Top Stories: Saracens travel to the Madejski Stadium on Sunday as first meets second in the Guinness Premiership. England Saxons centre Brad Barritt returns to the starting line-up after a spell on rotation whi... Planet Rugby Thu, 24 Dec 2009 09:12:49 -0500Numbers travelling through Dublin Airport over the Christmas period are expected to be down by 12%.The airport's authority estimates that 730,000 people will travel through the airport in the weeks be... Breaking News.ie Thu, 24 Dec 2009 09:01:37 -0500London Irish star Delon Armitage will make his first start following injury after being named in the team to take on league leaders Saracens.Armitage, who made a try-scoring return from the bench agai... BBC Sport Thu, 24 Dec 2009 08:49:29 -0500Institute may have to sell players to ease financial difficulties at the Carling Premiership club.Staff and players have already taken a pay cut but boss John Gregg now faces losing some his top playe... BBC Thu, 24 Dec 2009 08:49:06 -0500Former Derry manager Paddy Crozier has been named as the new boss of Tyrone club side Omagh St Enda's.Crozier replaces John McElhom, who is back at his native club Loughmacrory as trainer under new ma... BBC Thu, 24 Dec 2009 08:49:05 -0500Rory Gallagher and his brother Ronan have confirmed their return to county football after being named in Fermanagh's McKenna Cup panel.Having the St Gall's pair back in the squad is a major boost for ... BBC Thu, 24 Dec 2009 08:49:04 -0500END: Module - M24 Article Headline with no image --> BEGIN: Module - Main Article --> The Christmas Radio Times has belatedly appeared in my flat — this is the one time of year when... Times Online Thu, 24 Dec 2009 08:33:04 -0500A Co Galway couple have appeared at a special sitting of Galway District Court on charges of cruelty and neglect of their children. The man was also charged with ten counts of rape against four daugh... RTE News Thu, 24 Dec 2009 07:35:20 -0500Dec 24 2009 A British tourist has gone missing from a Swiss ski resort, police have said. Myles Robinson, 23, was last seen at the Blue Monkey bar in Wengen at around 2am on Tuesday. The Swiss ar... Loughborough Echo Thu, 24 Dec 2009 07:30:31 -0500Dec 24 2009 A six-year-old boy has died after what police have described as an "agricultural incident". The incident happened on Wednesday in the village of Bethlehem in Carmarthenshire, West Wale... Loughborough Echo Thu, 24 Dec 2009 07:30:29 -0500Cork , with Mother Nature providing the magic touches to the church and reception venues yesterday.Copious amounts of table salt were scattered over the entrance to St Columba's Church in Douglas befo... Independent.ie Thu, 24 Dec 2009 07:28:36 -0500More than 750 members of the Defence Forces are serving overseas this Christmas.Two hundred and forth-three troops are in Kosovo while 43 are in Bosnia.Four hundred and twenty-one troops are in Chad -... Breaking News.ie Thu, 24 Dec 2009 07:22:33 -0500The Bishop of Derry, Dr Seamus Hegarty, has said he is unsure whether it would be helpful for more bishops to resign over the Murphy Report.It is the first time the bishop has spoken since the report ... BBC Thu, 24 Dec 2009 07:10:48 -0500There are reports of a gas explosion in County Down.It is understood the explosion happened at a house in the village of Annalong on Thursday. The house is said to be on fire. The police said they hav... BBC Thu, 24 Dec 2009 07:10:46 -0500Dec 24 2009 A Christmas Eve shopping bonanza has begun with many stores launching early sales to entice panic-buyers. Major retailers were reporting brisk business both on high streets and online ... Loughborough Echo Thu, 24 Dec 2009 06:03:00 -0500Dec 24 2009 A restaurant has asked more than 350 diners to sign a legal waiver before eating its £7 Christmas pudding. Neleen Strauss, owner of High Timber, in east London, insisted on the c... Loughborough Echo Thu, 24 Dec 2009 06:02:59 -0500Dec 24 2009 Acid attack survivor Katie Piper urges viewers to "appreciate the beautiful things and the beautiful people that you have in your life now," in Channel 4's