LAST UPDATE | 9 Apr 2025

GOOD MORNING.

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

Travelling for abortions

1. A number of women have shared their personal experiences of having to travel to access services – something they said made a traumatic experience even worse.

In some cases, they struggled to book appointments and had issues bringing their baby’s remains home. They told The Journal Investigates they wanted to share their stories to highlight the fact that, at their most vulnerable, they could not receive treatment in their own country. 

Pharma tariffs

2. US President Donald Trump has said that he will soon put tariffs on pharmaceuticals, as he ramps up the worrying trade war.

Autism assessment

3. The National Autism Protocol, which promises to ensure children and young people with autism have access to assessment and early intervention, will be rolled out as part of the Government’s new mental health implementation plan.

Concern about climate change

4. A new study has found that rural and urban dwellers are share equal concern about the impacts of climate change and are willing to take action to help stop it.

Slow Down Day

5. Gardaí are out in force today across the country for the second National Slow Down Day of the year. 

Gardaí and the Road Safety Authority are asking drivers to slow down while more pedestrians and cyclists are on the roads as the days get longer and the weather gets warmer. 

Washington meeting

6. Tánaiste Simon Harris is in Washington DC today where he will meet Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick. 

CHI

7. The Labour Party is calling for those on the board of Children’s Health Ireland (CHI) to be removed, amid revelations of innapropriate and unsafe practices at Temple Street Children’s Hospital.

Golf

8. Rory McIlroy has been grouped with Sweden’s Ludwig Aberg and American Akshay Bhatia for the first two rounds of the 89th Masters.

Health scare

9. Barry Cown has confirmed that he experienced a “health scare” over the weekend, but is now recovering at St James’s Hospital in Dublin.