EVERY MORNING, TheJournal.ie brings you the nine things you need to know as you start your day.

1.#ABORTION: The Taoiseach Enda Kenny has hit back at negative comments made by the Roman Catholic Church regarding new draft abortion legislation, making it clear that the shape of the new laws would not be dictated by religious belief. “My book is the Constitution, and the Constitution is determined by the people,” Kenny is quoted as saying in response to a warning by Cardinal Sean Brady that the church would be “mobilising” against the bill.

2. #SMALL CHANGE: The Taoiseach and Tánaiste are to travel to Brussels today for a special ‘top level’ meeting about the EU Budget with José Manuel Barroso, the president of the European Commission, and Martin Schulz, the president of the European Parliament. The four will discuss the EU’s Multi-Annual Financial Framework (MFF), which governs how €960 billion in EU funds will be spent over the course of six years,  in a bid to push for an early agreement.

3. #UNFINISHED DEMOCRACY: The Minister for Children Frances Fitzgerald says Ireland has an “unfinished democracy” because there are so few women in the Dáil. “Any place where there isn’t equality – where there isn’t at least a 30 per cent representation of women – isn’t getting the full story on any issue,” Fitzgerald told TheJournal.ie. The minister added that childcare provision, access to money and support systems all needed to be looked at to create a more equal society.

4. #TORTURE: The United Nations committee against torture is to examine human rights in Northern Ireland this week, with issues like prison conditions to be considered. Amnesty International has said it will raise its concerns about the authorities having failed to properly deal with the legacy of the Troubles as part of the UN investigation.

5. #AUSTRALIA: An inquiry has opened in Australia into the alleged cover-up of sexual abuse by the Roman Catholic Church in New South Wales. The inquiry will focus on two former priests, Denis McAlinden and James Flectcher, both of whom are now dead.

6. #STRIKES: The US says it was given no warning ahead of yesterday’s air strikes, attributed to Israel, on a military target outside Damascus, Reuters reports. A senior Israeli source said the aerial assault took out Iranian weapons destined for the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, which is allied to the Syrian regime. Syria has vowed to  retaliate.

7 . #PROTESTS: Authorities in Bangladesh have taken control of central business district in the capital Dhaka, following a large demonstration by Islamists who had gathered to demand stricter Islamic laws in the country. At least seven people are believed to have died in the demonstrations.

8. #SAN FRANCISCO: Five women have died in San Francisco after the limousine in which they were travelling for a hen party erupted into flames, RTÉ News reports. The vehicle caught on fire on one of the city’s busiest bridges, trapping five inside. Four women other women, including the bride-to-be, and the driver managed to escape the flames.

9. #3D PRINTER: The first gun made using 3D printer technology has been fired successfully in the US – and the controversial group which created the firearm says it plans to make the blueprints available online. Defense Distributed spent a year developing the firearm before making it using a 3D printer sourced on eBay, according to the BBC. Europe’s law enforcement agency is reportedly monitoring developments.