alternative to the Queen's Ch... Loughborough Echo Thu, 24 Dec 2009 06:02:58 -0500Dec 24 2009 The mother of murdered schoolgirl Sarah Payne was in a "life-threatening condition" after being rushed to hospital with complications after brain surgery. Child protection campaigner S... Loughborough Echo Thu, 24 Dec 2009 06:02:57 -0500Department of Health to recall certain contaminated batches of lipgloss, eyeshadows and lipstick used as play make-up by children.Batches of children's cosmetics removed from sale due to lead content ... Independent.ie Thu, 24 Dec 2009 06:01:10 -0500Adam Clayton has been given permission for an elaborate lighting system in his period mansion.The musician encountered some problems when he applied to his local authority to have a 'lozenge aperture'... Independent.ie Thu, 24 Dec 2009 06:01:09 -0500"As can be seen the the rate of infection in children under five years is significantly higher than that in the rest of the population."We are reminding parents and guardians that children under five ... Independent.ie Thu, 24 Dec 2009 06:01:07 -0500The remaining Irish bishops named in a report which exposed how Catholic leaders concealed child abuse must resign, a victims group has said.On Wednesday the Bishop of Kildare said he would stand down... BBC Thu, 24 Dec 2009 05:44:18 -0500END: Module - M24 Article Headline with no image --> BEGIN: Module - Main Article --> If I were Lord Mandelson slashing the universities budget I would start with the politics departments... Times Online Thu, 24 Dec 2009 05:28:21 -0500Dublin 's IFSC when they dropped a hoax grenade in the centre of the road as they fled the scene of a robbery.The bomb squad was forced to seal off part of the area after the men -- both in their 20s ... Independent.ie Thu, 24 Dec 2009 04:34:20 -0500Michael Kinane and made off with a substantial haul of jewellery, were being hunted by gardai last night.The gang used a ladder to climb a side wall of Mr Kinane's luxury home near... Independent.ie Thu, 24 Dec 2009 04:34:18 -0500Bishop James Moriarty became the second prelate to resign in the fall-out from the Murphy report. A behind-the-scenes conflict erupted over Bishop Walsh's future in the... Independent.ie Thu, 24 Dec 2009 04:34:17 -0500TWO people were killed in separate road crashes yesterday -- bringing the death toll on the roads this year to 238. A man in his 30s died after his car collided with a truck on the main Cork-Waterford... Independent.ie Thu, 24 Dec 2009 04:34:16 -0500A CIVIL servant who illegally passed "hundreds" of personal records to third parties for their financial gain was suspended on full pay for two years -- and then allowed to retire on a full ... Independent.ie Thu, 24 Dec 2009 04:34:14 -0500Met Eireann was last night playing down the chances of a white Christmas.Meteorologist Michael McAuliffe believes there is a "reasonable chance" of snowfall, but the prospects of it happening in the t... Independent.ie Thu, 24 Dec 2009 04:34:14 -0500THE number of foreign nationals working and getting personal public service numbers (PPSNs) plunged last year as thousands of people left the country in the economic downturn.Despite the huge exodus, ... Independent.ie Thu, 24 Dec 2009 04:34:13 -0500An Post is likely to introduce "a secular option" in its range of traditionally religious Christmas stamps next year."There is some discussion about a more secular Christmas stamp next year , but ther... Independent.ie Thu, 24 Dec 2009 04:34:11 -0500Cork , with Mother Nature providing the magic touches to the church and reception venues yesterday.Copious amounts of table salt were scattered over the entrance to St Columba's Church in Douglas befo... Independent.ie Thu, 24 Dec 2009 04:34:10 -0500A memorial ceremony for those who have lost their lives at sea will be held in Dun Laoighaire in Dublin today.The annual ecumenical service will take place at the lighthouse at the end of the east pie... Breaking News.ie Thu, 24 Dec 2009 04:28:52 -0500New York, NY, December 24, 2009 /EIN News/ -- The Irish have a saying in Gaelic, "Cead mile