5 Things you need to read today

1. Nice terror attack: France in shock

At least 84 people were killed and 18 people were in a critical condition after a gunman drove a heavy truck at high speed into a crowd in the southern French sea resort of Nice, a spokesman for the French interior ministry said. The truck driver was a 31 year-old Franco-Tunisian born in Tunisia, a police source close to the investigation earlier said. Many were wounded in the attack along the famed seafront Promenade des Anglais as the fireworks ended just after 10.30 pm (8.30pm GMT). The driver also opened fire before police shot him dead. In a pre-dawn address to the nation, President Francois Hollande said he was calling up military and police reservists to relieve forces worn out by an eight-month state of emergency begun after the Islamic State militant group killed 130 people in Paris.

[ The state of emergency was extended by three months. ]

http://iti.ms/29M3a7K

2. Number of vacant houses ‘scandalous’

There are almost 260,000 vacant homes across the country,

[ preliminary figures from the latest census show ]

, prompting campaigners and housing experts to call for urgent action to address the State’s “dysfunctional” housing system. The census found there are almost 260,000 vacant homes in the State – 61,204 of which are vacant holiday homes – at a time when homeless families are having to be accommodated in hotel and B&B type accommodation. Dr Lorcan Sirr, lecturer in housing studies and urban economics at the Dublin Institute of Technology, said that when holiday homes were taken out of the figures, the 198,000 vacant homes represented 9.7 per cent of the total housing stock. “The vacancy rate is roughly twice what it should be,” he said. Vacancy rates for housing vary widely by county but the overall rate stands at 12.8 per cent. Total vacant dwellings in Dublin, including holiday homes, numbered more than 36,000. In Leinster vacant dwellings including holiday homes numbered more than 90,000, for Munster there were more than 83,000, for Connacht more than 52,000 and parts of Ulster more than 33,000. http://iti.ms/29M3i7q

3. Theresa May’s ruthless cull

Nobody doubted that Theresa May would move quickly to put her stamp on the government she inherited from David Cameron, but the scale and brutality of her cabinet reshuffle has left Westminster reeling. Her cull of Cameron’s most senior lieutenants was especially impressive, sacking his two closest allies, George Osborne and Oliver Letwin, in short order. Michael Gove, who destroyed his own reputation during his bungled, treacherous attempt to seize the Tory crown, was sacked too, removing all traces of the once-dominant Notting Hill set from cabinet.

[ There were other sackings and resignations too, but the evisceration of the smart metropolitans who formed the heart of Cameron’s coterie was the most striking break with the past ]

. May’s decision to put David Davis in charge of the Brexit negotiations and to give Liam Fox international trade place the responsibility for securing a bright future for Britain outside the EU firmly in the laps of the Brexiteers. And there is a nice irony in promoting her vanquished rival Andrea Leadsom to the cabinet, only to lumber her with the task of telling farmers how their EU subsidies will be replaced. http://iti.ms/29UB2xP

4. Microsoft wins appeal over access to Irish emails

Microsoft will not be forced to turn over emails stored in Ireland to the US government for a drug investigation, an appeals court said in a decision that may affect data security throughout the US technology industry. In a ruling yesterday, which will be closely studied by the technology industry in Ireland, the court overturned a 2014 decision ordering Microsoft to hand over messages of a suspected drug trafficker. The company argued that would create a “global free-for-all” with foreign countries forcing companies to turn over evidence stored in the US. The government said a ruling in favour of Microsoft would create legal loophole to be exploited by fraudsters, hackers and drug traffickers.The law doesn’t “authorise courts to issue and enforce against US-based service providers warrants for the seizure of customer e-mail content that is stored exclusively on foreign servers,” US circuit Judge Susan Carney wrote for the majority of the New York appeals court.

[ The US government is considering its options, Peter Carr, a spokesman for the US Department of Justice, said in a statement ]

.”Lawfully accessing information stored by American providers outside the United States quickly enough to act on evolving criminal or national security threats that impact public safety is crucial to fulfilling our mission to protect citizens and obtain justice for victims of crime,” Carr said. http://iti.ms/29M49EW

5. Six offbeat acts to see at Longitude

You get the feeling that Longitude is a festival with a sense of humour. Behold the sylvan setting, with the Dublin mountains as a backdrop, with little wooden bridges over ponds and trees to take shade or shelter under, depending on what time of the day it is. But sweet suffering Paul on the road to Damascus, you sure have to work hard to get there.

[ Despite the fact that the festival has been running since 2013, transport to and from Marlay Park remains a complicated business ]

. Yes, Dublin Bus goes there, but on evidence of previous years, don’t expect a massive increase in services. You’ve got five lines to choose from: the 16, 116, 161, 14 and 15. All will be packed. Many will sail gaily past you like merry little sardine cans on wheels. A better option are the coaches run by Marathon Tours from George’s Quay. These sell out so buy tickets in advance online. They are also cheaper this way: it’s a tenner in advance or €15 on the day. Services run at noon, 13:00, 14:00, 15:00, 16:00, 17:00 and 18:00. See bushiredublin.net for more details, which we are disappointed to note has nothing to do with angry shrubbery. http://iti.ms/29UBqN1

Misc

Irish news:

[ Denis O’Brien ‘profiler’ worked for private investigation firm ]

http://iti.ms/29M5ifI

Europe:

[ Ukraine’s disappeared cast a long shadow over a divided nation ]

http://iti.ms/29UBEDF

US Election:

[ US Supreme Court judge regrets calling Donald Trump ‘a faker’ ]

http://iti.ms/29M5hsj

Ireland’s GDP figures:

[ Why 26% economic growth is a problem ]