A round-up of other home news in brief
Two men die in Kildare collision
Two men were killed in a multi-vehicle road collision in Co Kildare last night. Three cars, a mini-bus and a pick-up truck were involved in the crash. The incident took place shortly after 8.30pm on the N9 road, between Kilcullen and Castledermot and close to Ballytore. The deceased, a man in his 20s and a man in his 50s, were both travelling in the same car. There were no other passengers in the car. At least 18 people were taken to Naas General hospital.
SR unions seek to meet bidders
Siptu has said that trade unions at the aviation firm SR Technics, which is due to close with the loss of about 1,100 jobs, should be fully briefed on all expressions of interest in the facility, writes Martin Wall. It said the unions should also be given a chance to meet interested parties to assess their bids from the perspective of keeping jobs and a high-value aviation skills base in Ireland. Siptu branch organiser Pat Ward said there were serious questions arising from the strategy adopted by the IDA and Enterprise Ireland in seeking new investors to take over the SR Technics plant at Dublin airport.
Greenhouse gas cow tax ruled out
Minister for Agriculture Brendan Smith has categorically ruled out the imposition of a "cow tax" on farmers to help Ireland achieve its EU target for reducing greenhouse gases, writes Jamie Smyth In Brussels. "It is not a proposal that would be considered under any circumstances by this government," said Mr Smith yesterday after meeting EU Agriculture Commissioner Marian Fischer Boel for talks in Brussels. Senior officials in the Department of Environment have advised the Government that imposing a levy on livestock may be the best way to avoid having to cut the size of the national herd to meet tough EU climate change targets. Ireland has been set a target of cutting emissions by 20 per cent by 2020, when compared to 2005 levels. Emissions from agriculture account for more than a quarter of all Irish emissions.
Satirical radio show on the way
Variously described as a latter-day version of Scrap Saturday and Spitting Image without the puppets, a new satirical radio show, The Emergency, will get its first airing on Newstalk 106-108fm this Saturday at 11.30am. The cast includes Joe Taylor, well-known for his impersonations of former taoiseach Bertie Ahern at the Mahon tribunal, and Eoin Byrne, who wrote scripts for Scrap Saturday.
Ex-PSNI officer shoots himself
A former PSNI officer shot himself dead in Co Antrim yesterday after being challenged about an armed bank robbery. The man was confronted close to his home in Ballymena, Co Antrim, when officers followed his car after an armed raid on staff at a branch of the Northern Bank. The former officer stopped at the driveway of his home, got out of the car, pulled a gun and killed himself. Police later confirmed they were investigating a link between the robbery and the shooting.
Northern Ireland's police ombudsman's office has been called in to investigate the death. - (PA)
Lord Lucan desk fetches £13,200
A 19th century desk belonging to missing peer Lord Lucan sold at auction yesterday for £13,200 (€14,250), twice its expected price. Richard John Bingham, seventh Earl and third Baron of Lucan, vanished almost 35 years ago after killing his family's nanny, Sandra Rivett, thinking she was his wife. In his absence Lord Lucan was found guilty of her murder. Although officially declared dead by London's High Court in 1999, his disappearance still remains a mystery.