failte." Translation: A hundred thousand welcomes. From Ireland to Bryant Park, never was this truer than at... 24 / 7 Press Release Thu, 24 Dec 2009 04:18:27 -0500A 19-year-old man has been shot in the legs after he was abducted in north Belfast.Police said the man was bundled into a car in the Hillman Street area at about 1830 GMT on Wednesday. He was driven a... BBC Thu, 24 Dec 2009 04:17:04 -0500Vacant senior garda positions, responsible for investigating and prosecuting terrorism and gang crime cannot be filled because of a Government embargo on recruitment and promotion. The heads of the O... RTE News Thu, 24 Dec 2009 03:13:26 -0500A study from a group representing migrants in Northern Ireland says ethnic minorities have become the new victims of attack since the end of the Troubles. The group says government policy must change ... RTE News Thu, 24 Dec 2009 03:13:25 -0500The Department of Social Welfare has reminded dentists that only customers with confirmed appointments can apply for treatment under the Dental Benefit Scheme. It claims that some dentists have been ... RTE News Thu, 24 Dec 2009 03:13:24 -0500The PSNI is preparing to issue a European warrant for Liam Adams's arrest, but the paperwork could take another four weeks to complete.Adams walked into a police station in Sligo on Monday afternoon b... Irish Examiner Thu, 24 Dec 2009 03:00:25 -0500Gardaí seized more than €42m worth of illegal drugs in major seizures this year.The figure compares with more than €559m in 2008, but €500m of that was captured in a record haul at Castletownbe... Breaking News.ie Thu, 24 Dec 2009 03:00:24 -0500Three men are being questioned by gardaí following the seizure of a handgun in Co Meath.The men were walking along the Alexander Road in Navan yesterday morning when they were picked up by gardaí.Th... Breaking News.ie Thu, 24 Dec 2009 03:00:24 -0500There is increasing pressure on the three remaining Bishops named in the Murphy report to resign.Bishop of Kildare and Leighlin Dr James Moriarty announced yesterday that he has offered his resignatio... Breaking News.ie Thu, 24 Dec 2009 03:00:23 -0500The brother of Sinn Fein President Gerry Adams has said he will not surrender himself to the Police Service of Northern Ireland. Liam Adams' solicitor said his client did not feel he could get a fair ... BBC Thu, 24 Dec 2009 02:49:25 -0500Dec 24 2009 Singing sensation Susan Boyle has revealed she was the happiest she had ever been after her "brilliant year". The Britain's Got Talent runner-up - whose album I Dreamed A Dream is pois... Loughborough Echo Thu, 24 Dec 2009 01:37:20 -0500Dec 24 2009 Barack Obama could receive an early Christmas present in the shape of his landmark health care bill passing through the US Senate. The move would mark another significant step towards ... Loughborough Echo Thu, 24 Dec 2009 01:37:20 -0500Environment Minister John Gormley heaped pressure on Mr Cowen to take action after he joined the chorus of calls for an inquiry to start in the New Year. Such an inquiry, which has been demanded by th... Independent.ie Thu, 24 Dec 2009 01:35:59 -0500THE LOTTO jackpot on St Stephen's night is heading for €2,500,000 after last night's €2m draw failed to produce a winner. All prizes for the draw on Saturday, with the exception of the mai... Independent.ie Thu, 24 Dec 2009 01:35:58 -0500Carlow town. The handful of loyal parishioners who attended 10am Mass in Carlow Cathedral yesterday were all aware of the criticisms of their Bishop in the Murphy report into cover-ups of clerical chi... Independent.ie Thu, 24 Dec 2009 01:35:57 -0500Ireland in 2009. Figures compiled by Nielsen Bookscan for the last full week before Christmas show McCann's acclaimed 'Let The Great World Spin' was the bestselling book in the original fiction catego... Independent.ie Thu, 24 Dec 2009 01:35:55 -0500MORE than half of the prisoners allowed out on parole for Christmas are being detained in low-security centres.The overall temporary release figure of 176 offenders represents an increase of almost tw... Independent.ie Thu, 24 