LAST UPDATE | 7 May 2021

EVERY MORNING, The Journal brings you all the news you need to know as you start the day.

1. #HOUSING: Fianna Fáil TDs and senators have said the party needs a “radical” plan to solve the issue of housing or they believe it will face political annihilation.

2. #COVID-19: India has reported another record daily rise in cases of Covid-19, bringing the total number of new cases in the country this week to 1.6 million.

3. #HARTLEPOOL: The UK’s Labour party has lost the by-election in the town of Hartlepool to the Conservatives, a constituency it previously held for almost 50 years.

4. #SEX TRAFFICKING: Human trafficking to Ireland for the purpose of sexual exploitation proved to be “resilient” during the Covid-19 pandemic, the country’s rapporteur will tell EU officials today.

5. #DIRECT PROVISION: More than 1,000 asylum seekers who have been granted permission to remain in Ireland are still living in Direct Provision centres because they can’t access other accommodation.

6. #IDAHO: A sixth grade student has been arrested in the US after she shot three people at her school before being disarmed by a teacher.

7. #SINDO: The Sunday Independent has dropped columnist Eoghan Harris after it emerged he was part of an anonymous Twitter account.

8. #VACCINATIONS: The Covid-19 vaccine portal will open for those aged 56 today, with more than one in three Irish adults now having received their first dose.

9. #WEATHER: It will be a cool but dry day for the most part, with a band of rain set to move across the country this evening. Highest temperatures will be between 10 and 14 degrees Celsius.