EVERY DAY, TheJournal.ie brings you nine things you need to know with your morning cup of coffee.
1. #FINE GAEL: Eight Fine Gael TDs have stepped away from the party line with a joint opinion piece in today’s Irish Examiner in which they question the Government’s perspective on the Croke Park Agreement.
2. #NO SCRUBS: TheJournal.ie has learned that medical staff in the emergency department of Dublin’s Mater hospital have to buy and clean their own scrubs because of cutbacks – leading to fears about infection and contamination.
3. #CAR INSURANCE: The AA has told TheJournal.ie that female drivers are to face large hikes in their car insurance premiums after December because of an EC guideline on gender discrimination. Traditionally, young male drivers have had to pay more than their female counterparts because statistics show they are more high-risk candidates for accidents.
4. #LOCAL AUTHORITIES: Minister for the Environment Phil Hogan is to unveil major reforms for local authorities tomorrow. The Irish Independent says that 500 council staff to be made redundant while the Irish Times says that councillors will have the power to overturn planning decisions taken from them, a move recommended by the final report of the Mahon Tribunal.
5. #SCOTLAND: Scottish people will be asked by the end of 2014 to decide whether they want Scotland to remain in the UK. The question of independence will require a simple ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ vote, The Scotsman reports.
6. #WAR? The Business Secretary of the British government, Vince Cable, envisaged a stark worst-case scenario over the weekend in the event of the collapse of the euro: a new war in Europe.
7. #STABBING: A man has been arrested in connection with the stabbing of a man in Cavan town on Saturday night.
8. #MALALA: Pakistani schoolgirl Malala Yousafzai, who was shot in the head by the Taliban last week, is currently being transferred to the UK for further medical treatment, the BBC reports this morning.
9. #WATER WASTE: It’s not just domestic users who will be targeted for water charges – the business section of the Irish Times today says that only half of businesses in Ireland are currently paying for their water. The Commission for Energy Regulation’s Denis Cagney also said there was a huge level of leakage here – around 41 per cent compared to the UK’s 28 per cent.
NEW! The Dredge: When Ronan Keating’s wife and mistress met – The day’s best celebrity dirt over on The Daily Edge>
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