Dec 2009 01:35:54 -0500Rathfarnham area. The garda investigation has been ongoing for some time.The woman was released without charge yesterday morning. Fraud officers will prepare a file for the DPP. Independent.ie Thu, 24 Dec 2009 01:35:53 -0500A MAN under investigation in connection with the fatal road accident which killed Garda Gary McLoughlin last week appeared in court yesterday hours after his release from hospital. Independent.ie Thu, 24 Dec 2009 01:35:52 -0500Joan Brosnan Walsh 's reaction to her debilitating illness was inspiring, the congregation at the popular actor's funeral heard yesterday. Mrs Brosnan Walsh, who was in her 60s, quit the role that mad... Independent.ie Thu, 24 Dec 2009 01:35:50 -0500THE number of foreign nationals working and getting personal public service numbers (PPSNs) plunged last year as thousands of people left the country in the economic downturn.Despite the huge exodus, ... Independent.ie Thu, 24 Dec 2009 01:35:49 -0500John Cornwall , Vatican staff could often hear Pius screaming in the night as he awoke from a nightmare. It seems he had an unquiet mind.Perhaps it was because he was recalling that he had helped the ... Independent.ie Thu, 24 Dec 2009 01:35:48 -0500Minister John Gormley got to grips with some four-legged friends as he announced details of a new bill to safeguard dogs.He met Eggnog the puppy (pictured) at the... Independent.ie Thu, 24 Dec 2009 01:35:47 -0500Department of Health to recall certain contaminated batches of lipgloss, eyeshadows and lipstick used as play make-up by children.Batches of children's cosmetics removed from sale due to lead content ... Independent.ie Thu, 24 Dec 2009 01:35:41 -0500PSNI , which will enable gardai to arrest him and bring him before a designated court.However, it is unlikely that the PSNI will issue the warrant before the new year.Mr Adams can then either agree be... Independent.ie Thu, 24 Dec 2009 01:35:36 -0500Belfast . He said that "after a while" he had "a feeling" that the man was Mr Adams. He had seen a younger photograph of him in a newspaper. Mr Adams told him he was meeting up with his wife later and... Independent.ie Thu, 24 Dec 2009 01:35:32 -0500Oireachtas committees have billed the taxpayer for under €150,000 in international travel costs this year compared to almost €400,000 last year.They still enjoyed a huge travel budget of &eu... Independent.ie Thu, 24 Dec 2009 01:35:31 -0500CHRISTMAS pudding with brandied sea spaghetti and dillisk ice-cream are just some of the seaweed-based dishes that will be gracing Prannie Rhatigan's table on Christmas Day.The medical doctor, who has... Independent.ie Thu, 24 Dec 2009 01:35:29 -0500THE near systemic meltdown of the Irish banking system has led to calls for a public inquiry.Calling for a public inquiry is the easy part. But agreeing on the form that inquiry should take is another... Independent.ie Thu, 24 Dec 2009 01:35:28 -0500A LAST-MINUTE lift in consumer spending in the run-up to Christmas will do little to ease the problems facing retailers around the country.Shops have received a small boost in the last 10 days as peop... Independent.ie Thu, 24 Dec 2009 01:35:26 -0500Stephen Kennedy knew exactly what was going on when the snow-covered field outside began to "move" towards his plane at it touched down.He was among almost 130 passengers on board a... Independent.ie Thu, 24 Dec 2009 01:35:25 -0500THE usual massive mountain of waste will be produced this Christmas but people are being urged to try and dispose of it properly when the party is over.Waste body Repak said yesterday that people will... Independent.ie Thu, 24 Dec 2009 01:35:24 -0500DAMAGES claims totalling €40m over the pork dioxin scare which forced the recall of Irish pig products from the shelves were put on hold yesterday. High Court Judge Mary Laffoy made the decision... Independent.ie Thu, 24 Dec 2009 01:35:22 -0500Dec 24 2009 A teenage British soldier due to be deployed to Afghanistan has gone missing while on holiday with his girlfriend in Tenerife, his mother said. Matthew Jackson, 18, vanished