Newsround: what Monday's papers say

The top stories in Monday's papers:

THE IRISH TIMES

- Fears that Britain will leave the European Union's customs union, raising the prospect of tariffs on goods moving across the border, have intensified in Dublin following leaks of British prime minister Theresa May's forthcoming major speech on her government's Brexit plans, the paper says.

- On its front page, it also reports that Minister for Education Richard Bruton will announce plans to remove the baptism barrier from schools to ensure children from non-religious backgrounds are not discriminated against in school admission policies.

- Staff in Bus Éireann are to be presented with a range of cost-saving proposals by management today after the war of words over the future of the loss-making company escalated over the weekend.

- In its business section, the paper reports that soaring demand for office space in Dublin city centre could result in many indigenous firms being priced out of the market, Lisney has warned.

FINANCIAL TIMES

- The paper also leads with Brexit, reporting that UK Chancellor Philip Hammond warned yesterday that Britain would become a low-tax competitor if it was not granted good access to the EU's common market in the strongest indication yet of the direction Brexit talks will take.

- In the US, preparations for the swearing-in of the 45th US president were made as Donald Trump attacked opponents for questioning his political legitimacy as he tried to deflect questions over alleged links between his campaign and the Kremlin.

- Facebook is rolling out measures in Germany to fact-check news and flag fake reports to try to stem the proliferation of news hoaxes before the country's election.

- Under the headline, 'Growing apart', the FT Big Read focuses on the relationship between the UK and Ireland, reporting that this country, with its historical and economic links to the UK, expects to feel the impact of Brexit harder than any other EU state.

IRISH INDEPENDENT

- Religious issues dominate the paper's front page as the paper also reports on Richard Bruton's plans to tackle the "baptism barrier". It also reports that a group of lay Catholics have expressed deep frustration over the bishops' failure to bring proposals on ending the celibacy requirement for Catholic priests to Pope Francis during a visit to Rome this week.

- The paper also reports that elections in Northern Ireland look almost certain to be called today while UK Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, James Brokenshire, has said that political chaos in the North will not derail the UK's Brexit timetable.

- Ireland ranks 12th in the world for its ability to attract, retain, train and educate skilled workers, according to a new survey, but it lags behind in preventing the brain drain of its own top workers.

- Outgoing CIA director John Brennan has ripped into Donald Trump for "talking and tweeting" about possibly easing sanctions against Russia and said the president-elect lacked a full understanding of the threat Moscow poses to the US.

IRISH EXAMINER

- Brexit features on the paper's front page as it reports that Ireland is at risk of being thrown into the middle of a damaging trade war between the UK and the EU after Britain threatened to slash its corporate tax rate and seek a hard Brexit split from Europe.

- The son of murdered French film producer Sophie Toscan du Plantier vowed to continue his family's quest for justice when he flew to west Cork on Saturday to mark the 20th anniversary of her murder.

- Thousands of property owners who keep homes empty for more than two years could face 100 per cent tax hikes in a bid to force them to release houses onto the rental market, a government TD has proposed.

- In its business section, the paper reports that the Irish construction sector ended 2016 with activity in residential and commercial building continuing to rise but civil engineering remains weak, according to the latest report on the sector from Ulster Bank.