ireland.com - The Irish Times

Aer Rianta pressured to report on unpaid bill affair
The Government is putting severe pressure on Aer Rianta to produce its report later today on the "brandy and cigars affair" which ministers hope will clear the Minister for Transport, Mr Brennan, of any impropriety in the matter. p

Minister to suggest alternatives to sex abuse tribunals
The Minister for Justice is expected to bring proposals for alternatives to tribunals to Cabinet next week. p

Joint committee backs €43 rise in RTE licence fee
A Cabinet decision on RTÉ's application for a €43 rise in the TV licence fee is expected as early as next week, after an Oireachtas committee gave its general support to an increase yesterday. p

Other Stories

360 jobs to go as textile firm shuts
Two factories employing 360 people in counties Kilkenny and Donegal are to cease production shortly while their multinational owner reviews its worldwide operations. p
Ahern sees 'uphill struggle' on fisheries policy
The Minister for the Marine, Mr Ahern, has warned that he faces an uphill struggle in negotiations among fisheries ministers over reform of the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP). p
Fahey to review out-of-court settlements to expose fraud
Most public liability insurance claims are fraudulent and steps are being considered to tackle the problem, according to the Minister of State for Labour Affairs. p
Launch date for unveiling of the Spike in Dublin still up in the air
Nobody seems to know when the spire for Dublin's O'Connell Street will be finally unveiled. p
Minister would be 'small-minded' if prison move linked to ads
Amnesty International has said the Minister for Justice would be "small-minded and petulant" if his decision to deny it access to prisons to conduct research on racism was connected to a controversial advertising campaign it conducted more than a year ago. p
Dublin homeless figure up by 300
The number of homeless people in the Dublin region has increased by 300, two years into a three-year Government strategy to tackle the crisis, figures being published tomorrow will show. p
Kennedy disposes of his Irish businesses and nationality
Mr Jim Kennedy, the controversial businessman who is refusing to return to Ireland to appear before the Flood tribunal, has divested himself of his business interests here and renounced his Irish nationality. p
Church land sold for #1 is resold for € 300,000
A site sold by the Diocese of Elphin to Sligo County Council for a nominal fee to house Traveller families in 1973 has been purchased by a Traveller, and subsequently sold by him to a property development company for €300,000. p
PDs suggest only cheaper drugs be reimbursed
The Progressive Democrats have put forward a radical new plan which, it is claimed, may save the State up to €30 million a year on the cost of prescription medicines. p
Incentive to use generic drugs would mean major savings
Dr Muiris Houston , Medical Correspondent, explains the difference between generic drugs and other medications p
TDs to expand their gift of the gab
There are some cynics who would respectfully suggest that it is lessons in English, and not other languages, that are required by some of our less eloquent politicians, writes Miriam Donohoe p
Irish child victim of twin towers crash identified
The remains of an Irish-American child killed in the attacks on New York's World Trade Centre last September are to be flown home for burial in Cork after they were recovered from Ground Zero and identified. The child, Juliana McCourt (4), was on the second aircraft that hit the twin towers. She was with her mother, Ruth (45), on a United Airlines flight bound for Disneyland. p
Dispute at airport handling firm escalates
Industrial action by workers at CityJet Handling in Dublin Airport is to be escalated next week, in a row over pay and union recognition. p
Monaghan man studying in US dies in fall from army tower
A young Irish man studying in the US has fallen to his death while climbing a 300-foot radio tower in Missouri. Mr Jason McArdle (20), from Clones, Co Monaghan, was a first-year student at the Central Methodist College in Fayette, Missouri. p
Murdered priest mourned in home village
The work done for the young and homeless by Father Declan Collins (41), who was murdered in Johannesburg, South Africa, nearly two weeks ago, was outlined at his funeral Mass yesterday. p
Child groups warn on Santa websites
The National Parents' Council (NPC) and ISPCC have expressed their concern at the possible hidden dangers for youngsters using websites to send letters to Santa. p

Floods

Insurers warned against reneging on flood relief
The Government has sent a strong warning to the insurance industry not to renege on its responsibilities to the thousands of householders who have been devastated by the recent floods. p
Cork under water for the second time in a week
More than €1 million worth of damage was caused to Cork homes and businesses yesterday by flash flooding which left areas in the city under almost five feet of water. p
Roads cut as floodwater deluges areas of Dublin and Leinster
Mudslides, rockfalls and flash flooding occurred in Cos Dublin and Wicklow yesterday after heavy rainfall brought already high water tables to bursting point. p
Kilkenny, south-east badly hit by severe flooding
There was severe flooding on a number of roads in the south-east, with Kilkenny city badly affected. p
Rhino sunk without trace in the Dodder
Dubliners will have to wait until the floods subside to find out whether the city's newest and most mysterious work of art has survived the elements. p
Localised flooding is still a threat today
The worst of the recent heavy rain has passed away but threats of further localised flooding in Munster still linger with heavy downpours expected today, according to Met Éireann. p

