A 37-YEAR-OLDman was charged at a special sitting of Dundalk District Court yesterday morning with the murder of a man whose body was found in a house in Dundalk town on Friday.

Gregory Conway, who gave an address at Fr Murray Park in Dundalk, was charged with the murder of 43-year-old Liam Maguire, also known as Liam Murphy.

Maguire was found dead after gardai were called to his house at Woodview Terrace on the Castletown Road in Dundalk around 12.30am.

Conway was arrested at 3am on Friday and taken to hospital for treatment on an eye injury. Postmortem results showed the victim had been stabbed.

MEDICAL STUDENTS PRICED OUT OF COURSES . . . UNION

IT was claimed yesterday that qualified students are being deprived of places on postgraduate medical courses because of financial concerns at universities.

The Union of Students in Ireland said some colleges are being forced to sell the courses at prices that large numbers of students can't afford, and called on the government to dramatically increase third-level funding.

MURDERER MALCOLM MACARTHUR MAKES BID FOR FREEDOM

CONVICTED murderer Malcolm MacArthur is to make a new bid for freedom in the High Court tomorrow, by claiming that the state failed to put forward any defence against a recommendation that he should be released.

A parole board has unanimously supported a programme under which MacArthur would be given short-term release, followed by full release.

GARDAI SEND FILE ON MURDER OF RACHEL O'REILLY TO DPP

GARDAI have sent a file on the murder of Dublin woman Rachel O'Reilly to the DPP following a 21month investigation, it was revealed yesterday.

The file, which extends to four volumes, is based on largely circumstantial evidence. However, senior garda officers have said they are hopeful that it will result in criminal charges against the prime suspect in the case.

FARMERS DEMAND /7.7BN PACKAGE IN NEW PAY AGREEMENT

TALKS were continuing yesterday in Dublin about the agricultural element of the new national agreement. A deal between unions, employers and the government was reached earlier in the week, but negotiations on the farming section have still to be completed. Farmers are said to be looking for a 7.7bn package.

FOUR QUESTIONED OVER MURDER OF MAN IN CO DOWN

FOUR people in the North were still being questioned about the murder of a lodger found dead at the house where he was staying in Co Down. The three men and an 18-yearold woman were arrested on Friday. The body of 58year-old Edward Kelly was discovered on Thursday night in Bangor.

He had suffered serious head injuries.

FIVE IRISH BEACHES FAIL TO MEET EUROPEAN BATHING STANDARDS

ONLY five Irish beaches do not meet the basic European standards for bathing water quality, it was revealed yesterday.

The beaches, in Clifden and Na Forbacha in Co Galway, Merrion Strand and Sutton's Burrow Beach in Co Dublin, and Ardmore in Co Waterford, were deemed not clean enough for swimmers by the European Commission.