LAST UPDATE | 1 Sep 2022
GOOD MORNING.
Here’s all the news that you need to know as you start your day.
1. The cost of getting a taxi has increased by an average of 12% from today, while all taxi drivers operating in Ireland must also now accept card payments.
The changes came into effect today after being confirmed by the National Transport Authority (NTA) in June, Céimin Burke writes in today’s lead story.
David McGuinness of Tiománaí Tacsaí na hÉireann said he understands the public frustration with the price hike, but noted that taxi drivers haven’t had a price increase in more than four years, despite a dramatic increase in fuel costs.
2. Three men have been arrested as part of an investigation into a fatal house fire in Co Kerry over 10 years ago.
A man and his five-year-old daughter died following the fire at a property at Killeen Heights in Tralee on 12 May 2012.
Gardaí this morning arrested two men, both in their 40s, in relation to the investigation.
Both men are currently being detained under the provisions of section four of the Criminal Justice Act 1984 at Tralee and Killarney garda stations.
A man aged in his 30s was arrested in June 2022. He has since been released without charge and a file is being prepared for the DPP.
3. Health Minister Stephen Donnelly has said that he failed to register a property he rented with the Residential Tenancies Board until last week.
The long-term tenancy, which was first registered with the RTB in 2011, was not renewed in 2019, with a spokesperson for Donnelly saying that it was “due to an oversight”.
As first reported by the Irish Times, the property has since been registered with the RTB. The property itself is an apartment located in Sandyford in South Dublin.
4. Ukraine today accused Russia of attacking a city housing Europe’s largest nuclear plant, Zaporizhzhia, ahead of a visit by UN inspectors.
Since dawn, Moscow’s troops “shelled Energodar with mortars and used automatic weapons and rockets”, Mayor Dmytro Orlov said on Telegram, publishing photos of damaged buildings in the Russian-occupied territory with smoke spiralling above them.
“We demand that Russia stops its provocations and gives the IAEA access to this Ukrainian nuclear installation,” Orlov said, referring to the UN nuclear watchdog.
5. “Eye-stabbing, tendon slashing, hoisting them to the ceiling by chains or ropes to contain them, and multiple throat cuts.”
According to Gabriel Paun, these are techniques that Animals International, the welfare organisation he works with, have filmed in slaughterhouses in North Africa and the Middle East, where, he says, it can take up to 30 minutes to kill a single fully conscious animal – “a very slow and terrible death”.
Many of the countries where footage has been obtained over a number of years, and as recently as this summer, are key destinations for Irish cattle exported in their thousands every year.
Noteworthy has found that the State has little to no control over what happens to animals once they leave Ireland.
6. Appointments have opened for people aged from 12 to 49 years with long-term health conditions and healthcare workers to book their next Covid-19 booster vaccine.
Those who have long-term conditions – such as diabetes, asthma or heart disease – are being encouraged to come forward for their second booster.
This second booster vaccine will be available to those who have already received their initial vaccine course and one booster dose.
7. Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak have made their final pitches to Tory members as the contest to replace Boris Johnson enters its final hours.
Frontrunner Truss has claimed there would be no new taxes or energy rationing if she became prime minister, as she dropped further hints about cost-of-living support this winter.
The Foreign Secretary, writing for The Sun, said she is “ready to put my money where my mouth is by cutting taxes” and said her reforms would help “stave off the horror of a recession”.
8. This weekend sees the first Electric Picnic since 2019.
The annual event is always a highlight on the Irish festival calendar, drawing thousands to Stradbally Hall in Co Laois for a weekend of music, family fun, talks, food, and whatever you’re having yourself.
You might be heading for the first time, or you might be a seasoned Electric Picnic-er – either way, you’ll want to swot up on what to know before you head off for the weekend. Here’s everything you need to know.
9. And finally, the weather.
Met Éireann says any mist or fog will quickly clear this morning to leave a mostly dry and sunny day, however patchy cloud will bubble up through the middle of the day and may bring a few isolated showers.
Highest temperatures will range from 18 to 21 degrees Celsius, dipping to eight to 14 degrees tonight.
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