LAST UPDATE | 27 Jan 2020

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

1. #RIP: Tributes have been paid to basketball legend Kobe Bryant, who was killed in a helicopter crash along with his young daughter in Los Angeles last night.

2. #CORONAVIRUS: The death toll from a new virus which originated in China has risen to 80, health officials in the country have confirmed.

3. #OVERSPEND: The cost of refurbishing a factory in Meath owned by a State agency is expected to reach triple its original price, TheJournal.ie has learned.

4. #FGM: The parents of a young girl who is deemed to have undergone female genital mutilation are due to be sentenced later today.

5. #BREXIT: Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has warned the UK that the EU will have the upper hand in post-Brexit trade talks because it has a “stronger team” due to its far larger population and market. 

6. #GRAMMYS: Pop singer Billie Eilish was the big winner at last night’s Grammys, winning five awards including Album of the Year, Song of the Year, Record of the Year and Best New Artist.

7. #MASS: The funeral of Seamus Mallon, the North’s former deputy first minister, will be held in Co Armagh this morning.

8. #IMPEACHMENT: Democrats in the US have renewed calls for the former National Security Adviser John Bolton to testify in Donald Trump’s impeachment trial following claims he made about the country’s relationship with Ukraine in an unpublished book.

9. #WEATHER: There will be sun and scattered showers across the country today, with showers most frequent in the west. Top temperatures will be between 3 and 6 degrees Celsius.

Comments have been closed as one of the stories above involves an active court case.

On the go? You can now listen to the 9 at 9 as an audio bulletin from TheJournal.ie, supported by Volkswagen. Get started by hitting the button below.