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EVERY MORNING, TheJournal.ie brings you the nine things you need to know as you start your day.
1. #PRISON Prison officers have called for a special prison for gangland prisoners, RTÉ reports. They made the comments at their annual conference yesterday, saying that criminal gangs control other criminals, and that it would be easier to manage this situation if they were housed in a separate detention facility.
2. #MORTGAGES None of the State’s banks are to pass on the newly-announced European Central Bank cut to people with variable-rate mortgages, the Irish Times reports. The cut is 0.25 per cent and will benefit 400,000 homeowners, but not those on a variable rate.
3. #ROADS Locals from the area near the stretch of road in Rossaveal in Connemara where a teenage girl was struck by a car this week and killed say they will block the road in protest to how dangerous it is. The Irish Independent says that Leah Ni Fhinneadha was the third person to die on the road in recent years.
4. #PROSTITUTION TDs are to debate plans to ‘name and shame’ those who pay for sex. Deputy Thomas Pringle is to table a bill today which will criminalise men who pay for sex. Pringle said that the legislation would reduce the demand for sexual services, and in turn reduce the incidence of prostitution in society. The bill would also clear the way for details of those offences to be publicised in press reports.
5. #ABORTION The Irish Family Planning Association said yesterday at a press briefing on the proposed abortion bill that it has seen an increase in ‘amateur abortions’, where women attempt abortions at home. One clinic saw three such women in the first three months of this year, the Irish Times reports.
6. #COURTS A man cleared of sexual assault has said that people accused in such cases should remain anonymous until they have been found guilty. Eamon Power (35) from Limerick, was found not guilty of an alleged attack on a teenage girl, and said after the verdict yesterday that he has been called a scumbag after his name was published in the press.
7. #BOSTON The body of suspected Boston Marathon bomber Tamerlan Tsarnaev has been claimed by a funeral home to be returned to his family. The medical examiner determined Tsarnaev’s cause of death on Monday but it won’t be disclosed until his remains are released and a death certificate is filed.
8. #PAKISTAN A prosecutor working on the murder case of ex-Pakistani prime minister Benazir Bhutto has been shot dead. Chaudhry Zulfiqar was shot multiple times after gunmen intercepted his vehicle shortly after he left his home. The assassination comes days before Pakistan holds historic general elections. No one has been convicted or jailed for Bhutto’s death.
9. #OBAMA Are Michelle Obama and daughters Malia and Sasha considering coming to Ireland? The Irish Times reports that plans are being made for the family to accompany President Barack Obama when he attends the G8 summit in Northern Ireland in June. It is reported to be unlikely that Obama will visit the Republic during his G8 trip.
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