following ... Loughborough Echo Thu, 24 Dec 2009 00:01:24 -0500Dec 24 2009 Millions of people face a stressful Christmas Eve getaway as more ice, snow and freezing temperatures cause another day of travel havoc. Those travelling in northern Britain face the w... Loughborough Echo Thu, 24 Dec 2009 00:01:23 -0500Dec 24 2009 The Ministry of Defence has cancelled dozens of army training exercises to cut costs, it was claimed. The Tories said the cuts, which have reportedly hit the regular as well as the Ter... Loughborough Echo Wed, 23 Dec 2009 20:47:13 -0500Dec 24 2009 Many young people have been drawn into gang membership in an attempt to bolster their weakened sense of identity, the leader of Catholics in England and Wales is due to say. The Most R... Loughborough Echo Wed, 23 Dec 2009 20:47:12 -0500Dec 24 2009 Strictly Come Dancing star Ricky Whittle has been charged with dangerous driving. The 29 year old, who finished runner-up in the BBC dancing show last week, was arrested at the end of ... Loughborough Echo Wed, 23 Dec 2009 20:47:11 -0500LOUISE ROSEINGRAVE AGENCIES SERVING homeless people in Cork say nobody will be turned away from shelter this Christmas as bitterly cold conditions prompt an amalgamation of emergency services.With tem... Irish Times Wed, 23 Dec 2009 20:32:00 -0500SEÁN Mac CONNELL Agriculture Correspondent IRELAND RECORDED only nine cases of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) this year compared with 23 cases last year, official figures show.From a high... Irish Times Wed, 23 Dec 2009 20:31:58 -0500GORDON DEEGAN HEALTH SERVICE Executive (HSE) figures show the hospital with the highest rate of absenteeism in the country is Portiuncula in Co Galway.Figures released by the HSE show staff hours lost... Irish Times Wed, 23 Dec 2009 20:31:57 -0500 Western CorrespondentDORA CALLANAN has been diagnosed with cancer twice in the last 10 years, and lost her father a few months ago. She has survived all that, and yet when the water came into he... Irish Times Wed, 23 Dec 2009 20:31:56 -0500JOHN FALLON A JUDGE has refused to accept a character reference from a parish priest who tried to prevent a repeat drunk driver from being jailed.Judge Geoffrey Browne said he did not wish to see a le... Irish Times Wed, 23 Dec 2009 20:31:54 -0500 AN ALL-FEMALE shortlist. Women deputies are very much in the minority, but they make a contribution that more than compensates for the gender imbalance. Mary Hanafin fought a difficult corner i... Irish Times Wed, 23 Dec 2009 20:31:53 -0500 ARCHBISHOP OF Dublin Diarmuid Martin has challenged the content of a letter circulated to priests in the archdiocese by Auxiliary Bishop of Dublin Éamonn Walsh.In the letter, Dr Walsh, whos... Irish Times Wed, 23 Dec 2009 20:31:50 -0500Martin challenges auxiliary's interpretation Full text of statement issued by Bishop Jim Moriarty yesterday:ON THE Sunday after the Murphy report into the Archdiocese of Dublin was published (29th Nov... Irish Times Wed, 23 Dec 2009 20:31:49 -0500 in CarlowFROM EARLY morning yesterday in Carlow, Jim Moriarty’s future as Catholic Bishop of Kildare and Leighlin looked ominous.News bulletins on local radio station KCLR reported that he... Irish Times Wed, 23 Dec 2009 20:31:47 -0500 BISHOP OF Kildare and Leighlin Jim Moriarty’s acceptance that he should have challenged the “prevailing culture” was described as a “step forward” by victim Marie C... Irish Times Wed, 23 Dec 2009 20:31:46 -0500PAUL CULLEN AS LITTLE as 10 per cent of the price of some of the biggest selling charity Christmas cards benefits the actual charity, a survey by The Irish Times has found.The vast majority of charity... Irish Times Wed, 23 Dec 2009 20:31:44 -0500CONOR LALLY Crime Correspondent THE NUMBER of inmates being released for Christmas this year, at 176, is substantially higher than last year when 107 prisoners were offered short periods of temporary ... Irish Times Wed, 23 Dec 2009 20:31:43 -0500RAY MANAGH TESCO HAS failed in its High Court bid to stop Dunnes Stores advertising comparisons between in-store