LAST UPDATE | 9 Mar 2025

GOOD MORNING.

Here’s all the news you need to know as you start the day.

Gould says he is ‘innocent’

1. Sinn Féin TD Thomas Gould confirmed that he is the Oireachtas member who was arrested in relation to alleged business fraud on Friday.

Gould’s solicitor said in a statement yesterday evening that his client “utterly rejects the complaint made against him.”

Garda hospitalised after stabbing

2. A Garda was assaulted in Dublin following a public order incident on Abbey Street in the city centre yesterday.

The incident took place shortly after 1pm. One member of An Garda Síochána received injuries to his arm, believed to be non-life-threatening at this time.

France end Grand Slam dream

3. Ireland lost to France yesterday in one of the most-anticipated matches of the Six Nations Championship at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin.

The brilliant Bleus took control in Dublin; Ireland second best as Fabien Galthié’s side mixed brute force and brilliant back play to secure a five-try bonus-point win.

Taoiseach in the White House

4. Ex-Irish Ambassador Bobby McDonagh has said the Taoiseach will have to steer a middle course with Donald Trump in Washington this week.

Writing in our Voices section this morning, he says, keeping strong on the main issues and making the right points in a calm way will be Micheál Martin’s main mission.

Smash and grabs

5. An increase in break-ins and burglaries from food businesses in Dublin city and beyond has majorly impacted small businesses, seemingly caused by “a perfect storm” of factors plaguing the retail and hospitality sector.

Our reporter Andrew Walsh reports that five break-ins were reported at popular food locations across Dublin last month and owners of these small businesses are “fed up” of a “lack of action”.

Parking tickets at hospital

6. Concerns have been raised over the number of parking tickets issued to taxis outside Dublin’s Mater Hospital as drivers, contracted to transport passengers to the hospital, are being fined while helping dialysis patients.

The hospital says it has no control over the issuance of the fines which lies with the Dublin Street Parking Services.

Big Ben Palestine protest

7. Police in Westminster have arrested a man after he scaled Big Ben in London to stage a demonstration in support of Palestine.

Officers were first called to Elizabeth Tower yesterday morning, just before 8am, following reports that a person had climbed up the structure.

On the road

8. A team of Irish military experts has been selected to go to Brussels as the Irish military chief prepares to take up the chair of the EU military committee.

Defence Forces Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Sean Clancy will take up the role of the head of the European Union Military Committee (EUMC) in June. He will take over the top job from Austrian General Robert Brieger.

Australia storm

9. Strong gusts and torrential rain have blacked out more than a quarter of a million properties and swamped parts of Australia’s east coast.

One person has died and a dozen troops have been injured in a category 2 tropical cyclone, which had battered a 400-kilometre stretch of coastline.