The HSE has launched a public consultation on increasing access to contraception. To see how you can get involved click here.

RTE reports that Ibec has called for measures to grow indigenous Irish enterprise and reinvent Ireland's offering to multinational firms to be included in October's budget. Its pre-budget submission also seeks action to address the demands of a rapidly changing labour market, to help businesses attract and retain the best talent and to help companies prepare for Brexit. 

In Brexit news, The Times reports that proposals put forward by a UK group to find “alternative arrangements” to the backstop “would kill firms, damage consumers and inflict a level of surveillance on to Border communities which doesn’t have their consent." Meanwhile Simon Coveney has said that a no-deal Brexit was an "ugly prospect" and said he believed that a hard Brexit will put a great deal of strain on political relationships on the island of Ireland.

David Attenborough has given evidence to the UK Parliament's business, energy and industrial strategy committee on how to tackle the climate emergency. During his address he said radical action was required and told MPs, as he predicted that polluting the planet would soon provoke as much abhorrence as slavery. He also highlighted Australia as an “extraordinary” example of a country where people in power remained climate change deniers despite the country facing some of the worst effects of global heating.

The Indo reports on an initiative by the Irish Prison Service in which prisioners are being given a purpose up-cycling bikes to provide transport to African children getting to and from school. Read more on that here 

The Public Accounts Committee has called for a new cost-benefit analysis to be completed before the signing of a contract for the €5 billion National Broadband Plan (NBP). In its annual report the committee found it was “unacceptable” that there was a “major escalation” in the cost of rural broadband without cost benefit analysis being carried out 

Bord na gCon, the commercial semi-State body responsible for the control and development of the greyhound industry in Ireland has pledged to radically rearrange the oversight of greyhound care and welfare and has acknowledged further work needs to be done to bring the care and welfare of greyhounds up to the highest possible standard. The organisation  made the comments in its opening statement to the Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine following the broadcast of the harrowing 'RTÉ Investigates - Greyhounds, Running for Their Lives' last month.

Following on from last night's performance by Stevie Wonder in the 3 Arena, our zen is this gem from the Motown legend.