- NEWS
Martin wades into abortion debateAs the Dáil committee hearings continue on the abortion bill, Archbishop of Dublin Diarmuid Martin has waded into the debate saying it is important that Christian believers "be, and seen to be, on the side of life, especially when life is most vulnerable".
Payment cuts see families pay rent shortfallLimits on rent supplement payments set by the Government are forcing thousands of families to make undeclared top-up payments to landlords to secure places to live.
- WORLD
Anger as North Korea launches another missileNorth Korea fired a short-range missile from its east coast, a day after launching three more of these missiles, a South Korean news agency said.
How Star Trek predicted the futureWHEN Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry first dreamed up the concept of a television show based in the unexplored universe of Outer Space in 1964, the world was a very different place.
- BUSINESS
Warnings over future of eurozoneThe eurozone is heading towards a break up unless there are moves towards much closer political and fiscal union, according to chief economist with State Street Global Advisers, Chris Probyn.
Bruton defends corporate tax rateIreland will be able to maintain its current corporation tax code in the face of international pressure to prevent multinational corporations avoid paying their fare share of tax, Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Richard Bruton said yesterday.
- SPORT
Mayo’s statement of intentGalway 0-11 Mayo 4-16 Five minutes to go in Salthill yesterday and James Horan was still cajoling his men to sew it into Galway.
Wilkinson inspires Toulon to gloryASM Clermont Auvergne 15 Toulon 16 Not for the first time this season, a matchday performance and the result have made a mockery of the statistics.
- LIFESTYLE
What Lenny did nextLENNY Abrahamson has directed three feature films: Adam & Paul, Garage and What Richard Did.
Clothes maketh you madTrying on clothes, said Ewart, produced "sensations which bring deep peace and perfect contentment" to the female mind.
15-18C
Breaking stories
Winter homeless risks to be raised in Dáil after two deaths
By Donal Hickey
The increased risk posed by winter weather to homeless people is to be raised in the Dáil this week.
Two deaths of homeless people have been recorded in Tralee, Co Kerry, in recent weeks. Both had addictions.However, a warning has been given that flaws in the housing system could lead to further deaths.
The latest death was a Polish man, Slawomir Marerewicz, whose body was found in an unoccupied house last week.
Independent TD Michael Healy-Rae plans to raise the issue in the Oireachtas.
He claimed some such people were falling between the cracks because they did not qualify for some social welfare payments which makes them ineligible for emergency accommodation.
He called for more powers to be given to housing officials dealing with the homeless, regardless of whether they are in receipt of any social welfare payment.
A Kerry County Council spokesman said: “We try to ensure that everyone who needs assistance is aware of what’s available and they can get in touch with us.
“However, in some circumstances, individuals who are offered assistance choose not to take it. We try our best in our information unit to deal with those who come to us and every case is different.”
The spokesman also said the council was working with the gardaí, HSE, government departments and agencies involved with the homeless.
The body of 59-year-old Mr Marerewicz, who had an alcohol addiction, was found in a house at St Stephen’s Terrace, Ballymullen.
Although he lived in Tralee for three to four years and had a number of addresses in the town, not much was known about him locally and gardaí are trying to trace his next-of-kin in Poland.
Interpol is also assisting with efforts to contact his family so that he can be formally identified and repatriated for burial.
On Oct 27, the body of Sarah O’Keeffe, aged 22, was found in a car park in the centre of Tralee.
A native of Ballingarry, Co Limerick, she had been staying in Arlington Lodge, Tralee, a centre for homeless people with addictions and had slept the previous night in the hostel.
This year, Kerry County Council is spending €658,000 on facilities and accommodation for the homeless in Tralee.
A facility has also been purchased in Killarney from the Cluid voluntary housing organisation.