National Spatial Strategy

Details of plan for regional growth due today
The Government will this morning announce its long-awaited National Spatial Strategy, a blueprint for economic and social development within the State over the next 20 years. p
Favouring too many towns will ruin plan
The strategy is very late, writes Frank McDonald , Environment Editor p

Dail Report

Increase in crime both worrying and disappointing, says Ahern
The Taoiseach expressed disappointment at the increase in serious crime, as the Opposition accused the Government of failing to live up to election promises. p
Ahern denies 'rip-off' over Corrib gas field
A claim by Mr Joe Higgins (Socialist Party, Dublin West) that the State had been "ripped off" in the exploration of the Corrib gas field was denied by the Taoiseach. p
McDowell firm on deportation policy
Deportation of illegal immigrants costs in some cases up to €30,000 for each person. However, the Minister for Justice insisted he would not be "browbeaten" into abandoning "enforcement of the law" through deportation, otherwise "our system will simply implode". p
TDs tell Minister to take care of the poor
The Minister for Finance, Mr McCreevy, has been told by Fianna Fáil backbenchers to give whatever money he has in the Budget to the poor. p
Labour fails on Morris motion
The Government has defeated by 68 votes to 54 a Labour Party attempt in the Dáil to widen the terms of reference of the Morris tribunal, which is investigating allegations of Garda corruption in Co Donegal. p
Golfers barring women 'bad shots', not big shots
Golf club administrators who barred women from membership were bad shots, not big shots, Mrs Mary O'Rourke, leader of the Seanad told the House yesterday. "I cannot understand how a golf club could not let in women members. It just beggars all belief. It really does," she said. p

In the North

North impasse to be resolved soon - Taoiseach
The impasse in the Northern Ireland peace process will soon be broken, the Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, predicted yesterday. p
Cowen to chair Belfast talks today
UUP Assembly member Mr Fred Cobain said that a "disastrous one-way truth commission" would emerge if the North's Police Ombudsman, Ms Nuala O'Loan, was granted extra powers. p
Soldiers were raring to go on Bloody Sunday, inquiry is told
Soldiers who burst into the Bogside in Derry on Bloody Sunday were "raring to go" and arrest rioters, a British major-general told the Saville inquiry in London yesterday. Maj-Gen Michael Steele, who was a brigade major of 8th Infantry Brigade and a senior staff officer at Ebrington Barracks in January 1972, recalled that they were keen to be deployed to clamp down on troublemakers. p
Man questioned over woman's death in NI fire
A fire in Bangor, Co Down, which killed a woman in her 30s is being treated as suspicious, reports Suzanne Breen , Senior Northern Correspondent. The blaze was discovered at a flat in Ballynoe Gardens in the Kilcooley area early yesterday. p

In The Courts

Care unit unable to cope with boy (12)
An extremely disturbed 12-year-old boy with no criminal convictions, who has been in care since the age of five and has Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), is to be moved from the Ballydowd Special Care Unit for disturbed children to a State remand centre because Ballydowd can't deal with him. p
Insanity put forward as defence in murder case
A man accused of the murder of his girlfriend and of causing serious harm to her mother by stabbing her was either insane at the time or did not intend his actions, a defence lawyer has argued. p
Early release under agreement sought
The courts cannot decide or interfere with government policy in relation to the early release of prisoners, lawyers for the State argued at the High Court yesterday. p
Witness says she saw man on firearms charges threaten girlfriend with gun
A man accused of firearms offences put a gun to his girlfriend's head and threatened to kill her, a protected witness told the Central Criminal Court yesterday. p
Lotto millionaire and brother settle dispute over ownership of house
A millionaire Lotto winner who gave his old home as a wedding present to a brother who was ill has failed in a legal attempt to renege on his promise. p
Inquest reverses verdict of suicide
A coroner's inquest jury in Ennis, Co Clare, yesterday reversed a verdict of suicide made by a previous jury in the death of Father Michael O'Grady (56). It returned an open verdict on the parish priest's death. p
Woman is held over husband's murder
A woman accused of murdering her husband in their Knocklyon, Dublin, home last July was remanded yesterday at Tallaght Court. p

Regional News

IBEC says thermal treatment necessary for waste
The Government has made little progress towards a national waste policy or on the difficult issue of incineration, according to the Irish Business and Employers' Confederation. It has also described incineration as a necessary part of a comprehensive policy on handling waste. p
Cork women on alert after second attack
Gardaí in Cork have advised women to avoid walking home at night on their own following two reports of rape in the city within 24 hours. p
Danger from gas terminal minimal - HSA
The Health and Safety Authority has found that the risk of harm to anyone in the area surrounding the proposed gas terminal at Bellanaboy Bridge, North Mayo, is less than one in a million. p
Nurses at Limerick psychiatric hospital seek €4,640 to relocate
Nurses at St Joseph's Psychiatric Hospital in Limerick are seeking €4,640 in compensation to relocate to a new facility. p

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