An Bord Plealána begins fresh investigation into governance issues
An Bord Pleanála has started another round of investigations into governance issues in the authority on the heels of a senior barrister’s unpublished report on “matters of concern” in the organisation that took 20 months to complete.
The planning appeals body has struggled to overcome turmoil set off by allegations of impropriety in the spring of 2022, with a large backlog of planning cases still to be cleared at a time of crisis in the housing market.
News in Ireland
- Firms that got University Hospital Limerick contracts were staff owned: Two companies which received more than €1.5 million between them in contracts awarded by University Hospital Limerick without a competitive procurement process were owned or part-owned by employees at the facility.
- ‘There’s not a bad word I could speak about Ireland’: Rugby star Bundee Aki gains Irish citizenship: Ireland rugby international Bundee Aki was one of 3,600 people who became Irish citizens on Monday in ceremonies taking place at the Convention Centre in Dublin.
- ‘You see drivers watching matches, people eating breakfast cereal, putting on make-up’: There’s not much gardaí from the Dublin Roads Policing Unit haven’t seen as they go about the business of trying to catch drivers breaking the law behind the wheel.
- Average worker to gain by at least €1,000 in Budget 2025, says Chambers: An average worker should see benefits of at least €1,000 from income tax reductions and cost-of-living payments in the budget in October, Minister for Finance Jack Chambers has said.
- Student accommodation crisis: Three applications for every bed on campus: Universities are citing significant increases in demand for campus accommodation and the Department of Education is looking at ways to help with accommodation costs through the Student Universal Support Ireland (Susi) system, according to a new paper published by the department.
- All you need to know about the National Ploughing Championships - tickets, map and getting there: The ploughing is by any measure a massive deal as it heads into its 93rd year. In fact, it is one of the biggest outdoor events to take place anywhere in Europe this year.
- Weather forecast: And there is good news for anyone heading to the National Ploughing Championships today as any early mist will clear to leave a dry, pleasant day with long spells of warm sunshine. Highest temperatures 18 to 22 or 23 degrees. Tonight will be dry with mostly clear skies, though with a few mist and fog patches forming. Lowest temperatures of 6 to 11 degrees.
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Your Money
- How to make it easier for your loved ones to look after your finances when you die: It’s something most of us don’t like to think about but unexpected death is possible for us all. And while it might no longer be a concern for us, what bank accounts or investments we have and where they are is going to be important to know about for those we leave behind.
Opinion
- Fintan O’Toole: Ireland fixates on the ghosts of the past, and is blind to the abuses still happening
- Elaine Maguire O’Connor: Why our addiction to cheap, disposable clothing is an environmental disaster
Business
- Employee-vetting service needed to tackle ‘serial fraudsters’: The Government has been called on by a leading recruitment firm to introduce a robust employee-vetting service to tackle what it claims is a growing trend of “litigious employees submitting bogus claims” against employers.
Sports
- Tough days await but Ireland’s women are starting to show what they can do: Rewind to when Scott Bemand began his tenure as Ireland women’s head coach in August last year, and the notion that Ireland would be beating Australia 36-10 with the brand of rugby they played in Belfast last Saturday would, frankly, have seemed like fantasy.
- Richie Murphy has a tough hand for his first full season at Ulster: After five seasons of relative progress and solidity under Dan McFarland – the last-ditch semi-final defeat away to the Stormers denying them a home final against the Bulls in 2022 being the one that got away – last season it all came apart for Ulster.
World
- Trump assassination attempt: Suspect appears in Florida court charged with gun crimes: Ryan Routh, the man arrested on Sunday for perpetrating what the FBI categorised as an apparent assassination attempt on Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, appeared in a Florida federal court on Monday where he was charged with firearms possession.
- Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs arrested in New York after federal indictment: Sean “Diddy” Combs was arrested late on Monday in New York, where he faces a sealed criminal indictment, prosecutors announced late on Monday.
New to the Parish
- ‘I can walk in the streets of Dublin, not afraid’: Wilson Silva tells a funny story about the miscommunications that can arise when learning a new language. From Brasilia, the capital of Brazil, he had moved here in 2018 to learn English at a language school. Working part-time as a restaurant waiter, he was asked to display a sign with daily specials close to the till.
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