EVERY MORNING, TheJournal.ie brings you the stories you need to know as you wake up.

1. #IFA PAY ROW: The president of the Irish Farmers’ Association, Eddie Downey, has resigned following the revelation that he had approved a €2 million severance package for Pat Smith, the organisation’s former general secretary.

2. #ELECTION 2016: Fine Gael is on course to be the biggest party after the next general election, according to a new poll.

3. #WATCHDOG WARNING: The Fiscal Advisory Council has criticised the government for increasing spending in Budget 2016, warning that ”numerous uncertainties about the pace of future growth” still remain.

4. #UNDERSTAFFED: Concerns have been raised over staffing levels at Beaumont Hospital in Dublin after nurses voted to engage in a work-to-rule next month.

5. #WATER SUPPLY: Irish Water has identified the River Shannon as a potential new source of water for Dublin and the Midlands.

6. #AUSTRALIA: Tributes have been paid to the two young Irish men who were killed in a workplace accident in East Perth.

7. #BOOKS OF THE YEAR: Anne Enright, Sinead Gleeson and Niall Breslin were among the big winners at last night’s Bord Gáis Energy Irish Book Awards.

8. #PARIS ATTACKS: The Eagles of Death Metal have said that they want to be the first band to play the Bataclan concert hall when it reopens.

9. #RACE TO WHITE HOUSE: The New York Times has criticised US presidential candidate Donald Trump for mocking and appearing to imitate the disability of one of its reporters.