Developers will be charged as low as 4% interest on state loans to construct houses under the new Home Building Finance Ireland (HBFI) scheme.

A Garda chief has said he is “absolutely confident” that investigations into four murders in his area will be successful.

The Government has been forced to defend proposals linking child benefit to school attendance after charities and politicians reacted angrily to the plans.

Increasing rent supplements would cost an extra €86m a year and push those on low incomes out of the market, Kevin Humphreys, minister of state at the Department of Social Protection, said.

Batteries powering water meters in houses will need to be replaced or recharged after 12 years, Irish Water has admitted.

The Government has been urged to mount a counter campaign to resist the mounting pressure and lobbying to drop its radical plan to outlaw tobacco branding on cigarette packets.

THE police chief in Mauritius yesterday revealed they only had “circumstantial evidence” linking three local men with the murder of Michaela Harte.

THE police chief in Mauritius yesterday revealed they only had “circumstantial evidence” linking three local men with the murder of Michaela Harte.

ONE of Fianna Fáil’s senior figures has said she has had enough of Ivor Callely’s antics and asked for a friend or family member to talk him into leaving politics and the party.

AN ARRANGEMENT between the State and the Catholic Church’s pregnancy advice service on issuing abortion clinic contacts must end, a moral theologian insisted yesterday.