The Times has this opinion piece criticizing the health service’s management, despite having adequate funding.

Meanwhile, in the ongoing race for Tory leader, Rishi Sunak launched his strongest attack yet on his rival Liz Truss’s economic policies, claiming her £30bn plans for unfunded tax cuts risk stoking inflation and pushing up interest rates. His attack came as a new poll of Tory party members gave Truss a commanding lead in the race to become prime minister.

In other news, more than 160 million women worldwide who need contraception are unable to access it, according to the largest study of its kind. Back in Ireland, free contraception for women aged 17 to 25 is set to be rolled out following the signing off of new legislation.

As we approach day 150 of the invasion, Ukraine and Russia are set to sign a deal today to unblock grain exports and relieve a global food crisis, as a critical Russian gas pipeline to Europe reopened. However, there was no respite in the conflict on the ground, with Russian artillery yesterday attacking Ukraine’s second largest city Kharkiv, already scarred by weeks of shelling.

In finance, tracker mortgage rates for Irish banking customers are set to rise following the European Central Bank’s (ECB) decision to raise it’s interest rate by 0.5%, the first hike in over a decade; while Taoiseach Micheál Martin has said AIB should reconsider its decision to remove cash services from 70 of its branches.

And a working group tasked with assessing the scale of construction defects at Celtic Tiger era apartments and duplexes is expected to finalise its report today and will shortly present it to the Minister for Housing. The report is expected to show that as many as 100,000 apartments or duplexes are affected by fire safety, water ingress and other defects.

Finally, the cost-of-living crisis seems to be affecting absolutely everyone, with this latest example. Penguins at an aquarium in Japan are giving an icy reception to the cheaper fish that’s shown up on the menu in the face of rising costs. The aquarium had changed the diet of its penguins and otters due to high food prices. And the animals aren’t impressed. 

Have a good weekend folks.