NEED TO CATCH up? The Journal brings you a roundup of today’s news.

IRELAND

Killarney National Park. Alamy. Alamy.

• The Journal exclusively reported this evening that Center Parcs has told RTÉ that it will not be renewing its sponsorship of the Ryan Tubridy Show.

• There has been an increase in the amount of complaints and referrals to the Ombudsman of the Defence Forces in the wake of the Independent Review Group report into military abuse and harassment, a Dáil committee has heard. 

• The decision not to prosecute a soldier who fatally shot a 15-year-old in Derry in 1972 has been overturned following a successful challenge by the boy’s family.

• Irish Water’s 2022 annual report which shows that operating profits last year increased by 11pc to €252.67 million.

• RTÉ spent €138,000 on IRFU season tickets and €111,000 on travel and accommodation for the Rugby World Cup via a “barter account”, an Oireachtas committee has heard.
• The European Court of Justice has ruled that Ireland broke EU nature laws by failing to protect hundreds of sites across the country.

WORLD

Protests have taken over Paris.

#FRANCE:  French authorities are bracing for more violent protests in the coming nights over the fatal shooting of a teenager by a policeman, halting public transport and enforcing curfews.

#RWANDA POLICY: The British Government will seek to appeal against a ruling that its plans to deport asylum seekers to Rwanda are unlawful, as Rishi Sunak said he “fundamentally” disagrees with the decision.

#NEW ZEALAND: Is set to become the first country to ban the thin plastic bags that supermarket customers use to collect their fruit and vegetables.

PARTING SHOT

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has confirmed that the government intends to make “tax cuts” in the next budget despite comments from the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI), reported this morning, arguing that there is “no rationale” for them. 

“There will be tax cuts in the forthcoming budget, as there has been the last couple of budgets,” Varadkar told reporter in Brussels today while attending a meeting of the EU Council.

Varadkar’s comments come on the day the ESRI released their quarterly report on the Irish economy, which stated among other things that tax revenue had risen this year and would continue to do so next year. 

In general, according to the report, Ireland is expected to experience continued economic growth for the rest of this year and into 2024, according to the ESRI, with domestic economic activity forecast to remain “strong” while multinational activity is predicted to slow down. 

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