EVERY EVENING, TheJournal.ie brings you a round-up of all the day’s main news, as well as the bits and pieces you may have missed along the way.

• The Labour Party’s 100th annual conference is beginning this evening in Galway – there’s a live stream of events over here. Tánaiste Eamon Gilmore has opened the conference with a criticism of how Labour’s role in Irish history has been written out by some seeking a “Celtic-Rangers version” of history.
• An all-party Oireachtas committee will meet next week to examine changes to the Dáil expenses regime, which was changed earlier this week in a way which (as TheJournal.ie reported at the time) allowed some TDs and senators to be compensated twice for the same expenses.
• One person who has been cutting down on the spending of their predecessors is Enda Kenny, who we today confirmed is a bare-cheeked Taoiseach. While Bertie Ahern spent an average of €411 a week on make-up during his tenure, neither Kenny or Brian Cowen have run up any make-up bills.
• The failure of North Korea’s planned rocket launch has not stopped worldwide condemnation of the plan, with the US suspending a programme of food aid. That hasn’t stopped some of the celebratory mood in Pyongyang, however, where two enormous statues of the country’s former leaders have been unveiled today.
• The Broadcasting Authority of Ireland has confirmed it is in contact with the family of a dead former Christian Brother who say he was also libelled in RTÉ’s ‘A Mission to Prey’ documentary.
• Speaking of the BAI – last year it a ‘right of reply’ scheme introduced last year, aiming to allow people discussed in the media to have corrections broadcast instead of having to go to court. How many people do you think have used it?

Thousands of Islamists attend Friday prayers before a rally in Tahrir Square to denounce the presidential candidacies of Hosni Mubarak-era officials, including that of his former spy chief, in Cairo. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)

• The government is looking to introduce electronic monitoring for prisoners who are on temporary release in Ireland.
• Two men have been arrested in connection with an armed robbery in Templeogue last weekend.
• The prime-minister of Guinea-Bissau has been arrested by his military, the latest turmoil to hit one of the world’s most coup-prone countries.
• London mayor Boris Johnson has intervened to stop city buses from displaying ads for a “therapy” programme which claims to cure homosexuality.
• Uh-oh… the Chinese economy has experienced its slowest growth in three years. Don’t panic, though: it’s still growing by 8.1 per cent a year.
• The number of people who have registered for the Household Charge has breached the 900,000 barrier – just over 50 per cent of the 1.8 million households which opposition parties claim are liable for it.
• An Irish illustrator has created a 120-page graphic novel to chronicle the experiences of Irish Jesuit priest Fr Frank Browne on the Titanic. The book, ‘Get Off That Ship’, was seven years in the making.
• Harry Potter author JK Rowling has announced the first details of her next book – a “blackly comic, thought-provoking and constantly surprising” novel ‘The Casual Vacancy’. What’s it all about?
• With the world being as it is today, we often forget how rudimentary the technology that powered previous military forces was. Here’s the Irish Defence Forces using some of the up-to-date technologies of the past.
• Finally this evening: my colleague Sinéad O’Carroll came across this video from pleatedjeans today, and as she said herself: “This made me rethink my ‘indifferent to cats’ status. I may just like these ones.” Even if you’re not a feline friend, you may agree:

Making a difference

A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article. Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation.

For the price of one cup of coffee each week you can make sure we can keep reliable, meaningful news open to everyone regardless of their ability to pay.

Support us Learn More