LAST UPDATE | 8 Jul 2022

GOOD MORNING.

Here’s all the news that you need to know as you start your day. 

Poultry manure

1. In our lead story this morning, Noteworthy’s Niall Sargent reports that the deaths of at least 80 cattle in the last decade are linked to the spread of poultry manure.

A cross-border investigation in collaboration with The Guardian and The Detail revealed concerns about regulation of the trade in poultry litter, an increasingly important natural fertiliser used on crops and vegetables.

If poorly managed, producing the litter can cause environmental impacts and human health risks,

Assassination attempt

2. Japan’s former prime minister Shinzo Abe was shot at a campaign event today, prompting tributes from global politicians.

Local media reported that the country’s longest-serving leader was showing no vital signs as he was rushed to hospital.

One man, believed to be the shooter, has been taken into custody. 

Boris Johnson

3. Former BBC correspondent in Belfast Brian Rowan writes for The Journal that Boris Johnson’s damage to Northern Ireland cannot be easily repaired.

“Those of us who witnessed events at Stormont in the early weeks of 2020, learned all we needed to know about Boris Johnson – the clown Prime Minister who reduced government to a circus,” Rowan writes.

No confidence

4. Sinn Féin is tabling a motion of no-confidence in the government today after it lost its Dáil majority on Wednesday.

Party leader Mary Lou McDonald confirmed the plan this morning, with the aim of holding the vote before the Dáil breaks next week for its summer recess.

G20 meeting

5. Both Russian and US envoys have gathered today for a meeting of G20 foreign ministers in Indonesia where the host has told them that the war in Ukraine must end.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov were in the country for the start of day-long talks along with other countries. 

Ahead of the meeting, a senior US official said: “It clearly cannot be business as usual when it comes to Russia’s involvement and engagement in enterprises like the G20.” 

Covid-19

6. In his final letter to the Minister for Health as Chief Medical Officer, Dr Tony Holohan said that hospitals are likely to come under “considerable pressure” as more people are admitted with Covid-19.

He warned that the health hsystem’s capacity to carry out other procedures may be compromised as numbers rise.

The new BA.5 sub-variant of Omicron is now the most dominant in Ireland, accounting for 43% of all infections. 

Minneapolis

7. Former police officer Derek Chauvin has been sentenced to 21 years in prison for violating George Floyd’s civil rights after agreeing to a plea deal that called for a sentence between 20 and 25 years.

Federal prosecutors had sought the top end of the range, arguing that Chauvin killed Floyd in cold blood, while Chauvin’s attorney pushed for 20 years.

During the hearing, Chauvin told Floyd’s family that he “wishes all the best” for Floyd’s children but did not make a direct apology or expression of remorse to the family. 

Sentenced

8. A man from Co Meath who kidnapped and threatened to kill his ex-wife has been sentenced to five years in prison.

William O’Donnell (24) drove his former wife Brigid Reilly around Northern Ireland for 24 hours to try to evade gardaí in September 2021.

The former couple had married in 2016 but received an annullment in 2019.

Crypto theft

9. More than €5.4 million was returned to six victims of cryptocurrency theft last year.

A new report from the Criminal Assets Bureau details an investigation by the Garda National Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau and officers from a Homeland Security Investigation team in the US  into the theft of a large amount of cryptocurrency.

The crimes were perpetuated by an organised crime group.