Every afternoon, TheJournal.ie brings you 5 things you really need to know by 5pm.

1. # STUDENT PROTEST: As many of 40,000 students took to the streets of Dublin today to protest against the government’s proposal to increase third level registration fees.

Violence reportedly broke out after demonstrators were forcibly removed from a sit-down protest in the Department of Finance on Merrion Row by gardaí in riot gear.

The current fee stands at €1,500 but it is speculated to rise to as much as €2,500.

2. # INDONESIA: The Indonesian volcano Mount Merapi has erupted again, forcing more people to evacuate their homes. About 75,000 people have been evacuated since the volcano’s first eruption last week.

Although no casualties have yet been reported, this eruption is reportedly one of the strongest to hit the archipelago in the past week. A total of 36 people have died so far as a result of the eruptions.

3. # GREENS: The Green Party has said that the government should hold a Donegal by-election immediately. In a statement released today, the Greens said that there had been an “unreasonable” delay in the holding of an election to replace Pat ‘the Cope’ Gallagher.

4. # BANAMA REPUBLIC: It has been revealed that the agency loaned a further €47m to developers earlier this year – including some of those on its books who are failing to repay the debts they already owe.

The agency has a €5bn fund for lending to developers if it feels it is in the taxpayer’s best interests.

5. # UNEMPLOYMENT: And finally a bit of good news: the number of people on the Live Register fell by 6,600 in October.