existing stores. Meanwhile, Minister Phil Hogan has said that Ireland’s new water metering system will also create around 400 jobs for people from small, local businesses, the long term unemployed and graduates.