Statutory inquiry likely after report on sexual abuse in schools
The Government is expected to approve publication of a long-awaited report on sexual abuse in boarding and day schools and to agree to set up a statutory inquiry into potentially thousands of cases of abuse which took place in the past.
The leaders of the three Government parties discussed the issue last night with Minister for Education Norma Foley poised to bring proposals to Cabinet today. Ministers are likely to discuss the issue when the Cabinet meets for the first time since the August break. Ms Foley and her officials have been considering the 700-page report, commissioned last year from senior counsel Mary O’Toole following allegations of historic abuse at Blackrock College.
News in Ireland
- Quarter of primary school children affected by harmful online content, report finds: A quarter of primary schoolchildren and just over a fifth of secondary school students have been “bothered or upset” by harmful content such as scams, harassment, horror or sexual material online, according to a new report.
- ‘Absolute disaster’: Irish Rail’s proposal for feeder service on Howth Dart line sparks local anger: A community meeting against northern line proposals that could end direct Howth Dart services heard angry calls to prevent these going ahead.
- Dublin city bin bag ban to begin this month in move to crack down on litter: A bin bag ban will be introduced in Dublin city centre from this month in a move to crack down on litter from ripped plastic refuse sacks strewn across the city’s streets.
- Waterways Ireland targets unauthorised developments including small private marinas: More than 430 unauthorised developments along inland waterways – including some commercial scale marinas – are being targeted by Waterways Ireland, under a new five-year plan to regularise developments alongside rivers and lakes.
- Weather forecast: Any early mist patches will soon clear. It will be mostly cloudy today with scattered showers of rain or drizzle and occasional sunny intervals. More in the way of sunshine is expected towards evening, especially in the east and south of the country. Highest temperatures of 15 to 18 degrees in moderate northwest winds.
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The Big Read
- A ‘brutal’ reality: For Travellers, mental illness remains a stigma that can lead to spiraling problems: Taboo can leave problems untreated, while for some, even a diagnosis does not guarantee support, writes Shauna Bowers.
Opinion
- Fintan O’Toole: The cataract bus is, like all great Irish inventions, the fruit of carelessness and clientelism.
- Eamon Ryan: If warnings about Atlantic ocean circulation are correct, Irish people could become climate migrants.
Business
- More than four-fifths of State energy supply still via fossil fuels despite increased use of renewables: Despite the increased take-up of renewable energy, more than 80 per cent of Ireland’s energy supply last year came from traditional fossil fuels, according to the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland.
Sports
- Paralympics Day 6: Irish in action and best of the rest as Ellen Keane takes to the pool one last time for Team Ireland: Keane (29) will bring down the curtain on her Paralympic career with the S9 100m backstroke.
World
- Hunger being used as weapon in Sudan war, humanitarian organisations say: More than 500 days into a brutal war – which erupted in April 2023 between the Sudanese army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitary group – the Danish Refugee Council, Mercy Corps, and the Norwegian Refugee Council have said hunger is the primary cause of suffering across the country.
- ‘I love Ireland. Ireland is 100% different to back home. It’s peace, calm’: New to the Parish - Qareeb Urrahman came to Ireland from Afghanistan in 2021
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