EVERY MORNING, TheJournal.ie brings you the nine stories you need to know as you kick off your day.
1. #JILL MEAGHER: The man accused of killing Irish woman Jill Meagher in Australia has pleaded not guilty to her murder. Adrian Bayley pleaded guilty to one charge of rape at a committal hearing at Melbourne Magistrates’ Court today but said he was not guilty of two other charges of rape. Jill’s husband Tom walked out of the courtroom after Bayley entered his pleas.
2. #NICOLA FURLONG: The mother and sister of Irish student Nicola Furlong have given statements at the trial of the man accused of her murder and spoken of their pain over the death of the 21-year-old. RTE reports that two jurors and one of the judges cried as the women gave their statements.
3. #IL PAPA: 115 cardinals from around the world will enter into conclave in the Sistine Chapel later today and begin the process of electing a new Pope. Here’s how the new leader of the Roman Catholic church will be chosen.
4. #PENALTY POINTS: Independent TD Luke ‘Ming’ Flanagan is to address the Dáil today over claims that he had penalty points wiped from his record two years ago, despite having previously denied having points removed. Flanagan said on Twitter that he will reveal how he was contacted by Gardaí who asked if he wanted the points wiped.
5. #FALKLANDS: In the end, it was almost unanimous: 99.8 per cent of voters in the Falkland Islands have voted to remain a British overseas territory. Just three people voted no in the referendum.
6. #INTERNET: A secondary school in Limerick has suspended 28 students after they ‘liked’ a Facebook post which made reference to the personal lives of teachers in the school, the Irish Examiner reports. Noel Malone, the principal of Coláiste Chíaráin, said the incident was a “gross invasion of the personal lives of members of our school community”.
7. #WEATHER: Last night was one of the coldest nights of the year, with temperatures dropping as low as -7 degrees Celsius in the west of the country. There’s going to be a brief respite from the freezing cold for a brief spell this afternoon, but Met Éireann has warned that tonight is going to be another cold one with temperatures dropping as low as -3 degrees.
8. #KNOCK AIRPORT: Concerns have been raised about the future of Ireland West Airport at Knock in Mayo as a local group has called on the government to invest some €75 million in the airport over the next five years in a bid to secure the jobs of the 150 people who work there.
9. #TCD JAILBREAK: Two Trinity College Dublin students who made it as far as Argentina without spending a cent have received help from an unexpected source to get them home. Singer Chris de Burgh has apparently come to the aid of the two students who ended up stranded in South America with no way home after they won the TCD Jailbreak fundraising competition to get as far away from Trinity as possible.
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