Former justice minister Frances Fitzgerald has denied claims the Maurice McCabe saga is undermining her European elections bid, saying the case is not being raised by voters.

The cost of funding public tribunals and commissions of inquiry into wrongdoing by state agencies and individuals will reach close to €500m by the end of this year.

The incoming Chairperson of Tusla has said the post of chief executive will be advertised on March 8, but warned that the pay on offer and the shorter duration of the contract may prove obstacles to a swift appointment.

I can only imagine what a bittersweet weekend it must have been for Frances Fitzgerald and Nóirín O’Sullivan.

Health Minister Simon Harris has called on Micheál Martin and Mary-Lou McDonald to apologise to former Tánaiste Frances Fitzgerald for "hounding a good woman out of office".

RTÉ crime correspondent Paul Reynolds has told the Charleton tribunal his record speaks for itself in reporting on An Garda Síochána.

A journalist has told the Charleton Tribunal she would not consider sources who provided factual statements about a Garda investigation into allegations against Sgt Maurice McCabe to be smearing the sergeant.

A Daily Mail journalist has told the Charleton Tribunal that she believed a colleague who allegedly told her a garda whistleblower was a child abuser was “being used” by somebody.

Former Garda commissioner Nóirín O’Sullivan has told the Charleton Tribunal she “did not feel comfortable” in the presence of former garda press officer Superintendent David Taylor, and at “times he appeared to be a divisive individual”.

Irish Independent editor Fionnán Sheahan told his colleague Anne Harris that garda whistleblower Sgt Maurice McCabe was a paedophile, the Charleton tribunal has been told.

Former Garda commissioner Nóirín O’Sullivan has said she never sought to influence RTÉ coverage of the O’Higgins report into complaints from whistleblower Sgt Maurice McCabe, adding: “I have no idea how anybody could come to that conclusion.”

Sometimes, a study or report is important, not in what’s being said, but for who’s saying it, writes Michael Clifford

Twelve of fifteen mobile phones belonging to senior garda officers are missing and cannot be provided to the Charleton Tribunal.

The former chief executive of the Road Safety Authority (RSA) was told by the then Garda press officer, Superintendent David Taylor, that his phone could be monitored, the Charleton Tribunal has heard.

The former chief executive of the Road Safety Authority was told by the then Garda press officer Superintendent David Taylor that his phone could be monitored, the Charleton Tribunal has heard.

Former commissioner Martin Callinan told solicitor Gerald Kean that garda whistleblower Sgt Maurice McCabe "had not cooperated in any shape or form" with an internal garda inquiry into his complaints, the Charleton tribunal has heard.

A review on the mishandling of emails about garda whistleblower Maurice McCabe raises fresh questions about the Department of Justice’s ability to answer queries or do its work.

The chairman of the Disclosures Tribunal said he would have to consider if there was any evidence of a “dark truth” that the former garda commissioner Nóirín O’Sullivan or other senior officers were “going after” Sgt McCabe at the O’Higgins Commission.

A former garda superintendent has apologised for sending a 2011 circular which stated that an internal garda inquiry into allegations of criminality and systemic failures in a local district had vindicated the professionalism of gardaí in the district.

Diary records show that former garda commissioner Nóirín O'Sullivan was in London on the day a garda HR executive says she attended a meeting, after which he was told they were “going after” whistleblower Sgt Maurice McCabe.

Here are all the latest headlines this lunchtime.

Former justice minister Frances Fitzgerald was shown an email and a print-out outlining a challenge by legal representatives of Garda Commissioner Noirin O'Sullivan to the credibility of garda whistleblower Sgt Maurice McCabe, the Charleton tribunal has heard.

An independent review initially considered adding an historic complaint against whistleblower Sgt Maurice McCabe to the terms of reference of the O'Higgins commission of investigation, but decided not to after reviewing the garda investigation files.

Former Garda commissioner Nóirín O’Sullivan did not give instructions to her legal team in relation to the dealings of whistleblower Sgt Maurice McCabe with senior officers also represented by her legal team, because she did not have direct factual knowledge of the issues, the Charleton Tribunal has heard.

Nóirín O’Sullivan may be called back to the Disclosures Tribunal after new documentation was received by counsel for Maurice McCabe.

Your lunchtime news bulletin.

Former Garda Commissioner Nóirín O'Sullivan has told the Charleton Tribunal that she had done nothing that would threaten the role of garda whistleblower Sgt Maurice McCabe.

A garda witness has told the Charleton Tribunal that former Commissioner Nóirín O'Sullivan did not contribute to a document which outlined legal instructions to challenge whistleblower Maurice McCabe's motivation.

In early 2015, Garda commissioner Nóirín O’Sullivan was doing her best for the turbulent cop who had blown the whistle on malpractice in the force.

A decade-old indecent assault allegation against whistleblower Sgt Maurice McCabe was discussed at a meeting between gardaí and lawyers days before the O'Higgins commission of inquiry began hearings.

An attempt to introduce the Garda handling of an historic abuse allegation made against whistleblower Sgt Maurice McCabe at the O’Higgins Commission was made solely for the purpose of embarrassing the sergeant, the Charleton Tribunal has been told.

A draft letter from the Garda Commissioner to the Department of Justice about the legal strategy pursued by the commissioner at the O'Higgins inquiry was written by a Department official, the Charleton tribunal has heard.

Labour’s Alan Kelly has said he wants to become justice minister, with an aim “to clean up the department” and “go in and gut it”.

Light reads, accessible history and gripping novels are championed by the people we asked to recommend their best reads of 2017, writes Richard Fitzpatrick.

Here are all the latest headlines this lunchtime.

Oireachtas members have severely criticised the acting chief of the Department of Justice for insisting the department had “fully complied” with initial discovery orders issued by the Charleton Tribunal.

Here's your morning news bulletin...

The email accounts of former minister for justice Frances Fitzgerald and her political advisers were not examined in the recent trawl for documents relevant to the Charleton Tribunal.

In July 2015, the following was the official line to be conveyed to the media by the minister for justice about the status of Sgt Maurice McCabe, writes Michael Clifford.

In July 2015, the following was the official line to be conveyed to the media by the minister for justice about the status of Sgt Maurice McCabe.

An independent barrister is likely to be appointed, potentially as soon as this weekend, to oversee an external inquiry into why the Department of Justice failed to hand over key Maurice McCabe email files to the Charleton Tribunal.

The Department of Justice has received a hammering before, but few can recall a time when its own minister and the Taoiseach gave it such a public tongue-lashing, writes Cormac O'Keeffe.

You’d want to have had a heart of stone not to feel sorry for Frances Fitzgerald as she walked out of Leinster House on Tuesday, writes Victoria White.

The Department of Justice has received a hammering before, but few can recall a time when its own minister and the Taoiseach gave it such a public tongue-lashing, writes Cormac O’Keeffe.

The Government has dismissed attempts to amend the terms of reference of the Charleton investigation claiming it would further delay the “vital” work of the tribunal.

There was a giddy atmosphere around the Dáil.

Tánaiste Frances Fitzgerald’s position in Government was last night deemed to be “untenable” by the opposition and many of her own ministerial colleagues as talks to avoid a general election entered the 11th hour.

Tánaiste Frances Fitzgerald faces mounting pressure from her Fine Gael ministerial colleagues after fresh information around her knowledge of the Maurice McCabe scandal emerged.

Fine Gael supporters will this weekend rally around embattled Tánaiste Frances Fitzgerald and encourage her to remain on, as the Government fights off the possibility of a snap election.