HEADLINES
Irish Times
Up to 900 jobs under threat as Ulster Bank to cut costs
NAMA prepares to take control of Treasury Holdings properties
Fatalistic, pessimistic Irish still worth a visit, says guide book
Irish Examiner
€116m spend and not 1 house built
Revenue chairwoman apologises for pensions letter fiasco
Don’t pack your bags: The best destination this year is… Ireland
Irish Independent
Thousands face axe in bank jobs bloodbath
Mortgage write off ‘no free for all’
After 30 years, scientists prove why alcohol is fun
Triggs’ tale: a dog’s life with Keano
We’re sorry, tax chief tells distressed elderly
The Irish Sun
Sinead: My overdose hell
The Irish Daily Star
Killer bit off man’s ear then posted it back
The Irish Daily Mail
The pensions blame game
Irish Daily Mirror
Dad crashes trying to snatch his children
INSIDE THE PAPERS
One of the world’s best-selling travel guides has ranked going to a pub as the greatest experience a tourist can have in Ireland, page 5 of the Irish Examiner and the front page of the Irish Times report. We’re told the latest edition of Lonely Planet Ireland – whose coordinating author is Newstalk presenter Fionn Davenport – has found tourists love going for a pint above going to Connemara, Dublin, listening to trad music, hiking and seeing the sights of Dingle. It also says everything good in Ireland can be found in Cork.
They’re said to be the best days of your life, but more than 180 parents were brought to court last year for failing to send their children to school. Page 10 of the Irish Independent tells us that as part of the growing crackdown on truancy, nine people were sentenced to prison. However it’s not known how many of these spent time in prison because of overcrowding. The biggest challenge is 14 to 15 year old boys. Schools with high levels of non attendance are more likely to have children from local authority housing, more lone parent families and more families where the main earner is unemployed.
The front page of the Irish Examiner tells us that after five years and a spend of €116 million, not a single house has been built under Limerick’s regeneration plan, and some families are now worse off than before. The head of the Limerick Regeneration Agency, Brendan Kenny, said the plan to transform Moyross, Southill, Ballinacurra Weston and St Mary’s Park had left some families worse off — with 1,000 residents moving out because of the lack of progress. However, he said the plan must go ahead, if the areas were not to deteriorate further. The original plan envisaged a spend of €3 billion — a combination of €1.6bn in public funds and €1.4bn in private funding — but just €116m has been allocated by the Government. Almost €90m of that has gone to Limerick City Council for the demolition of about 900 houses during the course of the regeneration programme to date.
A gold rocking horse, a crystal high chair and mini Bugatti – these are just some of the items Blue Ivy Carter’s received from her parents, so says page 3 of the Irish Examiner. Baby Blue is the daughter of pop singer Beyonce and husband Jay Z. They’ve reported spent €484,000 on the rocking horse and have had each nursery in their three homes decorated identically so the baby feels at home when they’re travelling.
Page 3 of the Irish Examiner tells us that internet addiction affects the brain like drugs do, according to new research. Web addiction disrupts nerve wirings in the brains of people exposed to alcohol, cocaine and cannabis. The discovery shows that being hooked on a behaviour can be as damaging as being hooked on a substance. The study was carried out by scientists from the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Wuhan.
Smartphone users are suffering from anxiety and withdrawal symptoms when they do not receive any messages, a study has revealed. Page 3 of the Irish Daily Mail tells us that some users are so hooked on the gadgets that they even report feeling phantom vibrations, convincing them that they’ve received a text or call when they haven’t. More than a third of adults now own a smartphone such as an iPhone or Blackberry, which offer quick and easy access to the internet, but scientists believe that the reliance on the phones is having a detrimental effect on our mental health.
Those looking to boycott the €100 household charge are being asked to stump up a fiver to do so. Page 9 of the Irish Independent tells us that the Campaign Against Household and Water Taxes said it hoped to receive a €5 membership fee from some 50,000 homes. This will go towards creating a war chest of a quarter of a million euro. Reacting to the launch of the campaign last night, a spokesperson for Environment Minister Phil Hogan said it amounted to “organised law breaking”.
A quarter of office workers suffer “chronic boredom” which leads them to seek comfort in food, coffee and alcohol, so says page 5 of the Daily Telegraph. A new study has found workers said they ate chocolate and drank endless cups of coffee to try and relieve the tedium, while others admitted a dull day made them more likely to drink alcohol after it was over. The study was carried out by the University of Central Lancashire.
“Scientists prove why alcohol is fun” reads the headline on the front page of the Irish Independent. We’re told drinking alcohol makes people feel better because it produces the same chemicals in the brain as exercising and laughing. Alcohol is addictive because it releases endorphins, which are the body’s way of making us feel pleasure and reward, researchers have found. The study was carried out in the University of California.
Former Fianna Fail government minister Mary Hanafin looks set for a stint on the telly, according to page 10 of the Irish Independent. She’s been appointed as a judge on a new 10 part series on TG4 called “An G Team”. The programme aims to get people in English speaking communities to speak as Gaeilge every day.
