EVERY MORNING, TheJournal.ie brings you the stories you need to know as you start your day.

1. #HOUSING: Leo Varadkar has been criticised for calling houses starting at €315,000 ‘affordable’.

2. #ARE WE THERE YET: Claims that Ireland has already bounced back from the recession have been contradicted by the results of a study that found Ireland has only recovered by 41% from the recession.

3. #WARNING: A mother-of-three who forwarded footage of a child being raped will have her sentencing finalised later this month. The woman said she sent the video to warn a friend about the dangers of leaving her children alone with her boyfriend.

4. #ROY MOORE: Several Republicans have urged their party’s candidate for a vacant US Senate seat to quit the race if an explosive report that he had a sexual encounter with a 14-year-old girl is true.

5. #EQUAL PAY DAY: The gender pay gap of 14% means Irish women are working for free from today.

6. #DATA PROTECTION: Some retailers are using customers’ email addresses, which are taken for issuing receipts, to send marketing material.

7. #NOT HAPPENING: Minister for Transport Shane Ross has said that he and the other two members of the Independent Alliance will not be going to North Korea.

8. #TAKEOVER: The boxing management company which hosted the event that was targeted by the Hutch gang at the Regency Hotel has been bought out by external investors.

9. #ANIMAL WELFARE: Calls are being made to ban live hare coursing in Ireland after it was announced yesterday that wild animals are to be banned in circuses.