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At the annual switching-on of Christmas tree lights in memory of those who have died from taking drugs, at Buckingham St, Dublin, last night was Ross Rooney (10), from St Mary's Mansions.

Photograph: Dave Meehan

Model and socialite Katy French dies in hospital
Tributes have been paid to the model and socialite Katy French, who died in Our Lady's Hospital, Navan, yesterday evening following her collapse at a house in Co Meath in the early hours of Sunday morning. She was 24 years of age.

Gormley signals his intention to push for carbon levy
Green Party leader and Minister for the Environment John Gormley disclosed details of his "carbon budget" yesterday, and then indicated his intention of exerting pressure on his Coalition partners to introduce a carbon levy on fuel supplies in next year's budget.
Master urges 'robust agency' to deal with rogue solicitors
No "spinning" by the Law Society can disguise the "systemic failure" of self-regulation of solicitors and what is needed now is "a robust agency" to deal with rogue solicitors, the master of the High Court said yesterday.

In Focus

Head2Head
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Education
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World

Nebraska mall killer had feelings of worthlessness
US: A 19-year-old school dropout who shot and killed eight people and then himself at a Nebraska shopping mall smuggled a stolen assault rifle into the building wrapped in a sweatshirt and opened fire without warning when he got out of a third-floor elevator, police said yesterday. p
Woman killed in Paris parcel bomb attack
FRANCE: A parcel bomb exploded yesterday in an law office in the building where President Nicolas Sarkozy used to work, killing a woman legal secretary and seriously wounding a lawyer. p
Romney seeks to assure conservative Republicans on his Mormon faith
US: Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney has confronted misgivings among some conservatives about his Mormon faith, promising that his church would not influence the White House but insisting that his religion should not prevent him from becoming president. p

Ireland

Widow kept Ahern's cheque
Maureen Gunne held on to a cheque given to her by the Taoiseach in repayment of a loan made to him by her late husband, Fintan Gunne, the tribunal heard yesterday. p
Taoiseach will be invited to address Congress
The speaker of the United States House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi has announced that she will invite the Taoiseach to address Congress next year. p
Heaney visits old national school in Derry to help raise funds
Seamus Heaney returns to his native Co Derry today to help raise funds for the primary school he attended at Anahorish. p
Aer Lingus baggage fees rise for third time in year
Aer Lingus has increased its baggage charges for the third time since they were introduced less than a year ago. p

Finance

AIB upbeat on earnings despite asset writedown
AIB's share price rose 3 per cent yesterday after the bank said its 2007 earnings per share (EPS) would grow by 13 per cent - in line with an earlier forecast - despite writing down the value of assets due to the credit crunch. p
Eircom may be split into four divisions
Eircom's owners are examining the possibility of splitting the telecoms group into three or even four separate units when they move ahead with the formal separation of its network from its customer service divisions, writes Arthur Beesley, Senior Business Correspondent p
Fitzpatrick buys out siblings' shares in New York hotels
Irish hotelier John Fitzpatrick has bought out the interests of his siblings in the family's two four-star properties in New York. Ciarán Hancock , Business Affairs Correspondent, reports. p

Sport

Leinster semi-final on schedule
GAELIC GAMES: Both the GAA and the Leinster Council are determined Sunday's Leinster club football semi-final will go ahead as scheduled, despite the appeal of Kildare champions Moorefield over the suspensions handed down following their quarter-final. p
Drogba faces cup battle with Chelsea
SOCCER: Didier Drogba's desire to play in next month's African Nations Cup may set him and his country on a collision course with Chelsea. The striker has a chronic knee condition that would benefit from surgery and though he has played through the pain for at least 12 months, Ivory Coast fear the club will press him to have an operation after the turn of the year, when they are due to lose him to international duty. p
Leinster to send Scots packing
RUGBY/European Cup/Leinster v Edinburgh: In recent seasons the focus in analysing Leinster's prospects in the Heineken European Cup would have been the pack: how they would fare and whether they could provide the platform for a talented backline. p

Opinion

Media must scrutinise Irish Aid
Considering the vast amounts of Irish taxpayers' money involved (€830 million in 2007, with €914 million earmarked for 2008), it is surprising that the Government's foreign aid programme (Irish Aid) has never been rigorously appraised by the media. p
Carbon budget is just a first small step
Only a law will make sure we meet our climate commitments under the Kyoto Protocol, writes Oisín Coghlan p

Features

The masters of maternity care
The Rotunda hospital was ahead of its time when founded in the 18th century, and in its 250th year the world's oldest dedicated maternity hospital is still following the visionary approach of its founder, writes Kate Holmquist p
Witness to atrocity
THE ARTS: Alfredo Jaar's artistic interventions have taken him from his native Chile to Bosnia, Rwanda and Sweden - but his concern now is with what's happening to the Leitrim landscape, he tells Belinda McKeon p