LAST UPDATE | 5 Dec 2019

EVERY MORNING, TheJournal.ie brings you all the news you need to know as you start the day.

1. #SCHOOLS: The Department of Education has issued out to tender contracts worth an estimated €700 million for the design and building of schools across the country. 

2. HOMELESSNESS: There has been a 26% increase in the number of people turning to Simon Communities of Ireland services for support over the last 12 months, according to a new report from the charity. 

3. #DRUGS: Only one person convicted of possession of drugs with a value of more than €13,000 received a prison sentence of more than 10 years. Under current laws, anyone caught with over €13k of drugs is subject to stricter punishments under Section 15A of the Misuse of Drugs Act.

4. #FRANCE: Multiple flights to and from Ireland that were scheduled for today have been cancelled as one of France’s biggest nationwide strikes in years takes place, causing widespread traffic disruption. 

5. #HOUSING: There has been a rise in the cohort of first-time buyers moving to the Dublin commuter belt, as average house prices continue to rise across the country. 

6. #PEARL HARBOUR: A US sailor has fatally shot two people and injured a third at the Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard in Hawaii before taking his own life.

7. #IMPEACHMENT: The House Judiciary Committee has heard that Trump’s actions over Ukraine are enough to constitute grounds for impeachment. 

8. #WATERFORD: Eight men have been discovered hiding on a cargo vessel travelling from France to Ireland. The men are in a good medical condition and Garda Immigration Officers are dealing with them. 

9. #IFA: The Irish Farmers’ Association is staging a protest over beef prices outside an Aldi distribution centre in Naas. The protest began at 7am and is expected to last for 12 hours.

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