Education minister Josepha Madigan took to RTÉ's 6.01 News yesterday and stuck to her guns on special education centres, though she's open to changing the name.    

Her colleague Leo Varadkar has announced that a living wage will be introduced "over a number of years." The Tánaiste is also relaxed about Government TDs and senators enjoying gambling industry hospitality at the races.

Elsewhere, the Indo lifts the lid on two former sec-gens enjoying full pay on bespoke academic secondments until they reach full pension. That title also sent a couple of scribblers down to the passport office recently. 

And in Ukraine, Kharkiv is under bombardment again after booting out Russian troops a couple of weeks ago. 

The Irish mariner and hydrologist Admiral Francis Beaufort was born on this day in 1774. Zen brings you a simple illustration of his still-in-use stormy scale. 

Get through the day; have a good weekend.

Bernard