GOOD MORNING.
Here’s all the news you need to know as you start your day.
1. In our lead story this morning, a consultant at the Rotunda Hospital has said that women should have the option of having labour induced at 39 weeks and returning home.
At present, women whose labour is induced stay in hospital for their entire labour, which could last two or three days.
A new study conducted in the Rotunda and published in the prestigious Lancet medical journal concluded that healthy first-time mothers can safely labour at home after induction at 39 weeks, coming back into hospital to deliver the baby.
2. Western countries and Russia have completed their biggest prisoner swap in post-Soviet history.
Among those released by Moscow are Paul Whelan, a corporate security executive with joint US-Irish citizenship, and Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich.
They were greeted by US president Joe Biden and vice president Kamala Harris on the tarmac at military facility Joint Base Andrews in Maryland.
3. Seven men have HAVE been charged after violent disorder broke out in Hartlepool in the UK yesterday.
An 11-year-old boy was also arrested on suspicion of arson after a police vehicle was set alight during a violent protest in the north-east town in the wake of the Southport stabbings earlier this week.
Before the protest, officers identified the suspected organiser and arrested a 51-year-old man from Hartlepool on suspicion of distributing written materials to stir up racial hatred.
4. Yesterday was a busy day in Paris, with Ireland claiming another medal but also seeing some of its boxers exit in controversial fashion.
Sailing teams were stalled by a sheer lack of wind on the water while boxing has been in the headlines internationally over a fighter abandoning one matchup.
Sinead O’Carroll and Gavin Cooney look through all of these and more in their daily Olympics podcast which you can listen to here.
For more on the latter controversy in women’s boxing, Diarmuid Pepper separates fact from fiction here.
5. An Irish teenager has been arrested in Portugal on suspicion of attempted homicide after several Dutch holidaymakers were attacked.
Police in the Algarve said that an “intense and violent” fight broke out between a number of Irish and Dutch holidaymakers.
Yesterday, the 19-year-old Irishman was arrested for attempted qualified homicide following the alleged fight, which happened in the popular area of Albufeira on Monday.
6. Dublin Fire Brigade has brought a large fire in an industrial estate in north Dublin under control.
Some structures collapsed amid the blaze in the Clonshaugh area of Dublin 17.
7. The High Court has ruled that the State is in breach of human rights law by failing to house almost 3,000 people who have sought international protection in Ireland since last year.
The court made the ruling following a case taken by the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission (IHREC) against the State last year.
8. Garda Commissioner Drew Harris has admitted that a body worn camera (BWC) system, which is currently being piloted in garda divisions in Dublin and Limerick, is open to potential abuse by rogue Gardaí.
Commissioner Harris also warned Garda members that they will face dismissal from the force, and potential criminal prosecution, if they are found to have shared or leaked footage of incidents captured on Garda BWCs.
9. US chip maker Intel has announced that it will cut more than 15% of its global workforce as it streamlines operations.
The company announced a $10 billion (€9 billion) cost reduction plan as it reported a loss of $1.6 billion in the recently ended quarter.
It is unclear how the planned move will impact the 4,900 Intel workers employed across Ireland, the vast majority of which are based in Leixlip, Co Kildare.
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