The Minister for Education says initial checks will be complete by close of business today on all 42 schools at the centre of concerns over structural issues.

Minister Joe McHugh says he understands parents' concerns and frustrations, adding that he's in constant contact with Department officials.

He said intense investigation are being fast-tracked to get as much information as possible ahead of children's return after the mid-term break.

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Ireland has come second among 41 wealthy nations in reducing education inequality between children.

However, according to UNICEF, there are still concerns among vulnerable groups such as homeless children, Traveller children and those from migrant families.

The report card shows that, for Ireland, inequality among children decreases as they move from primary to secondary school.

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Search teams looking for people killed in yesterday's plane crash in Indonesia have retrieved at least ten bodies from the Java Sea.

Relatives are now being flown to the capital Jakarta to identify victims.

189 people are thought to have died when the Lion Air passenger jet crashed.

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Donald Trump says he's planning to create "tent cities" to house thousands of asylum-seekers who are travelling through Mexico, and heading for the US.

The US President is deploying more than 5,000 troops to the country's southern border ahead of the caravan's arrival.

Separately, President Trump is travelling to Pittsburgh later today following the massacre of 11 people in a synagogue shooting over the weekend.

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The number of people on trolleys is expected to hit a thousand as winter sets in.

The President of the Irish Medical Organisation (IMO) Dr Peader Gilligan's warning that our hospitals face another chaotic winter, which will put more pressure on our health service.

He says a lack of emergency department resources, a lack of beds and a lack of recruitment will combine to create a "perfect storm".