EVERY WEEKDAY EVENING, TheJournal.ie brings you the five stories you need to know before you head out the door.

1. #MORTGAGES: More than 140,000 homeowners now are in arrears on their mortgage – with almost 100,000 more than three months behind in making a payment – according to new figures from the Central Bank. Homeowners in arrears now owe more than €2 billion to lenders.

2. #ABORTION: Despite a newspaper report to the contrary, the Department of Health has said that no terminations have yet been carried out under the Protection of Life During Pregnancy Bill as the new legislation has not yet officially commenced. The National Maternity Hospital in Dublin has begun an investigation into how patient details were leaked to a newspaper.

3. #DEBTS: The newly-established Insolvency Service of Ireland is to begin taking applications in just over two weeks. The ISI says it has employed 80 staff to deal with insolvency applications from people who are struggling with debt and who have been unable to reach a solution with their creditors.

4. #DUBLIN: Gardaí are investigating after the body of a man was found in a waste truck at a Dublin recycling facility. The body was discovered by staff at a Panda facility in Dublin 24 as they unloaded the truck this morning.

5. #GONEZO: Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer has announced he is stepping down after 34 years at the tech company, having joined in 1980 as the 30th employee of the then-fledgling firm. Microsoft’s share price rose by 7 per cent after the announcement. Ouch.