By Friday, the death toll in the Hong Kong apartment complex inferno had reached 128 with many more people unaccounted for.

A blaze that began in one 32-storey apartment block on Wednesday quickly spread to seven of the eight towers in the densely populated complex. So how did one of the city’s deadliest ever blazes spread so quickly.

The Kwong Fuk Estate, a public housing development, was undergoing refurbishment and the buildings were covered in bamboo scaffolding and netting. New cladding had been installed and now that the rescue operation is over, attention is turning on investigating why and how the fire took hold.

As the death toll grows and questions around building standards mount, Irish Times Beijing correspondent Denis Staunton, who reported from London in 2017 sees clear parallels with the Grenfell Tower disaster.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Declan Conlon.

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Ireland has been slow to name its airports after people. Streets and housing estates, yes, but as Ronan McGreevy points out, the State is more inclined to honour those who died for Ireland rather than those who lived for it.

A Bill to rename Dublin Airport after former taoiseach Seán Lemass has been brought forward in the Dáil.

It is not the first time the suggestion has been made; four years ago Taoiseach Micheál Martin proposed it, but talk of it fizzled out.

For McGreevy, an Irish Times journalist and historian whose next book is on Lemass, the former taoiseach and leader of Fianna Fáil (1959-1966) is a clear choice.

He tells In the News how Lemass was a great moderniser and as minister for industry and commerce when the airport opened in 1940, was a a supporter of facilitating air travel both in and out of the country.

The proposed legislation was introduced on Tuesday by Fianna Fáil TD Malcolm Byrne, who said the airport “owes much to his policies and foresight”.

So will the Seán Lemass Dublin International Airport Bill 2025 succeed? And why are we so reluctant to honour our former taoisigh? He points out that Cork’s Jack Lynch Tunnel is the only piece of State infrastructure named after a former leader.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan and John Casey.

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Heart disease is the leading causes of death of women in Ireland but yet, many of us still consider it a male illness.

Cardiovascular disease claims more women’s lives than breast cancer, while women are more than two times more likely than men to die after a heart attack. The risk of heart disease substantially increases during menopause and yet, women and their doctors often underestimate the severity of their symptoms.

Why is that?

Years of poor research into women’s cardiac health, combined with the perception often promoted through film and TV that heart attacks solely happen to men, has created a distorted image of this disease and resulted in a health system primarily designed to cater for the needs of men, not women.

For decades, scientific experts presumed the results of cardiac trials designed using the male anatomy would also hold true for women. Women’s hormonal fluctuations during periods and menopause often excluded them from heart disease trials.

And while research into heart disease among women has improved in the past decade, many women have no idea the risks they face, particularly during and after menopause.

So, what are the heart attack warning signs women need to watch out for? And what changes can they make early to try to avoid heart disease?

Today, on In The News, cardiovascular nurse Shirley Ingram reflects on her personal experience of suffering a heart attack. And Dr Sharon O’Donell and Dr Deidre Daly from Trinity College discuss how the university’s international Caramel project hopes to transform how women understand this disease.

Presented by Sorcha Pollak. Produced by Suzanne Brennan and Andrew McNair.

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Black Friday – a Thanksgiving shopping extravaganza imported from the US – isn’t just one day any more. Retailers, both online and in the shops, started advertising their Black Friday deals as soon as the Halloween decorations came down. And it’s set to continue into December.

Irish shoppers have taken to bargain hunting with enthusiasm: a survey by PwC, which looked at Black Friday shopping habits in five European countries, found the Irish spend an average of €329, way more than our more frugal neighbours in Germany, France and Italy.

Two-thirds of that is online which opens the digital door for scammers to get in.

Irish Times consumer correspondent Conor Pope explains why Black Friday, with its “unbeatable bargains” and countdown clocks is a gift for scammers. He also tells how to beat the scammers at this distracting time of the year.

And are their bargains to be had? Pope advises the best time to buy and how to spend you money so you’ll get the best bargains.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan.

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This is an episode of our new sister podcast, Early Edition. It's in your feed this morning because -as a listener of In The News, we thought you might like enjoy it. But don't worry, you'll still find In The News in its usual spot. If you enjoy Early Edition - four of our top stories in ten minutes - please give it a follow on your podcast app.

“Flying blind” and “budgeting like there’s no tomorrow” – the government’s management of the economy is being roundly criticised by the Irish Fiscal Advisory Council.

A group of Ranelagh residents have launched a legal challenge to the Metrolink project – with the potential to stall the long-awaited underground rail line.

Consumer Affairs correspondent Conor Pope is urging caution in the Black Friday online shopping frenzy.

The RDS has been renamed the Laya Arena in a new naming rights partnership, while a bill to rename Dublin Airport after this former Taoiseach has progressed in the Dáil.

Presented by Aideen Finnegan

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Denmark’s immigration laws have evolved over the past 20 years but the intention underpinning them is the same: only asylum seekers who have been invited should come to the country.

Danish immigration rules are strict. In 2013, the Danes instituted a so-called “jewellery law” whereby jewellery and valuables could be taken from refugees entering the country to pay for their keep. And while the measure has rarely been enforced, it is an example of government messaging aimed at deterring refugees from travelling to its borders.

Gaining residency rights takes longer than in other EU countries and family reunification is more difficult. Those who live in areas where more than 50 per cent of residents are deemed “non-Western” are refused family reunion. Failed asylum seekers are moved to deportation centres where the conditions are basic, the idea being they will self-deport rather than stay there.

As the UK’s Labour government cites Denmark as a model to be copied as it reforms its own immigration rules, EU states are increasingly looking northwards to the Danes for measures that stem arrivals and manage those already in the bloc.

Irish Times Europe correspondent Naomi O’Leary explains.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Pharma giant Eli Lilly manufactures the ingredients for its weight-loss drug Mounjaro and its diabetes drug Zepbound in Kinsale, Co Cork.

The Irish Fiscal Advisory Council (Ifac) has found that the unprecedented surge in Irish exports this year (exports to the US rose by 153 per cent to €71bn between January and May) was almost entirely driven by shipments of these ingredients.

Ifac tracked about €36.4bn of this export surge to Indianapolis, where Eli Lilly is headquartered and where it has several manufacturing sites.

The jump in exports is expected to see the Irish economy expand by almost 11 per cent in GDP terms this year, which is almost certain to make it the fastest-growing advanced economy in the world in 2025.

So with such an over-reliance on foreign direct investment, notably in the pharma sector, at a time of tariff threats and uncertainty, how vulnerable is Ireland?

Irish Times economics correspondent Eoin Burke-Kennedy explains.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan and Andrew McNair.

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We're happy to share an episode Early Edition, a new podcast from The Irish Times that brings you four of our top stories in under ten minutes. Find it in your podcast app and hit follow to get updates each morning from Monday to Friday. On today's episode:

The Minister for Justice and the Chief of Staff of the Defence Forces must hand over the names and contact details of people who may have blocked, or simply ignored, complaints of abuse within army ranks. Ellen Coyne has the details.

Nursing home owners want immigration rules relaxed so they can hire more workers from outside the EU, UK and European Economic Area. Martin Wall says they’re seeking changes to the so-called 50/50 rule.

Tech workers in Ireland think the general public has an unrealistic idea of who they are and what they really do. Three of them have been speaking to Hugh Linehan in the first of our series, The Professionals, which looks at Ireland through the lens of different categories of worker.

And winner of The Traitors Ireland, Vanessa Ogbonno, has been chatting to Tony Clayton-Lea for Me and My Money. She describes herself as a saver, but her most extravagant purchase ever was a bit of retail therapy to take the sting out of losing a football competition.

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