Fuel 'price gouging'
The cut to excise duty on petrol and diesel has been “immediately eroded” with fuels costs higher on Thursday than earlier in the week, the Dáil has been told.
Sinn Féin TD Pearse Doherty said that many filling stations are charging over €2 per litre and accused some fuel stations of “engaging in price gouging at a time of crisis”.
Minister for Consumer Protection Robert Troy meanwhile urged the public to notify the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC) if they see any unfair pricing practices or "cartel behaviour".
It comes as a cost-of-living crisis continues in Ireland, with new figures from the Central Statistics Office showing inflation has hit its highest level in 21 years.
Russian embassy road
The street in Dublin currently home to the Russian embassy in Ireland could soon be renamed ‘Independent Ukraine Road' as a mark of solidarity with the Ukrainian people.
Residents of Orwell Road, the current name of the street, are set to be consulted on the proposal, which has already been unanimously passed by a subcommittee of Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council.
The move comes after various European countries renamed city streets where Russian embassies are located, with Latvia's Riga agreeing a change to ‘Independent Ukraine Street,’ Lithuania’s Vilnius choosing ‘Heroes of Ukraine Street’ and Albania’s Tirana agreeing on ‘Free Ukraine’.
In Dublin, the motion was proposed by Labour councillor Peter O'Brien, who said he took inspiration from the other European capitals, adding the name change is intended as a “gesture of solidarity” with the people of Ukraine.
Sligo burglary arrests
Three men continue to be held in relation to a Co Sligo burglary that left 73-year-old pensioner Tom Niland on life support in hospital.
The aggravated burglary in Skreen, Co Sligo on January 18th led to a wide-scale Garda investigation, with gardaí previously saying “no stone will be left unturned”.
Officers arrested three men in the northwest region on suspicion of the burglary on Wednesday, detaining them at separate Garda stations in the Sligo and Leitrim Division.
A cousin of Mr Niland previously told of the sense of helplessness his family has experienced in the wake of the “frenzied attack” on the retired farmer, who had been watching television alone at his home when a gang of masked men called to his door.
Courts latest
In the courts today, a man who sexually assaulted women on both the Luas and a bus from Galway city was sentenced to 16 months in prison.
Elsewhere, two brothers lost their appeals against their convictions for murdering a man by driving over him and striking him with a weapon after he had fired a shot at their home.
The body of a pensioner was discovered in a mutilated state after she had been beaten, stabbed and had her throat slit in her own home, while a large piece of cardboard was also found in the back of her mouth, the Chief State Pathologist has told a murder trial.
Finally, the Special Criminal Court will rule on Friday whether it will consider the opinion evidence of a political scientist who told the trial of Lisa Smith that anyone who travelled to Syria to support the Islamic State was a member of the terrorist organisation Isis.
Transatlantic flights resume from Shannon
Aer Lingus today restarted its transatlantic services from Shannon, reconnecting the mid-west of Ireland with the United States.
Daily flights to Boston resumed on Thursday, while flights to New York will make a comeback on Friday for the first time since March 2020.
Summer 2022 will see the airline fly its largest transatlantic seat capacity from Shannon in 17 years, as it operates two "next generation" A321 NEO LR aircraft from the airport.
Aer Lingus will operate 14 direct routes between Ireland and North America in 2022, including New York, Miami, Chicago, Boston, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Orlando, Washington, Seattle, and Philadelphia.
