EVERY MORNING, TheJournal.ie brings you all the news you need to know as you start the day.

1. #TAOISEACH: Leo Varadkar signed off on a plan to give former Taoisigh special supports, including VIP airport facilities, just four months after he took office in 2017. 

2. #SHORTAGES: Crumlin Hospital said it “sincerely regrets” that a number of children’s chemotherapy sessions have been postponed this month due to a shortage of beds. 

3. #THREAT: The government has been warned that spying by overseas intelligence services in Ireland is a growing threat to national security, the Irish Times reports. 

4. #NEW ZEALAND: Divers have been searching in contaminated waters to find the bodies of two people killed in the White Island volcanic eruption. 

5. #TRUMP: The US Supreme Court has agreed to hear cases next year over the release of Donald Trump’s tax returns and financial records. 

6. #BREXIT: British Prime Minister Boris Johnson pledged to heal the divisions of Brexit and says he has an “overwhelming mandate” to leave the EU by the end of January.  

7. #FACTCHECK: Arlene Foster did not bring an Irish passport to the polling station when casting her vote on Thursday, TheJournal.ie found in a FactCheck. 

8. #WEATHER: There is currently a status yellow wind warning in place for Donegal and a status yellow snow/ice warning for Cavan, Donegal, Leitrim, Mayo, Roscommon and Sligo.  

9. #GREEN CHRISTMAS: 50% of people say they are planning a more environmentally friendly Christmas this year, according to a survey for RTÉ’s Claire Byrne Live/TheJournal.ie.