Thursday morning briefing: Ministers asked to forego €12,000 pay hike. Catch up on all the headlines

Here’s a briefing on some of the stories and issues highlighted on irishexaminer.com today.

IRELAND

The Government is open to setting up an independent, external body tasked with overseeing Garda whistleblower complaints due to growing concerns as to how allegations are being treated with the force.

It seems that Government Ministers will not be getting a pay rise out of the Budget after all.

Taoiseach Enda Kenny has said he hopes the benefits from the budget will be felt by every home as he faced a backlash over the lack of Brexit-proofing measures in next year’s spending plans.

Fianna Fáil has said it will abstain from a vote on the new help-to-buy scheme which would offer a €20,000 tax rebate to first time buyers on newly- built homes.

WORLD

Several women have made allegations of sexual assault against Donald Trump in a series of interviews, adding to the already damaging revelations about the Republican presidential nominee's aggressive sexual comments about women.

A Syrian man arrested in Germany over a suspected Islamic extremist bomb plot has killed himself in a prison cell in Leipzig, according to Saxony's state Justice Ministry.

SPORT

Football agent Scott McGarvey insists Sam Allardyce losing his job as England manager over the Daily Telegraph sting was an over-reaction by the Football Association.

So Marc is gone. And with him, the living and breathing Ó Sé dynasty is no more.

There is no chance of the black card being ditched from Gaelic football, according to GAA president Aogán Ó Fearghail.

Niyi Adeolokun says he never believed he’d become a pro rugby player — never mind earn an Ireland call.

OPINION

Nóirín O’Sullivan’s performance yesterday did nothing to quell doubts about whether any confidence can be vested in the running of the force.

A powerful man’s boastful description of manhandling women’s bodies has spurred thousands of survivors to share their experiences.

BUSINESS

Entrepreneurs and early-stage start-up companies in Cork are in with a chance of landing a grant of up to €25,000 to develop their business concept as part of a new State-backed fund.

Eir has brought a legal challenge against a decision by regulator ComReg which it says “significantly constrains its ability to freely conduct its business affairs” and its ability to compete with other communication services providers.

LIFESTYLE

Colm O’Regan had run out of things to say about Irish mammies, hence his new book, a social commentary with a wry chuckle that describes the Irish tendency to self-aggrandise.

SHOWBIZ

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Life will imitate art for Bill Nighy when a movie in which he plays a film star premieres at the BFI London Film Festival.

VIRAL

'Garda’ Seamus visited London to pick up some tips from the Metropolitan Police.

VIDEO - OUR CHOICE

The Cork County senior football final is sure to be a hotly contested affair between Carbery Rangers and Ballincollig but one fan and a few sheep have gone the extra mile.

TECHNOW

GAMING: We had the chance to visit the pop up demo experience for the PlayStation VR yesterday - which is open from the 12th to the 16th of October at Dame Lane in Dublin.

MOVIE/TV: Doctor Strange is in Irish cinemas on the 25th of October, which is a good bit earlier than in the US because we're just awesome in these waters!

TECHNOLOGY: Virtual reality may be the big buzz word of the moment but there's another future tech on the way in the form of Augmented Reality.

MOST READ RIGHT NOW

Outraged rural Fine Gael deputies “tore strips out of” Jobs Minister Mary Mitchell O’Connor last night at a party meeting after a presentation she gave backfired and saw TDs turn on her.