A round-up of today's other stories in brief.
Harney wants full review on Leas Cross
Minister for Health Mary Harney is to seek Government approval for a senior counsel to review all the issues relevant to the Leas Cross nursing home, she said last night. Ms Harney was speaking after meeting at Hawkins House, Dublin yesterday with the Leas Cross Relatives Action Group.
Describing them as "a very impressive group of people", she said "it is my intention to get the Government's approval for the appointment, perhaps of a senior counsel" to review all the documents and evidence and to talk to all the relevant people because she was anxious to facilitate the relatives in finding the answers they sought.
Group chairman Tony Mullins said the meeting had been "very constructive".
Ambassadors meet President
New ambassadors from Russia, Croatia and Belarus presented their letters of credence to President Mary McAleese at Áras an Uachtaráin yesterday.
Ambassador of the Russian Federation, Mikhail Timoshkinto, was accompanied by minister-counsellor and deputy head of mission Viacheslav Nikiforov and defence attaché Colonel Vitaly N Belashenko.
Ambassador of the Republic of Croatia,Veselko Grubiic, was accompanied by counsellor Josip Starcevic. Ambassador of the Republic of Belarus, Aleksandr Mikhnevich, was accompanied by his wife, Tatyana Mikhnevich and political counsellor of the embassy, Anzela Koreliouk.
Ship held as talks set to begin
Management representatives of the company that provides crew to a Russian ship that has been held at Dublin Port for the past week will meet representatives of the International Transport Federation (ITF) on board the ship this morning.
The Merchant Brilliant, chartered by the Norfolk Lines company, has been held at the port amid allegations of the crewing company underpaying staff. ADG provides the crew and is at the centre of a dispute in which the company is alleged to owe over €150,000 in arrears of pay.
The ITF was told yesterday by Norfolk Lines that management from ADG Shipping were on their way for talks.
A similar amount of arrears were paid out two weeks ago to the crew of its sister ship, the Merchant Bravery.
Both vessels are chartered by Norfolk Line to provide a roll-on, roll-off service between Heysham and Dublin, but crewing arrangements are in the hands of ADG.
Passport seekers given website
Minister for Foreign Affairs Dermot Ahern has launched a new website that allows passport applicants to track the progress of their application and which will contain up-to-date advice on travel abroad on a country-by-country basis.
The updated website can be found at www.dfa.ie.
Great Southern art collection moved
The art collection of the Great Southern hotels has been handed over to the Crawford Art Gallery in Cork. The hotels were sold by the Dublin Airport Authority in August for €140 million.
The collection, which includes works by such artists as Gerard Dillon, Ann Madden, Patrick Collins and Norah McGuinness, is estimated to be worth about €4 million.
No diversion on M50 motorway
A planned diversion on the M50 motorway will not go ahead tonight following the completion of work on the N4 interchange bridge. The northbound section of the motorway under the bridge was to be closed tonight but will now be open because of early completion of the work.