LAST UPDATE | 8 Jan 2024

GOOD MORNING. 

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

Golden Globes

1. Irish actor Cillian Murphy has won best actor at the Golden Globes for his performance in Oppenheimer.

The Christopher Nolan film won big at the event last night, taking home five awards in total for best director, best supporting actor, best original score, best film and Murphy’s best actor award.

Other Irish actors, such as Barry Keoghan and Andrew Scott, as well as Irish-made films were up for nominations and won awards last night.

Legacy Act

2. The UK government has formally registered its regret at Ireland’s decision to take legal action against the UK’s Troubles legislation.

Northern Ireland Secretary Chris Heaton-Harris has written to Foreign Affairs Minister Micheál Martin questioning the move to challenge the UK’s contentious legacy laws in the European Court of Human Rights.

Martin has yet to comment on the letter.

70% increase in gonorrhea

3. There has been a 70% increase in the number of gonorrhoea cases in Ireland, according to the latest figures from the Health Protection Surveillance Centre.

Órla Ryan reports some 6,748 cases of gonorrhoea were reported in Ireland up to 23 December 2023, compared with 3,976 cases in 2022.

The HSE highlighted that better access to testing and lack of condom use as the main possibilities leading to the increase.

‘Appropriate justice’ for Aoife Johnston – HSE CEO

4. HSE CEO Bernard Gloster has said he is committed to ensuring “appropriate justice” is achieved over failures that led to the death of teenager Aoife Johnston at University Hospital Limerick.

But, he added he is not prepared to accept staff being tried on Social Media prior to the conclusion of an eight-week-long independent probe into the case and governance at the Limerick Hospital.

Conor McGregor

5. In our second lead this morning, The42‘s Gavin Cooney and Assistant News Editor at The Journal Stephen McDermott explore the question if UFC’s biggest star Conor McGregor is becoming a poster boy for Ireland’s far-right?

Just over seven years after his first-major UFC title win, McGregor has continued to divide opinion and has recently made more headlines for his views on immigration and Irish politics than he has for his achievements in the octagon.

Rescue operation

6. Five people are trapped in a Slovenian cave because of high water levels caused by heavy rainfall, authorities said.

The group – a Slovenian family group of three adults and two guides – have been stuck in the Krizna Jama cave since Saturday when water levels rose inside, blocking the way out.

No to joining South Africa – Varadkar

7. Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has said the Government does not intend to join South Africa in its case at the International Court of Justice in which it has accused Israel of committing genocide in Gaza. 

The question was put to Varadkar on RTÉ Radio yesterday after he and Tánaiste Micheál Martin received a letter from four senators on Saturday, calling on the Government to support the case.

Hunting accident

8. A man, shot in the arm in Tipperary while he was playing football yesterday, is believed to had suffered the injury as a result of a stray shot from a deer hunt nearby, The Journal understands.

Deer hunting is a common pastime in the nearby woodland.

Fog warnings

9. A status Yellow fog warning for all counties is in place until 10am this morning which Met Éireann has said is likely to cause hazardous driving conditions on roads this morning.

A status Yellow ice warning is also issued for counties Armagh and Down until 10am today. Frost and icy patches are also expected in many areas this morning, which will slowly clear later.