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IRELAND

A sister of the teenager who is fighting for his life after taking a suspected designer drug has backed public health warnings to avoid so-called party pills.

Gardaí have appealed for the public’s help in tracing a woman and her one-week-old baby who have not been seen since two days after the child’s birth and who are believed to be with the woman’s boyfriend.

Small rural post offices could receive up to €20,000 a year in government subsidies to stay alive.

A review into road maintenance being published today shows that less than one in four defects on the country's busiest routes are being fixed.

Cork University Hospital has cancelled all non-urgent elective surgeries scheduled for today blaming pressure in its emergency department.

Seventeen backroom political personnel in Taoiseach Enda Kenny’s department are earning almost €1.4m a year, with a number handed pay rises since entering office.

WORLD 

Almost a decade after Alexander Litvinenko’s fatal poisoning sparked one of Britain’s most extraordinary murder investigations, the conclusions of an official inquiry into his death are set to be published today.

Donald Trump is brandishing the endorsement of conservative Republican firebrand Sarah Palin in the increasingly intense 2016 GOP presidential sweepstakes.

SPORT

”Some aren’t happy with the coverage,” said GAA President Aogán Ó Fearghail last week, referring to the ongoing negative reaction to the GAA’s decision to sell exclusive rights to championship matches to Sky Sports. So, here are just a few reasons for the unhappiness.

CJ Stander can finally start practising the words to Amhrán na bhFiann. The back-row forward was yesterday named in Joe Schmidt’s squad for next month’s RBS 6 Nations.

BUSINESS

Global streaming company Spotify has bought Irish music startup Soundwave for an undisclosed sum.

British pub operator JD Wetherspoon said its Irish bars are continuing to trade well and it remains “100%” committed to continually expanding its presence here.

ANALYSIS

The hospitalisation of six people after allegedly taking 2C-B is a prime example of the potential dangers of consuming a so-called designer drug.

LIFESTYLE

We handed Aisling O’Donovan a copy of Lorna Sixsmith’s How to be a Perfect Farm Wife and she came back shocked that such expectations, even tongue in cheek, could exist today

VIDEO

Three weeks away from moving the first 270 Tyco staff of 700 proposed in the multinational giant’s global HQ into the €50 million-plus Cork office development One Albert Quay, the John Cleary Developments 170,000 sq ft landmark building “will act as a talent magnet for Tyco, and for Cork.”

VIRAL

We asked readers of irishexaminer.com to tell us what their favourite Irish dish is and they voted in their droves.

A mystery bus driver in Cork has touched the hearts of thousands of people. While driving the 205 service from CIT to Kent Station, he noticed an elderly lady stumble and almost fall when departing from the bus in Cork city and he went out of his way to ensure her safety.

TECHNOW

GAMING: Prison Architect served its time in Early Access on PC being released in full. The prison building and management sim will soon be transferred over to PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Xbox 360, according to developer Introversion.

MOVIES: There's a new Zoolander movie on the way quite soon, so it's time to track down the man himself for a lot of questions.

TECH: Vodafone Ireland has just launched their latest product, which is set to bring a whole new level of choice into Irish homes.

SHOWBIZ

Poldark actor Aidan Turner has picked up the Impact Award at the NTA’s in London – admitting he’s “confused” by the honour.

MOST READ RIGHT NOW

A 10-year-old Muslim boy was quizzed by police after mistakenly writing that he lived in a “terrorist house” rather than a “terraced” one.