prices at outlets.Ms Justice Mary Laffoy told Hugh Mohan SC, counsel for Dunnes, that s... Irish Times Wed, 23 Dec 2009 20:31:41 -0500KITTY HOLLAND UP TO 100,000 households across the State will have received a hamper of toys, vouchers or food from the Society of St Vincent de Paul by this evening – an increase of 25 per cent ... Irish Times Wed, 23 Dec 2009 20:31:40 -0500Some of the group of past and present pupils of Belvedere College, Dublin at a sleepout at College Green in Dublin city centre to raise funds for the Peter McVerry Trust, Focus Ireland and Home Again.... Irish Times Wed, 23 Dec 2009 20:31:39 -0500PAUL CULLEN Consumer Affairs Correspondent SHOPPERS FROM the Republic spend more in Sainsbury’s in Northern Ireland than they do in their local butchers and greengrocers, new figures show.Cross-... Irish Times Wed, 23 Dec 2009 20:31:39 -0500PADDY AGNEW NO SPECIAL significance can be attached to the fact that Pope Benedict failed to mention Ireland and the problems of the Irish church in his annual address to the Roman Curia this week, ac... Irish Times Wed, 23 Dec 2009 20:31:38 -0500EITHNE DONNELLAN Health Correspondent RATES OF swine flu infection in the Republic continued to decline over the past week, according to latest figures from the Department of Health.In a statement yes... Irish Times Wed, 23 Dec 2009 20:31:35 -0500Ibec withdraws from pay terms of national deal agreed in 2008 DONEGAL postman Michael Gallagher may be 90 per cent sure there is going to be a white Christmas, but two Irish bookmakers believe the pro... Irish Times Wed, 23 Dec 2009 20:31:32 -0500HARRY McGEE Political Correspondent FORMER FIANNA Fáil MEP Eoin Ryan was the top spender in this year’s European elections, amassing total expenses of almost €215,000 in his unsuccess... Irish Times Wed, 23 Dec 2009 20:31:32 -0500 ALL BALLOONIST Tom McCarthy wants for Christmas is some light easterly winds so he can take his hot air balloon for a flight over Dublin city – the one day of the year that Dublin airport ... Irish Times Wed, 23 Dec 2009 20:31:30 -0500PAMELA DUNCAN MOTORISTS ARE being warned to exercise extreme caution today with hazardous weather conditions predicted throughout the country as people continue to journey home for Christmas.Ice, snow... Irish Times Wed, 23 Dec 2009 20:31:29 -0500STEVEN CARROLL A DAY at the races or some early retail therapy are among the many options on offer to those feeling brave, bored or flush enough to step away from the fire side and out into the cold o... Irish Times Wed, 23 Dec 2009 20:31:28 -0500MARTIN WALL TRADE UNIONS are considering a two-stage strategy in their campaign against pay cuts for public service staff introduced in the Budget.Although no final decisions have been taken, unions s... Irish Times Wed, 23 Dec 2009 20:31:27 -0500MICHAEL O'REGAN A MAJOR push in the British and German markets is to be part of Tourism Ireland’s marketing plans for next year, as it targets an overall increase of 3 per cent in overseas numbe... Irish Times Wed, 23 Dec 2009 20:31:24 -0500RONAN McGREEVY THE FAMILY of a Dublin woman who died in suspicious circumstances in an apartment in Tenerife has called on the Spanish authorities to reopen the investigation into her death.Lisa McCon... Irish Times Wed, 23 Dec 2009 20:31:23 -0500RONAN McGREEVY LAWS TO ensure the registration and supervision of so-called “puppy farms” will be enacted in the new year, Minister for the Environment John Gormley has said. Details of t... Irish Times Wed, 23 Dec 2009 20:31:22 -0500PAUL CULLEN Consumer Affairs Correspondent THE NEW year will bring good news for motorists with the completion of the M50 upgrade and toll reductions for the Dublin Port Tunnel.Both the northbound and... Irish Times Wed, 23 Dec 2009 20:31:21 -0500FIONA McCANN IT MAY have seemed that the apocalyptic horsemen of Irish publishing were set to romp home this Christmas with their books about what brought us to our current state of chassis, but they&... Irish Times Wed, 23 Dec 2009 20:31:20 -0500 | 
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