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

1. #RELEASED: Former Fianna Fáil TD Ned O’Keeffe has been released without charge after being arrested yesterday on suspicion of using a false invoice to claim for mobile phone expenses while he was a member of the Dáil. A file is being prepared for the Director of Public Prosecutions in relation to the case.

2. #BOMB: A large viable bomb has been found in Newry, close to the Irish border. The BBC reports that a member of the public spotted a suspicious vehicle abandoned close to Newry Canal last night. The PSNI said the device contained a significant amount of explosives and had the potential to kill.

3. #ROADS: Gardaí are investigating after a 19-year-old woman was killed in a car crash in Cork last night. The two car collision happened at Fota Road in Cobh at around 9pm. The driver of the other car involved was not injured.

4. #YOUNG OFFENDERS: Forty per cent of inmates in St Patrick’s Institution for offenders between the ages of 16 to 21 are under protection for their own safety, according to new figures. The Irish Penal Reform Trust has said that the figures are the highest in the Irish prison system.

5. #HOUSEHOLD CHARGE: The latest figures for the household charge show under one million properties in the country have been registered for the controversial charge, nearly one month after the deadline. Figures released by the Local Government Management Agency show the State has received just over €71 million from the payment of the €100 charge. Around €18.9 million worth of postal applications are still to be processed.

6. #SICK LEAVE: The government is planning to introduce major cuts to public sector sick leave arrangements in a bid to reduce current sick leave costs by €500 million. According to a report in today’s Irish Times, the process is due to get underway on Tuesday when the government will put forward proposals to reduce payments to employees on sick leave.

7. #MORTGAGES: Banks are concerned that huge numbers of customers may seek write-offs on their mortgages after details emerged yesterday of a successful renegotiation by a nurse, according to a number of reports today. The Irish Independent says that New Beginning, the group which works with people in debt on their homes, expects thousands more homeowners to attempt to negotiate deals on their mortgages.

8. #DSK: Dominique Strauss-Kahn, the former head of the IMF, has accused his political opponents of orchestrating the scandal which erupted last year when he was accused of sexually assaulting a maid in a New York hotel. In an interview in today’s Guardian, Strauss-Kahn says the subsequent investigation, which ended his chance of running for president of France, was “shaped by those with a political agenda”.

9. #THE REEK: Taoiseach Enda Kenny is set to climb Croagh Patrick with Ireland football manager Giovanni Trapattoni later today as part of a charity fundraising initiative. The climb, which will benefit charities including Mayo Mountain Rescue, the John Giles Foundation and Mayo and Roscommon Hospice, kicks of at 12 noon. Hope you’ve been training, lads…