LUNCHTIME BULLETIN: Leadership issue not distracting from government business, says Simon Harris

Here's your lunchtime news bulletin.

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IRELAND: A heartless son tied up his 68-year-old sick mother and robbed her of the €11,600 she had saved to pay for her funeral.

IRELAND: Scientists in Cork have given a new meaning to gut reaction, by linking gut bacteria to anxiety disorders.

IRELAND: The Health Minister Simon Harris has denied that the Fine Gael leadership issue is distracting from government business.

BUSINESS: The new Brexit strategy unveiled by Enterprise Ireland to assist companies in diversifying into eurozone countries should be replicated by the Government as a matter of national policy to assist small business, according to a lobby group representing SMEs.

WORLD: The Labour manifesto promises a "better future for our country", Jeremy Corbyn said as he set out his blueprint for government in the UK.

SPORT: History beckons for the Cork hurlers this weekend. But not the sort of history they'll want to be associated with.

SPORT: The 2018 Six Nations fixtures have thrown up another Ireland v England Paddy's Day clash. Here's the fixture list in full.

... SOME DISTRACTION

VIRAL: Aoibhín Garrihy’s husband John Burke, has become the first Clare man to summit Everest.

ARTS: Critics have not been kind so far, but Guy Ritchie is sticking by his new King Arthur film, not least the casting of David Beckham.

VIRAL:Students at Crawford College of Art and Design in Cork have been busy preparing for the annual Degree Show, which will be opened by Rory O'Neill, aka Panti Bliss.