Culture will hardly feature in the first head-to-head debate between incumbent Taoiseach Leo Varadkar and the challenger, Micheál Martin, on Virgin Media Television tomorrow night.

Ryanair, who this week settled a €60,000 claim on behalf of an eight-year-old boy who was scalded by hot chocolate on a flight from Portugal to Dublin, have disputed a contention that a cold bottle of wine had been used to cool down the child’s wounds.

A woman who was eight-months pregnant when she fell at a Topaz petrol pump has had a €60,000 damages claim dismissed by the Circuit Civil Court.

Settlements of €17,000 each for two sisters injured in a rear-ending traffic accident have been approved by Judge James O’Donohoe in the Circuit Civil Court.

A recommendation by the Personal Injuries Board that a 13-year-old schoolgirl be paid €3,500 for an injury she sustained in a traffic collision was increased by 400 per cent after her legal team refused to accept the offer.

A judge has directed that the facts relating to a personal injuries claim by a taxi driver be forwarded to the Director of Public Prosecutions Claire Loftus for her consideration.

A 13-year-old schoolboy, whose ear was “tightly gripped” and held by a teacher in class, has been awarded €17,500 damages against his school and the Dublin and Dunlaoghaire Education and Training Board.

An eight-year-old boy whose stomach and groin was scalded when hot chocolate spilled over him on a Ryanair flight, has been awarded damages of €25,000 in the Circuit Civil Court.

Karen O’Donohoe and Michael Kelly tell Ciara McDonnell what to expect from series two of Grow, Cook, Eat.

Wild Youth have been widely tipped as the country’s next big thing. They tell Ed Power about their unashamed pop leanings and what they learnt from touring with Niall Horan.

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has been accused of disrespecting nurses and patients by issuing “cynical” press releases instead of directly engaging with unions.

The scene of a rear-ending collision on a minor Co Limerick road resembled a scene from “an emergency Isis attack” with three fire tenders, two ambulances, and gardaí called out, a judge said.

Paschal Donohoe won’t be the first or last financial controller with an unerring ability to find a few bob down the back of the sofa when the political situation requires it. 

A Mario Rosenstock fan has been awarded €4,500 compensation in a defamation action arising out of being asked by security for his ticket halfway through a gig at the Marquee in Cork.

A Mario Rosenstock fan who was not amused when asked for his ticket halfway through a gig at the Marquee in Cork has brought a case against the security firm, alleging that he was defamed.

An American woman who advocates for the rights of sex workers in Ireland appealed a conviction for cultivating cannabis at her flat in Cork three years ago.

The fastest growing sport among Ireland’s blind community is celebrating its one-year anniversary by sending its first team to compete abroad.

Two cabinet colleagues have rejected suggestions Finance Minister Michael Noonan should stand aside, as he is now the subject of an interested party in three separate commissions of inquiry.

A taxi driver, who a court was told yesterday was “lying through his teeth,” has withdrawn a €60,000 damages claim for personal injuries he allegedly suffered in a road traffic accident.

A six-year-old boy who seriously lacerated his finger on a gas fire in his home was yesterday awarded €30,000 damages against B&Q Ireland Limited and Focal Point Fires plc.

A 55-year-old unemployed woman, who claimed she was defamed and falsely imprisoned for five hours after having been accused of stealing meat in an Aldi store, has lost a €75,000 damages claim in the Circuit Civil Court.

A 12-year-old schoolboy, who will be scarred for life after falling while attending a creche nine years ago, has been awarded €45,000 damages in the Circuit Civil Court.

A mother who overloaded her shopping trolley with her children and injured herself in a fall has lost a €60,000 damages claim against her local Tesco, writes Ray Managh.

A mother, who overloaded her shopping trolley with her children and injured herself in a fall, has lost a €60,000 damages claim against her local Tesco.

Paschal Donohoe claims a referendum on the Eighth Amendment will go ahead in the near future.

Zabrina Collins was ordered by a judge to pay €5,000 damages for a “vitriolic and personalised” attack on the character of a Mayo man who opposes the beliefs and teachings of the Church of Scientology of which she is a leading member.

An accounts assistant told a judge that when she refused to carry out “illegal” tasks, her manager told her to “just do the fucking job”.

The former chief executive officer of Marymount Hospice in Cork who was dismissed from his post in February after seven months for "significant interpersonal difficulties" between him and other staff members failed in his application for a court injunction against the hospice yesterday.

A 76-year-old woman is suing the Gleneagle Hotel in Killarney for negligence after a fall on its well-known ballroom floor, in which "the feet went from under her".

HEINEKEN CUP POOL THREE:

RABODIRECT PRO12

Connacht 23 Zebre 19

Connacht 22 Ospreys 10

Dairygold farmers should engage with the co-op’s one-to-one milk supply contracts sessions, while the board should revisit any option to share additional processing with Glanbia, said IFA dairy committee chairman Kevin Kiersey.

The Irish Co-operative Organisation Society has named Seamus O’Donohoe as its new chief executive officer.

Dairy farming is entering an era of great opportunity with the end of quota restrictions in 2015, says incoming Irish Co-operative Organisation Society chief executive Seamus O’Donohoe.

It was anything but pretty at the Galway Sportsground but there was immense relief for the 4,189 home supporters when Connacht scraped a late draw on Saturday night.

High hopes of Connacht repeating their famous victory of 10 years ago in Cardiff Arms Park were dashed last night when the Blues claimed victory on home soil.

IN A game that was always about a performance, not the result, Connacht fulfilled their brief.

CONNACHT coach Eric Elwood has vowed that a heartbreaking late loss to English Premiership side Gloucester will not break his side’s spirit.

AFTER last weekend’s historic Heineken Cup fixture against Toulouse, Connacht’s desire to translate their strong European form into points in the RaboDirect Pro 12 came unstuck against league pacesetters Ospreys.

Harlequins 25 Connacht 17

CONNACHT grabbed a losing bonus point on their second away RaboDirect Pro 12 fixture this season with the last kick of the match against the Ospreys in Wales last night.

CONNACHT returned to winning ways last evening, but it took a huge second-half effort to overcome a physical Dragons side at the Galway Sportsground.

Connacht have continued their recruitment drive for next season by signing former Ireland U20 scrumhalf Paul O’Donohoe from Leinster today.