GOOD MORNING.

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

Child maintenance 

1. In our lead story this morning, Michelle Hennessy reports that the government has been urged to establish a dedicated child maintenance service which would remove the burden from lone parents in cases of non-payment.

Support services for lone parents have pointed out that the only option available now if a liable parent refuses to pay maintenance is to pursue them through the courts.

They have said this process is adversarial, costly and time-consuming, but if parents want to receive certain State supports they have to show that they sought maintenance payments in the courts. 

Donetsk 

2. Ukraine’s President has called on civilians to evacuate the frontline Donetsk region, the scene of fierce clashes with the Russian military, as Kyiv called on the Red Cross and UN to gain access to its soldiers being held by Moscow’s forces.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned in his daily address last night that thousands of people, including children, were still in the region’s battleground areas, with six civilians killed and 15 wounded on Friday.

Sabina Higgins letter

3. A Fianna Fáil senator has called on Michael D Higgins to make a public statement to “express clearly” the Irish support for Ukraine following viewpoints in a letter by Sabina Higgins that the Russian Ambassador said “makes sense”.

A Ukrainian MP called the letter “underinformed” and said “it is not enough for one side to want peace – it needs to be mutual”.

UK

4. The UK’s Prince Charles accepted a £1 million (€1.19 million) payment from the family of Osama bin Laden, it has been reported.

The Sunday Times said he secured the money from Bakr bin Laden, the patriarch of the wealthy Saudi family, and his brother Shafiq, who are both half-brothers of the former al Qaida leader.

Joe Biden Covid-19

5. US President Joe Biden has tested positive for Covid-19 again by antigen testing and is returning to isolation, though he “continues to feel quite well”, his White House doctor said.

Hospitals

6. Nurses are dreading the prospect of a “twindemic” of flu and Covid-19 amid severe overcrowding in Irish hospitals, their union has said.

The Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation said that more than 9,191 patients went without a bed during July – a 52% increase on July 2021.

Belfast Pride

7. Thousands of people lined the streets of Belfast yesterday as the city’s Pride parade returned for the first time in three years.

Organisers said the Pride parade was the biggest one ever held in Belfast, with the number of groups taking part in the colourful procession up significantly on the last staging in 2019.

Gluas

8. After decades of gridlock choking streets and roads, ‘traffic’ has firmly lodged itself alongside ‘tribes’, ‘arts’, ‘races’, and ‘rain’ as words that trip off the tongue when people talk about Galway city.

A long-proposed light rail ‘Gluas’ tram system has recently gained fresh impetus thanks to technological advancements which promise cheaper tramlines with less disruptive installation works required.

Island living 

9. A scheme to house a family on Inis Meáin for a year with free rent has garnered “huge interest” from applicants in Ireland and abroad.

The scheme is aimed at a family with a functional level of Irish, with children in pre-school or primary school.