Chairperson resigns
The Chair of An Bord Pleanála, David Walsh, is retiring early on personal and family grounds.
Minister for Housing Darragh O'Brien has noted the decision and thanked him for his service, which spanned some 27 years between the board and the civil service.
The Minister said he will now move swiftly to initiate the process of appointing a new chair and deputy chair.
In a statement, Mr O'Brien said critical reforms are required to strengthen the board's systems and processes, and restore public confidence.
Regency murder trial
A taxi driver accused of participating in the murder of Kinahan Cartel member David Byrne at the Regency Hotel by providing access to a vehicle told gardaí his Toyota Avensis taxi could have been "cloned", the Special Criminal Court has heard.
Paul Murphy (61) also told detectives in his first interview that he had purchased the vehicle from the older brother of Gerard 'The Monk' Hutch, Eddie 'Neddie' Hutch, who he had known since he was a "young fella" and had paid him €175 per week for a year.
Gerard Hutch (59), last of The Paddocks, Clontarf, Dublin 3, denies the murder of Mr Byrne (33) during a boxing weigh-in at the Regency Hotel on February 5th, 2016.
Mr Hutch's two co-accused - Mr Murphy, of Cherry Avenue, Swords, Co Dublin, and Jason Bonney (50), of Drumnigh Wood, Portmarnock, Dublin 13 - have pleaded not guilty to participating in or contributing to the murder of Mr Byrne by providing access to motor vehicles on February 5th, 2016.
Stripe job losses
Stripe, the digital payments giant founded by Limerick brothers Patrick and John Collison, is to cut its headcount by about 14 per cent.
The business, which was valued at $95 billion (€97 billion) in its last funding round, will reduce its workforce to approximately 7,000 employees, according to an email to employees from the Collison brothers on Thursday.
US technology stocks have been crushed this year as tightening monetary policy and worries of a looming recession soured investor sentiment.
Sexual assault charge
A man has been charged with sexually assaulting a woman who was asleep in a Dublin hotel after she had already withdrawn consent.
The alleged incident happened after they agreed to cease sexual activity earlier in the evening, but he decided to "take a chance", Dublin District Court was told.
Thomas Headon (39), of Pearse Street, Dublin 2, is accused of sexual assault on a date in 2003.
The Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) directed the case could be dealt with at District Court level on a guilty plea.
PSNI rhetoric
The PSNI chief constable said he has not seen any corroboration of a heightened threat of violence and disorder from loyalist paramilitaries, as he appealed to people to “calm the rhetoric”.
Simon Byrne told a meeting of the Northern Ireland Policing Board that there were evidently “tensions and palpable frustration” within loyalism over the Northern Ireland Protocol.
But he added that police do not foresee “imminent capacity and capability” of loyalists to carry out any of the attacks that have been recently reported.
