A significant majority of voters are in favour of changing the Constitution to allow for abortion but only in limited circumstances, according to the latest Irish Times/Ipsos MRBI poll.
The Eighth Amendment, which guarantees the right to life of the unborn, was inserted into the Constitution after a referendum on the issue in 1983.
In the poll voters were asked for their views on whether the amendment should stay or on what terms it should be repealed.
A total of 18 per cent said it should not be repealed; 55 per cent said it should be repealed to allow for limited access to abortion in the cases of rape and fatal foetal abnormality; 19 per cent said it should be repealed to allow for abortion in all cases requested, as in Britain, while 8 per cent had no opinion.
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[ Sterling plunges 6% in two minutes amid chaotic tradingOpens in new window ]
Sterling plunged to a fresh 31-year low against the dollar in two minutes of chaotic trading in Asia, with traders saying the slump was exacerbated by computer-initiated sell orders.
The 6.1 per cent slide, the biggest decline since the UK’s Brexit referendum result was announced, drove sterling as low as $1.1841, its weakest level since March 1985.
At least one electronic trading platform recorded a transaction as low as $1.1378, said traders.
Against the euro, sterling is trading around 89.3p this morning, having being quoted well over 90p during last night’s “flash crash”.
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[ Hurricane Matthew biggest storm to hit US in over a decadeOpens in new window ]
Matthew, the first major hurricane threatening a direct hit on the United States in more than 10 years, lashed Florida on Friday with heavy rains and winds after killing at least 339 people in Haiti on its destructive march north through the Caribbean.
Winds gusts of up to 100 kph and heavy downpours were reported in several coastal communities in Florida as the eye of the Category 4 hurricane tracked along the east coast of the state early on Friday.
"We are just bracing and the winds are picking up," Daytona Beach Mayor Derrick Henry told CNN early on Friday.
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[ Coldplay tickets for Croke Park to go on sale at 9amOpens in new window ]
Eager Coldplay fans braved the chilly autumn temperatures on Thursday to queue through the night in anticipation of the release of tickets for Coldplay’s 2017 tour which hits Croke Park next July.
Tickets for the show on July 8th, 2017, as part of the A Head Full of Dreams Tour, go on sale at 9am this morning with prices ranging from €69.50 - €144.
The band tweeted a reminder to fans on Thursday evening that tickets for their highly anticipated 2017 European shows would go on sale at 9am in Cardiff and Dublin and 10am (local time) in Munich, Lyon, Vienna, Leipzig, Hannover, Warsaw, Brussels, Gothenburg, Frankfurt, Milan and Paris.
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[ Noonan and Donohoe increase budget spend by €200 millionOpens in new window ]
The Government has about €200 million more than expected to spend in the budget, with an estimated €1.2 billion package to be revealed next week.
The extra €200 million to expand the so-called "fiscal space", is understood to have been found through "savings", allowing Minister for Finance Michael Noonan and Minister for Public Expenditure Paschal Donohoe to spend more money on higher than expected cuts to the Universal Social Charge.
The Cabinet met on Thursday evening to discuss next Tuesday’s budget. The total USC package is expected to cost about €330 million.