NEED TO CATCH up? The Journal brings you a round-up of today’s news.

IRELAND

Pictured at Dundrum Town Centre is Santa with Emilia Ward (7), Nicole Perez Petrolli and Bobby Governey (both 6) from the Miss Ali Stage School, as the festive celebrations get underway. Sasko Lazarov Sasko Lazarov

• HSE boss Paul Reid has called for an “immediate reduction” in risky activities by the public, as the number of patients in intensive care with Covid-19 passed 100.
• Public health officials have confirmed 4,642 new cases of Covid-19 in Ireland, marking the fifth highest daily figure in the country to date.
• There’s little appetite for more restrictions among members of Government sources.
• There have been “relatively few” incidents of spiking by injection, according to emergency medicine doctors. 
• Labour leader Alan Kelly told his party’s conference that there’s a hunger for an alternative in Irish politics. 
• A man was charged with sexual exploitation and online grooming of a young boy using Instagram.
• Gardaí arrested a man in connection with a serious assault that occurred in Longford early this morning.
• Austin Currie was remembered as a man of “immense courage” at his funeral in Tyrone. 

INTERNATIONAL

Protesters demonstrate during the Cop26 talks in Glasgow (Jane Barlow/PA)

#CLIMATE: The COP26 climate conference has ended with an agreement between world leaders.  

#ERITREA: The country has criticised the United States today for slapping new sanctions on itself over the deadly conflict in neighbouring Ethiopia, calling the move “illicit and immoral”.

PARTING SHOT 

In a sign that the conclusion to COP26 was taking its time, one attendee set up a Twitter account to help express their frustrations.

It asked the question everyone wanted answered, namely, has there been white smoke signaling the end of the conference? It had a happy ending eventually, depending on your point of view…