EVERY MORNING, TheJournal.ie brings you the nine things you need to know as you begin your day.
1. #MISSING Searches in Australia continue for missing Irish woman Jill Meagher, as police in Melbourne say they believe they have identified images of her on CCTV in the early hours of Saturday morning. They are also investigating whether her handbag, which was found yesterday, was deliberately planted there, as a comprehensive search of the street had not found anything the day before.
2. #SHOOTINGS Two men were shot dead in front of children in separate gun attacks yesterday. The Irish Independent reports that one man was shot while walking along South Circular Road with his girlfriend and an 11-year-old boy. Another man, named as Gerard Eglington, was shot dead in an unconnected attack in Portarlington, which the paper says took place in front of two children at his home. Gardaí are investigating both attacks.
3. #PENSIONS A ‘pensions time bomb’ could be underway as one in five people have reduced or stopped contributing towards theirs, Friends First have said. Their annual survey found that many of the 67 per cent of people who have a pension have been forced to cut back on the amount they contribute due to the tough financial climate.
4. #MAGDALENE The Justice For Magdalenes group has called for a “dignified debate” on the Magdalene Laundries when the Dáil hears a motion from Sinn Féin on the issue this week. JFM said that if there is not a “clear and strong endorsement of the motion by Dáil Éireann”, the women who were held in Magdalene Laundries will receive the message that their lives are “not worthy of dignity nor respect”.
5. #HOSPITAL Around 50,000 patients ‘dodged’ paying their Emergency Department fees in 2011, the Daily Mail says today. It says that this has cost the taxpayer €4.1 million and that Health Minister James Reilly has written off the bad debt.
6. #MERGER A report that recommends the merger of University College Dublin and Trinity College Dublin has been delayed, the Irish Times reports today. It says that suggestions the report was ‘shelved’ have been refuted. The report was carried out by an international panel of experts in the education field, and was commissioned by the Higher Education Authority. It says that the merger would give the new college the weight to be ranked among the word’s best universities.
7. #MURDER It is being reported today that a man has been charged with the murder of Anna Finnegan (26), who was stabbed in her home in Clonsilla at the weekend. Gardaí said yesterday that a man in his 30s was due before Blanchardstown District Court charged in connection with Ms Finnegan’s death.
8. #IRAN The Iranian president has described supporting homosexuality as being “for capitalists” who do not care about real human values. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad made the comments in an interview on CNN, where he also described homosexuality as a “very ugly behaviour” but said that his criticism doesn’t mean a denial of people’s freedom.
9. #WHAT THE FLIUCH? Keep your umbrella handy, as the rain that’s currently over much of Ireland is set to continue today. Met Éireann has warned of the risk of flooding in some areas and also put a gale warning in place, saying severe gusts in the north and northwest are expected.
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