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South Africa's president Thabo Mbeki welcomes Taoiseach Bertie Ahern in Pretoria yesterday. Mr Ahern, on a five-day visit to South Africa and Tanzania, has been looking at ways to develop bilateral and trade relations, while also visiting Irish-funded development projects.

Photograph: Reuters

Minister rejects call for early child rights referendum
The Government has rejected an Opposition call for an early and limited referendum on children's rights following the collapse of the C case yesterday.
Iseq loses €3.2bn as US recession looms
The world's biggest economy stumbled one step closer to recession yesterday as new figures that show US consumers are deserting shopping malls left global stock markets reeling and sent the dollar to within a cent of its record low against the euro.
Census throws up treasure trove for trivia buffs
How many Presbyterian Pakistanis live in Ireland? Are there Chinese-born Travellers? Widowed teenagers? Most pressingly, how many Lithuanian immigrants live in semi-detached houses built between 1910 and 1940?

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Finance

NYSE buys NI software firm for $200m
Wombat Financial Software, which employs 100 staff in Belfast and has strong links with the North, has been acquired by the New York Stock Exchange for $200 million (€134.7 million). p
Payzone chief Nagle discusses terms of departure
Payzone chief executive John Nagle and chief financial officer John Williamson are discussing the terms of their departure from the electronic payments and ATM company, The Irish Times has learned. p
Bremore Port group takes on Hutchison as partner
The developer of the Republic's newest deepwater port has hired Asian giant, Hutchison, as a partner on the €300 million project. p
Bank's major shareholders fail to limit board's powers
Northern Rock's two largest shareholders failed yesterday to win the backing of fellow investors for its proposals to limit the powers of the bank's board. p

Ireland

Nursing unions discuss strike
The two nursing unions, whose members engaged in more than seven weeks of industrial action last year in pursuit of a pay rise, are today expected to announce that they will once again ballot members on industrial action. p
Bolger has no documents recording sale of horse
Horse breeder Jim Bolger told the Mahon tribunal he had no financial records to prove that he sold a horse to lobbyist Frank Dunlop in 1992. The tribunal heard that Mr Dunlop paid almost £64,000 to Mr Bolger for a foal in March 1992, including upkeep. p
Green TDs and senators to vote Yes for treaty
The campaign for a Yes vote on the Lisbon Treaty to reform the EU received a boost yesterday when the Green parliamentary party deciding unanimously to back the Yes campaign. p
Greens and PDs say they back Mahon tribunal
As controversy over the Taoiseach's tax affairs continued yesterday, the leaders of the two junior coalition parties expressed their full support for the Mahon tribunal while the Opposition claimed the Government parties were now divided on the issue. p
Mother who killed daughter 'suffered depression'
A Kilkenny psychiatrist who drowned her daughter in the bath should not be held responsible for the killing because she was suffering from a major depressive disorder which led her to think she was helping her daughter escape a hopeless life ruled by anorexia nervosa, a court has heard. p
HSE to look at isolating CF patients
The possibility of accommodating cystic fibrosis (CF) patients in single rooms in private hospitals until proper facilities are provided for them in the public system will be looked at, the Minster for Health said yesterday. p
Quinn murder 'test for peace deal'
The murder of south Armagh man Paul Quinn (21) in a paramilitary-style attack last October was a worse outrage than the murder of Belfast man Robert McCartney three years ago, Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny said last night. p
Man admits having child porn
A 44-year-old man pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography at Sligo Circuit Court yesterday. p

Motors

UK write-offs being sold here
UK-registered cars written off as dangerous and classed as not roadworthy following crashes have been sold to motorists in Ireland and have reappeared on Irish roads, a new report has found.

World

State's restrictions on EU workers criticised
EU: The Government's decision to restrict the right of Bulgarians and Romanians to work in Ireland sends an unfriendly message to our new EU partners and may be discriminatory. It is also unjustified because migration from both countries is stabilising or falling after years of migration in the 1990s and is more likely to be directed towards Spain or Italy. p
Israeli strike kills 18 in Gaza Strip
MIDDLE EAST: Just a day after Israel and the Palestinians started negotiations on a resolution of the Middle East conflict, 18 Palestinians were killed yesterday in fighting with Israeli forces, who moved into the Gaza Strip overnight on Monday in an operation aimed at deterring Palestinian fighters from firing rockets into Israel. p
After Michigan Latinos become the focus
US: Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama yesterday launched their battles for the Latino vote, recognising the influence of the US's fastest-growing community. p

Sport

Bulgarians refuse to play ball off pitch
SOCCER: Ultimately, the bigger battles will be fought on the pitch over the latter part of this year and the entirety of 2009 but in their first encounter with their Bulgarian counterparts, the FAI lost out yesterday as the hosts for the Group Eight fixtures meeting dug their heels in and obliged chief executive John Delaney and co to give potentially costly ground here in Sofia. p
Liverpool bury poor Luton
SOCCER/Liverpool 5 Luton Town 0: Liverpool finished what the administrators started for Luton Town last night, brutally removing what remained of the elation Kevin Blackwell's men had generated in this season's FA Cup. The financial lifeline that has helped preserve the immediate future of Luton, however, will soon soften the blow. p
Flannery cited for alleged stamping
RUGBY: Ireland and Munster hooker Jerry Flannery and his Wasps counterpart Raphael Ibanez, who are due to be in opposition in Saturday's semi-final Heineken European Cup Pool Five clash at Thomond Park, will have to appear before ERC disciplinary panels as a result of incidents arising out of European matches last weekend. p

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Minister rejects call for early child rights referendum

Iseq loses €3.2bn as US recession looms

Census throws up treasure trove for trivia buffs

Head2Head

Business poll

Education

NYSE buys NI software firm for $200m

Payzone chief Nagle discusses terms of departure

Bremore Port group takes on Hutchison as partner

Bank's major shareholders fail to limit board's powers

Nursing unions discuss strike

Bolger has no documents recording sale of horse

Green TDs and senators to vote Yes for treaty

Greens and PDs say they back Mahon tribunal

Mother who killed daughter 'suffered depression'

HSE to look at isolating CF patients

Quinn murder 'test for peace deal'

Man admits having child porn

UK write-offs being sold here

State's restrictions on EU workers criticised

Israeli strike kills 18 in Gaza Strip

After Michigan Latinos become the focus

Bulgarians refuse to play ball off pitch

Liverpool bury poor Luton

Flannery cited for alleged stamping

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