A roundup of today's other news stories in brief
Man charged with arson after fire at Jesuit HQ
A man appeared in Galway District Court last night charged in connection with the fire that badly damaged the Irish headquarters of the Jesuit Order in Dublin.
Garda Brian Flannery said Noah Bunn (24), of no fixed abode, made no reply when charged with arson. He was arrested yesterday in Galway and detained under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act 1984 after he presented himself to local gardaí.
Insp Kevin Dolan of Donnybrook Garda station in Dublin told the court the State would object to bail because of the seriousness of the charge and the fact that Mr Bunn had no fixed abode.
He also had no connection to the Galway jurisdiction and had moved around since the alleged incident took place last Friday on Eglinton Road in Donnybrook.
Insp Dolan said Mr Bunn was likely to abscond if released on bail. The defendant, who is an English national, was dressed in a stripey hooded top and black jeans. Legal aid solicitor Olivia Traynor said her client consented to remaining in custody. Judge Gerard Furlong remanded him to Castlerea Prison to appear at Court 46 in Dublin District Court next Thursday.
End Good Friday drink ban - FG senator
The ban on the sale of alcohol on Good Friday should be lifted to curb binge-buying of beer, wine and spirits on Holy Thursday, Fine Gael Senator Fergal Browne has said. A general election candidate in the Carlow-Kilkenny constituency, he has repeated a call for an Oireachtas debate on the issue.
Yesterday he recalled scenes of mass buying of alcohol at shopping centres on Holy Thursday evening this year, as in the past.
At a minimum, he said, off-licences should be allowed open on the day and pointed to Northern Ireland where pubs and off-licences are open from 5pm on Good Friday.
Work begins on Wexford biodiesel plant
The use of biofuels by motorists as an alternative to petrol and diesel received a boost yesterday when construction started on Ireland's first commercial-scale biodiesel production facility in Co Wexford.
Green Biofuels Ireland Ltd is spending €21 million to build a factory in the port of New Ross that will convert rapeseed oil, animal fats and recycled vegetable oils into "a clean-burning alternative to mineral diesel fuel".