Assembly election
An election to the Northern Ireland Assembly will “definitely happen” after a deadline to restore devolved government at Stormont was missed, a cabinet minister has said.
Britain's environment minister Therese Coffey said “clearly” there was not “sufficient agreement” among Stormont parties to avoid a fresh election.
Northern Ireland Secretary Chris Heaton-Harris is expected to call the election on Friday, following the failure of a last-ditch effort to restore the multi-party executive.
Refugees told they must leave hotel
More than 400 asylum seekers and refugees from Ukraine living in a hotel in north Dublin have been told they will have to move elsewhere.
The Crowne Plaza Hotel in Santry had a six-month contract to provide accommodation, but according to the Irish Examiner, the residents have now been told the contract will not be renewed.
“The moves to alternative accommodation will commence shortly and we will be carrying them out over the coming weeks,” the residents were informed by letter from the Department of Integration.
The move will be particularly disruptive for dozens of families whose children have been attending schools in the surrounding area.
Two die in Co Monaghan crash
Two people have died following a collision between two cars and a lorry near Castleblayney, Co Monaghan.
The collision occurred after 6:15pm on the N2 at Mullaghanee.
Gardaí said that the occupants of one of the car, a man and woman in their 60s, were pronounced dead at the scene of the collision.
A female passenger in the second car is being treated for critical injuries at Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital in Drogheda.
No more live crib for Mansion House
For the first time in almost thirty years, there will be no live animals in the traditional life-size Nativity crib at Dublin's Mansion House
Since 1995, donkeys, goats and sheep have sat alongside figures of Mary, Joseph and the baby Jesus each December outside the Mansion House, bringing in large crowds.
The crib is a joint initiative between Dublin City Council (DCC) and the Irish Farmers Association.
However, the Green party Lord Mayor Caroline Conroy brought the issue before the council yesterday, and according to the Irish Independent the decision not to accommodate the crib had the "full support" from members of DCC's protocol committee.
